Tag Archives: BMW

Sauber C5

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1976 Sauber C5

Offered by Oldtimer Galerie | Gstaad, Swizterland | December 29, 2021

Photo – Oldtimer Galerie

Peter Sauber founded his motorsports company in 1970. Everything started with sports cars and prototypes, like this. Things would eventually progress to the top of the sportscar mountain before the team entered Formula One in 1993.

This C5 was campaigned by the Francy Racing Team, which was apparently some kind of back door Sauber works team. It ran a few seasons in the European Interserie Championshop. Race highlights include:

  • 1977 24 Hours of Le Mans – 29th, DNF (with Eugen Strahl and Peter Bernhard)

The car had a few owners over the years and was used in the Le Mans Classic in the 2000s before being restored in 2020. It appears to have a 2.0-liter BMW inline-four under the rear bodywork and is most probably turbocharged. It now carries a pre-sale estimate of $210,000-$255,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

BMW 3/15 Sports

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1931 BMW 3/15 Ihle Sports

Offered by Bonhams | Bicester, U.K. | December 11, 2021

Photo – Bonhams

So we’ve talked about Dixi before and how it was an Austin Seven built under license in Germany. BMW purchased Dixi in late 1928, and Dixis were re-branded as BMWs the following year. They still called them BMW Dixi, although they’d drop the Dixi name sometime around 1930.

This post-Dixi 3/15 was produced in 1931 and was actually coach-built by Gebruder Ihle Karrosseriebau of Bruschal, Germany. It’s a sporty, light two-seater with BMW’s signature twin (not-quite-kidney) grilles.

Power is from a 747cc inline-four, but the power rating is uncertain, as it is not clear if this coachbuilt example was based on a DA-2/4 chassis (15 horsepower) or DA-3 Wartburg chassis (17 horsepower). The DA-3 was the sports version of the 3/15, but a coachbuilt example could’ve come from any model. At any rate, this is a great little early BMW, and for $13,000-$20,000, it seems like a historic bargain. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $37,726.

Riley-BMW Daytona Prototype

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2012 Riley-BMW Mk XXVI

Offered by Mecum | Chattanooga, Tennessee | October 15-16, 2021

Photo – Mecum

Daytona prototypes were a cool era of American sportscar racing. Basically the Grand-Am, then IMSA, version of an LMP1 car, they were the top dog in Grand-Am and American-based sports car racing starting with their debut in 2003. This is actually a third-generation DP, which debuted in 2012 and lasted through 2016.

This era was more creative than previous generations, as those tended to all look like the same block of soap with wheels. The third gen featured this Riley chassis and the Corvette DP, which looked different enough to be recognizable on its own.

Riley Technologies was founded in 2001 by Bob Riley (of race car constructor Riley & Scott) and his son Bill. The Riley DP chassis were pretty successful, being competitive from 2003 through 2016. This car features a way-too-busy livery and is powered by a 5.0-liter BMW V8.

It’s an ex-Michael Shank Racing car and comes with two spare engines. Its specific race history is unknown. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: ?? Not listed as sold or not sold. So presumably sold and Mecum is hiding the result from everyone.

BMW 309

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1934 BMW 309

Offered by Dorotheum | Vosendorf, Austria | July 3, 2021

Photo – Dorotheum

Here’s another small car from BMW’s early era. The company launched the 303 in 1933. It was their first six-cylinder car and the first BMW with “kidney” grilles – two things the company continues to be known for. In 1934 they introduced the 309, which was essentially a 303 with two fewer cylinders. It was intended as a replacement for the 3/20.

The 309 is powered by an 845cc inline-four that made 22 horsepower when new. Rubber engine mounts were used to reduce vibration in the cabin, and the cars carried bodies from Ambi-Budd. You could choose from a two-door sedan (as shown here), a cabriolet, or a tourer.

Approximately 6,000 examples of the 309 were produced through 1936. This one has known history back only a few decades, and it was restored in Austria. Pre-war BMWs are rarely seen, and the fact that this was about as basic of an example as you could get in 1934 makes it even more impressive that it is still around. It should bring between $14,000-$22,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $22,336.

BMW 1600 GT

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1968 BMW 1600 GT

Offered by Dorotheum | Vosendorf, Austria | July 3, 2021

Photo – Dorotheum

Aside from the 507, BMW didn’t do sporty cars very well back in the day. So how did they up their game? Well, in 1966, they purchased Hans Glas GmbH, a company that, among other things, produced the Goggomobil and sports cars like 1300 GT and 1700 GT.

After BMW bought out Glas, they decided to drop the 1.6-liter M10 inline-four from the Neue Klasse 1600 into the sporty, Frua-bodied Glas 1700 GT. Output was rated at 103 horsepower. Styling changes were more or less limited to lighting revisions and the addition of the corporate kidney grilles.

Only 1,255 coupe examples of the 1600 GT were produced between 1967 and 1968. This car has known ownership history from new, having spent its early years in Italy. It carries a pre-sale estimate of $55,000-$73,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $64,978.

