Tag: bmw

Categories
Restoration

1958 BMW 507-Powered Speedboat by Rambeck Boatworks

1958 BMW 507-Powered Speedboat by Rambeck
1958 BMW 507-Powered Speedboat by Rambeck

Paul gave me a peek at his photos from this year’s Rétromobile show in France (more to come). It’s an absurdly great collection of amazing machines… but one in particular stopped me in my tracks.

This BMW 507-powered speedboat is the only one of it’s kind. Italian boatbuilder Abbate also built a more traditional one-off runabout powered by a 507 engine, but this example by Rambeck Boatworks borrows heavily from the design of the 507 and looks just as slippery and purposeful on the water as the car does on the road.

Digging around a bit I was able to find a video that touches on the restoration of the vessel after spending decades in dry dock. Quite a barn find indeed.

1958 BMW 507-Powered Speedboat by Rambeck
The side “gills” of the 507 almost look better here than on the car

I love the commonality of aesthetic that the boat shares with it’s 4-wheeled brother. The shared steering wheel, instrument cluster, and 150hp engine are only part of that. There’s a spirit to them both that make the boat just as magnificent as the car who’s heart beats inside her.

Categories
Gear

BMW Makes new 328 Transmissions Available

Reproducing BMW 328 Gearboxes

I love it. Another manufacturer is working to keep their vintage sports and racing cars on the road and ready to race. Like our earlier look at Porsche licensing the Type 547 engine to Capricorn, BMW has licensed the gearbox from the 328 to transmission manufacturer ZF. Keeping these cars on the road is clearly a priority for manufacturers, and taking these kinds of steps is a great boon for vintage motorsport.

The mighty BMW 328

For racing, there’s a great effect here as well. BMW 328 drivers know that they can really race their cars without fear of a blown gearbox sidelining their car indefinitely. Well done, BMW. Keep ’em coming and keep ’em on the road.

Categories
Event

Reader Photos: Peter's Mitty Paddock

Peter Hoag took some time out from his duties with Regogo Racing to walk the paddock at the Mitty a few weeks ago and sent in these wonderful images of some of the competitors in various stages of preparation for their run. We tend to focus on the action on the track, but often the most fun at a vintage event can be had just wandering around the paddock spotting the cars, chatting with drivers, or listening in as two competitors hop out of their machines and rush to congratulate one another and recount their on-track battles.

The cars are what lured me in to vintage racing but the community is what keeps me going back every summer. Thanks for sending these in Peter!

Categories
Video

BMW 2002 101

I’ve always loved them for their boxy, quintessential, even rudimentary “car shaped” silhouette, but it wasn’t until I spent some time in my buddy Paul’s 2002 that I realized what a sensational little machine it is. Even my dream garage is getting crowded but there’ll always be room for one of these.

Categories
Gear Racing Ephemera

Shiny Doesn't Win Races

1968 Alfa Romeo Giulia 1300TI with black steel wheels

Similar to my love for the Momo Prototipo and Jaeger gauges, there is a kinship I feel with BlackSteelies.com. There’s something special about finding a solitary slice of perfection and watching it prove itself in situation after situation. What these items share is an innate ability to improve the aesthetic or performance of any car they’re added to. It’s as true for the Prototipo as it is for simple black steel wheels. Whether on modern Minis or vintage Porsches and BMWs, the desire to throw out unnecessary and frivolous (and oversized) chrome in favor of a more simple solution is a quick route to my heart. Keep at it, gentlemen.

Lancia Aurelia GT with black steel wheels
BMW 2002 with black steel wheels
Categories
Restoration

Breathing Life Back into a Written Off BMW CSL

It’s never an encouraging thing when you encounter a photo like this one. This photo of a “written off” BMW CSL popped up this morning on Bring A Trailer’s Facebook feed. I remember seeing this photo last fall shortly after a driver fell asleep at the wheel and careened into Jon Furley’s 1972 BMW 3.0 CSL. The loss of a CSL is a bad thing.
Any CSL is rare, but this is one of only 500 RHD models made. That sounds bad, right? But Furley’s example is a damn-sight rarer, as her original owner was Chris Amon. This CSL was Amon’s street car during the era when he raced the Batmobile BMWs. Noooo!
So, what has happened in the year since the crash? I’d assumed that this one was stripped of her valuable bits and given a tearful good bye. Thankfully that’s not the case. A very brave team has decided that she must live again. After all, what’s one lost corner between friends?
This album on CSI Garage’s Facebook shows that her restoration has begun this past November. Looks like they’ve welded in a replacement front end, rebuilt part of the frame, and pulled and assessed the engine (which was relatively unscathed with only a broken timing case cover and cylinder head cover).

There’s something infectious about the optimism in the vintage sports and racing car community that I love. Insurance adjusters look at this and call her a write off. A random person off the street looks at it and calls it scrap. Hell, most “car guys” would see these photos and say it’s beyond saving. A good restoration workshop looks at this and says, “Yeah, we can do that.” This is not a project for the weak of heart and I’m looking forward to their continued updates—though perhaps not as much as Jon.
Also see this thread on PowerFanatics for many more photos of the teardown. More good news, the family cat that went missing after the crash made it home. Ok, now I’m going from concerned sports car nerd and entering weird internet stalker territory.

Categories
Classic Cycle

Yee-Ha!

Georg Meier wins 1939 Isle of Man TT

Sports Car Digest featured this brilliant photo of Georg “Schorsch” Meier on his way to winning the Isle of Man TT in 1939. This is the 70th anniversary of BMWs win.
I think we can all agree that there’s not enough airborne in modern motorsport.

Categories
Video

Onboard at Nurburgring 1967

A little onboard jaunt around the Nuburgring in 1967. 22km, 174 corners. The Youtube poster calls it F1, but BMW powered Lola sounds like F2.

Front suspension on the camera car looks like it’s a Formula Vee, no?