New Member shout out from Redwood City, CA

calspyderman

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Shout out to Rex K and the rest of the forum! Former 2002 and E34 M3, and current M2CS owner... on the hunt for an M35 engined E9 (or candidate for engine swap). I'm in Redwood City, CA - looking forward to getting to know fellow members and familiarizing myself with local resources... looks like there is a strong Bay Area following. Tim.
 
Shout out to Rex K and the rest of the forum! Former 2002 and E34 M3, and current M2CS owner... on the hunt for an M35 engined E9 (or candidate for engine swap). I'm in Redwood City, CA - looking forward to getting to know fellow members and familiarizing myself with local resources... looks like there is a strong Bay Area following. Tim.
Looks like a nice one right down the road from you...

 
Yeah - Beverley Hills Car Club aint great - you'd have to check out the car and you'd need to do the engine swap - this may be more affordable (maybe not when all is said and done):
 
Yeah - Beverley Hills Car Club aint great - you'd have to check out the car and you'd need to do the engine swap - this may be more affordable (maybe not when all is said and done):
surprisingly nice for BHCC...
 
There is one for sale in the east bay that may be worth taking a look at. It was also for sale on Bring a Trailer about a year ago.

 
What's your budget? Year preference? Color preference? Stick shift or auto? Sunroof or no?

AC or no?
 
What's your budget? Year preference? Color preference? Stick shift or auto? Sunroof or no?

AC or no?
Hi teahead. Thanks for asking. This is a medium term project for me... doesn't need to be turn-key (though I've got nothing against turn-key... other than its cost). 1972 to 1974. Ideally... Blue (Baikal, Nachtblau, Fjord), Polaris Silver or Black. No Sunroof. Absolutely YES TO AC. This is where I'd like to end up:
  • Stick shift (5-speed Getrag - willing to do conversion).
  • Fuel injected M30B35 engine and head
  • Upgrade from D-Jetronic to Megasquirt or Haltech
  • 16" staggered Alpinas
Have considered starting with a 1972 2800CS automatic and doing the gearbox swap, but I'd still need to do trailing arms, backing plates, rotors/calipers and hard lines to convert the rear drums to discs. Would like to be at $80K to $100K before the engine swap. I'm handy and have met the guys down at Coupe King - looking for a a good E9 mechanic in the Bay Area.

I'm new to the E9 community, but grew up a few blocks from Hardy & Beck down on Fourth Street in Berkeley, CA, lusted for an E9 or a 323i during high school and owned a Sahara 2002 with BBS rims all through college.

Any thoughts on what the labor cost is (should be) to do each of the transmission swap and the rear brake conversion? Hoping to learn much from this fantastic forum and community.
 
There is one for sale in the east bay that may be worth taking a look at. It was also for sale on Bring a Trailer about a year ago.

I’ve seen this car a couple of times and it looks to be in great shape inside and out. All you need to do is remove the center caps off of the Alpina wheels, paint the centers black and have sfdon drop in a B35.
 
Surprisingly so indeed. Who knows what lurks underneath that nice paint job... but it sure looks like a potentially worthy candidate from the photos and price. Thanks!
 
Have considered starting with a 1972 2800CS automatic and doing the gearbox swap, but I'd still need to do trailing arms, backing plates, rotors/calipers and hard lines to convert the rear drums to discs. Would like to be at $80K to $100K before the engine swap. I'm handy and have met the guys down at Coupe King - looking for a a good E9 mechanic in the Bay Area.
quick note, 2800cs stopped in april '71. the 3.0cs started in late '71, the best e9 person around you is SFDon in Alameda, CA

Check out our FAQ for info on the top parts/service vendors!
 
quick note, 2800cs stopped in april '71. the 3.0cs started in late '71, the best e9 person around you is SFDon in Alameda, CA

Check out our FAQ for info on the top parts/service vendors!
Thanks much Scott! Yes... will reach out to him - SFDon's reputation certainly precedes him on this forum (was half the reason I joined e9coupe.com). And thanks for the 2800CS production info... admittedly, at this point I know just enough to be dangerous (to demonstrate what it is I don't know) - so appreciate it.
 
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If you can afford it and woukd rather drive than work on your car, just buy a fully fettled ride. You'll likely spend less and be miles ahead on the driving fun.
 
i echo @tferrer's comment. at a minimum buy a car that needs no rust remediation, paint or bodywork. in other words, if you can find a 2800cs or a 3.0cs with a great body and hopefully interior - you will be way ahead time-wise and monetarily-wise. then you just send it to Don and get the mechanicals in perfect condition and you will have a great car in relatively short order (Don's shop backlog not withstanding). just get a very good pre-purchase inspection by a knowledgeable specialist.

that being said, if you can find a car with everything you want, the expensive price may turn out to be less ... and you will be driving / enjoying it immediately
 
Thanks guys. That's sage advice. I am not hung up on matching numbers or provenance - especially since my intention is an eventual engine swap to a B35. As the B35 implies, I want a driver's car and not a concours queen. I narrowly missed such a "fettled" car from a well known owner from this forum - but it was a highly original, Euro D-Jetronic, M30B30 CSI, and priced accordingly. @rsporsche, I have considered a 71 2800CS (Verona) - with $64K + of interior, paint, and suspension refresh, plus a 633 CSI Automatic and 1988 535i engine (unfortunately, it has a B34 with the original 2800CS manifold and zenith carbs and not a B35) all done in 2020 as a starting point - so I would still need that hotly contested Getrag 5-speed that's on BaT right now, and trailing arms, rotors, backing plates, calipers and hard lines to convert the rear drums to discs. But that would land me a very nice, fresh driver while I hunt down and consider the B35 drop in.
 
I think it'd be easier to meet your end goal w/a 2800CS than a USA 74.

2800CS, all bolt-on stuff (B35 engine, 5-speed, rear trailing arms, disc brakes).

USA 74...early/euro bumpers hard to get, require paint/body work and fab to get the those bumper to fit.
 
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