The BMW 507 Ultimate Build Thread!!!
 

One of the very few cars that's always intrigued me and stopped me in my tracks due to it's drop dead gorgeous looks is the BMW 507. I was very fortunate sit in one and go for a "leisurely" jaunt around the Cologne, Germany area many years ago when I stumbled upon a gathering in front of "The Dom" cathedral by the main train station. I was hooked. But seeing how they are... oh...a tad out of my price range, I always thought I'd make an accurate replica. The body was always the main issue. But, I've got that resolved. Now I'm considering using a BMW V8 but know zero about them. I've owned several BMWs, but they were Z3s, 3-Series E30 and later, and one 528. All 5spds. I'm intrigued to use a BMW V8 if I decideto build one, and know the 4.0 had issues.

Does anyone here know about stand alone EFI (like FAST or the like) systems that can be retroed to earlier V8s? I figured I'd ask here before heading over to Roadfly or the like.

It would be a big project since I'd be fabrication pretty much everything. But how cool would that be?! We'll see. Still in the information gathering process.

Cheers
Dave

That is a cool looking car Dave :biggthumpup:

Thanks Mike. Of course, something like this won't affect the latest build thread comin' in hot in another section here shortly. :smirk:

Cheers

Dave

A buddy of mine has a little company that specializes in German performance and stand alone efi. Marc Swanson at www.efiexpress.com

Dave, I'm going to be using a MegaSquirt stand alone EFI on my Camaro to replace the old Edelbrock that's on it now. They seem to be adaptable to almost any type of engine and appear to have pretty decent support.


https://www.diyautotune.com/

Excellent info.... thanks guys!

Cheers
Dave

Lynn's been around Beemers for decades, may have some advice.

I wasn’t into BMWs until now... that is one drop dead gorgeous car!

They are, and it would be a fun undertaking and build. The results when done would be... I'm hoping.... fantastic! Great info guys. Thanks for the help. I actually found a few nice original BMW parts they still make for it. A supplier in England makes the windshield. Good stuff!

Cheers
Dave

I can't stop looking at that picture you posted....:drool:.....do it, do it Dave .
It kind of reminders me of a early Cobra ???

Mike

You'd have to come down and stay at the new place next year, Mikey, and help fab up stuff when you aren't knee-deep in COPO stuff! :burnout:

Indeed, the frame would be a modified Cobra frame. Dimensions are remarkably similar. But nothing else is. Torsion bar suspension (familiar with that from the Mopar genre:naughty:). Hmmmm..... is there a BMW thread section? :confused2: Might have to "member ride" it! I'll already have another one going in the Mopar section shortly:wink:

Cheers
Dave

Cool project Dave. Go ahead and create a BMW thread - precedence has already been set. Eddie (enio45) forces us to follow his build on his old musty '58 Elena. Your project can't be any more offensive to us sYcers than that!!!!!!! :youguysrock:

Hey Dave:

Between my brother and I we have owned over 60 bimmers over the years, but not one V8. 4, 6 & 12. So, I am far from a BMW V8 expert, but can help a little. BTW, not that many on this site would care, but a BMW car is a "bimmer" and a BMW bike is a "beemer".

Have always loved the 507. It was more expensive new than the Mercedes Gullwing cars (but has not kept up since then price wise). Did not sell that well, and almost bankrupted BMW.

Yes, the 4.0 liters had issues, but it was related to the high sulpher content of US market gasoline in the early 90's. It would eat away at the hard coating applied directly to the cylinder walls. BMW repaired a lot of those engines, even ones that were well past the warranty period. They also changed the composition of the coating either mid 95 or mid 96, and all the later engines are free from that malady.

If you source a decent engine, I would try to get the wiring harness and ecm with it. Nothing to program, and parts are easy to get. Even a very well kept 740i is ridiculously cheap when it is 15 to 20 years old. Even better if you can find one that has been recently hit. Just buy the whole car and you will have everything you need.

I would look for something like 98 to 2004 range.

