Books about Coupes

Historical Accounts

"BMW Coupes - A Tradition of Elegance, BMW Profiles 5", by Walter Zeichner, BMW Mobile Tradition, 1998. BMW Order #01 09 0 004 125 (available in English and German - I know because they sent me the German one first!)

"BMW Six Cylinder Coupes & Saloons 1969-1976 Gold Portfolio", Classic Motorbooks

"BMW - Bavarias Driving Machines", by Jan P. Norbye, Publications International, 1984.

"BMW M Series - The Complete Story", by Alan Henry, Crowood Press 1992 (paperback 1998).

"Unbeatable BMW - Eighty Years of Engineering and Motorsport Success", by Jeremy Walton, Robert Bentley Publishers, 1998.

"BMW Classics, 1917-Present, from Dixi 3/15 to Z3", by Jeremy Walton, Reed International Books Ltd, 1994.

"BMW Precision and Performance", by Paul W. Cockerham, Todtri Productions Ltd., 1997.

"BMW", by Rainer Schlegelmilch, Hartmut Lehbrink and Jochen von Osterroth, Konemann, 1999.

 

Buying Guide

"Illustrated BMW Buyer's Guide, Model Histories, Specifications, Production Numbers and More", by Ken Gross, Motorbooks International, 1994.

 

Repair/Service

"Repair Manual BMW 2500 - 3.0 CSi, Book 1 and 2", BMW Customer Service Dept. BMW #01 51 9 599 360 (including up to Supplement 8, 3/1975) These are the "Blue Books"

"Teilekatalog (Parts Catalog) BMW 2.5CS bis 3.0CSL, Book 1 and 2", BMW Mobile Tradition, BMW #01 09 0 035 233 and 234

"Chilton's Repair and Tune-Up Guide - BMW 1970-82", Chilton Book Company, 1983.

"Chilton's BMW Coupes and Sedans 1970-88 Repair Manual", Part No. 8789, Chilton Book Company, 1996.

"Haynes BMW Sedans 2500, 2800, 3.0 & Bavaria, 1969 through 1976 - Owner's Workshop Manual", by J.H. Haynes and C.D. Barge, Haynes Publishing Group, 1980, 1983, 1986 (Note: Does not cover coupe models)

From: Olsen Architects
Date: Tue, 19 Dec 2000 09:14:45 -0800

In a compendium of Road & Track articles ("On BMW Cars 1966-1974") are the following articles on coupes:

2000cs road test Dec 1966
2800cs road test and styling analysis Feb. 1970
2800cs after the new wears off sept 1972
3.0 cs road test July 1973 (the whole thing)
Owner Survey July 1973
3.0cs at 12,000 miles may 1973

Car and Driver lists the following:
2000cs road test April 1966
2800cs road test Dec 1969
CSL at Sebring June 1975

Brooklands Motorbooks has a "BMW Six Cylinder Coupes and Saloons Gold Portfolio, 1969-1976" which has both American and ROW (rest of world) articles, it is by far the most complete.

I also found an old copy of a Brooklands Book "BMW Six Cylinder Coupes 1969-1975". One article in this offers a comparison of a 3.0 cs and a Citroen SM.

Enjoy!
Ken Olsen

There are two main references, plus the parts books, and owner's manual, see below.

First, Haynes Publications (a British outfit) publishes a series of manuals "each based on a complete teardown and rebuild" or some such. The text and photos are adequate, but there's a catch: the manual we'll use is actually written for the E3, that's right, the Bavaria. Still, the cars are mechanically nearly identical for most purposes. Obviously, the body, interior, and rear suspension are different. There's not much that isn't adequately covered for the purposes of most of us. The Bav reference is out of print, but sold for about 12 USD when available; I wouldn't pay much more for it, in good condition. It comes up from time to time on Ebay or in this list.

Then there are the factory Blue Books, two volumes, with 4-ring euro-style binders, again mostly written to the 4-doors, but with coverage of the coupes as required, including the CSL models. These are the ultimate source, and of course are out of print. They too come up from time to time; I have a set from a former 3.0S owner and they are worth their weight in precious metal. The photo quality is excellent as is organization. Their one drawback is reference to shop supplies, lubricants, etc., that are European and 25 or 30 years old. Certainly modern, and perhaps better, substitutions exist, but it's tough sometimes to know just what the factory intended to be used, and thus to make correct substitution.

The parts books, again two volumes, with orange soft covers, referred to as the Orange Books. These have every part listed in six languages, with 11-digit part numbers. They are useful to see the exploded diagrams of assemblies. They are, of course, out of print and seldom come up for resale. However, CNPR has reproduced them for something like $57, check their website at bimmerdoc.com

The owner's manual is NLA, and so rare I've never seen one. They are advertised so seldom that there is no going rate for them. Possibly a list member will photocopy one for you, if information rather than originality is a concern.

Tim O'Connor wrote:

I would appreciate any advice on obtaining technical books for the service of my CSL and also availability of owners handbook if still available / obtainable.

Rgds
Tim

Charlie
BMW CCHawaii