My Favorite Ride: Here's who won the auction of Tom Bertuccio's 1969 BMW 2002
It was afternoon on Tuesday, Oct. 3, and Kurt Meier knew time was running out. He had seen, in the Spencer Evening World newspaper, the My Favorite Ride column I wrote last month previewing the online auction of a vintage 1969 BMW 2002.
The car Tom Bertuccio had bought new in California more than half a century ago was in rough shape, but the engine would start up. Meier wanted to buy it, but didn't possess the computer savvy to figure out how to register and submit a bid.
He called me for guidance. Five times, maybe six. I had escaped for a vacation and shut off my work cellphone. That Tuesday Meier sent me an email:
"Hi Laura, I've tried to call you several times via telephone number regarding the BMW for sale through an estate. I'm very interested in purchasing the antique and adding it to my collection of other classics. Please help me and advise me the necessary steps to bid on the vehicle. I hope its not too late. Please call me preferably promptly to discuss. I would like to see the car but not absolutely necessary given the time constraints. Thanks in advance for getting back to me."
Last week's My Favorite Ride: That was Tom Bertuccio's beloved 1969 BMW 2020 on the auction block
I never got back to him.
Nine days later, on Oct. 12, he sent another message via email.
"Hello Laura. My name is Kurt Meier, live in Owen County and purchased the 1969 BMW thru the recent estate auction held on Oct. 4. You may call me if you wish and we can talk about my plans for the car.
"I regularly read your 'My Favorite Ride' column and usually enjoy the topic and your style. You once wrote about my 1972 Olds Cutlass Supreme. Look forward to hearing from you. Best regards, Kurt"
Kurt Meier's Cutlass: ’72 Cutlass’ zip has been zapped
I sent a response, and we talked the next day.
"I struggled to figure out how to place a bid, and then I left you so many messages asking you to call me back and then finally by the end of the week I got wind you were on vacation," he said.
"When I found that out, I stopped calling you names. When it's time to take a vacation, you don't need to be bothered."
With no help from me but assistance from staff at the Monroe County Public Library, Meier found his way to the auction site about 3 p.m. on Oct. 4, just hours before the close of bids.
A total of 102 offers were made in all. When Meier stepped in the final day, the high bid was $5,800. He offered $6,000, and learned later that night he owned the old BMW for a total cost of $6,100.
"I was on Cloud 9, because I had worked so hard to try and bid on the car," he said.
He took a cashier's check to the auction house the next day and arranged for Rick's Towing to haul the car to his house in Owen County, where it's parked inside a climate-controlled garage.
He's talking with people like his friend Larry Laczkowski from Gosport Auto Supply — yep, I've written about him and his eclectic small-town auto parts inventory — to figure out the process for getting the old Beamer back on the road.
More My Favorite Ride: Step back in time, and into the back room, at Gosport Auto Supply
Laczkowski is a detective when it comes to finding parts for old cars. His inventory spans decades.
"I will formulate a plan by contacting various friends I have who are in the know about restoration and mechanical things," Meier said, "which I am not."
Next week: What happened to Kurt Meier's 1972 Oldsmobile convertible I wrote about 11 years ago?
Have a story to tell about a car or truck? Contact My Favorite Ride reporter Laura Lane at llane@heraldt.com or 812-318-5967.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Monroe County Public Library helps man win auction of 1969 BMW 2002
