Elvis Presley's 1957 BMW 507 Roadster Being Restored

BMW is taking the initiative to restore a classic formerly owned by Elvis Presley.

The German automaker will be restoring a classic 1957 BMW 507 roadster that was purchased by Elvis Presley while he served in the U.S. Army in Germany. Sporting chassis number 70079, the 507 roadster appears to be in rough shape, but has thankfully avoided rust thanks to being stored indoors for the last few decades.

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The story goes that Elvis Presley first saw the 507 in France in 1958 prior to leasing the car in Germany for $3,750. The actual vehicle was in BMW’s press fleet and featured a rebuilt 3.2-liter V8 engine with 150 hp, a new windshield and a new four-speed manual transmission. Rumor has it that Presley had the 507 roadster painted Porsche Red – it was originally white – because he was tired of women using lipstick to write their phone number and address on the body.

Presley didn’t take the vehicle back to the U.S. with him, but it is believed that the Army shipped the car to him. From there, the story remains a mystery until Tommy Charles purchased the vehicle in 1962 from a Chrysler dealership in New York. Charles then took the vehicle back to Alabama and outfitted it with a V8 engine and was used in local drag events. It then turned up for sale in 1968 in Arizona before California-based Jack Castor purchased it in order to restore it.

Earlier this month, Castor finally shipped the vehicle to BMW’s headquarters in Germany so that it can be fully restored by the German automaker itself. It will be displayed first as part of a special exhibit in the BMW museum called “Lost & Found” until August 10. The restoration is expected to take two years.