Introducing Crystal

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Ed Lyerly
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Introducing Crystal

Post by Ed Lyerly »

Crystal is my 1985 M635. She is Lapisblau with Lama leather interior. Crystal was originally a west coast car, spending her entire life with one family until I purchased her in April 2010.
The good news is that she was unmolested, garage kept, and completely rust free. The bad news is that she had been sitting in the owner?s garage without starting or moving since 2000. She had traveled 133K miles before being parked due to a transmission problem. The original paint was fair, but had a lot of scratches .. and it?s share of chipping on the front end from 133K miles of use. The interior was in pretty good shape with the exception of the drivers seat bolster (cracking) and a little color fading on the tops of the seats (especially in the rear).
After some negotiations with the owner, I purchased the car and had her transported to Atlantic Euro, LLC in Winston-Salem, NC. Many thanks to Lee Highsmith of Gloss Haus fame for recommending Nat Arnold of Atlantic Euro to resuscitate Crystal. After 10 years of slumber, many issues had to be carefully addressed by an expert who understands these rare cars ?. and Nat was perfect for the job.
15 months later, after an incredible effort by Nat on the mechanical issues, and by Lee (who applied his impressive Gloss Haus skills to the 26 year old paint) Crystal is alive and well and enjoying her 1st summer on the east coast. My contributions to date are finding a set of 17? staggered Alpina wheels and a set of rear headrests. I also freshened the color on the seats and door panels to eliminate some fading that had occurred.
Here are a few shots in my driveway after the 100 mile drive home last week:

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By r_e_l at 2011-07-10

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Last edited by Ed Lyerly on Mon Jul 11, 2011 2:15 am, edited 1 time in total.
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1985 M635 #1998 (gone but not forgotten)
1994 850CSi (also gone but not forgotten)
1985 M635 #589
ozbmw
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Post by ozbmw »

What an excellent find !!!!
The colour is stunning.
Matt @ Snowy Mountains of Australia
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Roku35
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Post by Roku35 »

Ed,

Congratulations! Crystal looks AWESOME! I will be joining you in attaching a set of 17" capped Alpina wheels onto my new Schwartz adventure as well. That ///M engine looks like you could eat off of it :wink: Outstanding color, love it.
1985 Euro 635CSi CR 5-Spd (Schwartz/Anthracite Buffalo)
1985 Euro 635CSi CR 5-Spd (Polaris/Schwartz)
1985 Euro 628CSi (Zobelbraun/Nutria Buffalo) ...Rehomed
2002 540iT Sport 5-Spd (Schwartz/Schwartz)
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markh
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Post by markh »

Fine looking car. Beautiful refresh. Engine bay is awesome! Clean M88. Looks like new headers and SuperSprint coming out the back? Has this been rebadged on the rear trunk decklid? I thought the euro version has the ///M logo on the left side and M635CSI on the right? Great find - enjoy!

Mark
1988 ///M Zinno/Lotus 70K miles
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5280 M6
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Post by 5280 M6 »

Gorgeous! Love the color combo. Congrats on the find, and hat's off to you for taking a rare car and investing in it to bring it up to an even higher level of condition.

After all that work and waiting, hopefully now comes the fun part: Driving it and enjoying it =D>

Jim
'88 M6
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maxg765
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Post by maxg765 »

Very nice Ed.

I love that you went the preserve and restore direction and not the modify one.

I'm looking into changing my wheels now, considering the 17" Style 5's or your Alpina's. Have to admit I was always in favor of the Style 5's but after seeing your pictures I am reconsidering.

I'm moving to the east coast at the end of this month. If you ever want to go a little and I north maybe we can meet up at east coast events...

Enjoy the car, its a true beautiful work of art. Mine seems to get more attention than most any car its next to.

Regards

Max
Regards,

Max
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88 BMW M6 112000 KM's
89 BMW 325ix Dinan Turbo
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M6smitten
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Post by M6smitten »

Great guys deserve great cars!
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MrE
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Post by MrE »

Beautiful beautiful car Ed. Well done, the colour is superb and the interior looks equally impressive. It's got subtle luxury and hidden power in bucket loads.

It's a lucky car to have you as its owner. Image

Regards,
Ellis.
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orval2

Post by orval2 »

Really nice !

