Wow, looking great Dave. Can't wait to see it all buttoned up, but enjoying the updates.

----Dave,,,We need to know power figures, 0-to-60 times, all that stuff. Can't wait for the Motor Trend drivers test. we need to know how well the "Super Dave" rendition figures (of course way above) match up to the original tutonic performance numbers from way back when....Bill S

Nice Dave, all those components are really sliding intact nicely as you are coming to the ultimate stage. Thanks for sharing all your hard work.

If you ever sell this car I want to buy it!!!

I will pay one USD per build hour :-) (I just did the math and rescind my offer as I don’t have 250K USD laying around :-)

This is an absolutely epic build!!!

Ryan W31

Dave, maybe take it to Charlies and do a burnout!

Planning to have this a MCACN again?
This year?

I hear ya, Bill! Let’s see, let me get out my best John Davis voice from Motorweek….:cool2:

“Hellooow, and Welcome to Motorweek. Today we’ll be discussing the rarely featured and never heard of, BMW 507. A car renowned for it’s drop dead good looks, less than impressive performance given the day, and exorbitant price tag which let everyone know you definitely had more money than sense. Today’s example is a Feather White convertible that’s sure to put a smile on your face knowing you’ve spent more than what most people make in a year on a car that can be out paced by the finest autos 1956 Yugoslavia has to offer.”
{enter a driver haphazardly sitting in the seat rapidly and forcefully adjusting every knob, seat position, and convenience item the car may have} “We enter the interior to find an outdated dashboard reminiscent of the Tiger Tanks of forgotten lore. Unlabeled control knobs leave one wondering if they switched on the radio or operated the cigarette lighter, or perhaps actuated the ejection seat. Climate control is handled by a confusing arrangement of sliding knobs which creating a feeling of Christmas morning awe as you wonder where the conditioned air you selected will eventually come out of the dash from, if at all, and what temperature it may be. Once inside, the turn of a key and the hitting of an awkwardly placed starter button brings the BMW 3.2L OHV all aluminum V8 to life. Although not without its cold start idiosyncrasies which may remind some of a grumpy elder discussing times past with younger generations. We take to the road and are immediately impressed with the way BMW impeccably captured the handling characteristics of the Lusitania as it rounded Cape Horn in the choppiest of seas. Zero-to-Sixty time was a gasping 12 second excursion. Brakes are equally impressive with the stopping distance of a Freightliner resulting in our example coming to a halt in just 85 meters from a blistering sixty mile an hour speed. But all was forgotten when we pulled up to the first four-way stop on our Austrian back road drive as all stopped to stare at the gorgeous exterior and wave us on. Of course, not knowing the local traffic laws, one wonders why they were yelling whilst we pulled away smelling of gas from carburetors that leak worse than the Andrea Doria after the collision with the Stockholm that faithful day. BMW has a winner and it shows with an impressive sale of 252 units spanning four years.”


There. How’s that, Bill? Hmm..maybe I should make a narrative video of that!:haha:

Here’s some more assembly photos. I decided on getting a few parts chrome powder coated and am pretty impressed with the results. I do have some other parts I’ll be sending out to have traditional chrome done on them, but I’m very impressed with how these came out. While not as reflective as chrome, it’s more like polish aluminum. The wheels came out great and I’ll be painting the center portion body color next week and then the wheels go back on.
Attachment 269545
Attachment 269546
Attachment 269547
Suspension is all blacked out where as before on the prebuild it was chrome/shiny. This adds more of a stock appearance and doesn’t stand out as much. I blacked out the Mustang II crossmember and engine mounts as well so as not to detract from the rest of the car much like the original suspension appears.
Attachment 269548
Attachment 269549
Attachment 269550
Here’s a better closeup on the carburetor drip tray I hammered out. I’m mocking up the throttle linkage before I bolt the top end back on. This is the original 2x2 intake that I bought for the car and I formed the air cleaners to match the stock Knecht versions. These are slightly offset to allow proper spacing between the air cleaners. Overall, this is looking eerily close to the original engine. I had a remote oil filter mounted on the engine but I found a spin on filter that clears my suspension rack which eliminated the need for the remote filter. A good thing. And yes, the remote oil filter you see on the driver’s side engine bay is a dummy, like me! It’s for looks much like the fuse box, regulator, and relays all with fake wiring. I know, terrible….but convincing!
Attachment 269542
Attachment 269543
Attachment 269544

Wiring is routed yet not terminated and I’ll get the dash in later this month. I ordered another steering wheel which I will describe later. Overall, I’m happy with the improvements on my “Series II” which will allow for more correct looks and better driving. Here's a pic of the undercarriage with the exhaust heat shielding in place, just like original
Attachment 269551

No MCACN this year for me, Lynn. Work duties prevail and besides, the car won't be done by then but it should be done by early Spring barring upholstery. Perhaps next year? Doubtful. Bob took a lot of flak from this pile of scrap being front and center!!:hmmm::tongue:

More to come!!!

