I did everything I could to raise the necessary funds to purchase this car, yet try as I did it too wasn't to be. The exercise wasn't fruitless however as I was able to arrive at the conclusion that the CS was a car I could easily drive every day, as many of its owners do. And now owning one, if previously only a dream, had become an obsession.
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| The BMW 3.0 CSL, shown here with its outrageous 'batmobile' rear wing, has even better driving dynamics than the superb CS and CSi, which are comparable to newer BMWs and Audis. (Photo: BMW) |
Every week I scanned the Auto Trader and newspaper classifieds, but only a few coupes looked worthy of a closer look. I went to see these and the majority sounded better than they actually were. I eventually found an ad in a local paper for a one-owner example. The same doctor who originally purchased it in 1971 was attempting to sell it to me in 1996. Again it was a blue on blue example yet this time it wasn't so perfect. The rocker panels and strut towers were rusted through. The bottoms of the doors and fenders (just over the wheel wells) were also perforated.
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| The one-owner 3.0CS that showed up in the classifieds was far from perfect, but still tempting. (Photo: BMW) |
To add insult to injury the owner had recently backed into a fence and dented the complex curve at the passenger-side rear corner, just above the tail lamp. I debated over purchasing this car for quite some time. What would I regret more - buying it or not buying it? I played with the numbers, got a few estimates and played with the numbers again. In the end it just didn't feel right. As much as I wanted a 3.0 CS coupe, this car didn't make financial sense. The search continued.