It took this long to find and determine this was Elvis' car, because no one was sure of the chassis number
The BMW 507 is one of the rarest models the company has ever made – just 252 units were made in total.
It wasn’t until American journalist Jackie Jouret of Bimmer Magazine uncovered evidence that Elvis had bought the car raced in hillclimbs in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, a white BMW 507 with chassis number 70079.
As it happens, Elvis had loved his 507 so much he had it shipped back to the USA upon completion of his military service – although he quickly found it unsuitable for American roads and sold it.
It ended up in a car collection, and that person sold it to BMW on the condition that they restore it perfectly and retain the Hans Stuck heritage as well as the Elvis legacy.
When made, the car went straight from the factory to the Frankfurt auto show, but not to BMW’s show stand. Instead, it remained outside the hall, demonstrating the 507’s performance. It continued in that role once the show was over, driven by Hans Stuck, and by journalists for reviews. Stuck also raced it in a few hillclimbs winning the GT class at Rossfeld, at Schauinsland, and at Ollon-Villars in 1958.
After its time as a factory demonstrator/race car it was delivered to Autohaus Wirth in Frankfurt. Eight days later, Elvis Presley took it for a test drive, which proved satisfactory enough that the car became his before the end of 1958.
http://silodrome.com/elvis-long-lost-bmw-507/
https://www.bimmer-mag.com/issues/141/articles/a-comeback-worthy-of-the-king#.V-BIIfkrKM9
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