WTB: 2800 or 3.0 coupe

[NightOwl]

Hi everyone,
As my intro said the other day, I've been watching the forums for a while trying to learn as much as I can but not actively posting. I'm finally in a position to buy an E9 and really looking forward to it. I'd like one that is as clean as possible. I'm not looking for concours quality but a solid daily driver would be nice. Also, I'm not a strict purist so some tasteful (I know that's subjective) modifications might be alright. The professor looks beautiful but it's just a bit out of my price range as I'd like to stay below $50K.

Thanks and any help is greatly appreciated,

Jake
I'm in Denver and can travel easily to look at cars.

 

[kwyjibo]

Hello Jake, send your contact info via PM - I know of someone local who I hear may be selling off some of his collection. He may show up to this next weekend with his coupe: http://www.abilityconnectioncolorado.org/special-events/colorado-concours/

 

[Ohmess]

Hi Jake -- welcome to the madness. I spend three years looking for my car, and have a few bits of advice. First off, don't do all your looking on line. You need to get out there and mingle with folks who own e9s. There is an entire world of old school car owners who have not adopted the latest technologies and you won't find them sitting at a computer.

-- attend as many of the gatherings of e9s as you can. Talk to the owners, learn about their cars and let them know you are in the market;
-- join the BMWCCA and get to know the folks locally who have or have had e9s;
-- make notes on the sellers mentioned here who take advantage of people and avoid them like the plague;
-- read and examine the commentary in the cars for sale section. You are looking to learn both about the cars and about the folks who consistently make good comments about them.

And lastly, feel free to ask for help here. I posted a request for help about my car when it came up for sale in Austin, TX, and a member here checked out the car before I went down there. This was massively helpful, at least to know the car was not a piece of junk before I invested in airfare.

 

[NightOwl]

Hi Mess,
Yes, it seems that it can take a while for people to find the right one. I have just left the state for a long work trip and will miss the show at ACC, which is less than a mile from my house, Oh well. Thank you for the tips and feel free to keep them coming. I'm no expert and welcome all the input I can get from people here.

Kwyjibo,
Sent you a PM. Thank you for the link. I live right down the street from ACC but unfortunately am out of the country for work for the next few weeks. I would be happy to talk with your friend if he is going to be selling.

Thanks,

Jake

 

[teahead]

Stick shift?

Sunroof?

Color?

Pre-74 only?

 

[NightOwl]

Hi Teahead,
Definitely manual.

I like the idea of a sunroof but many here warn against it for rust reasons so I'll say that is not a deal breaker either way at this point.

As for color, Fjord, Baikal, Polaris, Turquoise, Black or Red would all be equally acceptable to me.

As for your last question, I must profess my ignorance on this point. What is the difference between the pre and post '74 cars?

 

[Stevehose]

'74 is when the large US DOT bumpers were mandated.

What is the difference between the pre and post '74 cars?

 

[teahead]

They improved quite a bit w/those years, but figure to spend at least $2k to find decent chrome bumpers as I couldn't live w/the diving boards on '74+.

Sunroofs are awesome. If you can spend $50k on a car, you'll find one w/o sunroof rust damage; plus you won't be driving it in the rain I take it so should be fine for years stored in the garage.

 

[ratso70]

Hi Jake, I'm in the very early stages of thinking about parting with my '73 3.0 CS Polaris/Blue car. It's a solid driver and very original car that I've had for 10 years with documentation going back to '75. Feel free to PM if you're interested in discussing it further. I'm still not convinced I want to sell it but I also have a CSi and space is real tight in Brooklyn!!