BMW 316 Baur Cabriolet - Sunbathing for thrifty drivers

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BMW 316 Baur Cabriolet - Sunbathing for thrifty drivers

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Created on August 16, 2020

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Bruno von Rotz

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Bruno von Rotz

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BMW AG

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Archiv BMW AG

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - the car is unchanged up to the waistline, above which the Baur craftsmen left their mark

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - The joys of a convertible without the drawbacks

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - compact four-seater with fresh air

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - the Baur conversion integrates well into the overall line

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - Light alloy wheels were not standard on the 316

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - in contrast to a full convertible, the window and door frames remain in place here

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - hardly distinguishable from the sedan from the front

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - just over 1.6 meters wide

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - the view to the rear is almost unobstructed

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - the fold-down rear window with roof section rests lightly on the ground

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - early Baur delivery with serial number 122

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - ready to go

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - plenty of sunshine gets into the interior despite the bars

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - Baur-style convertible

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - driver-oriented workplace

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - typical E21 interior

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - the first customer did without the rev counter, a later owner retrofitted one.

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - typical BMW, the steering wheel was probably retrofitted

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - large clock and easy-to-read speedometer

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - clearly drawn instruments

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - clock instead of rev counter, but with quartz control

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - sporty looking gearshift

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - you don't need a manual to operate the heating and ventilation system

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - clearly labeled buttons

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - the retrofitted rev counter

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - durable upholstery fabrics

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - good four-cylinder engine under the hood, 90 hp at 6000 rpm

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - the four-cylinder engine with overhead camshaft is installed longitudinally

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - Chassis badge from BMW

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - Baur body company badge with the serial number

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - on the road in a hardtop convertible

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - Character Knobs

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - a sturdy roll bar makes the car safer

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - the removable roof section fits into the trunk, but makes loading luggage a little more difficult

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - economical and smooth-running

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - only a small proportion of the Baur versions have a four-cylinder engine under the hood

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BMW 1600 Cabriolet (1968) - full convertible with 85 hp based on the small model series

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BMW 1600 Cabriolet (1968) - ,with a snug-fitting fabric roof

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BMW 2002 Baur Cabriolet (1971) - particularly popular with women

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BMW 2002 Convertible (1971) - the 100 hp hardtop convertible with roll bar, removable roof section and retractable rear window

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BMW 2002 Baur Cabriolet (1971) - the rear side windows could be opened

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BMW 318 (1975) - Steel rims as standard equipment

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BMW 320 (1978) - when cars still had a real color

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BMW 320 (1978) - the two-liter also had a six-cylinder engine from 1977 onwards

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BMW 320 (1979) - already with the black cover between the rear lights

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BMW 320 (1978) - the 320 models still had carburetor equipment

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BMW 320 (1977) - as a six-cylinder sedan

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BMW 320 (1981) - Production in the pilot plant to improve production quality even before the start of series production

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BMW 316 (1979) - in contrast to the six-cylinder models, the four-cylinder versions had to do without twin headlights

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BMW 316 (1978) - after a short time, all three-wheelers received this black trim

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BMW 323i Baur (1981) - from 1981 there was also a convertible from Baur

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BMW 320 Baur (1978) - the Baur convertible as an innovation

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BMW 323i Baur (1981) - safety convertible, as was common in the eighties

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BMW 323i Baur (1981) - the beautiful engine sound comes into its own even better when open

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BMW 323i Baur (1981) - at the 1981 Paris Motor Show

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BMW 323i Cabriolet (1983) - the convertible with roll bar produced by Baur is 7,500 francs more expensive than the closed version - at the 1983 Geneva Motor Show

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BMW 325i Baur Cabriolet TC2 (1985) - there was also a Baur version of the E30

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BMW 320 (1978) - among its predecessors and successors

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - the additional headlights were not standard equipment on the four-cylinder model

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - Convertible pleasures without the typical disadvantages

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - you can rub your hands together ...

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - the first impression is deceptive, it is a four-cylinder model

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - harmonious lines of the safety convertible

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - despite conversion, the car did not become heavier

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BMW 316 TC1 Baur Cabriolet (1978) - White is a good color

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Summary

BMW never built a convertible version of the E21 (316 to 323i) in series production. Naturally, the body company Baur was happy to fill the gap and offered the open-top 3-series variant called TC1 for all engine versions. Almost 4600 units were built up to 1982, most of them equipped with a six-cylinder engine. This report is about a rare four-cylinder hardtop convertible and explores the question of whether it is possible to have less convertible fun in the TC1 with two cylinders.

This article contains the following chapters

From the 02 to the E21
Getting started with the 316
Good grades for the newcomer
Another hardtop convertible
Hardly any disadvantages, but many advantages
Low unit numbers
Small engine, but lots of sun

Estimated reading time: 8min

Preview (beginning of the article)

BMW never built a convertible version of the E21 (316 to 323i) in series production. Naturally, the coachbuilder Baur was happy to fill the gap and offered the open-top 3-series variant called TC1 for all engine versions. In the summer of 1975, the E21 series replaced the 1602 to 2002 models built since 1966. The 02s (known internally as the 114 series) had enjoyed great popularity, over 750,000 units had been built by 1975 and production of the 1502 continued until 1977. BMW therefore did not dare to experiment too much when the new 316, 318 and 320 models were presented to the press in July 1975. The Automobil Revue commented: "The image of the sporty, compact saloons was retained and supplemented by the attributes 'comfortable', 'safe' and 'family-friendly'."

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