Pics of my classic bimmer

[tbromley]

Hey Guys,

For those of you that have been wondering what I've been up to lately I am putting this entry with pics of my car since I've been getting it into great shape. It's taken a bit of work and too much money but what the heck - I have less than half what I had in the NSX but it's no NSX. It's still fun though. It's in great shape now - when I bought it cosmetically it was in super shape - paint for 27 years old is fantastic and the interior is the same. Mechanically it needed a pretty good bit of work and a stereo replacement for the "Blaupunk" system - now it has good sound. I got a new, well like new steering wheel and a nice shift knob which came from across the pond. Wheels are 17" off a late model 5 series. So here you go - I hope you'll excuse me for not showing off an NSX but this is all I can afford right now. Hope you'll enjoy this and I still love Prime - best forum around!!!

 

[Ultraman]

Nice and classic BMW and everything looks really clean.

When and where did you find this beauty?

 

[sca037]

That's a classic, no doubt!

635 or ???

Brian

 

[Meeyatch1]

Great looking Shark!

I see it has just over 100k miles on it now, how many did it have when you got it? It looks almost new!

One of the first great driving experiences I had was when I was barely 16 years old and my best friend's Dad bought an almost new Euro Spec M635 CSi. It was bright red with black leather interior, and I was certain it was the coolest car on the planet. He let me take it out and drive it, and I remember being a dumb 16 year old and instantly going over 100 mph down a bumpy country road and feeling like I was about to take flight. I instantly slowed down and when my heart started beating again I began to respect what super powerful cars can do. I loved just looking at that car, and then he managed to total it backing out of his garage at high speed and hitting a parked van (no joke). It was a sad day for me, and I tried to buy the wrecked car, but with it being a Gray Market Euro Spec car, it was caught up in all sorts of legal paperwork and I was not allowed to. Either way...a great car. Classic and timeless beauty. Just thinking about how beautiful that car was makes me upset that BMW is now making a 4 DOOR 6-Series. The 6-Series should ALWAYS remain a true 2-door Grand Touring car.

 

[Dynamic-uzed-auto]

That's a hot looking shark indeed, they rarely look this good cause people dont keep up with them. Love that color

 

[tbromley]

I found it thru a friend of mine and an NSX owner member of Prime - so it just goes to show how cool this community really is and how multi-faceted it is. Wick is his handle here and he has about 5 or so classic bimmers as well as an NSX which is his favorite driver by the way!

But when I sold the NSX over a year ago to speed paying off our house - I thought i could drive my Prius till I could get another NSX - well it wasn't very long before I realized that wasn't going to do. I found this 2008 Miata GT for a steal and bought it and it wasn't long till once again I longed for something a little more something - so I started looking at old bimmers - Roy helped me out and said check this one out - it was in West Palm.

It had been on the "bigcoupe.com" site for 2 days and had gotten some interest and I saw the paint and interior and called him - he wanted 9500 for the car - it had been a one owner for 25 years and had sat for about the last 3 with the original owner - then Nick, the guy I bought it from talked him out of it - then he found out that it needed a lot of attention. The Original Owner (OO), was a pilot and a Pan Am pilot and I still have his Pan Am sticker in the windsheild - it's kind of cool and part of the car - he was a tinkerer but not the best kind - it limped along till it started needing some "attention" of the more expensive kind - Nick found that out and when he did after 2 years and then he didn't drive it much the last year - he realized as a young guy - he didn't need the exspense.

I offered him 8000 for it and he took it and proceeded to do a few things to get it "ready" for the trip to Atlanta. I went down to drive it home - didn't make it - master and slave went out - not too bad. Then home to Atlanta and first stop was my mechanic and the rest has been swift but expensive. With the stereo and power antenna replacement and the mechanical work at the shops - I've got 16k in the car easily. More than it may be worth but it is a rare beauty.

I went to the Vintage BMW anual gathering in Winston Salem, NC just a few weeks ago - car performed flawlessly and I wouldn't trade it for any car I saw there but a couple of perfect M6s. This car is badge delete 1985 Euro 635 CSI. It has 217 hp about 50 more than the US version but not like the 280hp M version. I was in a rally, a picture of the car in motion from that, and my buddy was ahead of me in his M6 and he couldn't loose me. I was right on his tail. It was fun - the car is fun and really roomy for a small car. It has the Euro dog -leg transmission with 1rst low and left. It's a fun driver - stops well and goes pretty well too. Not like an NSX but a lot of fun.

Sorry for the epistle....hope you guys enjoy the read....thanks for the kind remarks,

 

[shawn110975]

nice to see a post from you Tim, nice ride very nice classic

 

[tbromley]

nice to see a post from you Tim, nice ride very nice classic

Hey Shawn - good to hear from you - hoped you'd see my post! How's the NSX side business? Hope all is well with your NSXs. I try and follow your progress on the Build section of Prime. Take care! Glad you like my ride!

