5280JB
Active Member
Hello to the forum! Just wanted to post an intro to the group as I have recently acquired an E9 Coupe and look forward to getting to know the car and this community as a new owner and member. The car is a 1972 3.0 CS Coupe, Chamonix White over Blue leather interior. Converted to 5-speed trans.
It's an ironic "small world" story how I came to be this car's caretaker/owner: As a long time BMW enthusiast, I was doing some internet surfing back in 2008 when I came across a handful of pics of a white E9 coupe parked on a lawn, near a palm tree - just a gorgeous combination. Something about that particular coupe just really struck me. The stance, the color combination, the unique wood trim in the interior, whatever it was, I just thought "If I ever own an E9, I'd want it to look just like this one." I saved the 5 or 6 small pics onto my hard drive and over the years would occasionally pull them up and admire "The White E9" parked on the lawn somewhere around Santa Barbara, CA. I didn't have any other info on the car other than it was near Santa Barbara in 2008.
Fast forward to 2020 and I see a white E9 come up on BaT's auction site. Pics of the interior show a blue interior with custom wood trim - Could it be "The White E9?" Like a laboratory crime scene detective, I zoom in closely on the grain of the wood trim on the BaT car's door and compare it to my 2008 pics like comparing fingerprints - it IS the same car! At that time, however, I wasn't in a position to bid on the car and could only watch as it sold from its then home in Vancouver, British Columbia. At least the car had surfaced and still looked great.
A few weeks later, the owner of the shop that works on my E28 and E24 texts me a pic of a white E9 and says "Look at this beauty that just came into my shop - I knew you'd appreciate it." It was the same car - the winning bidder on BaT was in Denver, Colorado where I live! I told him "I know that car! Been lusting after it for years!" I sent him the pics I had from 2008 and asked him to forward on to the new owner as I though he'd like to see it from 2008. As an afterthought, I said "Tell the new owner to contact me if/when he's ever ready to sell that car." That never happens, but I thought I'd at least put it out there.
A few months go by and I get a text out of the blue from my friend the BMW shop owner - "Call me." The local owner (a long time collector) was looking to downsize his fleet and the white E9 coupe was available for sale. "You are first in line because you asked me to tell the owner to contact you" was what I heard. Timing was better this time and a few days later I was parking "The Santa Barbara White E9" in my garage.
I have met some forum members over the years via the E28 community, E24 community, or at events such as Monterey, Legends of the Autobahn, Amelia Island, etc. Look forward to sharing some coupe stories and experiences with the crew here!
Apologies for the long intro but I just wanted to share the car's back story and how I came to be its next caretaker.
Some pics here, including a shot with my friends' beautiful Silver Coupe alongside.
Jim Bair
Denver, Colorado (5,280 feet elevation)
It's an ironic "small world" story how I came to be this car's caretaker/owner: As a long time BMW enthusiast, I was doing some internet surfing back in 2008 when I came across a handful of pics of a white E9 coupe parked on a lawn, near a palm tree - just a gorgeous combination. Something about that particular coupe just really struck me. The stance, the color combination, the unique wood trim in the interior, whatever it was, I just thought "If I ever own an E9, I'd want it to look just like this one." I saved the 5 or 6 small pics onto my hard drive and over the years would occasionally pull them up and admire "The White E9" parked on the lawn somewhere around Santa Barbara, CA. I didn't have any other info on the car other than it was near Santa Barbara in 2008.
Fast forward to 2020 and I see a white E9 come up on BaT's auction site. Pics of the interior show a blue interior with custom wood trim - Could it be "The White E9?" Like a laboratory crime scene detective, I zoom in closely on the grain of the wood trim on the BaT car's door and compare it to my 2008 pics like comparing fingerprints - it IS the same car! At that time, however, I wasn't in a position to bid on the car and could only watch as it sold from its then home in Vancouver, British Columbia. At least the car had surfaced and still looked great.
A few weeks later, the owner of the shop that works on my E28 and E24 texts me a pic of a white E9 and says "Look at this beauty that just came into my shop - I knew you'd appreciate it." It was the same car - the winning bidder on BaT was in Denver, Colorado where I live! I told him "I know that car! Been lusting after it for years!" I sent him the pics I had from 2008 and asked him to forward on to the new owner as I though he'd like to see it from 2008. As an afterthought, I said "Tell the new owner to contact me if/when he's ever ready to sell that car." That never happens, but I thought I'd at least put it out there.
A few months go by and I get a text out of the blue from my friend the BMW shop owner - "Call me." The local owner (a long time collector) was looking to downsize his fleet and the white E9 coupe was available for sale. "You are first in line because you asked me to tell the owner to contact you" was what I heard. Timing was better this time and a few days later I was parking "The Santa Barbara White E9" in my garage.
I have met some forum members over the years via the E28 community, E24 community, or at events such as Monterey, Legends of the Autobahn, Amelia Island, etc. Look forward to sharing some coupe stories and experiences with the crew here!
Apologies for the long intro but I just wanted to share the car's back story and how I came to be its next caretaker.
Some pics here, including a shot with my friends' beautiful Silver Coupe alongside.
Jim Bair
Denver, Colorado (5,280 feet elevation)
