Apparently there is a BMW dealership in Ontario that has sat mostly untouched since 1988, and it has a number of still new (?) cars in it:
http://www.endrasbmw.com/10/1988-bmw-dealership-left-untouched/
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Aug. 31, 2011 12:08 p.m. aircooled SuperDork
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Aug. 31, 2011 12:12 p.m. pinchvalve SuperDork
I wonder if there is an M5 hiding in there somewhere.
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Aug. 31, 2011 12:16 p.m. DirtyBird222 SuperDork
thats neat, what is sad, is that that place looks cleaner than a lot of new car showrooms still in business lol.
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Aug. 31, 2011 12:18 p.m. Cone_Junky HalfDork
Nice package deal if the property ever gets sold.
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Aug. 31, 2011 12:33 p.m. dculberson HalfDork
Those cars are clearly maintained. 23 years, the tires would be flat and cracked. They're not only not flat, they're glossy! No dust. This is someone's toy barn, maybe the car's been in the dealership building since new, but it's not "abandoned." No more abandoned than the cars in the Peterson Auto Museum.
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Aug. 31, 2011 12:36 p.m. neon4891 SuperDork
Race cars don't need titles. Who would miss a few?
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Aug. 31, 2011 12:38 p.m. Brotus7 Reader
dculberson wrote:
Those cars are clearly maintained. 23 years, the tires would be flat and cracked. They're not only not flat, they're glossy! No dust. This is someone's toy barn, maybe the car's been in the dealership building since new, but it's not "abandoned." No more abandoned than the cars in the Peterson Auto Museum.
I agree. The building has been maintined, as have the cars. No dust, alot of 6 series and not alot of 3 or 5's, which were both more popular models, I think it's the collection of an eccentric. It may have been left alone for a long time, but someone's taking care of it now.
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Aug. 31, 2011 12:40 p.m. stuart in mn SuperDork
neon4891 wrote:
Race cars don't need titles. Who would miss a few?
I imagine the owner would.
The owner of the place apparently is somewhat reclusive, at least when it comes to people asking about the dealership and the cars inside. He does have someone come in periodically to dust and clean.
I don't have a link handy but the story about this place has been posted all over the net, it should be easy to find.
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Aug. 31, 2011 12:42 p.m. Joshua HalfDork
That's pretty neat, I also noticed that he seems to have more Sharks than e21's or e30's which were obviously better sellers. He must have been open long enough to sell off all of his outdoor inventory!
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Aug. 31, 2011 1:35 p.m. aircooled SuperDork
stuart in mn wrote:
.....I don't have a link handy but the story about this place has been posted all over the net, it should be easy to find.
http://www.endrasbmw.com/10/1988-bmw-dealership-left-untouched/
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Aug. 31, 2011 1:51 p.m. AutoXR Reader
I used to live down the street a few Kms.. they are not maintained @ all. The grass is cut and that's about it. I worked for the Budds group who took over the BMW franchise when this guy went belly up.
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Sept. 1, 2011 3:35 a.m. CanadianTercel Reader
Ah!! I remember passing by the area once and i stopped and poked around. that's cool that there is an article.
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Sept. 1, 2011 7:21 a.m. spitfirebill SuperDork
I can almost assure you the building is maintained by somebody. I've been in enough abandoned buildings to know they start leaking soon after abandonment.
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Sept. 1, 2011 7:45 a.m. 4cylndrfury SuperDork
spitfirebill wrote:
I can almost assure you the building is maintained by somebody. I've been in enough abandoned buildings to know they start leaking soon after abandonment.
this...
And someone is at least keeping them off the rims, if not maybe even starting them for a few mins every so often (lets hope). 30yr old rubber will be flat as a pre-op tranny if it doesnt get a bump every 6-8 months...
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Sept. 1, 2011 7:59 a.m. miatame HalfDork
Yeah it might be a closed dealership, but it is hardly abandoned. Left as-is may be more descriptive :)
That gives me an awesome idea. If I were rich I'd buy a dealership and just use it to keep my cars at.
If you had a big BMW collection what better way to showcase them than at an old BMW dealership? Very cool. I want that 635!