 

[Single Samurai]

Brings back fond memories growing up as my Father had a Red 635 CSI.
Very nice!

 

[docjohn]

As a first year med student and enthusiast, those cars were something to aspire to in the day.Btw those seats look just as sporty/comfortable as the nsx seats ,are they ?

 

[tbromley]

As a first year med student and enthusiast, those cars were something to aspire to in the day.Btw those seats look just as sporty/comfortable as the nsx seats ,are they ?

Hey Doc,

No they are definitely not as comfy as the NSX seats but they aren't bad either. Nothing - no seat I've ever sat in is as comfy as the seats in an NSX - PERIOD>>>>!!!!! I mean. I would love to put em in matter of fact but it would not look right but it would damn sure feel right! That is one thing I will always miss - my old NSX seat! I like the car though - it's nice and airy with plenty of glass and a back seat - not that I'll ever use it but I could - but the trunk is huge! That's one of the great things about the old bimmers - plenty o trunk space! Gotta love that - especially on a long trip.

I had to address the AC - that was expensive but worth every penny down here in "hotlanta". How's your car doing - still tracking? Still enjoying your car! I'm sure the answer is yes. I wonder what this new NSX will be like on the inside? What about the roof - if it's glass well that would be way cool in my opinion. Maybe kind of like the 911 Targa but totally different - you know what I mean.

Thanks for writing Doc and everyone!

 

[docjohn]

Larry B keeps my car humming along+Battery tender ,and it is always ready.Still have alittle meat left on my Ra1's for some far and few between track days:smile:

 

[04HondaNSX]

Absolutely beautiful car. But it appears you bought the wrong German Grand Tourer and not the 560SL. :biggrin:

 

[tbromley]

Absolutely beautiful car. But it appears you bought the wrong German Grand Tourer and not the 560SL. :biggrin:

I needed a manual shifter! Didn't want to get too far away from a sporty car. But I like Mercs! Didn't want a big engine - wanted decent gas mileage. Wondering what the new hybrid NSX will get? Thanks to all for the nice comments on the new "old" ride.

 

[Ultraman]

Is that an RL next to the BMW?

What MY is it? Looks like you got couple nice toys even though you had to give up the NSX for the time being.

 

[tbromley]

Is that an RL next to the BMW?

What MY is it? Looks like you got couple nice toys even though you had to give up the NSX for the time being.

The RL is my wife's car and it's a 2007 and it's nice - I had to buy that for her before I could get my NSX. Note to self: why didn't we sell her car to pay down the house? - we all know the answer to that one - at least those of us that have been married for a while - Shawn is not included in that :biggrin:. So most of the time i drive my Prius which used to be my wife's car....wow this sounds bad. Anyway - we paid the house down now less than 10k left and will be done by Christmas! But I do like the "Shark". One day I hope to get back in an NSX. When I don't know. One day....:wink:

 

[DocL]

What a beauty Tim. My father had an //M6 when I was in high school and I remember it being a great car to drive. There's nothing like the feel of an 80's Bimmer. The one thing I remember always being a royal PITA was the computer. I was playing around with it once and set the speed alert to something like 15mph and it would beep everytime you went over 15mph. LOL. Drove us crazy until a friend of mine futzed around with it and got it turned off.

I think you need to buy a M spoiler for the front and back and color match the mirrors. Who care's if it's not original, it gives the car an aggressive look.

 

[tbromley]

What a beauty Tim. My father had an //M6 when I was in high school and I remember it being a great car to drive. There's nothing like the feel of an 80's Bimmer. The one thing I remember always being a royal PITA was the computer. I was playing around with it once and set the speed alert to something like 15mph and it would beep everytime you went over 15mph. LOL. Drove us crazy until a friend of mine futzed around with it and got it turned off.

I think you need to buy a M spoiler for the front and back and color match the mirrors. Who care's if it's not original, it gives the car an aggressive look.

Thanks DocL - glad you have nice memories of the car. I wish I could add a 2002 tii to the collection as well. Man did I see some nice ones in Winston Salem. On the computer - mine actually works really well. I've heard some of the complaints about the idiot lights not working properly and that you can't trust them but I'll tell you a story about mine. I was on the road for a total of 800 miles plus or minus on the trip - on the way up my oil light inthe side panel came on - freak out - and so I pulled off the expressway and checked the oil- it was down a half quart! Now that is pretty damn good monitoring for a 27 year old computer system I'd say. Same thing happened on the way back. New oil for the trip - it uses some oil but it doesn't smoke. No leaks - so it's just using it. These engines are supposedly bullet proof and the compression test was real good. I'm happy about that.

