Elvis' BMW 507 Restoration
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The Restoration of Elvis Presley BMW 507. Subscribe.
One of the highlights of the Concours d’Elegance in Pebble Beach is the presentation of the BMW 507 that was once driven by Elvis Presley during his term of military service in Germany and can now be seen for the first time by the general public following its complete restoration.
For many decades, the roadster of the King of Rock’n’Roll was regarded as a mystery on wheels. Not until after painstaking investigation by the US journalist Jackie Jouret and enquiries made by experts from the archives of BMW Group Classic was it possible to solve the mystery of the identity and whereabouts of the car. For many years, Elvis’s BMW 507 had been dormant at a warehouse in Half Moon Bay, south of San Francisco, and thus not far from the location at which its rebirth is now being celebrated. And it has an eventful history in which the King played the most crucial role, but not the only major one.
It begins at the Frankfurt International Motor Show, where the BMW 507 was exhibited in September 1957, having being produced shortly beforehand. The works driver Hans Stuck, also known as the Bergmeister, then completed several races in the white two-seater car, which was also used for press test drives and film shots. In December 1958, a BMW dealer in Frankfurt mediated the sale of the roadster to probably the most prominent US soldier ever stationed in Germany. Elvis Presley drove the BMW 507 until he finished his term of service in March 1960. After that, the car, which by then had been painted red, was transferred to the USA, where it changed owners several times and was converted for further racing use, only to soon be forgotten.
In 1968, engineer Jack Castor bought the car and decided to put it into storage for restoration at a later time. By means of the chassis number 70079, the avid classic car enthusiast was able to see the connection to Hans Stuck. However, it wasn’t until many years later that this connection introduced him to BMW Group Classic, and a comparison with historic documents then gave him the certainty that not only the Bergmeister, but also the King had once sat behind the wheel of his BMW 507. Castor and BMW Group Classic concluded an agreement that regulated not only the purchase, but also restoration of the roadster in Munich. Thus, around two years of restoration work produced a reconstruction that has preserved as much of the original substance as possible and restored the overall vehicle to its former condition in the year 1958.
In Pebble Beach, the BMW 507 will shine in Feather White, with a black and white interior, just like when it was sold to Elvis Presley. This was Jack Castor’s wish and is now his legacy, as the keeper of Elvis’s BMW 507 died in November 2014 shortly before restoration work commenced, which in addition to the King’s roadster also comprises a further project - Castor owned a second BMW 507. The blue car bearing the chassis number 70089 had also waited for many years alongside Elvis Presley’s car to be rediscovered. Likewise, this car was completely restored under the direction of BMW Group Classic and will now be handed over at the start of the Concours d’Elegance to Ron Gilmartin, a long-time friend and companion of Jack Castor.
Many other vehicles being displayed in Pebble Beach take an important place in the 100-year history of BMW. These include the BMW 328 Touring Coupe, in which Fritz Huschke von Hanstein and Walter Bäumer became overall winners of the Mille Miglia in1940, and the BMW 328, also known as the Bügelfalten-Roadster and already the fastest in its class in the same race in 1938. Furthermore, the general public will be able to see the first and latest models to date in the BMW Art Cars Collection. Both the BMW 3.0 CSL designed by Alexander Calder in 1975 and the BMW M3 GT2 from 2010, upon which Jeff Koons left his artistic handwriting, were on the starting grid in the 24-hour race at Le Mans. The presentation of the concept car BMW 2002 Homage underscores the ongoing effective impact of the BMW 02 introduced 50 years ago. This is complemented by a reunion with many successful models on two wheels. An early version of the BMW R 32 reminds us of BMW’s debut as a motorcycle manufacturer in the year 1923, and numerous other models describe motorcycle development up to the present day.
Пікірлер: 339
Hard to believe they did all of this in about 40 minutes...very skillfull.
@Kerveros1904
3 жыл бұрын
in my computer they managed to do it in 20 minutes. Maybe because i set double speed has something to do with it. who knows...
