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Thread: Back in the E31 World - Avus!

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Lawrence, KS
    Posts
    198
    My Cars
    M3, 840Ci, 740i, X5

    Back in the E31 World - Avus!

    To say Bimmerforums has shaped my love for the E31 would be a massive understatement. I've been a member here for almost 15 years, and the vast majority of my time here has been spent in this section or the 8 series for sale section. I have folders upon folders of member's photos - inspiration photos, wheel/suspension ideas, on and on ...

    My first E31 was found on Roadfly, but sold here. The third - bought here, sold here. Same with the fourth. I've owned some great examples - a '91 Canadian market car with sport seats was my first - didn't realize how spoiled a start I got. A CSi was next - continuing my good luck streak.




    A couple '91 6-speeds, a '93 6-speed and a '93 auto sprinkled in over the years - all well-loved and enjoyed. Each sale brought regret.






    But when I sold my Orient Blue '93 automatic a year ago, I thought my time in an E31 was over for good. I had run out of E31s to chase. An Alpina would be amazing, but definitely out of my league financially. There was ONE car I had wanted for about a decade, but it's location was a mystery.

    That one car I mentioned was owned at least two BF members here - Chamberlin and IJustDrive - the one Avus Blue E31 brought to the NA market. As a huge fan of Avus (I've owned 8 Avus cars over the years), this was the holy grail car for me. A previous owner had done an M62/6-speed swap and it had clearly been loved and cared for. When Joe (Chamberlin) sold the car 6 years ago, I wanted it badly but the timing was not good. He shared with me that a collector bought it and was storing in a facility somewhere in SoCal.

    Fast forward to a random Tuesday in November when my normal 8 series Autotrader search returned the car - THE car. This Avus Blue E31 - right before my eyes. I called the dealer immediately and within a few hours, I had placed a deposit.

    I am now the proud owner of this lovely piece of art. So far, I've not done much outside of staring at it.

    The seats had seen better days - though nearly every 8 series seat I've seen showed similar wear. A few befores:







    And an after:


    It had old PPF on the entire front end, which had severely yellowed. Despite my best efforts to remove it carefully, some of the clear coat gave up and is now off getting the full front end refinish. Whee!



    The trip to the body shop was fun - with incredibly cold temps!



    When it returns, it's going to get a freshly refinished set of MPars and a new set of Pilot Sport tires.



    It currently sits with two other Avus brothers - my '95 M3 and my old '95 M540i - currently owned by a buddy of mine in the UK.



    The E31 and E34 will be making the trip to The Vintage this year, in case there are any other E31 owners going.

    And yes, this is a forever car. Not for sale ... ever I'm grateful to be the steward of this lovely car, and bringing it back to this forum for all to see. I know many on here know this car well.

    Glad to be back!
    1995 BMW M3 (Avus), 1994 BMW 840Ci (Avus), 1994 BMW 740i (Oxford), 2005 BMW X5 4.8iS (BSM)
    Gone (Too many to mention)

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Nov 2004
    Location
    Orange County, CA
    Posts
    13,503
    My Cars
    840Ci|725tds|Alpina B7
    Very nice!

    I know this car (and the shop that did the 6-speed conversion on it) quite well! Excellent color too

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    SF Bay Area
    Posts
    3,775
    My Cars
    Supercharged 850ci
    Fantastic! Welcome Back!

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2002
    Location
    Rochester, NY
    Posts
    28
    My Cars
    '01 740i, 06 Z4M
    Very cool. Congratulations and thanks for sharing!

    Edit - Had to reply in part because I bought one of MightyDave's (most recent?) red 850s. Then I realized while looking at the posts that I'm pretty sure the PO for my E38 chimed in here too. Too funny
    Last edited by Molez93; 01-31-2024 at 12:17 AM. Reason: as noted within
    '01 740i Sport, '06 Z4MR

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Indianapolis, IN
    Posts
    2,365
    My Cars
    93 850Ci, 09 Caddy SRX
    Yep, most SoCalEights members know this car really well! It’s always been a crowd pleaser.
    1993 850Ci.....18 years & 165,000 miles and counting!

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Lawrence, KS
    Posts
    198
    My Cars
    M3, 840Ci, 740i, X5
    Thanks all for the warm welcome back.

    The very first time I can remember seeing the car was when it was the SoCalEights car of the month. It blew my mind at the time. I know almost all of the amazing work done on the car was done during its SoCal years.

    Ed - I'm already running your center storage console and ashtray in it - amazing quality! Such a beautiful upgrade.

    Scott - great seeing you here and I'm curious who used to own your E38. Knowing your tastes in cars, I presume it's a Sporty Shorty with it being an '01. If I ever decide to part with my Oxford E32, an Oxford E38 Sporty Shorty is the preferred replacement.

    Olin - your signature shows a 725tds - do you still have that? E32?
    1995 BMW M3 (Avus), 1994 BMW 840Ci (Avus), 1994 BMW 740i (Oxford), 2005 BMW X5 4.8iS (BSM)
    Gone (Too many to mention)

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2002
    Location
    Rochester, NY
    Posts
    28
    My Cars
    '01 740i, 06 Z4M
    Olin sold me my 740 via Cars and Bids.
    https://carsandbids.com/auctions/KZD0eJEb/2001-bmw-740i

    I've put ridiculous amounts of money into making it reliable daily transportation for years to come. Such an awesome chassis...
    '01 740i Sport, '06 Z4MR

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    Iceland
    Posts
    4,675
    My Cars
    BMW 850
    Welcome Back and what a great machiine. That Avus actually looks pretty good.
    What are your future plans with it?