With that little car, you won't need outrageous power to have fun.
Maybe we can start a new forum for totally non muscle car build threads. You can do this one, Eddie already started on the Ferrari, and I have a tube frame chassis, aluminum body replica of a Ferrari 250 GTO (body is about 80% done) that wil be gettin a Ferrari V12 and 5 speed.

I have owned a few BMWs over the years including a couple E30's, an E28, and currently an E60. I ABSOLUTELY advise against the use of an N62 (4.5L V-8) from the 2000's. I have a 2004 545i that has been a nightmare. The cooling system has a design flaw that causes leakage (massive leakage) due to a cheap plastic coolant pipe that is located in the front of the engine that goes into the lifter valley. There is a fix for this which entails putting in an aluminum sleeve that has had good lasting results and that I'm going to do once I get back home from up north, but honestly, in a car like that I highly doubt you'd want to use an engine with that design. This fix is a DIY $250 but the dealer fix is $2500+. It also has a design flaw where oil leaks out of the alternator bracket gasket, which mine has and that I'm planning on fixing when I do the other fix. Other issues with this engine include valve cover gasket leaks, timing cover leaks, VANOS solenoid o-ring leaks and upper timing cover gasket leak.
See what I mean? Run away, fast and far from the N62.

I have always thought the 507 was pure sex - the body lines, the curves and the fact that they were completely hand formed and no two were exactly alike.

Would love to see one re-created but might be more fun with a 12. :cool2:

Agree with Mark. Those 4.4 V8s are all plagued with that cooling system design flaw.

Not being a bimmer V8 expert, I wouldn't be able to tell you exactly which years are best, and which to avoid. I am sure that info is available without too much work.

Seems like you could not fit a V8 under that hood nor could you get enough tire under it (without flares) to handle the V8 power.

It came from the factory with a 3.2 liter V8

----LS it, Dave! No one will know the dif and it will be faster,,,LOL!!!...…..Bill S

Good stuff, guys!:D I'm still in the formulation stage and searching out technical aspects of out. Luckily, Elivs' 507 just underwent a complete restoration and there's several videos showing exactly what I needed to know as far as the frame/body assembly goes. Torsion bar suspension like my beloved Mopars!:headbang: Yep, these were factory V8 cars. It's killing me to not have a shop right now. This project will start next year. :scholar:

As I gather more info I'll post up. Yes, Steve-a-Reeno...new category needed on sYc: "Non-Supercar Builds". Almost like a general category, but strictly related to "other" build projects: cars, house, boat, bike, Humanoid Robot.... whatever!

Cheers
Dave

Massive V8 power! Well... not really:burnout:

Cheers
Dave

Looks close enough to an LS valve cover to me.

I've come up with a chassis design based on watching the videos and still photos of Elvis' 507 restoration. The 507 has a 4 wheel torsion bar suspension with a solid axle rear. I have the front worked out by using my beloved Mopar setup, and for the rear, I'm contemplating just using a 4-Link coil over setup. The whole platform would be based 64 Valiant convertible. Dimension wise, it's almost spot on with the wheelbase being the biggest discrepancy. That can be remedied by moving the rear frame rails forward. The entire unibody would look very similar once I add front steel wheel wells, trunk and hood gutter frames, and modified firewall. I'll post up once I finish the drawing/ plans.:headbang:

In other news, bought the first part for it! Gently used 1957 caps!:biggthumpup::biggthumpup::biggthumpup:

Cheers:beers:
Dave

Chassis design is complete. It's a homologous concoction of no less than four cars that will bring the unibody construction striking similar to the factory 507's structure. Best part? It should satisfy everyone on the board since it'll encompass parts from all of the Big 3!:cool2:

The front chassis, rear frame rails will be 67-70 Mopar A-Body for the torsion bar suspension, then transitioning to a late 70s Mercedes SL convertible rear tub section, with GM AD series truck front door jambs (almost identical to the 507s) and GM A-Body wheel wells. Firewall will be custom, A-Pillar will be custom made surrounding the correct 507 windshield so dimensions stay true to the original design. That's three makes, but what about a Ford part to complete the big three American car companies?? :dunno: Glad you asked! :grin: Modified Mustang seat pan risers on the floor! See?? Everyone is offended equally!:biggthumpup::hmmm:

Already figured out powerplant, transmission, and rear axle selections too. Biggest challenge on this project is mainly finding 507 specific parts but I'm planning on fabricating most myself and using eerily similar readily available donor parts from other makes and models for others. Door handles, mirrors, tail lights, wheels, seats, and several other parts are already on the list and bought. Assembled in it's entirety..... unless placed next to a factory 507... the plan is to not know that this is Chassis #DM507001:grin: and not a factory original!

