Is a classic wagon more your style, but you want to keep up with modern traffic? The BMW E6 Touring offers a unique look coupled with timeless style that will help to set you apart. They’re a favorite of mine for sure. But this one has ditched the original configuration and gone for a more modern stance with E30-sourced engine, wheels and a modern interior for a different type of resto-mod Touring. Does it stand the test of time?
It seems somewhat fortuitous to stumble upon today’s creation, which manages to build upon a few prior posts. Last week I look a look at a beefed-up 1976 2002 with a S14 swap. Then, yesterday, I took a look at the crazy 4-door convertible 316i Baur TC4. Combining those two unique creations is today’s 1972 BMW 2002.
Like last week, this one is pretty far from original. It’s also got tacked-on flares, super-wide wheels, a non-original interior and is painted a non-original color – in this case, Sunflower Yellow borrowed from the contemporaneous Porsche. But the big news here is again the S14 and 5-speed swap, giving more muscle to match the macho looks. On top of that, or rather topless perhaps, this one appears to be a Baur Targa conversion. It was certainly worth a closer look:
Well this is interesting. Typically when I see a 911 like this one I assume it’s some variant of a backdated 911SC or 3.2 Carrera. The value of most long-hood 911s is such that modifying an original car would be as useful as setting money on fire and much less efficient. But this is a bona fide 1972 Porsche 911S. So not only are we looking at a modified early 911, but it’s an S. Add to that the uniqueness of the ’72 911 with its one-year-only external oil filler and this is a pretty rare find.
From what the current owner has been able to gather it sounds like the conversion of this 911 happened long enough ago that investment potential wasn’t really of much concern. So modifications could be carried out with fewer worries. On the flipside it also means we don’t really know a lot about how this 911S arrived at the state in which it currently sits. That’s a little bit of a problem, but from the owner’s comments while we may not know how it got here we do know it drives very well. It also looks pretty great!
So this seems…kinda reasonable. I don’t get to say that often about a long-hood 911, but this Dolomite Grey Metallic 1972 Porsche 911T Coupe sits with an asking price of just under $50K. I can’t say we’re blessed with a wealth of information about it, for instance the mileage isn’t stated at all, but it presents well, looks in good condition inside and out, and is said to run well. A PPI should clarify questions about its mechanical condition. The color isn’t original – it’s said to originally have been red – but I’m not sure that should surprise anyone given the price. All things considered this could be a nice chance at getting into a vintage 911 for a good bit less than we normally see. I think it’s certainly worth further investigation.
Aubergine! Otherwise known as Eggplant. Aubergine is one of my all time favorite Porsche colors. It was available briefly in the early ’70s and that’s it. In part, I love it because it’s very pretty, but I also love it because it’s a color we so rarely see on any car. Purple simply isn’t a common car color. There are very good reasons for that as most shades of purple really don’t work well on cars unless you choose a very dark metallic hue, in which case under anything other than direct lighting it will look black.
Aubergine transcends those problems and finds the right balance between showing off the color, i.e. it doesn’t just look black, while also remaining subdued enough that you don’t feel like it’s a circus car. The pictures here do a nice job of conveying the way it looks under different lighting and this particular example, a 1972 Porsche 911T Coupe, looks in good condition with paint that shows pretty well. I don’t see Aubergine 911s all that often, but I’m always glad when I do.
I’ve got a couple more yellow 911s I’d like to feature. This one in particular possesses a strong resemblance to the Summer Yellow 3.2 Carrera featured Wednesday. This 1972 Porsche 911S Coupe would not be the same color (Limonengelb), but it’s still quite similar. We aren’t told the color code of this one, but I suspect it is either Lemon Yellow/Canary Yellow (Zitronengelb) or Light Yellow (Hellgelb). Two very similar colors and very difficult to distinguish in the shade. Both are very attractive as evidenced by this 911S.
It feels like forever since I’ve featured an early 911S and this is a particularly nice example for me to return to them with. It’s been fully restored and looks immaculate right now. It shows a black interior containing sports seats with houndstooth inserts. It doesn’t get much better than that for the seats and they complement the exterior yellow very well. Original mileage is unknown, but the listing states the current mileage as 500, which I assume is the number of miles traveled since it was restored.
Almost every Friday when I was in my early 20s, living in Atlanta, a group of friends and I would go to dinner at a Chinese restaurant. There were a decent number to choose from in the neighborhood and all quite good so we had some nice options. At the time, I was vegetarian and I briefly decided to order the same dish each week. This was in part because I really liked the dish and also in part because I wanted to try each restaurant’s variation. That dish: eggplant with garlic sauce. I loved it.
I have chosen this entirely non-car-related diversion as my introduction to this 911. I still love eggplant with garlic sauce and do order it now and then. More to the point, I also love the color, which here adorns this 1972 Porsche 911T Coupe located in San Francisco. Aubergine, meaning, of course, ‘Eggplant’, is one of my favorite early Porsche colors and it’s always a joy to see it. Unlike other early pastels that I like so much, Aubergine is a little darker, but its purple hues remain fairly bright and vibrant. It’s not quite a pastel, but it is still very, very, pretty.
Sometimes cars and people just go together. Cars can mimic someones personality and mannerisms, both good and bad. So when it comes to matching up the legendary Mercedes-Benz 600, a car known as one of the most technologically advanced and complex cars ever, to someone who isn’t an entertainer or a dictator, who wants to own one of these? Enter Dr. Forrest Bird. You’ve probably never heard of that name before, just as I haven’t, but he is responsible for pioneering mechanical ventilators for people with acute and chronic heart and lung afflictions. In layman’s terms, he made the iron lung obsolete and helped millions of people over the years. Not only that, he was a certified pilot by the age of 16, served in WWII and assisted in the Korean and Vietnam wars, took his technology company public on the NASDAQ, opened up a museum, earned a M.D., Ph.D., Sc.D., D.S., started a charter school and just to top it all off, was awarded medals by not one, but two acting United States Presidents. Suddenly the problems of owning a 600 don’t seem so large.