It is fun to drive - it's not an ass hauler like the NSX but it's a super cruiser and it's nice in the sweepers just not made for autocrossing.

Mmmm I don't know about those "improvements" you mention. You know those mirrors are made of unobtanium. That front air dam has been totally repaired and I really like it - some of the 6s I saw at the Vintage Anual event didn't even have that unobtanium rear spoiler not to mention I have the holy grail of a Euro model. I think I'll keep it just like it is... plus I think I'm going with Hagery insurance and they require that - since it's stored in my carport albeit under a car cover, they are the only classic car insurer that will insure it for an Agreed Value.

I really think it looks great - I should send you guys the link to the Vintage event so you can see some M6s - not a lot of difference really. Anyway I'm really glad you guys see the beauty of the car - that's what I love about this forum. So here it is - paste in your browser or click it...enjoy

https://skydrive.live.com/redir?resid=AF1A2FE6F6285DC5!3716

and then check out the Vintage pics in the collector magazine - some great photos of the event

http://issuu.com/thevintage/docs/vintage_bmw_17

 

[sahtt]

Great car. I've always had a soft spot for that generation 6 series. It is one of a handful of cars that defines BMW character to me.

 

[SurfsUP]

Congrats on your beautiful E24!
I've always loved the styling of these cars. Sadly not too many E24's are in great shape as yours. I haven't been to nsxprime in a very long time since I sold my 91 nsx a few years ago and today I just had this strange urge to check in and your post was the first one I saw. This is a strange cause I just purchased a classic BMW too and it's the father of the E24, an E9.

David

 

[Hugh]

OK, it's time for someone to be politically incorrect. What an ugly piece of shit that car is! What on Earth prompted you to invest even a penny into it? That thing belongs in one of these...........

 

[tbromley]

Right next to the 918 I suppose? :biggrin:

OK, it's time for someone to be politically incorrect. What an ugly piece of shit that car is! What on Earth prompted you to invest even a penny into it? That thing belongs in one of these...........

 

[tbromley]

Congrats on your beautiful E24!
I've always loved the styling of these cars. Sadly not too many E24's are in great shape as yours. I haven't been to nsxprime in a very long time since I sold my 91 nsx a few years ago and today I just had this strange urge to check in and your post was the first one I saw. This is a strange cause I just purchased a classic BMW too and it's the father of the E24, an E9.

David

Hey David,

Yours is the one I was looking for till I was told to go a little newer but that is a wonderfully beautiful car - the E9! As pretty as they get and right up there with the 507! Send me a PM with pics or better still put them in your reply here to this post! We'd all love to see your E9. Cool - there were some really beautiful E9s at the Vintage - check out the post before this one of mine with the links to the Vintage special edition all about the event. You'll definitely enjoy that. Great cars there - wish I had a barn I could afford to fill with cars. Man there was an E9 there that a lady drives a lot and it was really nice - she had an engine go on her and replaced it with the 3.5 like the one in my car. It was sweet - paint, interior and the engine bay - you could tell she really loved that car - it was silver and she did find something you might want to consider - the radialtor overflow tank - underneath the paint is a solid brass unit - it looks great stripped and polished! Wish I had one of those; man it looked good.

Want to hear back from you - hope you check back in on this thread - good to hear from you!

 

[SurfsUP]

I was opposite and wanted a E24 but most of the ones you find are in bad shape. I wasn't actually looking for a E9 but was offered to me by my good friend about a year ago but I was not really interested. E9 are beautiful but very expensive to restore. You can find a fixer upper E9 for around $10k to $15k but if you don't do your homework it will end up costing you another $30k or more to fix certain issues. Mine sat in my friend's garage for over 6 years before I purchased it. He couldn't pass smog and could not renew the registration. I only got it now cause Nevada just changed the classic plate rules where you don't have to smog anymore. Plus lately the price of E9's have risen quickly in the last few years. Good examples go for about $25k to $50k and if you're lucky to own a CSL version with the aluminum doors, hood, and trunk, can go over $100k easily for properly restored examples.

Mine is a very rare 1971 2800CSA and only 526 CSA's were imported into USA from 1969-1971. It was originally an automatic but the power train was swapped out with a 72 3.0CSI with the 4-speed that came from an Italian CSI. The thing that really attracted me to these vehicles was that they were all hand made at the Karmann factory in German. Mine also came with the factory A/C that still works even today. As for the radiator overflow tank, I'm lucky that I still have the original copper unit but it still has the black paint. Maybe when I have some time, I will remove the paint.

David

 

[tbromley]

Thant's a beauty David - I want to see pics of the interior! You have a nice one it looks like.