Now, we’ve all experienced those moments when all you can do is laugh helplessly. But earlier this year I had an unusually good one.
We were staying at my partner’s parents’ house for the weekend, and a friend of her father's dropped by. Let’s call him Malcy, because that’s his name. Finding ourselves alone for a moment, Malcy and I got talking and eventually the subject turned to what it is I’m lucky enough to do for a living.
Malcy, it turns out, quite likes cars. So we talked about fast cars, and then old cars, and finally – his preferred subset and, truth be told, mine also – fast, old cars, at which point my new friend became wistful.
"D’you know what the one car I really wanted was?"
"Go on…"
"Three-litre CSL. I cannot put into words how badly I wanted one of those," he said in his faint Lancastrian accent, scrunching up his face to convey 49 years of lust.
"There’s one in the garage."
Silence.
Reader, there really was a 1973 3.0-litre CSL in the garage, and we split our sides at the complete ridiculousness of it all.
As for how it came to be there… Not all manufacturers take their heritage seriously, but BMW isn’t one of them. At its base in Farnborough, the UK operation maintains a fleet of classics, including an E30-generation M3, E34-gen M5, an immaculate E39 M5, and an M3 CSL.
Each is glorious, but there are the two jewels in the crown. One is an off-white 507 from the 1950s that’s insured for more than £2,000,000 and is just pure Grace Kelly, and t’other is the silver 3.0 CSL Batmobile I managed to borrow for a day or two. It’s the one you see here.
The back story of the 3.0 CSL is well known, but to very briefly recap, the car was developed from Alpina’s 3.0-litre CS racing car in 1971, to take on Ford in the ETCC.
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Thanks for the article, interesting reading, especially on the driving characteristics.
I had the baby brother of the CSL - a 1973 CSI for a while, with similar performance in reality but none of the cachet. As a daily driver of modern BMW's for the last 15 years the feel of these old cars is completely different to what we have had for at least the last 25 years.
There is none of the dartiness; you heave the long nose around, and the rest of the car catches up. Equally the ride and damping feel very different too. Long undulations can get the car bobbing and rolling in quite a queazy way. But it is very comfortable on other road types. To get a proper door seal on this pillarless coupe was beyond my repairers. I'd love to know what it was like when new.
There is the ever present threat of rust errupting as the body is seam welded and not just bolt on panels, so anything repair wise is expensive.
On the plus side - they look fantastic; they ride well; in a straight line they are quick and sound great; electric windows and power steering work well and feel kind of modern. The Mk1 electronic fuel injection is up to the standards of cars that came 10 years later.
It was interesting for me to compare and run for a while - but I guess the saying about don't meet your heroes applies to my own experience. I won't be getting another hobby car, but that's my view.
Yes Roarsman, I had a csi before the csl, and in truth there wasnt much in it performance wise (mainly because BMW GB Ltd added a lot of weight back on for UK spec cars. The cachet was all in the 'leicht' monika.
Handling wise the csl was a step on from the csi, but mainly it just looked cooler.
If you are a modern day driver of BMW's you probably wont enjoy 70's models of the Marque. The context is all wrong. If you were old enough (like me) to have driven these in period, you would know that they were something speciall at the time, amongst some pretty poor handling cars in period, but they were never 'racy' like M model BMW's are today. In many ways I would say they were more suitable for UK roads than current BMW's carrying the M badge which have been tuned to be a one trick (Nordschleiffe) pony imo.
For example, when the E21 came out to replace the 2002, I adored the 323i. It was quick (at the time), lairy and wouuld kill you if it got the chance and you werent paying attention.....but personally, I have always liked cars that were a challenge to drive.
Younger drivers are frequently shocked at the lack of grip these 'cool' seventies icons exhibit.
Still, at least you tried the csi -even if it wasnt for you!
Richard, lovely article. The Batmobile is one of my all time favourite classic cars. The inconic and beautiful styling, the drive, the motorsport heritage etc. One point though, wouldn't it be fair to at least drive the new first M3/M4 before dismissing them as rubbish?
Thanks Overdrive. I was really only referring to the fact there is now, for the first time, an 'M Performance' parts catalogue available for the M3/4, and the results are horribly tacky. M doesn't need to take this kind of cheap and extremely superficial approach, and it shouldn't because it debases the very word M stands for. (I actually think the new cars will be fundamentally very good, surprisingly large weight-increase aside!). RL
Richard, thank you for clarifying and a fair point re the parts catalogoue thing.
I must say, I too can't understand why the new M3/M4 weigh so much more than the previous models! I guess the AWD system explains some of the weight increase, but surely not the all of the added 150kg or so.
Clearly Malcy is a man of taste.....choosing a car from an era when BMW's were purchased by (wealthy), enthusiasts rather than social climbers, and with refined and beautiful proportions.
I have had many older BMW's in the years when they were all but worthless second hand - 11x 2002Tii's, 2x3.0 si's, 1 x 3.3Li, 1 x 3.0csi, and 1x 3.0 csl (non Batmobile). Sadly missed the opportunity with a 2002 Turbo for £3k back in 81 by one hour!
You didnt mention if you put poor Malcy out of his torment by taking him for a run in the CSL Richard ?
Malcy really is a man of immaculate taste, 298, but I didn't take him for a spin in the CSL out of an abundance of Covid-related caution! Was a crying shame, actually, but BMW UK also has a 2002 Turbo in the garage, so perhaps one day I'll have the opportunity to make up for it...
Fabulous car-owning CV – I'd probably prefer the CSL in non-Bat spec, too. What colour was yours?
Ah man!.....such a tease. Poor Malcy, so near but so far!
My CSL was Chamonix White wnich (apart from the rare Taiga Green) is my favourite. The Green tinted glass set it off beautifully.
It was a realy nice two owner full history car....all tools there and the Scheele seats were unworn.
It ended up in Cornwall with a BMW car club member who loved and pampered it. Like many cars I have owned, I wish I still had it.
Benefit of hindsight is a marvellous thing.
The last of my 2002 Tii's was a very rare 'Park Lane spec' it was a 'Lux', Black/cream velour with Becker Berlin R/C and control stalk (near enough £1k extra in 1976!!), with C/R 5speed, Factory metal sunroof, green tints, Mahle wheels and LSD. I dont know how many had all theese options (effectively nearly doubling the cost), but it must be (in RHD form) countable on the fingers of your hands. What would that be worth now?
Chamonix White with the tints is just so motorsport, though I love Inca Orange too... check out this early car Classic & Sport Car had in for a photoshoot in 2018. Very interesting CSL and a good story.
Your old Tii sounds epic: proper cake and eat it spec!
Yes, that Inca example looks very good Richard- and is a 'proper' CSL. The UK examples werent that light!
The Inca car having black rear bumper looks spot on ( I dont think I have never seen a caburetted version), I would imagine this is a high value car today. Barney Halse certainly knows how to look after these cars!
I was never sure that the original CSL wheels were 'Alpina's', similar pattern but digfferent spokes - I stand to be corrected on this. Of course many have larger real Alpina wheels fitted now.