During my daily speed walks, I sometimes imagine meeting a once-upon-a-time-girlfriend. I've been a lucky guy in that respect, having enjoyed the company of various spectacular ladies including several models and beauty queens and others who were merely attractive yet beautiful for reasons more important. I do, however, meet former lovers of the 4-wheeled type. Just the other day I stumbled upon one of those, a 70's BMW 3.0 CS coupe, nicely restored and looking gorgeous. It was from the Bavaria/BMW 2002 era, sharing many of the mechanicals and design characteristics. A TV commercials director with whom I'd worked once loaned me his 2.8 CA coupe for our ad agency's annual staff party. I chauffered four of the secretaries to that event and can assure you the Bimmer impressed those ladies mightily. King for an evening!

The director's motivation was to sell me that coupe, an opportunity I rejected for the dumbest of reasons: it had an automatic gearbox and the pedals were modified for its handicapped driver. Now much older (though still waiting to be wiser), I'd jump at the chance to possess such a lovely car, one that I consider to be more desirable than any BMW coupe produced since, including the latest with its ugly Bangle-design rear end. Whatever you may think of the newer coupes, you must surely admit that the early CS models had a lightness of weight and grace that makes them appear as ballet dancers vs. football players. Another long-time pal, Trevor Hoffman, offers this soliloquy on the BMW 6-cylinder coupe. Like me, he's still holding out. Oh... and meeting those old girlfriends? Perhaps not. Just as rust attacked the BMW coupes, age would spoil my illusions. Theirs, too, no doubt.

[photo credit:www.conceptcarz.com]