New Member- 1974 CSI 62k miles

[PaulSoCal]

Nice Group you all have here! Thanks for adding me.

I just bought a Fjord CSI 74 Manual. It is stock. The car was in storage since 1993, I bought it and am now getting it ready to drive and stop. It starts manual fed fuel....fuel pump worked after 21 years in storage!! Tank was super hairy....rust on the seam leaking.


There is some light rust on the outer skin. All chrome and bumpers pristine.
I need a new Fuel Tank, Rails/possible front right quarter cut, Carpet Kit Drivers door glass, wiring diagrams, master cylinder/brakes and i'm back in business.

I already changed out the starter, water pump and started changing the brake lines and wiring. I removed the alligator skin on the front right shock tower and found a bunch of rust. Ill be posting pics as soon as I can. Will either replace or repair...decisions decisions.

Cant wait to drive this car~!!

 

[HB Chris]

Welcome Paul,

Lots of owners in SoCal, just post here when you need help. And add your coupe to our Registry if not already done.

Chris

 

[Arde]

You may have pristine 1993 air in the tires!

What is the story? How did you find it?

The term here is elephant skin, for the trunk, and for our sensitivities...

 

[PaulSoCal]

Thanks Chris and reply.

I will take you up on that Chris ...shortly

ARDE! Alas...the pristine 1993 air had left the tires!!

It was sitting flat there. I refilled the tires and they hold air...i wont drive on them, but they work for now.

The story is rather simple. My attorney drove one of his friends in 1973 and decided he wanted one. He bought one new in 1974 from Germany. It was shipped over and driven by him, one of his 28 cars. In 1993 he hit a cement block on the front right tire and it tore up the fender and shock tower. He put the car in storage and was distracted by life after the fact. Till I told him I was looking for a better car to drive. He offered and I bought in early Sept.

1 owner car I am the owner now. It is registered.

There is more to the story unfolding, there are ricarro seats and a CSL steering wheel. The back seats are missing...? All numbers match.

I am looking at whether to replace front right quarter or to try and repair.

Been talking to Carl Nelson in San Diego....trying not to break the bank here. But its a clean car other than that.

 

[PaulSoCal]

You may have pristine 1993 air in the tires!

What is the story? How did you find it?

The term here is elephant skin, for the trunk, and for our sensitivities...

Am I incorrect I thought that it was alligator skin on the shock tower body etc and elephant skin in the trunk etc? Am I incorrect? I wouldnt doubt it. :?

Paul

 

[Aussiecsi]

You may have pristine 1993 air in the tires!

What is the story? How did you find it?

The term here is elephant skin, for the trunk, and for our sensitivities...

Arde, I think the "alligator" skin he is referring to is the sound insulation in the engine bay ....it's actually a honeycomb pattern and I guess kinda looks reptilian . But, yes, everyone should nevertheless be mindful of our sensitivities for things such as the endangered elephant trunk skin ...and also the very rare black market ivory roundels which grace my car .

 

[PaulSoCal]

What Im dealing with

Shock Tower and passenger rail.

Repair or replace.

 

[PaulSoCal]

Shock Tower

Here is my sole issue with rust.

I need a new fuel tank too.

 

[Peter Coomaraswamy]

OK, so Paul, got a little problem - she's a beautiful car and I'm sure there is allot of good in there but you have your (and an expert welder's) work cut out for you. The shock towers are quite rough and if the rust was isolated to the area of the accident then it would not be so bad but looks like you have some serious issues going on. Not sure if this is your first e9 but if I may make a suggestion; you should probably find EVERY spot of rust on the car and determine if you are able to fix everything for less than a large fortune before moving forward at all. Now, not to be discouraged as there are people on this site with much more experience than I and we have seen beautiful work done on these cars but you might seriously consider a "donor" shell before spending copious amounts of money on new steel from BMW (or wherever you can find some) and the cost of welding that together. Also, off the subject but is that a Rem-Line toolbox in the picture?- almost as rare as a rust free e9

The folks on this site can walk you through anything, you just might need some tough shoes and a bank account that your significant other can not view!

 

[PaulSoCal]

Response.

Peter,

Thanks for the kind words .

So heres the deal. The rust is isolated to where the accident happened and to the floorboards. A cinder block was hit in the road. 23 years ago.

No rust in trunk. Floorboards...rusted out. I have pulled the car apart and looked everywhere.

I have 2 options. Weld in new steel and try and reinforce after cutting out rust. I have been talking to bimmerdoc Rob about doing this. He has done worse.

The other option is I have access to a front right corner cut of a 73 CSI. This corner cut is 99% rust free. I also have options of the entire front cut from a 72 CS.

Yes this will be some expert welding. My father inlaw is a welding instructor for underwater welding. This will be clean. Just need to see if I want to repair or replace. Engine is fine!

Fuel tank and shock tower are only issues. Frozen water pump...meh. Easy.

I understand your concern. Yes, this my first E9. Its really not as bad as it seems. I just took pics of the effected areas only. I took off all the skins and looked. Shes clean except passenger rail and shocktower...and floor boards. Inspected with microscope.

I am looking at the front quarter cut for 700 and the rail for 150. I can and will do all work with a few friends.

Yes that is a R Line. Great Eye.

For less than 5K i will fix this impeccably.

Thanks for your note.

Paul

 

[PaulSoCal]

I dont think its for sound insulation....its ugly under there. So they kept it clean with the skin. Thats what I would have done.

Im looking for trunk ivory skin. I have mine but they are 70% or so.

 

[PaulSoCal]

Now that the bad news is out of the way.

Heres the good news.

Rust free trunk. Exhaust is perfect. Everythings clean except the Shock tower and Fuel tank. Heres some pics.