Is this a daunting project? Sure! Will it be a colossal failure? Probably! But will it be fun to watch this Andrea Doria sink to the bottom as that Stockholm slowly approaches?? Of course it will!!:grin:

More to come.....
Cheers
Dave

Wow Dave, your ambition is wild and with the skills to follow up with it, pretty amazing stuff.

Thanks, Mark! It'll be a fun one to build. I met a 507 owner who's willing to let me crawl all over his car for photos and such when needed. He's really intrigued by the project since he says he'd love to own one he can actually drive without fear of something happening to his on the road. :burnout: Come on, stupid house and shop!!!! Holding everything up!!!!!:frown:

Cheers

Dave

This should be really interesting to watch. You need to figure out how to bottle your energy and enthusiasm and sell it, then you could buy any car you want!

oh Boy... where is the GTO thread Lynn?
I love Aluminum bodied sports cars... even more so when they are under the Prancing Horse... What Livery?

However I am looking forward to this...
I thought about doing a 850 with a newer M5 power plant... the 850 weighed entirely too much though, it would need a MAJOR diet.
Then I saw a gray market C55 AMG... Yes... they made them for Europe, the car was under 5k and was running driving and titled registered in South Carolina. 400HP in the C class... I missed the car and then didn't reconsider the BMW project.

I'm really looking forward to following along. Previous threads have been fun, but this is exciting and a bit over the edge. Thanks for sharing and good luck!

I will start a thread when the time comes. I believe by 2020 I will be starting in earnest. That project is one of the reasons I am rehabbing that old warehouse into a shop. Possibly sooner, but keep finding things to occupy my time. Sorry for the hijack Dave.

I will be following this thread for sure. Had a guy approach me back in the 80s. He wanted to build replica 507s but wanted to use the big six running gear. At the time, BMW was not even producing V8 engines. I passed as I figured it would be hugely expensive, and a very limited market. On the other hand, I think Dave is spot on with this approach.

No worries Lynn. I'm excited to hear about your GTO. I just started looking at 348s and think I may pull the trigger on a Spider next year! :drool:

Just bought a few more odds and ends, and I'll post up drivetrain specifications soon. Thanks for the support here on this project! My passion lies in the fabrication, details, and final execution of any car I dive into. And the love of the design elements of all cars is the reason I have these desires to jump into these restorations and projects that really, nobody in their right financial mind should want pursue. SO MUCH FUN!! :3gears::biggthumpup:

Cheers:beers:
Dave

Door handles: the 507s were a very slim line design and while looking at them, thought they looked eerily familiar to me. Then it hit me! 1955 Chrysler 300C! :biggthumpup:

Once rechromed these are just about identical to the 507 in operation. No lock in the handle, but that's ok. There's ways around that! Man.... can't wait to start on this thing!

Tires are 6.0 x 16 which are pretty close to the old Chevy truck tires. The times are becoming a fun search. The last set of German Rudge wheels, restored, were sold for $16k a set. Along with that, you need the adapters for the axles. Well, homey don't be having no $16k for wheels laying around, so that's out. What I've found that's pretty close are spare tire rims from Fords and Chryslers. The rims are 16x4.5 usually. Will post up more as I zero in on a final selection. :biggthumpup:

Cheers

Dave

After an exhaustive 3 week, steel wheel, Googley search, I've come up with an almost perfect match for wheels for the 507. Rudge wheels were on the BMW as well as Porsches of the day. They are unique in that they are pin drive (read, knock-offs) and have a very unique center section. Size was 16x6. Yep... that's a big, skinny wheel!! :smile: Now, with real Rudge wheels climbing up past the $16k mark, and keeping with the design philos...philasof...fila..:confused2:..idea here of using extremely similar, easily found, parts to get the look in after, these 2015 Ford Transit wheels are a pretty good match! Way better than my last selections. The center section has the bulbous look of the originals and they are 10 hole as well. Although these are 16x6.5, I will send them to a shop and have them narrowed along with a standard 5x4.5" bolt pattern installed. A thin chrome trim ring on the outside and a simulated knock-off of my own design, or the dog dish caps I have, will complete the look! :laugh:

Interestingly, I've had several people ask if I could build them one when done... how cool is that?! Way cool, I know!!! But I don't think that's going to happen for a number of reasons. Still neat that there is interest!:biggthumpup::laugh:

Cheers:beers:
Dave

You're an inspiration Dave.

Thanks Mark! It's a blast to search for parts that are just about as similar to the original as I can get. The top frame, windshield, and a few odds and ends I can buy that are genuine 507 which will nail the original look. Drivetrain details forthcoming!:biggthumpup:

Cheers
Dave

One would think with the house thread going and Anheuser Busch Clydesdale barn build well underway, along with 10 acres of fence, and two shops to stiiiiiiilllllll get to:rolleyes2:, that one might not have time to continue on with one's car builds.:hmmm: And, you'd be right.... until I get to the hotel on overnights and have nothing to do except search for parts and car stuff! :tongue:

I was able to score some brand new tail lights in cast bronze form from 1976! These were made by the BMW 507 car club way back then after they couldn't find any parts for their cars. So, they started making their own! These are cast off originals and are about as NOS as you can get. I also have authentic lenses (red and amber) to go with them. Interestingly, only 507s destined for the US got the dual red lenses. European models got the red and amber.

In other 507 news, I stumbled across an original Becker Mexico AM/FM radio with auto-seeker, along with its original amp and speaker! This will set the dash off perfectly! Pics of mine and a properly restored one.

And finally, the wheel quest. Having searched more for the right wheels, I have a company that will make me a set when the time comes which mimic the steel wheel and hubcap look I'm after. But doing some more searching, found BMW steel wheels that are pretty darn close. I decided against the Rudge knockoffs, and am going with the stock steelies and dog dish caps which I already have. Pic attached of the stock wheel.

Next month is a trip to Sacramento to visit the body manufacturer and get that rolling. :biggthumpup:More to come as more parts come in!!:cool2: Now, back to the barn build! :tongue:

Cheers:beers:
Dave

Lovin’ it Dave!!!:burnout::burnout::burnout:

Looking good Dave! Love those.. Speaking of BMW's, a good friend just bought a new BMW M5 competition and took me for a ride. The fastest stock street car I have ever been in. 10.8's and 0-60 in 2.8. AWD 617 hp twin turbo v8

Sweet car.

Continuing to score parts for the 507 project with these freshly restored roundels. They're impeccable and with everything BMW.... not cheap. If you never knew what BMW stood for, it's "Bring Money With":thumbsdown:

The hood roundel is larger and is an unrestored original off a 503, which is what the 507 chassis was based off of. An often misconception of the BMW logo is that it's a spinning propeller. Not so! The issue started with an ad featuring the logo spinning in the place of a propeller in a 1929 ad. Further, an article in 1942 in a BMW journal used a similar image and the legend grew. It's actually a spin off (Get it? Spin off? Propeller? Yeah....i know:frown::grin:) of the origins of BMW which was known as Rapp Motorenwerke. When BMW was branded, the logo was designed after the Rapp logo to rely on the brand recognition and featured the colors of the national flag: blue and white. Just so happens that those colors correspond to a spinning propeller through blue skys when placed in a circle.

There... all you needed to know about the Roundel but were afraid to ask! Next month I head out to get the body made and visit with the owner of the 507 that was found with Elvis' car (blue one) ...and was restored by BMW right along side of it.

Cheers
Dave