@maps6263
5 ай бұрын
Maybe they stopped cut and edited.....
This is way more than a regular restoration! They’re recreating the entire car from almost scratch. This is a huge undertaking and way more impressive. This is really amazing work! ❤
So highly satisfactory to see these workers: Patient, methodical, classifying everything, and polite. And they get paid for this...I would do it for free!
I can't be more on your side, sire Hans Peter. Sorrowfully, today the high markis over brightness. My respect!
This is more enjoyable to watch than any American car restoration show.
Bravo Pedro y todo el equipo!!! Meisterstück. Recuerdos desde Salamir
I want to see the videos of restoration work performed by those who voted thumbs down on this video.... What most do not realize is .....that when creating an original restoration , one must use as much of the original manufacturing techniques as possible..... Every older car that was built by hand has its own characteristics......no 2 cars are the same. No robots were used back then.....some engines even made more horsepower than others.....even though it was built to the same specs. The paint back then was not as advanced or as "shiney" as it is now days, due to exotic materials and techniques not available at that time.
@brianboni4876
7 жыл бұрын
People don't understand that this is how these cars were built in the first place. When I read that only 252 cars were made and the body parts aren't interchangeable plus seeing the wooden buck at 27:04, proves these are fine hand built cars no doubt. Also notice that the metal they replaced was badly needed from damage or missing. It's aluminum, you only get so much work out of it unlike steel. I'm fine with the old paint too, old cars shouldn't look like new cars. Beautiful video!
AMAZING craftsmanship, but I liked it better when it was original. If that's not how Elvis drove it then his provenance is thrown out the window.
@dalesworld1308
7 жыл бұрын
Okay - googled it and this WAS how it was when Elvis had it.
Elvis Presley originally owned two of these cars, and one was given to Ursula Andress. Both cars were extensively modified by subsequent owners, but later were rebuilt to their original specifications by BMW Classic.
@1ttanker
7 жыл бұрын
Answered my question.....
@nezircaglar2381
7 жыл бұрын
ohhh... ursula... bmw... understood...
@gregh7457
7 жыл бұрын
This is a classic example of what happens when purists take over. Any alteration that is not original from the factory is erased. Since the car was "heavily modified by previous owners" the body shell was therefore erased from the car.
Have any patina lovers cried because of this?
I read that a factory full restauration+rebuild of a 507 will cost you 500k euros. But then they will use all the original data, metallurgy, technical drawings and pictures. Some old people who worked for BMW in the 50's, said that this restored car is much better then when it originally left the factory. So yeah, it's somewhat over-restored. But what a great job they did.
Amazing work, I'm impressed ...
Love how organized and meticulous they are. Their shop is awesome.
Stupenda!! in italia ci sono poche aziende del settore
At the end of the day it could not be said that Elvis drove this car.
This is one of the most beautiful cars I've ever seen.
WOW ! Fantastic job thanks, Elvis would want it back ..
Love the workhop, clean and well orrganized, looks like a lab.
cara imagina a emoção de pegar no mesmo volante que o Elvis pegou
Love the passion of theses workers on theses old cars.
I grew up on Oahu Hawaii. I was around 13, 14 years and a lady in my neighborhood was visiting some people and locked her keys in her 2 dr Red and black trim red leather interior Cadilac Elderado. I was passing by on my skatebiard and they flaged me down and asked if I could help.; " coat hanger" or something..i said sure. Be right back (i live around the corner.) I helped her get her car open, get her keys .. She thanks me and tells me, "Son..you just broke in to one of Elvis Presleys old Cars"! I know he use to give cars, watches and stuff like that away all the time...had no reason to doubt her she seemed lagit..o Anyway, true story on my end 🙏🤙
Considering who owned this car, I wouldn't have touched it
beautiful car.
Magnífica e precisa restauração, bom demais. Maneco - Porto Alegre-RS - Brasil.
very satisfying video
I really enjoyed that. Thank you for a very well made video and brief insight into what's involved. The body fabrication is amazing.