I have more that I need to upload to computer from camera. I have documented all so far. Doors off, tires off, Door panels off, All inspected with fine tooth comb. Hood Clean, trunk Clean, Left Shock tower...perfect.

So this is my one spot.

This car will fetch 20k + when running. Yes I may have to put down 5k to get what I want first... but it will be recovered. Its rare that can be done with classics.

I think im going to drive it for a couple years. It will be working in 30-90 days ..you'll see.

 

[Stevehose]

That is in fact sound insulation, all these cars had it, and it can trap moisture and hide rust.

The shock tower is on the verge of collapse, I would not drive it out of the garage for fear of bodilly harm.

I believe the rear shock tower elephant skin is available, albeit in a slightly different texture, as is the trunk floor fabric. I'd worry about the body repairs before the trim pieces.

Rusted floors = leak from above so check the areas up behind the fuse box and glove box. Also the windshield a-pillars and gasket.

Pull the rocker panel covers off and see if there are any issues behind the front wheel wells along the bottom. Reach up into the front wheel wells between the outer and inner fender into the cavity back there and see what lurks, take the wheels off and shine a light into there.

Lots of experts here that can offer better advice than I.

I dont think its for sound insulation....its ugly under there. So they kept it clean with the skin. Thats what I would have done.

Im looking for trunk ivory skin. I have mine but they are 70% or so.

 

[PaulSoCal]

Thanks

Its great to know. I just started learning about the E9, nuances.

That car is in the garage till tower is fixed. Only moving on jacks. Towed flatbed to garage.

All other towers are clean, just front right is rusty. I managed to save that skin by taking it off with a heat gun. Im sure ill be looking for some shortly.

I appreciate the tips!! I will have to find where the leak is. Right now I could put my feet on the ground on the front passenger and drivers side. About foot sized holes. Like Flintstones. I know...im cool. lol.

Seems that there are some floorboard reproductions circulating. Im looking.

If you have a link to that ivory trunk tower liner.Id appreciate it. But as you said its just a cosmetic list im putting together.

Shock tower first!!

Any other advice or tips appreciated.

Thanks

Paul

 

[adawil2002]

Looks like that car has some serious rust issues. If the floors have rust holes you can see through, that's pretty scary. May want to double your 5K estimate for repairs, especially since rust has probably permeated the rocker panels.

Patch panels can be bought here:
http://www.wallothnesch.com/karosserie-blechteile/bmw-2-5-cs-3-0-csl-e9/katalogbild-41-01.html

Best of luck with your project, glad you want to save this CSi.

Please put it in the CS Registry using the tab at the top of the page.

 

[PaulSoCal]

Thanks Andrew

Your cars look beautiful. Great stable you have there.

I registered the car when I found it.

http://www.e9-driven.com/RegistryView.asp?RID=5673

Yes there are some rust issues. But the positive far outweighs the negative.

The passenger side rocker was close to rust..but its clean. I was surprised, but it looks like when was damaged there was some stress to the tower and that water leaked all down the passenger side. After sitting for 23 years..it did what rust does. Unfortunately. I think it can be managed.

Hopefully with me doing a majority of the work, assisted by a master bmw mechanic/ Friend, with a backup of father inlaw 40 year boiler/underwater etc welding instructor...i think we have it. In the event that it does cost more, I think the value will be in the car as long as its done well.

Several of the first groups that I approached for parts (looking at front quarter cuts) told me that it was a money pit and I should cut it up and part it....and to sell it to them (had an offer for 17k). Guy tells me hes been looking for the steering wheel I have for years and is thinking about fabing one up, then offers me 1500$ for the steering wheel. I am not a newbie to cars, to BMW yes..but not to cars. This car is straight frame, original 95%, all matching ...yes that tower was the first thing i pointed out when going over the initial visit.

Its funny I have had several offers on the car. When I pulled out of storage for the first time a man pulled off a busy traffic street and offered me 12k for it.

This car belongs on the road.
Ill give it a shot..its a beautiful car.

Thank you for the link. Hopefully I can find the right corner cut. If not..the parts are there.

Thanks again for the great info.

Cheers

Paul

 

[3nsahalee]

That does not look to be only a 62,000 mile car to me. That'd be only 3,000 miles a year before being taken off the road and put into storage. The odometer HAS to have rolled over for it to be in that condition after being in dry storage for 22 years. That's some serious rust, especially with it being a SoCal car it's whole life.
It feels like 162,000 miles of 'rode hard and put away wet' would justify the extent of the corrosion.

 

[tmason]

Good luck with your project,hope it can be saved but you may be better off looking for a better shell to start on.
Welcome to the madness.

 

[DWMBMW]

Paul, do not get discouraged from our posts. Sounds like you have the right attitude and help to see it through. We have all spent a lot more time and money restoring our coupes than we originally thought (or told the wife) but it will be worth it in the end.

Doug

 

[PaulSoCal]

That does not look to be only a 62,000 mile car to me. That'd be only 3,000 miles a year before being taken off the road and put into storage. The odometer HAS to have rolled over for it to be in that condition after being in dry storage for 22 years. That's some serious rust, especially with it being a SoCal car it's whole life.
It feels like 162,000 miles of 'rode hard and put away wet' would justify the extent of the corrosion.

I dont think the car was in San Diego its whole life, im finding out more details on its travels. The previous owner had a total of 28 cars at the time. Avanti, Mercedes, Ford older trucks, Porsche. Long story short. I doubt he drove it more than 3k a year. It was a weekend car.

I dont think its rolled over. The true test will be if/when it changes while driving...after shock tower restoration.

Paul