BMW CCA Vintage At The Vineyards Part II

I left off with my previous post covering the BMW CCA V@V event somewhere in the E21 3-series era. There's a lot more German eye candy to drool over, so grab your mouse and a towel - it only gets better.

I realized after posting the last article that one picture of a bunch of E30 M3's simply isn't sufficient for the magnificence of these homologation hooning specials.  While many of the box-fendered E30's were simply stock survivors (impressive enough), some of them were remarkably perfect example of this rare racer-with-a-plate.

Now, I'm not 100% sure, but those look like E34 M5 "Ninja Star" wheels with black-painted centers.  Can't say I've ever seen that before - it's a good look for the E30, though.  There's no way the paint on this one was factory - way too deep and flawless.  The red valve cover peaking around the corner of the hood is a nice touch, too - as is that beefy strut tower bracing.

And yes, gunmetal BBS RG-R's look good on everything.  Moving on...

Considering there are a total of 5 of these cars in the US, it's likely that this Z1 Roadster is the exact same one I saw a few months prior at the BMW Zentrum in Spartanburg.  It looks a lot better out in the daylight, although I'll admit it's still somewhat of an odd design - those hide-away doors are quite the party trick, eh?

On the other end of the Spectrum, the legendary BMW Isetta.  A fearsome performance car, if I've ever seen one!  These two were buzzing around the show all day, a coupe and a cabriolet, and they looked like they just slid  out of the factory.  Hard to believe BMW made these cars in the post-war period, but then again, when you're trying to get an entire country back on it's feet...

An E23 (first-generation) 733i - with a five speed manual trans. When was the last time you could buy a stick-shift Big Bimmer in the states?  This was probably a grey-market import car from the early 80's - cloth seats and clutch pedals aren't in vogue for pricey luxury cars now, and they weren't back then either.  Still, pretty damn cool.  But let's move on to what I've decided is my favorite chassis of BMW - the E28 5-series.

Let's see here, a ratty beat-looking mid-eighties 5 series with some nice wheels, faded trim, and a center-exit exhaust.  What's that "Evil 5er" license plate about, then?  Well, swing around to the front end and find out...

How about a custom-brewed turbo kit strapped to the engine of your 535i?  The owner claimed the setup pushes 10psi through a hybrid T3 turbocharger, supported by M5 injectors and some other goodies - which nets mid-300's to the wheels.  Wanna talk about a sleeper... damn.  I dig the Bosch diverter valve he's using - at the end of the tube leading off the charge pipe that goes to the manifold - mainly because it's the same kind my Saab uses.

I call this  next section "Rare E28 Alley."  There were so many special E28's here, I don't even know where to start.  Let's go basic first- this Hartge H5S has about everything you need and nothing you don't.

Hartge may not have the name recognition in the US as companies like Alpina or Dinan, but they know their way around a BMW- this Hartge modified 535i sports a high-compression motor with a worked head and cams, headers and exhaust for a solid 240bhp.  It's shockingly basic inside, too - no iDrive or BS, just cloth Recaros, a Hartge steering wheel, crank-up windows, and the sound of a howling straight six to keep you happy.

Perhaps not so basic and simple, this Alpina B7 Turbo falls more on the side of "utterly batshit insane; can I drive it?"  The Emerald Green paint is absolutely stunning, the Alpina wheels are - as I've already mentioned - totally perfect, and the classic pin-striping is pretty damn classy.

But more impressive is the view under the hood.  A lot more professional looking than the home-brew turbo 535i a few pictures up - there's no element of "patchwork" to this turbo setup.  Why can't BMW's 335i turbo engine bay look more like this, and less like a plastic facemask?

And out of 278 B7 Turbos made between 1984-1987, what are the chances of seeing two in the same place...?

Of course you may have noticed the car the B7 Turbo is parked next to.  How freakin' cool is this? A super-rare Turbo Alpina E28, and an E28 M5 parked door-to-door.  I'm in heaven!

How about something a bit more compression-ignition?  Ever seen a 524td?  No?  Well how about a 5-speed 524td?  Double no. They only imported these turbodiesel 5-series in '85-'86, and the majority of them sold in the US came with an auto trans.  Rare, rare, rare.  Probably a nice car to drive, even if the 2.4L turbo motor only had 114bhp on tap - these E28's were not heavy cars, remember.

Also filed under the "sleeper E28's" catory is this early-eighties 533i.  While it looks like a bit of a beater track-rat on the outside...

...Under the hood is a different story.  The 3.2L M30 (181bhp) was jettisoned in favor of a 3.0L S50B30 out of a 90's M3.  As if the weight reduction plus the extra 60 horsepower wasn't enough, this M3/5-series hybrid is boosted with an Active Autowerks Supercharger setup - that should do the trick!

How about 6 E28 M5's all sitting in one picture?  Oh my god, classic BMW's... gotta love 'em.  Also, it's worth noting that the E28 M5/E24 M6 has the sexiest engine ever created. Don't know what I'm talking about?  Here you go:

Mmmm... anyway, that's about enough of the E28's.  Let's move onto the final showcase of this Beemer love-fest - the E24 6-series section.  As you can see, there was not a shortage of E24 love to be found.

It was an alarming number of M6's in attendance, with only a handful of "regular" E24's (as if there's such a thing) in attendance.  The one in the middle of this picture stood out in particular - can't say I've ever seen an E24 with a body kit!  Anyone know who makes this?

For sure, the E24's a dated design - it goes all the way back to 1976 - but I think it's aged more gracefully than it's successor, the 8-series.  Although there were even some attractive 8-series to be seen at this show.

And after 2 posts and 40-odd pictures, that's all, folks!  I shot close to 300 pictures at this event, so like I said - this is the highlight roll.  If you want full high-resolution versions of any of these, or are wondering if there any cars in the background I shot, just drop me a comment below.  In the mean time, drive safe and enjoy the ride!