- The E9-chassis coupes were among BMW’s prettiest efforts.
- This example benefits from a complete disassembly and rebuild, and its fresh paint matches the original Golf Yellow.
- An inline six and a manual transmission provides driving bless, or you could just pull up a chair and stare at it.
Modern BMWs certainly have a lot of presence, but elegance is somewhat thin on the ground in Munich these days. It’s as if your favorite classical cellist decided to go off to be a DJ in a Miami nightclub. Let’s rewind the tape to one of BMW’s greatest hits, when six-cylinders and a manual gearshift were the equivalent of three chords and the truth.
This drop-dead gorgeous 1974 BMW 3.0CSi currently up for auction on Bring a Trailer—which, like Car and Driver, is part of Hearst Autos— that’s been treated to a no-bolt-left-unturned restoration. Its long-nosed silhouette is perfection, its airy cabin offers a feast for the eyes outside and from behind the wheel. There are all sorts of lovely details to appreciate, like the 14-inch multi-spoke wheels and a wood-rimmed Nardi steering wheel.
The CSi designation here is not to be confused with that TV detective show where David Caruso puts on his sunglasses before making a terrible pun. Instead, it stands for Coupe Sport with the lower-case i indicating fuel-injection for the 3.0-liter six. This car’s Bosch D-Jetronic fuel injection system allowed for more precise metering than the more-common carbureted systems of the era, and allowed for a healthy 200 horsepower.
This car reportedly was sold new in Germany and thus comes without the ungainly impact bumpers U.S. models were fitted with. The Golf Yellow color is a respray, but one that matches the original delivery hue.
In terms of reconditioning, the restorers were Oldenzaal Classics, a vintage BMW specialist in the Netherlands, pulled this 3.0CSi completely to pieces before electroplating and refinishing the unibody, overhauling the 3.0-liter inline-six and the four-speed manual transmission, and refurbishing the suspension. As testament to the quality of the restoration, this E9 comes with an official BMW Classics certificate.
This perfection will surely fetch a pretty penny, but at the same time, this 3.0CSi is not some low-mileage original collectible that can’t be driven for fear of lessening the value. It’s one of the great driver’s cars, and even the air-conditioning works (and has been converted to R134a). There should be no excuses from the winning bidder for not getting out there and driving it.
The auction ends on March 6. Miss out on this 3.0CSi and you’ll be—puts on sunglasses—the ultimate crying machine.
Brendan McAleer is a freelance writer and photographer based in North Vancouver, B.C., Canada. He grew up splitting his knuckles on British automobiles, came of age in the golden era of Japanese sport-compact performance, and began writing about cars and people in 2008. His particular interest is the intersection between humanity and machinery, whether it is the racing career of Walter Cronkite or Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki’s half-century obsession with the Citroën 2CV. He has taught both of his young daughters how to shift a manual transmission and is grateful for the excuse they provide to be perpetually buying Hot Wheels.