Overwhelmed E3 owner

shorton540

shorton540

BMW Cross member
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Georgia, Vermont
60ECC6C6-3CB3-4631-9107-8047A01DCE61.jpeg BA071430-BBB4-4EB6-A103-328251DE0B6C.jpeg 2552DC0F-B642-4728-BB18-9419F28C4C6B.jpeg 0BF149CA-2089-44F9-BEBD-58DB2A4817A3.jpeg 879B26FA-8B84-4D34-B113-9C26822815A5.jpeg E13C830A-B388-4714-A028-498F8D9AC4E5.jpeg FC89B89D-A71A-4ECA-863E-DF5CE9856022.jpeg 4D2146B0-1B95-4B6D-B5CF-8A52A293C163.jpeg Hello from Vermont,
I have been a BMW CCA member for almost 20 years, owned a handful of relatively modern BMWs, 1989-2011, none of which had much personality outside of what we all expect from a BMW. I have always lusted after a 3.0 CS/CSi, appreciating the timeless beauty more every year, but after every BaT auction or Hemmings listing, I realize most are quickly becoming unobtainable. Today, I immersed myself into BMW more than I would have ever expected. I stumbled upon a 1973 Bavaria 3.0 S formerly owned by a relatively well known Vermont mechanic, Ralph Humburg, who passed away in 2017. In addition to his Bavaria, his widow wanted to clean out his garage. It wasn’t a task that one person could tackle, but I just couldn’t let any of it get thrown away (she was quoted $4,000, PAYING someone $4,000 to clean everything out and “dispose” of it!). So a friend and I made an offer, and suddenly we own the Bavaria, a garage, an attic, and a basement full of 30 years of BMW parts. E3 parts, E9 parts, Alfa Romeo parts, Audi parts, and parts unknown. I truly believe that there is a treasure trove of parts that we can all appreciate. I can’t even begin to describe what is here, M30 heads, M30 manifolds, steering wheels, front bumpers, rear bumpers, front seats, back seats, headlight trims, etcetera, etcetera, ETCETERA! The Bavaria is a driver, but still a beauty in my opinion, so it is a keeper, but the parts need to go to someone who will use them. As we move everything out of the garage and into storage, I would like to know of anything specific I should be looking for for the enthusiasts on this forum. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure there is a lot of junk here, but I sure hope that a lot of this stuff gets used. I have attached a few photos, the tip of the iceberg, but many more will follow once things are out in the light!
 
Welcome!

The Bavaria looks pretty nice to me. It probably runs well if a mechanic owned it.

Don’t assume that anything isn’t desireable or worth something to someone. Start keeping your Amazon boxes. ;)

I keep a pretty good handle on fair pricing for used e3/e9 parts. Figure out what you need for yourself first. You can also just post items in the FS section and members can help you value things. Feel free to reach out via PM. The only parts I need say Alpina on them. ;)

As far as the cars go, the e3 guys know these cars inside out. Many have been at it for 30 years or more. A huge portion of the e3 mechanics carry over to the e9, but body, suspension, interior, and brakes are mostly different.

Post away!

Mark
 
Nice going. E3’s are great cars. Typically the 3.0s had a higher trim level than standard Bavaria’s. Things like: leather seats, deluxe steering wheel, power windows, extra wood trim on door cards, polished aluminum door sill covers etc, where standard on “S” models.
Others could speak to the value of engine parts, but manual transmissions (especially 5 speeds) clutch pedals and hydraulics are valuable to owners looking to do a Automatic to manual swap. Chrome Bumpers and steering wheels are also sought after pieces for both e3’s and e9’s.
You’ve come to the right place for information on these cars and parts.
Welcome aboard. Good Luck
 
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Thank you for the support! It is simultaneously exciting and daunting. I will begin inventory today, but it will likely take at least a couple weeks to get a handle on things. Feel free to PM for specifics parts, and for those who already have, I will respond as soon as possible. And if anyone knows of any Alfa fanatics...
 
What a wonderful find. That Bav looks like a pretty nice ride. And I am sure that every part in that immense stash can find a home. Looking forward to learning about the parts as you dive in and discover. Congrats!
 
