I began this blog in order that everyone can get a glimpse of what a BMW is all about. Throughout, I’ll be covering all years of BMW’s in order that everyone can take something from this and it’s not a waste of bandwidth. I am part owner of La Jolla Independent BMW Service, Parts and Restorations in San Diego. I’ve been around BMW’s for about 11 years and have been professionally working on them for the last 8 years. We are one of the National Technical Advisers for the BMW Car Club of America and we pride ourselves on top notch service, honesty and fair pricing.
It is my hope that even if you do not own a BMW, you’ll find the info here useful and humorous. I promise I won’t be too hard on customers’ cars that get a mention here, but it’s all in fun and a learning experience. So, I hope you enjoy this blog and feel free to send friends and foes links that may help them in any way.
Chris Keefer
La Jolla Independent BMW Service
This one is for Chris Keefer,
I was reading your blog and came across that yellow RHD CSL, my jaw just dropped to the floor when you said the total price of restoration was $120k… you said it was missing the right hand drive components, which components were you refering too? I myself recently purchased a ‘73 CSL, and it has rust, but I got it running, needs a lot of body work as far as paint and rust removal are concerned. I paid $5250 for it. I just couldn’t pass it up, I’ve seen that car previously, but when I knew the owner was moving, I had to pick it up, otherwise I wouldn’t have seen it again. I looked up the VIN on several sites, including wikipedia, are there really only 500 RHD CSL’s ever made, or is that a load of crap? I guess it doesn’t really matter. I love the damn thing and hope to restore it over time, as cheaply as possible without comprimising quality. Is there anything unique or particular to restoring a BMW that is different from other car restorations? I really appreciate you putting out your blog, it’s light hearted and informative. I wish more BMW owners would have the same passion as you and your crew seem to carry. Hope to hear back from you soon, thanks for the great info.
-Jimmy
Jimmy,
Each restoration comes with its own set of problems and challenges that will drive the price up. Rust is a major problem as far as restorations go, but if you have a very complete car, it gets much easier. With that said, rust removal will cost a lot of time and money and will usually result in the car needing a full paint job afterward. The golf yellow car came to us as a shell with almost no RHD components so it was very challenging to find parts and we eventually bought another RHD car just to finish the job. The RHD coupes are extrememly rare. I believe that number to be correct but it might be less. Most of those made were also delivered to poor climate areas which furthered their demise.
Rust cannot be dealt with over time. It is an all-or-none proposition. My suggestion to you would be to hold on to the car and when the time and cash flow is right, follow the dream. But plan ahead, expect the worst and have a decent amount of money on hand before going into such a project. Coupes are expensive to restore because parts are rare and they take a lot of time to assemble. If it needs ‘a lot’ of body work and and rust removal, I’d say you’ll be looking at over $15k to correct that and come out with a decent paint job. Possibly more depending on what metal is savable and where the rust is. Keep in mind that if you need a new door from BMW, the price tage is over $3200!
Good Luck and enjoy the car.
Chris
Chris,
First off, sorry this reply is so late, 2nd, thanks for replying. I am very anxious to come down from Los Angeles and have you guys work on my cars. In addition to the CSL, I have an ‘06 M3 w/ competition package and m-cloth, and an ‘88 e30 325is. I also had an ‘04 zhp e46 330i sedan before the M3, which I miss the hell out of. I have got to be the world’s poorest BMW enthusiast. I believe these cars are so damn well built, and here’s example as to why: this past new year’s day I was driving a friend to an autoparts store, in my e30, I was just feeling excited about how well this thing drove for an older car (and excited I had the day off), so at a left hand turn, I floored the damn thing, lost control and did a 180 over the median onto the opposite lane. My friend and I just looked at each other asking ourselves did that really happen. Then I just popped the clutch and took off. Later that day we drove in the same car on the freeway for about 10miles not realizing what damage was present. Fast forward to yesterday, I took the car into my local mechanic to have it get checked out. The control arms were loose and the engine moved 3 to 4 inches to the left because the motor mounts were broken, and 2 of the stock 14×6.5 rims were cracked, one of them was completely ripped apart on the inside of the rim. Needless to say, I was DAMN lucky, thank God I didn’t hit anyone or vice versa, and thank God BMW’s are so damn well built. The mechanic told me if it was any other car, it would have not survived that debacle. I believe my experience is a testament to how well built these cars are and the attention to detail BMW gives to each car before it’s put out on the street. Yes I am an idiot as you may think for doing what I did, but I sure as hell learned my lesson. To anyone else out there, keep your BMW in the best possible shape, appreciate it, love it, and if your broke like me to spend money on it, then hold off and not drive it till you can or don’t buy the car at all. BMW is no comprimise to quality, you should have the same mentality in it’s maintenance, so that it still can survive debacles and keep your ass safe. I do plan on restoring the e30 as well, since it’s cheaper than the CSL. Anyhow, Chris I hope you enjoyed my little story and use it as a “I told you so” when the next idiot jacks up his car and didn’t choose the BMW when they were considering it. Keep up the enthusiasm and happy motoring.
-poor BMW enthusiast/idiot: Jimmy
ps: would it be a bad idea to use the alignment specs from an e30 m3 on my e30 325is?
Chris:
In addition to my 1971 BMW 1600 Voll Cabriolet, I also own a oil guzzleling 2000 E39 M5. You mentioned on your blog that Elf 10-60 has helped your oil consumption. Where can you buy it in San Diego?
I also suffer from the carbon build-up issue in the cylinder head on the E39 M5 that is forcing the engine service light to come on prematurely. After replacing most of the easy plumbing at considerable cost, I am left looking at new heads. I heard that there maybe a ECU code change that can be downloaded to eliminate the diagnostic check to stop the service light from coming on. Do you have any knowledge or recommendations for resolving this issue?
Thanks,
Mark
P.S. Great Blog, very fun to read…
Hey Chris, Very helpful stuff here, I need some advice, I just purchased a 06 525xi it has about 31k miles so the warranty expires in less than a year. I was offered an extended 4 year warranty from the dealership i purchased the vehicle from but i declined (They were charging me 5000.00 so i declined right away)I’ve been looking in to purchasing the extended service on my own do you think it’s a good idea? What is the average price on that type of plan? Thanks for your help, Pat
Pat,
I just don’t feel as though a warranty is going to help you much. It might make you sleep better but I’m not sure you’ll get that money back. It was definitely a good idea to decline the $5000 warranty, that was a no-brainer! However, I will say that it is a bit early to tell how many problems this car may have in the future as that body style is still relatively new. This one is a bit up in the air. If you have a 550i or a 545i I would say buy the warranty, but in your case I worry that you might not make the money back. Examine your options and figure out how much ‘peace of mind’ is worth to you. However, be sure to get the most coverage available if you do decide to get a warranty.
Good Luck,
Chris