Continuing this weeks theme of strange builds from coachwork companies, I present to you none other than a 1972 Mercedes-Benz 280SE. This W116 comes to us from the hills of Italy with the first ever “mayoral guarantee” I’ve seen attached to a description for a car listing. I can only assume a guarantee from a mayor of an Italian village is basically worth as much as the Sistine Chapel itself. Of course, as with any other custom conversion, this hearse has a bunch of odd things about it and me wondering if anyone ever actually buys these things. So let me try to break everything down before my mind wonders to the next crazy creation.
Year: 1972
Model: 280SE Hearse
Engine: 3.0 inline-5 cylinder
Transmission: 4-speed manual
Mileage: Unknown
Price: Auction
I am advertising this to the mayor of my village in Italy, where i have a Holiday Home.. The vehicle is in Italy at the moment and if anybody is interested
Can be viewed at location. Sounds daunting however you can get a flight to Pescara from £31, each leg and takes only a little over an hour. I live in Devon, it would take longer and more expensive if one is coming from London. Do the math!
I have seen the car once when a local neighbour died and it looks very posh and the Mayor guarantee in perfect working order. I would vouch for his word because he is a honest respectable person, who supported me 100% when I bought my farm there and I trust he as my neighbour would never stir me wrong.As to delivery or pick up. I imagine who view the car would want to drive it back but if one don’t have the time, I offer the service for delivery, providing travel expenses are met.
I personally vouch for the integrity of the car and if one buy’s and feel it does not meet the expected stander, it doesn’t have to take it. But I am sure it would meet your needs for whatever purpose.
Also arriving in Pescara Airport, you can get a train to Vasto in less then an hour where pick up can be arranged. There is a local B&B for 20 Euro’s per night.
I hope this clarifies better and please do not hesitate to contact me for further questions.
Thanks for considering.
I’m really surprised to see this is a very early 1972, the first year for the W116, that was probably taken straight to the coach builder for the conversion. It’s as bare-bones a model as I’ve ever seen, with manual everything along with no radio and no air conditioning. What is even more surprising is that if you are wondering why the straight-six M110 engine looks a little odd it’s because it has been tossed away for none other than the legendary OM617. This looks to be the OM617.910 or OM617.912 because it is the non-turbo model from probably a W115 or W123 300D. It isn’t getting you or the deceased anywhere fast but of course it is robust as granite. This is a little odd in my eyes, but I guess they didn’t mind a little soot on the coffin every now and then. Also, I should mention that this W116 has the wheels from the W126 which I’m not a huge fan of as I much prefer a clean set of the 14 inch Bundts.
I honestly don’t know who buys cars like these. I guess if you wanted a wagon you could strip out all the cabin rollers and giant a bit of storage space but a W123 wagon would serve you just as well. The car looks presentable on the outside but the interior has seen better days with heavy wear in some spots. I don’t know if anyone is lining up to bid on this W116 for 5,000 GBP ($6,435), but who knows how much that mayoral tax guarantee is worth, maybe it could be worth someone’s while.
– Andrew
Rare pastel color? Check. Long-hood air-cooled 911? Check. One-year-only external oil filler? Check. Top market 911S? Check. Very high price tag? Sadly…check.
Here we have a Viper Green 1972 Porsche 911S Coupe, located in Massachusetts, with black interior and a reported 70K original miles. Other than possessing a more interesting interior and/or a set of sport seats this 911 has just about everything you’ll probably want. And it looks fantastic!
Year: 1972
Model: 911S
Engine: 2.4 liter flat-6
Transmission: 5-speed manual
Mileage: 70,000 mi
Price: $188,500 Buy It Now
Extremely Rare and unique opportunity to own this clean 1972 Porsche 911s in mint condition. The car has a matching numbers 6-cyl. 2341cc/190hp motor with a 5 speed manual 915/12 transmission. All original and meticulously well kept, has been stored in an indoor climate-controlled garage. Fully documented with a Porsche certificate of authenticity, this car has just over 70,000 original miles. Its finished in the original colors of a rare Viper Green with black interior. This car is 1 of 6 known to exist in the color combination. Price is firm and please no solicitations for consignment. For further information regarding this vehicle, please call (617) 680-9308.
The seller states this is 1 of 6 existent in this color combination. I’m assuming by the text that means existent now and not originally existent, but I could be wrong about that. I’m also not sure if it’s verified, but regardless of how many there are there certainly will not be many.
The original Viper Green – as opposed to the later metallic version – is simply stunning. It’s about as vibrant and alluring a shade of green as I can imagine with perhaps the modern version of Signal Green being its only competition. We sometimes speak of the neglect of green cars on the market – in many cases they don’t tend to sell as well as we might think – but Porsche’s pastel greens are clearly an exception, with early Viper Green a quite obvious exception. I think we can see why. The paint looks great here. It’s probably not perfect, but it presents quite well. It is also said to be fully documented, though we are not provided any evidence of that in the ad. Obviously at this price the level of documentation will be very important, as will the question of whether it’s a respray. If it’s documented and original paint, then the price is probably pretty fair. Even resprayed it may come close. I just know that I love the look of it!
-Rob
