1990 BMW 750i (E32) Owned Feb' 2010-Present.

[BorkFactor]

Wow, that is one stunning car!

Sounds like it will be pretty much perfect by the time you have finished it, I hope it serves you well

[judas]

Ah, another 750 to draw some enemy fire away from mine!

Lovely car Len, looking forward to seeing it restored to its former glory, and I will be watching this thread with interest if for no other reason than to know how much I should brace my wallet for impact

What's the plan of action? Attack the tin worm first to head off bigger bills later down the line?

[Zwolf]

sleep envy said:

Worth catching the tin worm now before it really does get hold.

That's my thinking, it's just at that surface stage presently, so *should* hopefully prove cheaper/easier to sort than the deeper rot it will otherwise become if left.

E38Ross said:

As far as i'm aware, that E32 750i was the first german car (if not road car full stop) to have a V12 engine since WW2.

E38Ross said:

You can spend many thousands of pounds on these cars to return them to their former glory, which will never be returned, hence they must become keepers.

I can and shall. I've done the chopping and changing thing for many years and only the E32 V12 has both held my attention and pulled me back time and again, so it'll be money well spent for the learning experience and end result. I hope...

[Zwolf]

Both.

Yes in hindsight, I'd have kept that one and never bought this one. But hindsight is always 20/20 isn't it?

The proceeds from the sale of that one did in very large part pay for this one though, so it depends how you view it.

They'll all eat similar money over time is my basic logic and by the time much has been refreshed and replaced by the time they're 25 years old, the mileage is far less relevant than condition.

That one lacked the sports seats of this one, which were a must once I'd tried them and it also had full EDC suspension, rather than the relatively simpler and less potentially costly LAD self-levelling that this one has. It was also running the metric rims and TRX GTs referred to earlier.

Ultimately it's a case of swings and roundabouts of many ponderable factors, but decisions were made at the time for reasons that made sense at that time - before things changed.

I have missed that car greatly in the almost two years since we parted ways and it has since passed on again to pastures new. By now there's the possibility it's in a less than ideal state too - I doubt it and hope not, but who knows?

[Chunkychucky]

Probably my favourite shape of 7, my grandad had one exactly the same colour, also a 750i non long wheelbase. Love the way the 750s had the squared off exhaust tips and the larger "kidney" grilles. Can't wait to see what it looks like after the planned work is completed, definitely looks better without the Irish 'plate and with the cross spoke wheels fitted

[thebrush8]

Well done sir! I bought my 730i V8 in February 2010, and most of the things you have highlighted to do are on my list as well! Just passed it's Mot yet again, the front bushes were an advisory, so that's the next point. With regards to the wheels, mine has the 15" cross spoke - the ride is very good! I aquired one style 5 17" wheel - looked lovely and would love to have a full set, but couldn't find matching ones in budget, so I sold it...

I'll be watching the thread with interest - I love it when I see another on the road, there are very few about these days, Only ever seen one on the road outside a BMW meet. Are you on the7seriesregister.co.uk ?

Good luck!

[chorus]

I expected to enjoy this and it doesn't disappoint. I look forward to future instalments. Keep on keeping the bork at bay...

[Zwolf]

thebrush8 said:

Are you on the7seriesregister.co.uk ?

I am, but am a fairly infrequent visitor there, but will no doubt pop up more as I start fighting the bork gremlins - the guys there have helped address a couple of minor annoyances and queries already. I may well duplicate the thread there too as I don't know how much cross-pollination there is between there and here.

Due to my work schedule, updates to this thread will not be especially frequent, but will most likely be longer and more detailed in stages as and when I can spare both decent chunks of time and money so as to show a decent bit of progress at each stage. I will document events and costs at every step though in the vehicle's PH blog in my profile though.

[Flares&Chestwig]

Any more pics of the door panels ?

[bmthnick1981]

Len you should consider making this chap an offer for his wheels;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-750I-v12-/1906557772...

In need of a refurb but once done would set your car off a treat.

[Otter Smacker]

Very nice OP! Still looks in cracking condition before the work. All the best to the project


Now seeing OP's...

bmthnick1981 said:

Len you should consider making this chap an offer for his wheels;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-750I-v12-/1906557772...

In need of a refurb but once done would set your car off a treat.

..I'm very tempted to slap in a bid for that motor. Afterall, I'm not that far away from the sale .

