3,168cc OHV Aluminum V8 Engine 2 Zenith Carburetors 140bhp at 4,800rpm 4-Speed Manual Transmission Front Independent Suspension – Live Rear Axle 4-Wheel Drum Brakes *Excellent example of BMW's rare 503 Cabriolet *Recent mechanical restoration *One of just 129 Bertone-bodied Cabriolets built *Eligible for the world's finest driving and Concours events *Offered with BMW Certificate of Authenticity and restoration files THE BMW 503 At the end of WW2, BMW was in a much worse state than Mercedes-Benz in Stuttgart because one of its major plants – the old Dixi works at Eisenach in Saxony - was within the Russian Zone and would soon be cut off from the West behind the 'Iron Curtain'.

Nevertheless, BMW recommenced car production in 1952 with the introduction of the 501 luxury saloon, a bullish choice for an impoverished country still recovering from the ravages of war.

The 501 had been announced in 1951 and first appeared with a development of the company's pre-war six-cylinder engine before...