Mike's Alpine White 1991 318is

[mike.bmw]

318 votes, posted about on 3/18, you are a legend Mike.

LOL! That's all it takes? :-)

[roguetoaster]

318 votes, posted about on 3/18, you are a legend Mike.

[mike.bmw]

To close the loop on #FCPEuroMadness, I got CRUSHED. I kind of expected this was going to be the result when I was matched up against Branden's awesome photo of his beautiful 318is in the first round. Overall, it was a fun week getting into the bracket and virtually meeting and chatting with a number of new car and photography lovers - people, like Branden, that I wouldn't have been introduced to otherwise, and I hope to keep in contact with them.

Thanks to everyone that voted for me to get into the contest as well as the first round! I hope to see the remaining E30s do well in the tournament.

While I lost by a substantial margin, I did receive the PERFECT AMOUNT OF VOTES. I'm not making this up, I received 318 votes! Results below:

fcpeuromadness by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Speaking of 318, it's March 18th. Happy 318 day!

This month also marks my 5-year anniversary of flying to Altanta, GA, purchasing the car, and making the 650 mile drive home to the Washington D.C. area, all in the same day (March 16th).

An exciting weekend of driving and photography lies ahead. Can't wait!

[mike.bmw]

Voting for #FCPEuroMadness round 1 is live! Follow FCPEuro on Instagram, click on their logo to view their IG "stories", and tap right until you come across the match ups. Your vote is appreciated!

[mike.bmw]

Congrats on getting into the bracket, I dropped you a vote! FCP is my go to for parts and love that they're based in my home state of CT.

Also, got my Bimmer Life copy the other day and flipped right to your page, nice work!

Am working on getting some paint protection on my car but need to get out to some local cars and coffee once it's done, your pics are great.

Thanks, Albie325 ! I appreciate the vote and kind words on the writing and photography.

Hopefully we'll be able to meet up at The Vintage in a couple of months. Fingers crossed!

[Albie325]

Congrats on getting into the bracket, I dropped you a vote! FCP is my go to for parts and love that they're based in my home state of CT.

Also, got my Bimmer Life copy the other day and flipped right to your page, nice work!



Am working on getting some paint protection on my car but need to get out to some local cars and coffee once it's done, your pics are great.

[mike.bmw]

#FCPEuroMadness
I made the bracket of 64 in the FCP Euro contest! I had the second most votes to get into the bracket, so thanks to everyone that voted. It means a lot.

They released the bracket today and I'm up against another 318is in the first round, and a stellar one at that. If there are any instagram users here, follow FCP Euro on Tuesday, keep an eye on their stories, and cast your vote!

Check out the full bracket here: https://www.commoninja.com/brackets/...2-97d4153e6288

Round 1:
bracket_1615757390520 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Mileage Milestone
This happened today:
20210314_125620 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

20210314_125722 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Yes, synching my trip meter was one of the first things I did when I got the car.

Photos with friends

I met up with Douglas and his '89 sedan again yesterday. Photos commenced!

DSC_0913 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0926 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0940 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0942 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0997 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_1026 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_1084 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0967 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Cars and Coffee

I went to a Cars and Coffee event for the first time (in forever?). Alpine White E30s... go!

DSC_0906 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0905 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0916 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0907 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

One of these things is not like the other...

DSC_0909 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Oil Change

Avery and I knocked out an oil change.

20210306_142130 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Upcoming Fun

Next weekend I'll be taking Avery on another NCC Tour. The day after I'll be photographing a Pebble Beach winning BMW! More to come!

[mike.bmw]

FCP Euro's #FCPEuroMadness Contest

I entered FCP Euro's #FCPEuroMadness contest last night. If R3V'ers wouldn't mind taking the time to vote, I'd much appreciate it!

Voting requires an email address and subsequent email confirmation, so if you make it that far, you are truly awesome.

Link to vote for me: http://wshe.es/FyeXaEwO
All entries: https://6c804f2e.wishpondpages.com/fcpeuromadness/

Photo that I entered (slightly updated):

DSC_0527 (1) by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Spring is Near

Now that the salt and brine is mostly off the roads, the 318is rides again (it was only in the garage for a few weeks). Avery will be helping me with an oil change this weekend (after a long drive). I did manage to get out for some photos in new spots this morning, despite the subfreezing temps.

DSC_0872 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0881 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0899 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0929 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

[mike.bmw]

Have you check out Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix? Looks like a good event.

Going to clean up engine cosmoline?

I haven't checked out the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix yet, but I'd like to! It does look like an awesome event from the photos I've seen.

Yeah, I'd like to clean the cosmoline at some point. Or paint the valve cover and intake manifold. I've had them off a couple of times, but haven't gotten around to painting them. I might be pulling all of that apart relatively soon, so we'll see. :-)

In other news, I got my car state-inspected today! I don't put antique plates on it because I drive it everywhere, which means I need to get a state inspection. This place is less than a mile from my house and I'm friends with the inspector. Up until recently he had a super nice 318i vert - manual with hard top. It was good chatting with him during the inspection.

20210305_123526 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

In other other news, I wrote an article for the current issue of der Bayerische - (full article here: https://www.nxtbook.com/mercury/derB...ndex.php#/p/10)

Mar_Apr_21_dB_Mercury_4 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

And I also wrote something for the 2021 Spring/Summer BimmerLife (South Atlantic Region)!

3-2021-BimmerLife-South-Atlantic-Edition-COMPRESSED-cover by mike.bevels, on Flickr

3-2021-BimmerLife-South-Atlantic-Edition-COMPRESSED-NCC-1 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

3-2021-BimmerLife-South-Atlantic-Edition-COMPRESSED-NCC-2 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

[moatilliatta]

Have you check out Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix? Looks like a good event.

Going to clean up engine cosmoline?

[mike.bmw]

Not much to report. We've had a few weekends of snow and ice, which results in lots of brine and salt on the roads, which results in the E30 staying in the garage. So I've been taking photos...

DSC_0726 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Engine bay:

DSC_0954 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0948 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

RS001s and turbofans:

DSC_0803 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0806 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0782 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Interior:

DSC_0975 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0989 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Tucked away during a recent ice storm:

DSC_0983 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

I thought this was kinda cool. E30 inception: Manny reading the article I wrote about his E30 from inside his E30. (He sent me the photo.)

received_740249623564486 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

The Vintage, HPDEs, NCC BMW CCA Tours, and a local concours event are all on the calendar. Can't wait!

[moatilliatta]

Great shots! Both cars look great!

Mmm! Late body cirrus sedan will be my next E30!

[mike.bmw]

Mike, I’m loving these shots. It was great to finally meet you and see your car in person. Let’s do it again...when it’s a little warmer.

Thanks, Douglas! A good time for sure. Thanks for standing out in the cold for so long. I'm definitely looking forward to warmer weather and new locations for photos!

[dhlerner]

Mike, I’m loving these shots. It was great to finally meet you and see your car in person. Let’s do it again...when it’s a little warmer.

[2mAn]

E30 Photo Shoots

Here are some shots of my 318is along Douglas' stunning 325i cirrus blau sedan (2mAn 's favorite), equipped with H&R Sport spring, Konis, EWW BBS RS wheels, a manual swap, a fresh interior, and more! Super cool car for sure.

CPL filter rotated to see through the windshield:
DSC_0769 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Those are some cool camera tricks, and yes... something about Cirrusblau just looks special to me and with the BBS wheels...

Ive been tempted to find my way back into a sedan soon, but Im going to wait ~6-9 months so I hit my "keep em for about a year" boredom time and we'll see whats up...