Cheers
Dave

OOO....that last photo makes my head hurt. Here's a more clearer one.
Attachment 269552

Attachment 269553

Dash being pre-wired. I'm attaching all the heater lines before installing so there's less contusion and convulsing under the dash for me. After some hard work, it was off to HEB (our Texas grocery store) where I stumbled across my ultimate favorite beer: Shock Top Twisted Pretzel. This beer has the aftertaste of my beloved Snyder's of Hanover sour dough pretzels. I have three cases in the shop and another five at the house. Last time they came out with this is was seven years later until they made it again. Go try it...you'll love it!!!!!!

Attachment 269554

Cheers!!!!
Dave

Attachment 269555

"Bob took a lot of flak from this pile of scrap being front and center!!"

I say that's just tough. Someone needs to get over it. Great cars are great cars, regardless.

I appreciate that compliment, Lynn. That comment was merely a joke that was sans an emoji to lighten the mood. :shocked: Like that one!:scholar: Even if he did get any grief over it, I don't think Bob's one to care what other's think.

I chatted non-stop when I was around the car which was incredibly flattering. I even saw that Wayne Fettuccini guy wander over a few times to get a better look

Oh, and Ryan. Despite my history, this one never leaves unless that check is big with a lot of zeros and commas and life enhancing!:scholar:

Cheers
Dave

----That John Davis guy really has a way with words,,,LOL!....Bill S

Progress is progressing! It's...ALIIIIVE!! All electrics hooked up and everything worked on the first try with no issues. But fear not! There's so much more that will go wrong later! :tongue:

I'm redoing the steering wheel and more on that later.

It's going a lot slower since this is the final time in doing it. Every connector gets shrink wrap to had the crimp, all the routing of the wires under the dash is neat and clean, and along the way a few re-engineering of a couple items takes more time to complete. But that's OK since it just makes for a better end product. :biggthumpup:

Attachment 270462

Attachment 270463

Attachment 270464

Attachment 270465

There was a recall on my correct Michelin X vintage radials so they are shipping out another set. That's going to delay things a bit. Seats and door panels are off at the upholstery shop and that will take some time.

Last big things as of now are the convertible top, rear bumper, exhaust, and interior finishing along with the windshield. The last big item will be the hood and that'll go on after I get the engine running in case it needs anything. Much easier to work on sans a hood and I only want to put that on one more time.

I need to start thinking of another project after this one! Hard to believe I'm almost done and it should be wrapped up this year I hope!:3gears:

Cheers
Dave

That's truly amazing.

Agreed! Absolutely amazing!

Can't wait to see what that'l be! :cool2:

So, what's the new project? A new Space Shuttle? Restoring The Concorde? Retrieving and restoring the moon space buggy?

Or raising and restoring the Titanic?? NP for Super Dave...

Now you know why BMW nearly went bankrupt producing that car...:wink:

What happened to that fiberglass body you had to have and drug home a year, or so, ago ?? You could build a frame for that and conjure up a suitable drivetrain.

Ha! You guys are awesome! :worship::worship:

That body was sold, Mitch. Too many things wrong with it to warrant a nice build. What's next? I'm thinking something a little easier and think I'd like to build this:
Attachment 270468

We'll see!

More to come next week!

Cheers
Dave

----Awesome, Dave! Beemer looks great and a Cobra would be good if there weren't already so many. I absolutely know that yours would be one of the best, but you will have people asking you constantly if it's fiberglass, and dumb stuff like that. Parts are also too readily available for you to have it stand out like the BMW. Just a few random thoughts from an old fart....Bill S

Unreal Dave! You are an inspiration to us all. Not only for taking on a monumental task but seeing it through to a high level.


Jason

Looking good, Dave. I hope to see the finished car.

I've always hoped someone would reproduce the Bill Mitchell 1959 race car, one of the most beautiful cars ever built. I'm sure there are a number of C1 chassies out there with all the Restomods being built.

Is that the same one that Elvis drives at the end of his one movie with the racing boats, Clambake?

That would be my dream. Dave is my inspiration.

K

‘

:beers:
~ Pete

.