Renaud
E9erCS

Post by E9erCS »

Wonderful job-- beautiful car! Where did you get the floor mats?


--Steve
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tschultz
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Post by tschultz »

Very nice car! I love the E24 in a nice dark blue... you don't see it very often either.
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
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Ed Lyerly
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Post by Ed Lyerly »

Thank you all very much for your kind words about Crystal. It has been quite an experience and a true labor of love seeing this elegant old gal get her legs back under her again. The payoff is just beginning for me ..... as I hope to enjoy her for many years to come :D

Carl,
I'm sure you will be very pleased with a set of 17" capped Alpinas on your latest aquisition. I'll be looking forward to your pictures.

Mark,
Those are the stock SS headers that have been ceramic coated (Jet-Hot).
This is supposed to reduce underhood temps by keeping the heat inside the tubes. Finish resembles chrome .... but is not supposed to tarnish.
Exhaust is stock M635.
Badges have not been altered from stock.

Jim,
You are right ... driving and enjoying is what the rest of this summer is all about for me

Max,
I don't think you can go wrong with either Style 5's or Alpinas on your M6.
Then there is the Hartge option :D
Where will you be moving to on the east coast ?

Steve,
Nat Arnold of Atlantic Euro got the floor mats for me. He can order them with whatever lettering you want. http://atlantic-euro.com/default.aspx

Thanks again to all for your kind words.
Ed
---------------------
1985 M635 #1998 (gone but not forgotten)
1994 850CSi (also gone but not forgotten)
1985 M635 #589
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Ralph in Socal
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Post by Ralph in Socal »

Very impressive Ed. The Jet-Hot coating does look super clean and really makes the engine compartment perfect. Extreme jealousy coming from over here.

Ralph
There is a very fine line between "Hobby" and Mental Illness.

85 635csi Zinno Auto
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Captain Bavaria

Post by Captain Bavaria »

Wow. Congrats on having one of the cleanest- and most gorgeous- sixers I have seen. That lapisblau looks incredible.
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Post by Pod »

That's one lovely looking car! I like the Lapisblau - it is virtually identical to one of my M635s which is in Saturnblau. You don't see many of these dark blue cars around!
Bayerische
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Post by Bayerische »

Beautiful car Ed. I know everyone else has said it but I will say it again...lapis blue and the tan interior looks stunning. The engine bay looks magnificent also.

Best of luck with her she is a stunner.

Did you get the timing chain replaced during the recomissioning?
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Ed Lyerly
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Post by Ed Lyerly »

Bayerische wrote:Beautiful car Ed. I know everyone else has said it but I will say it again...lapis blue and the tan interior looks stunning. The engine bay looks magnificent also.

Best of luck with her she is a stunner.

Did you get the timing chain replaced during the recomissioning?

Thanks for your kind words. Nat is very thorough ..... yes ..... timing chain, sprockets, tensioners, all belts and hoses, etc., etc. No stone left unturned :D Nat loves these cars and was instructed to treat it like it was to be his own.
---------------------
1985 M635 #1998 (gone but not forgotten)
1994 850CSi (also gone but not forgotten)
1985 M635 #589
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World-Class6
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Post by World-Class6 »

WOW!!! =D>

Ese coche es una belleza! Felizidades 8)
85 M635 Schwarz (Found a new home in L.A.)
95 MBZ E36 AMG Coupe widebody Polar White
88 BMW E28 535is White
2000 Jaguar XJR Anthracite
2016 GMC Sierra Double Cab SLT- All Terrain Black
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Ed Lyerly
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Post by Ed Lyerly »