Muito show!!! Amo ver profissionais dassa qualidade e competência. Parabéns. Trabalho todo artesanal
nice silence is golden until the nails on the chalkboard at the end!!! looks like they restored and made a replica.
That is awesome...I always thought body shops are some kind of miracle workers but this goes even beyond! Great job!
Un bel hommage à cette petite merveille de BMW...
very good edited
It is all about the title: just name it: making a replica of a BMW 507.
Biggest dream car ever!
Great restoration
As much of the car that you replaced would it be better to title the video Elvis' 1957 BMW 507 "gas pedal restoration" that was about the only thing left from the original. But hey you guys do AWESOME work.
Tolles Video und meisterliche Arbeit. Das muß sehr befriedigend sein, so ein Projekt mit der entsprechenden Ruhe und Sorgfalt von Anfang bis Ende zu realisieren. Wurden da 2 Wagen parrallel restauriert, oder warum der 2. 507er?
guys! it has a new owner now! he can do whatever he wants with it!
They gave her, her smile back
They basically handmade a new one
@madfiat8932
7 жыл бұрын
Agreed... caught the part where they stopped using the original chassis and switched to a brand new one... both were sitting in the same shot a couple of times and they were moving parts between them.
@brianboni4876
7 жыл бұрын
That might have been the buck they were testing parts against. If you look at 27:04 you can see the red car is actually made of wood.
@bredlo
7 жыл бұрын
Worth it for the Elvis connection, apparently. I believe BMW is going to maintain ownership, from what I've read. As far as the new chassis, several articles point out that a Chevy engine was swapped in much later to make a race car out of it; much of the front frame carrier had to be cut out... so it sounds like this was the best way to take it back to factory standards.
@airsheeps
7 жыл бұрын
39:20 It looks like they kept the red and black paint in the door sill, perhaps to keep that history and show it was the original chassis?
@tps607
4 жыл бұрын
@@madfiat8932 If you read the info above in the "show more" section you will see Jack Castor owned the Elvis car and another and both were restored at the same time as a part of the restoration deal
wow you could make a whole new car with what they threw away. Kinda like if you change the head of a brush one year, then the handle of the brush the next, is it the same brush?
Very Great videos
What a beautiful car, always been one of my favourites! The body lines are incredible, like a shark.
maybe they did their job too well, whats left of the original?
@3Mever
7 жыл бұрын
39:09 i guess
@sigmaprojects
7 жыл бұрын
yea, some cars should be restored like this and some should be left in the way they looked. I think this car was left to neglect and this brings it more to the original state, some of the cars raced with their nicks and scuffs I think show history. There's an unrestored Toyota 2000GT, I don't think it has any significant history other than being a 2000GT and having it restored to it's original imagery would be better than seeing the chrome gone from the nose and the red paint now a pink hue.
@3Mever
7 жыл бұрын
so true,i like the way you think about cars,they are history for some,for others something more special.thank you
@djaylennox
3 жыл бұрын
That’s the difference between German and American restoration. If you do it, do it right. Using the old body only would have perhaps saved the optics for a few years.
thats not a restoration that is a total rebuild . why not use the old body it realy didn't look bad at all.
@maximecollot8612
7 жыл бұрын
mudbug212 Totaly agree with you. The result is beautiful but I'm looking for the original Elvis's red 507 :'(.
@lechat8533
3 жыл бұрын
@@maximecollot8612 But Elvis`s original was the white 507! Later he painted it red just because the female fans constantly left their lipstick kisses behind. Most archived photos of him are in the white 507.