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Lawrence, KS
    Posts
    198
    My Cars
    M3, 840Ci, 740i, X5
    Quote Originally Posted by Fatandre View Post
    Welcome Back and what a great machiine. That Avus actually looks pretty good.
    What are your future plans with it?
    Scott - I remember seeing that one go on C&B! Lovely car.

    As far as plans go, I don’t have much in mind. The PPF coming off (and subsequent body work) wasn’t planned, but I considered it necessary. Mpars with new tires going on as soon as it’s back from paint. I’ve refinished both front seats and bought a few key replacement interior bits to bring it back to near-new. I have a new triangle airbag steering wheel going in soon as well, just rewrapped to be a bit thicker than what was already there. Cocomats went in as soon as it arrived.

    I’m really looking forward to The Vintage, and the 900 mile drive (each way) that goes with it. A true GT car going on a long road trip - should be great.

    Obviously I’m doing a full round of basic maintenance as soon as it’s back as well. Can’t wait to get going.
    1995 BMW M3 (Avus), 1994 BMW 840Ci (Avus), 1994 BMW 740i (Oxford), 2005 BMW X5 4.8iS (BSM)
    Gone (Too many to mention)

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Nov 2004
    Location
    Orange County, CA
    Posts
    13,503
    My Cars
    840Ci|725tds|Alpina B7
    Quote Originally Posted by mightydave View Post
    Olin - your signature shows a 725tds - do you still have that? E32?

    I do! It is an E38 actually (Fjord Gray on Black manual) and I recently got a SWB Alpina B7

    1D03C1DE-59F9-4D15-9B53-D0363151CB5A.jpgIMG_2143.jpgIMG_0250.jpg

    Quote Originally Posted by Molez93 View Post
    Olin sold me my 740 via Cars and Bids.
    https://carsandbids.com/auctions/KZD0eJEb/2001-bmw-740i

    I've put ridiculous amounts of money into making it reliable daily transportation for years to come. Such an awesome chassis...
    Glad you're enjoying it still a few years in... What did you need to do on it so far? Nice to see that you're keeping up with the tradition $$$ (since that thing has had a lot of love over the years)


    OP: Here are some photos I took of your car 13 years ago when I saw it for the first time:

    download-2.jpgdownload.jpg
    Last edited by olinjohnston; 01-31-2024 at 09:25 PM.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Mar 2002
    Location
    Rochester, NY
    Posts
    28
    My Cars
    '01 740i, 06 Z4M
    [Glad you're enjoying it still a few years in... What did you need to do on it so far? Nice to see that you're keeping up with the tradition $$$ (since that thing has had a lot of love over the years)]
    Off the top of my head… Anything one might do during a complete timing chain service, all cooling system components, 8 coils & plugs, every fluid, various suspension parts, headliner, and front clip & rear bumper respray. Various smaller things like a window regulator, side lights, tint, 4 wheel speed sensors, etc. The only thing I sort of skimped on was the low speed power steering booster part.

    I was working at the local BMW dealer for a good chunk of it so $50/hr and cost +10% on parts was relatively painless. Small needs quickly turned into a “do it all while you’re at it” approach. ;-)
    Last edited by Molez93; 01-31-2024 at 10:39 PM.
    '01 740i Sport, '06 Z4MR

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Lawrence, KS
    Posts
    198
    My Cars
    M3, 840Ci, 740i, X5
    Olin - hell yes!!! Love the 725. Need photos of the B7 as well! And thanks for sharing pictures of the car from 13 years ago - so cool.

    I've imported three now - all sold. An Alpina B6 2.8 Touring from Japan, an E34 525ix Touring from the Netherlands and an E36 Touring from there as well.

    I'm always looking for a SWB 750i, either E32 or E38 would be fine. Would love to bring one of those over eventually.
    1995 BMW M3 (Avus), 1994 BMW 840Ci (Avus), 1994 BMW 740i (Oxford), 2005 BMW X5 4.8iS (BSM)
    Gone (Too many to mention)

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Fort Worth, TX
    Posts
    3,892
    My Cars
    E36M3/E46M3/E39M5/E63M6
    Ha, you always knew you'll be back.
    Same here, one day...
    E36/8 2000 M Coupe Cosmos Black/Black
    Shark, Conforti CAI, B&B Exhaust, H&R, Bilstein, AKG Subframe/Diff, UUC TME Red/Caps, Swapped Front Hats, Ice>Link.
    ================================================== =======================

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Lawrence, KS
    Posts
    198
    My Cars
    M3, 840Ci, 740i, X5
    Quote Originally Posted by TexaZ3 View Post
    Ha, you always knew you'll be back.
    Same here, one day...
    Cut from the same cloth. I saw your comments on the Mauritius Blue auction on BaT - was thinking you'd jump in late! How's the E34 M5 treating you?
    1995 BMW M3 (Avus), 1994 BMW 840Ci (Avus), 1994 BMW 740i (Oxford), 2005 BMW X5 4.8iS (BSM)
    Gone (Too many to mention)

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