What's this BMW E3 colour?

[Tharazero1]

Hi guys,

I've been looking around at some E3's and whilst looking i found this beautiful blue colour, but I'm struggling to pinpoint the colour of it. It looks like riviera but i'm not sure, and i've checked the colour codes and am still struggling.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Kind Regards

Alexander

Edited June 23, 2020 by Tharazero1

[uai]

My guess Mitternachtblau Metallic 040 - or ALPINA Blaumetallic

However there is a lot of variance in 040 depending on Color Make and sunlight.

Same Car different light Mitternachtblau
 

Edited June 23, 2020 by uai

[Tharazero1]

thanks uai, 

i did some further research and also got nachtblau as a possible colour.

Thanks for your help

Edited June 23, 2020 by Tharazero1

[Conserv]

Alexander,

 

By 2020, when 99% of BMW’s metallic-paint cars — from the 1970’s — have been re-painted due to the systematic failure of the factory metallic paints, it is difficult to identify with certainty either (a.) an original period-correct BMW color, versus a later-era BMW color or a non-BMW color, or (b.) a modern formulation of a period-correct BMW color, which can vary considerably from the original color. Stated differently, the “color on an E3” is not necessarily an “E3 color”. This is in addition to the natural variations in a given color’s appearance, based on lighting and setting, as Uli mentioned and illustrated above.

 

Nachtblau metallic (paint code 040), at least in the first half of the 1970’s, was a coupe-only color (i.e., E9) — the only coupe-only color! I’ve heard anecdotal stories, none documented by an Archives report that I’ve seen thus far, suggesting Nachtblau occasionally appeared by special order on other-than-coupes. And I’d guess that may have happened, at least a few times.

 

The coupe in your second photo certainly appears to be Nachtblau metallic, and, being a coupe, it was very possibly the car’s original color. The bodywork on the Alpina E3 — notice the very wavy reflections on the car’s right body panels, below the beltline — suggests a less-than-stellar repair and repaint. If that’s how they left the panels looking before a repaint, who knows what color they may have been shooting?

 

Nachtblau metallic is a gorgeous color. If you’re changing the color of your E3 — and I am no advocate of color changes, in general — you could do far worse! ?

Below, color concordance pages from a few BMW paint and upholstery brochures: January 1972, September 1973, and February 1974.

 

Regards,

 

Steve

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 23, 2020 by Conserv

[Henning]

13 hours ago, Tharazero1 said:

It looks like riviera

 

And now keep on telling me riviera doesn't chameleonate.

 

h

 

[jgerock]

What about Atlantik?

[Conserv]

5 minutes ago, jgerock said:

What about Atlantik?

It’s definitely a possibility! Or even Arktisblau metallic...

 

Best regards,

 

Steve

 

Edited June 23, 2020 by Conserv

[02Les]

The way the sunlight hits the hood nose/fender edge, it's metallic. That narrows the field. Probably Nachtblau.

[JsnPpp]

More details on that specific car? Badged Alpina?

 

Nice color too, but I'm partial to metallic blues..

 

Jason

[Tharazero1]

48 minutes ago, JsnPpp said:

More details on that specific car? Badged Alpina?

That's the only photo I have. I've tried to look for more and haven't found any. The photo itself was only posted on wikipedia commons and not any carpage so that doesn't help either

[HBChris]

It looks like Nachtblau to me as well as it is a metallic.  Atlantik and Riviera, which is much lighter, are not metallics.