1982 BMW 323i Baur

1982 BMW 323i Baur
Memorial Day 2010 First Drive 1982 323i BMW Baur Lapisblau M20 5 speed #4154 of 4595 made. The car was imported to California by Dietel Enterprises. I have since changed the wheels, installed the clear turn signal lenses, and I am in the process of installing a new cabriolet roof. I have to do something about those bumpers, too. :) I love this car! To see one of the reasons why, check my post "Score One For the Good Guys" on 6/26/2011.

Monday, October 31, 2011

Koko's Baur at the SoCal Vintage Show Van Nuys CA 10/29/2011 Photo by Amir K.


Now THAT"S what I'm talkin' 'bout!

Kudos Koko!  Kudos Amir!

Wow!

A Hallowe'en E21 for Hallowe'en

The E21 Revolution!

Bauspotting wants to give a nod to what appears to be a growing appreciation of our beloved E21, long a poor cousin to its more famous brethren, the iconic 2002 and the legendary E30.  We are 100% supportive of this growing movement, and with the Alpinas, the Baurs and the 'is' models leading the way, along wth the many fantastic individual modified examples (whose numbers are too numerous to mention), we hope to soon see the E21 take its rightful place in the Pantheon of Great BMWs!

The recent SoCal Vintage Show in Van Nuys, CA on October 29, 2011, is a great example of the the potential comeback of the E21.  Below are some pics from the show, from various sources, including Jimbo, E21favruzzi and daryl, among others. Thanks to all!   The last few pics are some of the great images, logos, badges, etc.,  that E21 Legion members Jimbo and Milo, respectively, have come up with recently. They may also help promote an awareness of the growing popularity of the E21.

The E21 legion lineup.  A number of cars had already left by the time the photo was taken.  That is an impressive pic!


The Alpina was a prize winner at the show, I am told.

E21 Legion group photo


Koko's beautiful Baur

A pickup, white Hartge, and a 2002 Baur Targa (right to left).

Track, anyone?

Jimbo's sig in Bimmerforums

Jimbo's E21 Legion Logo

Call me crazy, but I see a face in that hood.  Eyes, nose, mouth.... 

Maybe I have had too much Hallowe'en candy.   :)


Milo's conception of an E21 flag/banner. 
N.B. The hazard switch symbol bottom center.  ;)
The shield below is from the Roman XXI Predator Legion, and was cited by milo as part of the inspiration for the flag above.  Check this thread in bimmerforums for more info on the history of that Legion.
More pics and info here:

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?p=23002594#post23002594

Onward and upward, E21 Legion!

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Baur at SoCal Vintage October 29 2011

There was a great turnout of E21s at the Southern California Vintage Show yesterday, October 29, 2011.  Koko brought his beautiful Baur (pictured below), so there was one E21 Baur present.  Kudos Koko!
There were close to 30 E21s at the show!  Great turnout, congratulations fellas! The pic below is was taken at the show, but some E21s had already departed for the day.  Photos courtesy of E21Favuzzi and Old Man (Daryl).  Thank you!

For more pics of the show, check out this thread in bimmerforums.

Friday, October 28, 2011

Mystery Baur in Atlanta pics frm BruceH

In December of 2010, bimmerforums member and fellow Baur owner BruceH mentioned that there was a purple Baur needing rescue in the Atlanta area.  Today, Bruce found and posted the pics of this car in bimmerforums.
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1735634

Check it out.



We now know that what was once a rumor, now has form and substance. The Baur exists, or at least, it did exist in June 2007. And that is a start!

This is what we know:  there is, or at least there was in June 2007, a bluish-purple Baur at a shop in south Atlanta, Georgia. It had a single tail pipe, which makes it either an M10 or an M20 320/6. It appears to have had a tan/beige vinyl or leather interior. We know that it had a Georgia plate (1385 ADP) from DeKalb County, that it had euro bumpers, and that the license plate was mounted.euro-style, below the rear bumper. It had a trunk lip and a Zender rear skirt, and it had federal side marker lights, at least on the front.

We need to know the location, the Baur number and the owner to complete the picture. We are not there yet, but this is a huge step!

This is all great stuff!  Thanks again, Bruce, we are in your debt!  We look forward to learning more about this Baur!  Stay tuned, folks!

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Alpina Baurs



The pics above are all purportedly 'Alpina' Baurs. They certainly appear to be 'Alpinas', but are they? This has often been discussed, but I have yet to see it conclusively proven that there is, in fact, a true 'Alpina' Baur. A gentleman at Bimmerfest East 2011 told me that he used to own one, and regretted selling it.... But was it a true Alpina Baur? Who knows?
This is the 'Alpina Baur' currently being discussed in bimmerforums and on Facebook. It appears to have a 320/6 carbureted engine, not the Alpina B6 2.8. Isit a true Alpina, or just modified to appear to look like one? We shall see.
Ok, Ok.  I know this last one isn't a Baur.  It really isn't even a real Alpina.
This is Charbel's awesome build though, and he added the Alpina decals.  he brought this car to bimmerfest East in August 2011 all the way from Michigan.  He installed the motor from a 745 turbo, I believe, along with  a roll cage.  Just an amazing car!

The point being, however, that it is not hard to make a car appear to be an Alpina, when in fact it is not.
Update:
There is another in the video in this thread at 1:38. Red.
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1654469&highlight=Alpina

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Another Baur Mystery Solved!

OK, boys and girls, we have another great succcess story for you:  it all started with a bimmerforums post by 'sisith' from 2008: then bimmerforums member jimjim telling Baurspotting that his friend just bought a Baur off craigs  list in Central Tucson in December 2010;  and combined with a report of a 320/6 Baur restoration project in Arizona.... then facilitating a meeting today between two Baur owners in Arizona who were unaware of the other's existence.... and BINGO!  A Baur mystery resolved!

Baurspotting made some inquiries into the original 2008 post,  and traced the car to Mark R. in Scottsdale, AZ.  We then put Mark R. in touch with bimmerforums member (and Baur owner) docjohn.  They got together, and the result is that we find out that 'sisith's Baur, and the Baur that jimjim's friend mark bought, AND the report of a Baur restoration project in AZ.... are ALL about the very same car, which turns out to be Baur #118!  Jimjim's friend mark is the same Mark R that bought the car from sisith.

Once again, the TC1 Baur world in the US is indeed a very small world!

 Here are some pics from sisith's original post:



Here is a pic sent by jimjim when his friend mark bought the car last year:
Pics sent to Baurspotting by Mark R. this week:




And here are two pics sent by  docjohn today, from his meeting with Mark R. in Scottsdale, AZ:
Mark R. and his Baur #118.
Mark R. and docjohn below, standing with docjohn's Baur.
You can easily see that it is the same silver car in all of these pics, confirmed by the posting of the Baur plate number!

Great story, fellas!  Just the sort of thing we try to do here at Baurspotting!  Thanks to all (sisith, jimjim, mark R., and docjohn) for helping make this happen!

Docjohn's Baur, seen in the final pic, has an interesting story of its own, some of which has been chronicled here previously, but that is a story for another day.   We will get to that one also, so stay tuned!