We are currently having some really miserable weather here in the southeastern USA. Temps have been in the mid-90's with high humidity (65-80%). It is too hot to do anything useful outside ..... so I decided to take Crystal for a run today and check out the uprated AC system that Nat fitted when he brought Crystal back to life. Nat fitted a more efficient Sanden compressor, a new parallel flow condenser, and converted from R12 to the 134a refrigerant. I had been forewarned that these "euro" 635's without the rear AC units added later to the USA cars really had cooling that could be best described as "marginal" for our hot humid weather (can you say June, July and August) here in the southeast.
Here is what I found:
1- If you start off from a garage or shaded area, this upgraded AC system does all you need ..... even in this "worst case" heat and humidity we are currently experiencing.
2- This car has lots of glass. If you park it in the sun without a reflective insert for the front window, and without window tinting ...... expect to allow
20-25 minutes of driving to get things cooled off adequately. A modern car put to the same test only requires about 10 minutes.
3 - I believe a big part of this is that the AC vents are located poorly ... and additionally .... just don't move the volume of air that is needed.
4 - I also think that fabric seat inserts would reduce the "sweat factor" that the leather seats seem to amplify.
5 - Since IMHO .... window tint detracts from the M635 appearance, I'll do my best to park in the shade and use a reflective winshield insert for my summer driving in NC.

Here are a few shots of that Sanden compressor that Nat installed, and a few more from today's ride in the heat:

The Sanden compressor is in the right front of the engine bay, at the bottom. See the red arrow.
<img src="http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/5269/5sandentop.jpg" alt="Image Hosted by ImageShack.us">

A closer shot
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Underneath ... from right wheelwell
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From right wheelwell .... rear
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View from left front ... shows guard Nat fabricated to protect the AC hoses.
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Before the run .... driveway shots

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1st stop ... long closed service station. Probably 2005 since you could buy gasoline this cheap :(
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Lake Lure area of NC
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Everything is lush and green in NC this time of year :)
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Lake Lure NC area .... still miserably hot
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Last edited by Ed Lyerly on Sun Apr 15, 2012 7:26 pm, edited 5 times in total.
---------------------
1985 M635 #1998 (gone but not forgotten)
1994 850CSi (also gone but not forgotten)
1985 M635 #589
jaws

Post by jaws »

very impressive mate :mrgreen:
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Post by Pod »

Is that picture with the petrol pumps recent? Over here we pay 15% more than that per litre :cry:
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Ed Lyerly
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Post by Ed Lyerly »

jaws ..... thank you very much :D

Pod ..... the picture is recent, however ... the petrol station has been closed since about 2005. I thought it provided a bit of nostalgia to the shot. Premium grade petrol here is now double the price on that old sign :(
---------------------
1985 M635 #1998 (gone but not forgotten)
1994 850CSi (also gone but not forgotten)
1985 M635 #589
Pod
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Post by Pod »

Times change. However I'd still rather buy gas in the good old US of A :wink:
ozbmw
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Post by ozbmw »

Nice setup on the aircon system! I find that opening all the windows for a minute quickly lets the heat out and then the a/c copes well.

I agree with you 100% on the tinted window look detracting from the overall look of these cars, the fine roofline and abundant glass area are what give these cars that long, low, sleek look and adding dark tint seems to make them bulky and tall.

Nice to see the attention to detail.
Matt @ Snowy Mountains of Australia
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Ed Lyerly
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Post by Ed Lyerly »

ozbmw wrote:Nice setup on the aircon system! I find that opening all the windows for a minute quickly lets the heat out and then the a/c copes well.

I agree with you 100% on the tinted window look detracting from the overall look of these cars, the fine roofline and abundant glass area are what give these cars that long, low, sleek look and adding dark tint seems to make them bulky and tall.

Nice to see the attention to detail.
Thank you for your kind words Matt. I was very pleased with the Sanden compressor / parallel flow condenser / 134a upgrade. With a Lapisblau car combined with 95 degree / 70+ humidity ..... It puts any system to a severe duty test.

I've been reading about a new 3M window tint that is almost clear ..... and still reduced the temps inside by a BIG % !! I'm going to research this more, and have a look at a car that it has been applied to. This might be a big help to the "marginal AC" situation many are faced with.
http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/e ... ive_Films/

My mechanic (Nat Arnold of Atlantic Euro LLC) deserves all the credit for the "attention to detail" on the AC conversion that you referenced. He made the special brackets required, and fabricated the shield for the AC lines. He also fabricated the 2nd connector (required for the 134a conversion) and hid it behind the passenger grille. Folks like Nat are few and far between =D>
---------------------
1985 M635 #1998 (gone but not forgotten)
1994 850CSi (also gone but not forgotten)
1985 M635 #589
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