That’s a great-looking E3! Congrats on finding the parts honey hole. Markos is right that you should make sure what you really have before selling. Folks here can help identify whether you have a unicorn euro M88 part or a pedestrian stock M30 part, which might look identical to me. That’s just one example. Forum has kept me from throwing away NLA parts which I would consider a consumable on my daily drivers. The search function is your friend. Google also brings up forum posts I seem to miss. But folks here are happy to help, and pictures help get the best advice. As prices for the cars go up and parts’ availability diminishes, there are some less than trustworthy folks out there (not usually here) and no one wants to see another owner get taken advantage of.
 
Wait a second, I think he should store the parts for at least ten years first, like the rest if us, THEN start selling them off really slowly to help keep his E3 on the road. :D
 
CAC868D0-37D6-4ECF-A2F4-D8550E83830F.jpeg DEF81892-0461-406B-AAC2-E590917BA8C4.jpeg F11443E0-D042-481D-8D3D-583B53CAF069.jpeg Thanks for the helpful info fellas! I spent most of the day today cleaning up the garbage and preparing for moving all this stuff. I am well aware of the potential value, even if not monetary, of parts, even those that look like junk, so we have been careful not to throw ANYTHING away. The cold and snow here made taking inventory tough, most of the parts are in an unheated basement with an open door at one end. I looked for a few parts that folks had PMed me about, and took some photos, unfortunately iPhones do NOT like the cold! Funny you mention the M88 thing Jay, I took a photo of a head with two burned out cylinders and noticed M88 but had no idea what it meant. It may be worth nothing, but included a few photos.
 
Ha! I’m sure @sfdon or someone will chime in. I’m still a D student on which engines went with what & would just embarrass myself.

Holy moly I just looked at your temps & WC.
 
JayWltrs said:
Ha! I’m sure @sfdon or someone will chime in. I’m still a D student on which engines went with what & would just embarrass myself.

Holy moly I just looked at your temps & WC.
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I would get some large calipers capable of measuring the height of the head. Don can send you the specs. Most of the B32 and later heads had dimples that tell you if they are within spec. Some of the heads don’t have the dimples. The specs are published by BMW. Even if the head is bad, some of the parts like a 3.0 272 degree can, or a euro can are worth keeping.

Unless you vapor blast some of those newer intake manifolds I would say that they are paper weights.
 
per Don:

Cylinder Head

A good skim is 5 thousands not twenty five thousands. Over 5 thousandths is warped or damaged Heads come (let's keep this in inches - machine shops in the states stare at people who want things done in mm) A new head is 5.079 inches Minimum size is 5.063 inches Do the math- you can cut a head .016 inches.
 
Welcome and congratulations! So happy an enthusiast intercepted this cache of parts before they were discarded. Exciting for you, as well as the rest of us. Don't rush, take your time. But thanks for letting us know. Bav looks great BTW. Mike
 
Markos said:
I would get some large calipers capable of measuring the height of the head. Don can send you the specs. Most of the B32 and later heads had dimples that tell you if they are within spec. Some of the heads don’t have the dimples. The specs are published by BMW. Even if the head is bad, some of the parts like a 3.0 272 degree can, or a euro can are worth keeping.

Unless you vapor blast some of those newer intake manifolds I would say that they are paper weights.
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Excellent info! We have a lot of work cut out for us. Luckily, we are patient. As an interesting sidenote, Ralph built a CSL Batmobile quite a while back. What an addition that would have made to this mix! I don’t have any idea of the build details, but I saw it several months ago at Peter Markowski’s garage, R.P.M., in Vergennes, where there are millions of dollars worth of amazing cars, so I assume it had some value to justify being in that facility.
 
I had no idea it was for sale. When I saw it in early ‘18, Peter M. didn’t mention it, nor did I ask, and there are so many other amazing cars in that barn that I was like a kid in a candy store (with no money).
 
shorton540 said:
I had no idea it was for sale. When I saw it in early ‘18, Peter M. didn’t mention it, nor did I ask, and there are so many other amazing cars in that barn that I was like a kid in a candy store (with no money).
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It appears the car made it to Florida and was auctioned on BaT without success, which I found surprising. It was discussed on the forum when it came up for sale on Craigslist with comments that it was being shown at http://www.rpmvt.com/inventory/ , which appears to be selling another E9 for a handsome sum.
 
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