This car looks like it's in very good condition. It would definitely be one I would drive to Portland to look at.
Here are some notes:
VIN WBS59910004301407
Engine VIN: M88-462
Chassis number: 405
Original colour: red
Left ItalDesign: Nov. 18, 1980
Left Baur: Dec. 23, 1980
Original Customer: BMW Italy
Engines are really 3.5l (3,453cc), not 3.4l.
The options listed are actually standard equipment. The only option was a seat lowering kit.
These cars have metric instruments, so the 42,256 on the odometer is km, which is 25,354 miles.
The production numbers are right. I can't find the number of red cars produced, but it was less than the 96 orange ones produced. I suspect there were only 60 or so red cars. So, Eric, it might be easier to sell the M5 and get this now. Then look for a red M5 later, which will probably be easier to find.
There are about 150 or so M1's in the American Register that Gordon Medenica runs. 6 of those are in Canada.
"For a car built in 1980, I was extremely surprised as to how peppy and agile the vehicle drove." What? This is a supercar! Only the Ferrari 512BB was faster. The Porsche 930 was about the same speed, but was saddled with brutal turbo lag.
The front license plate bracket is missing. It is standard equipment.
The engine cover is misaligned. All the other ones that I have seen pictures of, have the right rear raised about 5mm above the matching bodywork. The problem is that the engine cover is slightly too wide for the opening, and the only way to align the cover so that the gap is even at the back is to raise one side slightly.
The standard equipment factory chrome exhaust tips are missing.
I'm having trouble telling, but it looks like the center caps on the wheels have the Roundel on them. This is wrong. It should have the original Motorsport logo (small Roundel surrounded by the Motorsport colours designed to look like a spinning vibration damper) on them. The proper caps are NLA, so maybe this was the best option after the restoration.
The rear license plate mounting screws are positioned for a European licence plate. A North American plate will scratch the paint.
The cover just below the rear window isn't warped. When I bought my car, it wasn't warped but is now after a few miles. [Eddie, don't read this sentence: ] My car now has 1,000km more than this one.
There's very little evidence of federalization. The exhaust manifold is unmolested, as are the bumpers and gas fillers. This is extremely important, as most US conversions weren't that nice. I suspect that this car has received a recent restoration which un-did the federalization process.
The center section of the trunk carpet looks like it's seen better days, as has the tool wrap thing.
The ignition coil has been moved from the stock mounting location closer to the left side of the car. The other M1 in Vancouver has this same problem, so I believe the threads for the mounting screws were weak to begin with.
In the picture with the coolant bottle and ignition control module, there's a black plastic cover. I don't believe this is stock. But engine bay pictures are as rare as hen's teeth, so I don't know for sure. I couldn't find it in the ETK.
The "Caution - Engine is Hot" warning sticker (under the ignition coil) looks like it's in perfect condition. Damn, I'm jealous!
In the front compartment, mounted to the bulkhead, just to the right of the windshield washer bottle is a "thing" that shouldn't be there. After the discussion on the M3 SIG, I suspect that this is an inline water pump that continues to circulate coolant after the engine has been shut off.
There's a fire extinguisher beside the driver's seat. This isn't stock, but it is a good idea. There was a blue M1 in Vancouver that burned to the ground 20 years ago due to an electrical fire.
The gear shift knob isn't stock.
The floor mats aren't original or have fadded. They should be black.
The radio has been changed. The original one was a Becker Mexico, which I think is NLA but I haven't checked.
And there's the federalization evidence: There shouldn't be a seat belt idiot light on the dash. It is visible just above and to the left of the radio. There isn't one on stock M1s. I suspect that it still exists because there's now a hole in the NLA dash, and leaving it in was the least offensive kludge.
It has the later clock.
The HVAC controls are in German. This might seem weird for an Italian market car, but the ETK only shows 1 version. BTW, this is an E21 panel and is available in several languages.
The headliner above the driver's head looks like a previous smoker was an owner. No, I didn't get those words mixed up. That's pretty bad.
I would put absolutely no weight to the statement " Passed Thorough Dealer Inspection". There's only 1 employee in any of the four Vancouver dealerships that I would let touch my car, and he's reluctant because he hasn't dealt with that sort of technology since the 2002tii's were being serviced at the dealerships 30 years ago.
Overall, a very interesting car...
Dean
![[doorpeek]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_doorpeek.gif "Door Peek [doorpeek]"){kind=icon}