@djaylennox
3 жыл бұрын
That’s the difference between German and American restoration. If you do it, do it right. Using the old body only would have perhaps saved the optics for a few years.
this made me cry
A marvel of German manufacturer 100%👍
It's interesting how people's definitions of a restoration differ. I think that what a lot of people have in mind when you say the word 'restoration' is more along the lines of a 'refurbishment' - a thorough cleanup, maybe some mechanical work, fresh paint and upholstery. This video demonstrates what I think of when I hear the word restoration - returning the vehicle to 'like new' condition. Of course, over-restoration is definitely a thing too, as are bad restorations.
I enjoyed the whole video. Amazing job, guys.
Great job!!
partina free car. Alltime a question of Taste. Anyway - very nice Job - especially the sheet job. greetings from a tinner from Germany
Great job, what a beautiful looking car now it's finished. Excellent.
Pretty sure I'll need to win the lottery to afford a 507 lol. One of my favorite cars!
@jonanddy
2 жыл бұрын
same
It is interesting to see the difference in working attitude between the american car builders and the germans. They don't talk too much. Is this why they conquered the US market? That sheet metal work is a masterpiece! They could have let it like that, just with a clear coat.
This is a most interesting restoration/re body. I would like to see more information about the car previously belonging to Elvis.
Wait... all that work on the original chassis... and then they trash the original chassis and bolt the body onto an entirely new one???? That's not a restoration, that's a recreation.
@jesperdahl1486
7 жыл бұрын
Did we watch the same video ? I newer saw a new chassis, the unibody was acid dipped, and had rust and damage repaired, and then a completely new aluminum skin was made and fitted to the repaired unibody. A lot of work, but still mostly original.
@brianboni4876
7 жыл бұрын
The body being aluminum needs different treatment than the steel chassis so it has to be split to be refinished but it's not unibody it's a pretty hefty tubular chassis that's been paneled over in steel. You can see only a few shots that show clues of this and one is where a tubular cross support extends through the side under the door and leaves a circle exposed and the other shows one of the torsion bar mounts that looks like a steel casting but it might just be made to look that way. Beautiful video!
The dreamy blues music was very good.
Original structural design is amazing considering the year of production. More of the original parts would be a key for a built of this nature.
JUST THE WAY IT SHOULD BE DONE!
still pretty awesome old sports car
Very classy video throughout....until that obnoxious music is played at the end! It was Elvis' car, so why not end with his music????????????/
@EB240
7 жыл бұрын
Copyright
@brianboni4876
7 жыл бұрын
Such a nice video should have original music ;)
@ml.2770
7 жыл бұрын
Great video, but yeah the music had to be muted to watch the ending.
@jmshaw357
7 жыл бұрын
agreed--that music at the end was a real irritant! How about something that suited the work/workers? Classical maybe?
Not finished watching it but 4 and a half minutes of showing the old car is WAY too long.
@BriscoMedia
7 жыл бұрын
That's what you think
@Dinkymod
7 жыл бұрын
It's an archival video, meant to document the event and the process. Not meant to entertain you.
@digitalblasphemy1100
7 жыл бұрын
are you sure?
@HopeSprings33
5 жыл бұрын
Same, When 2x is still too slow!
Better than perfect.
Nicely edited and shot, I think.
muito bem Elvis Parabéns cara
Das ist die Volkommenheit !!
This isn't a restauration, it's how to build a new car on top of an old chassis... Thex have taken awax the car's soul....
@gordonweinhold720
5 жыл бұрын
Schwachsinn. Die Seele hatte das Auto verloren, als man ihm gewaltsam einen albernen Ami V8 verpasste. Was für Banausen. Jetzt hat es seine Seele wieder. Unfassbare deutsche Handwerkskunst.
@tt-rs1457
3 жыл бұрын
@@gordonweinhold720 Sehen viele tatsächlich anders.....und ja, früher hätte ich auch so gedacht. Und weshalb musst du dich abwärtend über die US-Motoren äußern, das muss man nicht.
@djaylennox
3 жыл бұрын
That’s the difference between German and American restoration. If you do it, do it right. Using the old body only would have perhaps saved the optics for a few years.
@dntlss
26 күн бұрын
@@djaylennox optics?