Oh, I get it Bill. It’s the main reason that I don’t want to build one, but they’re still pretty cool cars! I’d do the street version with no scoop, no side pipes, no rollbar. This would be an easier fun build. I’m looking at A&C Autos kit. They have some REEEEEALLY nice kits. Of course, and ERA Slabside would be fun too.

I appreciate the compliments on my 507 guys. I’m glad my tinkering might inspire others to go after that dream car no matter how far fetched it may seem. We only go around once (that I’m aware of) so might as well fulfill some car dreams along the way! It’s almost to the finish line and I’m excited.

Tim, dare I have TWO Elvis cars?:burnout: That’s a pretty cool ride!

Cheers
Dave

Elvis cars could be your theme, Dave.

Cobras always get the "kit" question. Your BMW will probably never get that question.

When I had my Scarab, nobody ever asked if it was a "kit", nobody knew what the heck it was.

Slab side is too similar to what you just mastered. With A&C, you could build a replica '49-50 lead sled, or a chop top '35 Chevrolet coupe, etc. Just don't build another '32-34 Ford, they are everywhere too, like Cobra kit cars...:laugh:

Whatever you decide to do Dave, it will be killer. Looking forward to your next megathread.

Thanks, Joe. I’m all over the place with my interests so who knows what’s really next?:hmmm:

It drives Kelly crazy!:biggthumpup:

I’ve decided I’m going to tackle the 507 upholstery myself too. I mean, why not? I’ve done this much, might as well try a new skill.:grin:

Cheers
Dave

Getting closer and closer! Sound/heat insulation is down in preps for carpet. I'm going to do that myself. It shows up tomorrow and the binding material is already here! The heater bezel is all connected via control cables to vents on the floor for both driver and passenger (lower two controls) recir/fresh air vent (upper the control), and temperature control. Of course, fan speed in the center. My second iteration of the steering wheel came out almost identical to the original. And speaking of that, I was able to buy an original wheel and it's being shipped from Germany as we speak! Woohoo! This one is an aluminum boat wheel and I fabricated the center cap to match the original. This is 15" in diameter versus the 18" one I had before. This will allow Charley to sit in it better! :laugh: The knobs and wheel are Ivory and I found an almost exact match to that color. After I sprayed that I used my PPG clear to get the final smooth finish.

Attachment 271034

Attachment 271035

Attachment 271036

Attachment 271037

Attachment 271038

Attachment 271039

Attachment 271040

Attachment 271041

Windshield is in via glass urethane adhesive. More detail work on that in a bit. The doors are all weather stripped and shut solid with a nice thunk and not a clang. Engine bay drip rail is installed too. A lot of loose ends wrapping up.

I'm redoing the door panels out of different material and making the armrest full like it's supposed to be. I added electric windows so I can position the switch where I need it, and with that, the switch is the style that uses an old crank handle so it appears to look like a manual crank yet it's an electric switch.

Trunk details are next!

Cheers
Dave

Your crafting skills are amazing. If you fly as good as you fabricate you should be doing barrel rolls, loops and even lomcevaks with all those passengers smiling and laughing!

Thanks, Rick. :biggthumpup: See, they don’t let us do stuff like that anymore. Ask Woj. Last time I flew with him we were loopin’ all the way to Cedar Rapids!:cool2:

I’m trying to get a lot of details correct so it appears as original as I can hope to achieve. Here’s the heater and radio from Albert Bold’s original 507 which is one of the cars I used as a reference for my build in comparison to mine. My temp control is different as far as hot/cold direction, it it’s close!:biggthumpup:

Attachment 271061
Attachment 271060

Cheers
Dave

Wow - just wow

Whoa, wait...You and Woj were in Cedar Rapids and didn't call?? I'm hurt!

Thanks, Jake!

Oh, fear not, we weren’t in Cedar rapids recently. This was way back in May of 2001. :flag:

Cheers:beers:
Dave

Glass is in with trim, and I'm installing all the weather stripping all around. I boxes the trunk in like the factory with a removable left side panel to access the jack/tools/storage. This will be trimmed in vinyl around the back side panels and carpet on the floor. Speaking of that, I'm trimming the carpet as we speak!

Attachment 272034

Attachment 272035

Attachment 272036

Attachment 272037

Attachment 272038

Attachment 272039

Tedious tasks trimming everything out, but the more time I take the better it looks. Putting the carpet in really makes me feel like I'm nearing the finish line! The real 507 steering wheel shows up next week!

So much fun!!

Cheers
Dave

----Dave,,,When you mentioned boat in reference to your steering wheel I immediatly remembered seeing these on small outboard boats in the 50's. There's a marine salvage place near me that probably has 20 or more of them. The owners nick name' is "Earl the Pearl"....Bill S