AC Schnitzer S3 Sport CLS-R

06/09/2023

The goal the last few years has been to find a 1995 M3 rolling chassis with a clean title as the starting point for the revival/restoration of the S3 Sport CLS-R. A clean titled chassis that I could relocate all of the AC Schnitzer parts to, including the widebody kit. Unfortunately, that has proven to be way more challenging than anticipated as the E36 M3’s desirability has skyrocketed in recent years. Obviously, along with the increased desirability has come skyrocketing prices as well. In the meantime, the car has been sitting in the shop collecting dust. 😢

Am almost to the point of giving up on the search and just pressing forward with the current ‘96 328iS chassis, but my biggest hold back there is that the current chassis has a salvage title from when the car got hit years ago in SoCal by a lady that didn’t yield at a stop sign. I don’t ever plan to sell the car so a salvage title doesn’t really matter much, but I just don’t like the idea of dumping so much time (and $$) into a full restoration project on a car with a salvage title. Plus, a proper CLS replica needs a “WBS” VIN, right?! What are your thoughts?

05/23/2019

05/09/2019

The cars that inspire this project...

Much more than your typical 1990s tuner cars.

05/01/2019

And another one...
Another Beautiful AC Schnitzer kitted E31 850i. This one in Calypso Red and belonging to David Lockyer in Victoria, BC. Absolutely stunning, especially with the ACS Type I Rennsport wheels. Can never have enough of ‘90’s AC Schnitzer styling!

04/28/2019

A Beautiful and MINT Authentic AC Schnitzer S8 V12 from the UK owned by Daniel Agnew. Jaw dropping and amazing. Always loved the ACS styling for the E31...

01/26/2019

The AC Schnitzer S3 Sport CLS replica projekt has a new home! Built a brand new shop for the business. 2019 is the year to get back to work on her restoration and revival...

08/25/2017

Here's the for sale listing of the authentic CLS #007. IMHO, it woukd be worth more if the previous owner never had it repainted and kept it original...

AC Schnitzer ACS3 CLS
Price: HKD1,400,000 / USD180,000 / EUR152,000
Year: 1995
Mileage: 30,000 miles
Displacement: 3,000cc
Gearbox: Manual
Tel: 98863128

08/25/2017

More recent pics of #007. Looks like it is now for sale in Hong Kong. If only I could afford $180K. Quite a collectors item of you are into old-school AC Schnitzer stuff...

07/19/2017

06/14/2017

Finally got my stuff out of storage in SoCal so I threw on the 17" Type I Rennsports I had in there. My 18" Type I's are still in dire need of a refinish so maybe this will give me the chance to send them off to have them done properly.
Unfortunately, the car itself is also in dire need of a restoration as well. Need to find the time to work on it... :-/

04/27/2017

In which we deconstruct Doug DeMuro's deep misunderstanding of technology.

03/30/2017

For many years (from 2003 till sometime in 2011), this car served as my daily driver. In March of 2011, the inevitable happened and while crossing a 4-way stop in Hermosa Beach, CA, an idiotic lady ran the stop sign and smashed into the right front corner of the car.
Damage was relatively minimal and she took the blame for the accident, but after MONTHS of fighting with her insurance company over the value of the car, they claimed it as a total loss.

Of course, I bought it back, repaired what I could to make it drivable again and, much to my chagrin, had it re-registered with a Salvaged Title. While I don't ever plan on selling the car (so the vehicle's "value" doesn't much concern me), it does irk me that it carries a salvage title. One of the last of the rare AC Schnitzer wide bodies should NOT have a salvage title. This is actually one of the reasons i've been kinda putting off the restoration of the car (aside from just being too busy with other things like building a business, etc.).

So, I've come to the conclusion that the proper path for me with this car is to find a clean-titled 1995 E36 M3 chassis and swap everything (including the widebody kit) over to it. A car of this caliber deserves a clean title. So, the search begins for a clean titled 1995 E36 M3 chassis. Preferrably in Alpine White (would prefer to not have to do a complete color change). Blown engine is preferable to keep the cost down. Can even be just a rolling chassis as long as the title is clean as well as the body. Will be transferring pretty much all of the parts from this car over anyway. If anyone sees something matching this description that may be suitable, drop me a line...thanks!