BRAVOOOOO,.
no es restauración mataron la magia... is not restauration , they kill the magic
looks like a lot of it was replaced....what percent of original parts were used?
cool car
really good job.
27:04 Are they doing a restoration or making a replica?
@cargofan1477
7 жыл бұрын
German Handwork, not "Pimp my Ride" ;-)
@stretch9952
7 жыл бұрын
Excellent question. If the body panels came off fitting the underframe, they ought to go back on without recutting them. The original body seems to be sitting at the side at the 27:10 mark.
@acoow
7 жыл бұрын
Thanks. That a lot more useful and answer than they guy who answered the question I did not ask.
@brianboni4876
7 жыл бұрын
That red car is a wooden buck used for making and testing parts.
@oxaction3
7 жыл бұрын
It is a restoration, but unfortunately it has been "hot rodded" a lot during the years, body panels have been modified and the original engine was replaced with a chevy V8. So the body panels have been renewed, like how it was, when they handed it out to elvis.
Melhor que o fabricado!
Superbe ! Pour moi, une belle auto allemande, c'est ça !
This should have been a roadkill episode.
Awesome restoration! But...young man! Where are your safety glasses while drilling out those rivets?!? One metal shard and you're off to the hospital...
Buen trabajo 👍👏🏼
anybody got a link to this video with English subtitles?
Since it was Elvis' car, it should have stayed RED.
Awesome..
Whats the song? Every choice something, something, something - it is fantastic! Oh the cars not bad either....
Nice video!
đúng đẳng cấp của một thương hiệu BMW .
That's some very impressive metal banging!
Excellent video. how much they bought it for? how long the restoration job took and how much did it cost? and how much was it sold for? Please...., if you know...Thanks.!
The body panels that came off looked fine, why replace them?
I would trust the judgement of the craftsmen in the job. If they saw it fit to replace parts of the sheet metal, it was probably needed in the first place. Also notice the car came without the original engine. So for the purists on this posting, not redoing it thoroughly was a moot point. It comes as good as new or it doesn't at all. This is not a museum piece. It will be driven, and someone paid for it. Props to outstanding German workmanship.
Wow that's some awesome craftsmanship! You guys specialize in restoring BMWs?
What's it like to work at a no talking allowed shop?
they should have left it as it was. it might have been dirty and broken, but at least Elvis' fingerprints were still left on it
@19811402
7 жыл бұрын
greasy fingerprints you mean :p
@henrikcarlsen1881
7 жыл бұрын
Nahh, the car is a bigger star than Elvis ever was. Bring it back to life.
@JamesBond-oe5px
7 жыл бұрын
Andy B You're absolutely right
nice
Thats an amazing hand made replica of the car. Nice work although.
Germans are the Swiss watch makers of cars.
parabéns pelo video meu like valeuuuuuuuuuuuuu
15:00 I would have removed the wheels on the stand before tanking it, but that's just me being frugal. I like Molasses and water for rust removal, doesn't harm the paint either. 25:50 old guy no hearing protection, young guy has some.
@SportyClassic
7 жыл бұрын
Could be but I would think the caustic solution would eat the wheels too.
@danagboi
7 жыл бұрын
17:21 old guy wearing no eye protection!
wow the king own a bmw wow
This is not the Elvis car, this is a plain and simple BMW 507 as new. IMHO, I think they have to respect the choice that made the original owner. That was it made this BMW the Elvis' 507.
@DrOlds7298
2 жыл бұрын
I agree. They should've painted it back to red as he had it. What made it 'his' car?? (Plus period...or better reproductions of the ones issued to it for 1958-59-60....yearly issues at the time?) US Forces in Germany license plates & an 'USA' oval as it would've had being registered to a U.S. Serviceman)
A great resto...but why change it from the original colour???
I love the way how they kept some part of the door latch original. it this a common practice?
@jwdcadle
4 жыл бұрын
Usually to show original colour, incase someone wants to repaint it to original.