[Zwolf]

bmthnick1981 said:

Len you should consider making this chap an offer for his wheels;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-750I-v12-/1906557772...

In need of a refurb but once done would set your car off a treat.

Indeed, thanks. Duly added to watch list, could almost be worth it for the wheels and spare bits alone.

I did like: "engine runs in limp mode... engine runs like a dream".

Yeah, a fking scary dream

In reality, both the trans prog error and limp mode could be sypmtomatic of merely having been left unused for a length of time and low battery charge.

Infrequent use seems to be the primary cause of bork in these things, as experience with four E32s and three E38s tells me. Use them daily and they're fine, requiring "only" fuelling. Use them much less and they punish you.

I've done little more on mine since posting this thread than buying a battery charger/conditioner, charging the battery fully (as it had been out of the car and in the house since the end of Sept), sticking it back in the car, starting her up and letting her run up to temperature and the vital fluids to circulate etc.

Thankfully she started on the button and one the Digital Motor Electrnics had been through their various cycles, ran as well as she ever has done and the suspension system pressurised itself and rose to a level stance as it should have although the pump that it shares with the steering and braking systems was a bit noisy upon turning the wheel and pressing the brake pedal, so that will need attention as a priority, along with repairing the leaky fuel tank. Replacement I thought about only as long as it took me to find out how much a new one costs, £680 plus VAT and fitting!

[E38Ross]

fuel tank leaks are extremely common on both E32 and E38 7s. it's a fking joke. labour is hugely intensive as well, a good few hours. problem you will have is that if it's leaking somewhere, it'll be rusted in a lot of places, but not leaking yet.....

these MAY help

http://www.fuel-tank-renu.co.uk/pages/tanks.html

can you tell i did my research before getting the E38?

luckily, my tank appears to be in good health. but it's a case of when, not if. hopefully a few more years in it yet!

[Zwolf]

I can tell, that and I supplied much of it

The saving grace is that E32 tanks are more accessible than E38s. Bumper and two straps, no need to drop exhausts, subframes or the prop to get to it all.

I think it has gone at the usual point of where the filler neck joins the main tank, so that'll get patched up and I'm thinking of some sort of plastic/resin coating for the rest of the outer.

Thereafter, rusting from the inside out can be mitigated by storing it with the tank full (which I used to with my previous Sevens), rather than empty as I foolishly did this time.

[Baryonyx]

Zwolf said:

The V12 bug was sown early on in life and I'd prevaricated long and hard before actively setting out to get my own.

Lookslike a nice car and I'm sure it will be a corker once it's had some cosmetic work (and that lurid silver JVC headunit is gone). Mind you, I'm not sure 'prevaricated' is the word you were look for there. Deliberated? Procrastinated, perhaps?

[Zwolf]

No, I avoided the question of "is this really a good idea", else I might have applied calm logic and reason and ended up with something much more sensible, like an XJR.

[mattiselvis]

A lovely motor - was the daddy when I was flicking through the BMW catalogue as a kid.

[bmthnick1981]

Zwolf said:

bmthnick1981 said:

Len you should consider making this chap an offer for his wheels;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-750I-v12-/1906557772...

In need of a refurb but once done would set your car off a treat.

Indeed, thanks. Duly added to watch list, could almost be worth it for the wheels and spare bits alone.

I did like: "engine runs in limp mode... engine runs like a dream".

Yeah, a fking scary dream

In reality, both the trans prog error and limp mode could be sypmtomatic of merely having been left unused for a length of time and low battery charge.

Infrequent use seems to be the primary cause of bork in these things, as experience with four E32s and three E38s tells me. Use them daily and they're fine, requiring "only" fuelling. Use them much less and they punish you.

I've done little more on mine since posting this thread than buying a battery charger/conditioner, charging the battery fully (as it had been out of the car and in the house since the end of Sept), sticking it back in the car, starting her up and letting her run up to temperature and the vital fluids to circulate etc.

Thankfully she started on the button and one the Digital Motor Electrnics had been through their various cycles, ran as well as she ever has done and the suspension system pressurised itself and rose to a level stance as it should have although the pump that it shares with the steering and braking systems was a bit noisy upon turning the wheel and pressing the brake pedal, so that will need attention as a priority, along with repairing the leaky fuel tank. Replacement I thought about only as long as it took me to find out how much a new one costs, £680 plus VAT and fitting!

Looks like the vendor pulled the car before the end of the auction. Shame, those wheels would have been lovely once refinished.