BMW Z8

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2001 BMW Z8

Offered by Mecum | Monterey, California | August 14, 2021

Photo – Mecum

The Z8 was BMW’s retro-inspired halo car that was sold between 2000 and 2002, with a revised Alpina Roadster available for 2003. The car was styled after BMW’s legendary 507 (one of, if not the first, car this site featured was a 507).

Power is from a 4.9-liter V8 rated at 395 horsepower. It could hit 60 in 4.2 seconds and was limited to a 155-mph top end. This car retains its factory body-color hardtop and is one of 62 built finished in red over Crema leather. A total of 5,703 Z8s were produced. While they are sought after today, their $128,000 base price when new did not move them off of dealer lots quickly 20 years ago.

That said, good luck picking one up for under $150,000 today. They’ve aged pretty well and are certainly a future classic. Click here for more info on this one, and here for more from Mecum in Monterey.

Update: Sold $247,500.

BMW 502 by Baur

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1956 BMW 502 Cabriolet by Baur

Offered by Bring a Trailer Auctions | April 2021

Photo – Bring a Trailer Auctions

The BMW 502 was the V8-powered version of BMW’s six-cylinder 501. The 501 went on sale in 1951 and the 502 in 1954. Confusingly, there was also a “501 V8” model sold, with a detuned version of the 502’s.

The 502 was also better appointed than the 501, which made it expensive. They only sold 190 in the first sales year. The standard body style was a sedan, but Baur-built coupes and cabriolets were also available. This car is one of 57 cabriolet examples.

This one is powered by a 3.2-liter V8 sourced from a later BMW 3200L. The 502 was Germany’s first post-war V8-powered car. With a single carburetor, this engine was rated at 140 horsepower when new. The removed factory 2.6-liter V8 is included with the car.

This car was restored between 2011 and 2013, and it looks pretty fantastic. It’s been at Pebble Beach and is being offered out of a museum. The bidding is already at $125,000 as of this writing, and it is scheduled to end two days from this posting. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $275,000.

2002 Turbo

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1974 BMW 2002 Turbo

Offered by Mecum | Glendale, Arizona | March 18-20, 2021

Photo – Mecum

This site doesn’t feature too many post-war German cars, but people love BMW’s 2002. The name was a little short-sighted, but I guess they never imagined having to try and Google “BMW 2002” only to get a ton of results for 2002 325Cis.

The 2002 was mixed in with a number of other visually similar but mechanically different models, including the 1602, 1802, 1502, 1600, and 1800. The 2002 went on sale for the 1968 model year and would be offered in base, cabriolet, ti, and tii forms through 1976. There was one model that topped all of those, and it was the Turbo, which was sold between 1973 and 1975. Only 1,672 examples were produced.

It was BMW’s first turbocharged production car and features a turbocharged, fuel-injected 2.0-liter M10 inline-four rated at 168 horsepower. Top speed was 130 mph. The Turbo is easily the most sought-after 2002 variant, with prices that can easily climb into the six figures. Check out more on this one here, and see more from Mecum here.

Update: Sold $154,000.

BMW 3/15 Convertible

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1930 BMW Dixi 3/15 DA-2 Convertible

Offered by Dorotheum | Salzburg, Austria | October 17, 2020

Photo – Dorotheum

The Dixi was an Austin Seven built under license in Germany beginning in 1928. In late 1928, Dixi was overtaken by BMW, and in 1929, the cars were re-badged as the BMW Dixi 3/15 DA-2. This model was produced from 1929 through 1931. Two more versions of the 3/15 would be produced through 1932, but the DA-2 was the last to carry the Dixi name.

Power is from a 747cc inline-four good for 15 horsepower. You could get a two-door sedan, a delivery van, or a convertible like the one you see here. Only 300 examples of the convertible were produced, and I’d bet there are very, very few left today.

For perspective, the 300 convertibles were out of an entire DA-2 production run of 12,318. This one has been restored and is expected to bring between $14,000-$21,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $17,069.

BMW 503 Cabriolet

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1958 BMW 503 Series II Cabriolet

Offered by Bonhams | Knokke-Heist, Belgium | October 11, 2020

Photo – Bonhams

In the mid-1950s, BMW had yet to have a real hit. They were still pushing Isettas on the German people, and alongside that, they were offering the ultra-exclusive 507 Roadster. Meanwhile, they were trying their hand at a luxury 2+2 with this, the 503.

Produced between 1956 and 1959, the 503 was powered by a 3.2-liter V8 that made 140 horsepower. The car could be had as a coupe or a convertible, and they all had four seats. This is a Series II example, the type of which was introduced in 1957. It featured a floor shifter for the four-speed manual transmission.

Only 413 examples of the 503 were built, and just 138 of those were drop-tops. This example was restored in 2002 and is certain to be its next owner’s ticket to any major car event worldwide. It is expected to bring between $410,000-$530,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.