Richard Anzelone, of Scituate, below right with his Bichon Frise named Willow. Above, his Fjord Blue 1972 BMW 3.0 CS

The Providence Journal / Steve Szydlowski

SCITUATE-- Richard Anzelone spent two years looking for a classic car he could call his own and had just about given up when he stumbled on his 1972 BMW 3.0 CS.

“What the heck is this?’ he remembered asking himself after casually following up on an ad in The Providence Journal during his lunch break.

He said he could not believe his luck. The car, which was priced at $10,000, had some oxidization on the roof but almost no rust, an original interior in great condition and only 70,000 miles on the clock.

He called a friend. “He said, ‘Feel over here, look over there — no rust? If you don’t buy it, I will.’ ”

So he did; that was six years ago and he has never looked back — except to marvel at his good fortune

Anzelone, 57, had retired from a family restaurant in Smithfield after 32 years. He had started his Bravo Painting and Wallpapering business and his three children were finding their way in the world.

“I used to drag race a 1969 Dodge Coronet Super Bee,” he said, referring to the late 1960s and early ’70s before he met his wife, Joanna. “And then you fall in love, get married, have kids and the car’s gotta go,” he said.

Now he wanted to reel back the years a little and get a car that would be something special.

“I didn’t want a cookie-cutter car, I wanted something different,” he said. “What the hell — that’s what you work all your life for.”

He said he spent two years looking at cars, but most of them were “junkers.”

“I’d tell my wife, ‘Let’s take a Sunday drive, there’s another car I want to look at,’ ” he said, adding that he did not know what he wanted. “MGs, Triumphs, 6-series BMWs.”

He said it was frustrating because so many of the cars were rusted out with engines in bad shape. “Then you’d open the interior and, oh my God, it was a mess.”

“The paper said they were in mint condition and I’d ask, ‘Is this the car in the paper?’ ” he said.

Then he found his two-door 1972 BMW CS 3.0 coupe and bought it on the spot.

BMW introduced the 6 Series of six-cylinder sedans and coupes in 1968 to compete with Mercedes-Benz’s luxury models. They are the forerunners of BMW’s current 7 Series and new 6 Series.

The CS coupes were based on the 6-Series sedans and the 3.0 was introduced in 1971. Variations included the CSi with electronic fuel injection and the CSL, a lightweight racing version that won the European Touring Car Championships six times in the 1970s. The 6 Series was discontinued in 1977.

“I got lucky, I really did,” Anzelone said, adding that if he had delayed his decision to buy he would probably have lost it. “In the auto business, you’ve got to be ready to deal. If you’re a tire kicker, it’s not going to happen. What’s that expression, ‘If you snooze, you lose.’?”

He said he spent two months wet sanding the top and then having it repainted BMW’s Fjord Blue, or Light Blue Metallic. Below the molding, the paintwork is original even to the point of revealing very faint striations which he attributed to a former owner putting the car through an old-fashioned car wash with revolving bristles.

Now he only washes it by hand with towel wipes. “My wife says, ‘I can’t believe it! You back it out (of the garage), you clean it and you drive it back in again.’

“I say, ‘That’s right!’ ” he said, grinning. “I want it to last and last and last.”

Anzelone said he drives the car about 1,500 miles a year and only in the summer — “It’s never seen a bit of rain or snow or dirt, of course” — for pleasure drives. He also shows it occasionally with its top award being a 1st place in the Vintage Car Class at the 2005 Concours d’Elegance at the Larz Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline, Mass.

The interior is all original, with seats of saddle-colored perforated pigskin. He said he did add a radio, but made sure he got an original Blaupunkt with only one speaker.

The car, which is an automatic, already had factory air and power windows. And the trunk opens to reveal leather lining in an “elephant skin” design and a tool caddy that folds down from the lid with original BMW tools.

Anzelone said he also tinkered with the engine, fixing the fuel pump and the heater. “I enjoy projects,” he said. However, he said he always made sure to remain true to the car’s original design and condition.

“Any one can Mickey Mouse a car,” he said, referring to restorers who go over the top and start replacing various components with modern counterparts.

The one addition he made for cosmetic reasons was to add a spoiler to the front that was not part of the original car. “It gives it a real unique look,” he said, adding that he did not have a front license plate until “the Smithfield police pulled me over and reminded me that it was a $50 fine.” Now he carries a plate, but takes it off when he is parked at a show.

He said the old carburetors need nursing. “It has its moments, but why change it?,” he said. “It’s an old carb system and the new fuel of today doesn’t through (as well). It needs to warm up. You can’t rush this car.”

But, once running, the 3.0 CS is considered one of the finest cars to drive. “That’s the story, boys!” he said to a visiting reporter and photographer. “I was just blessed.”

He said he has been offered double the money he paid for the car, but “it’s not for sale.” Looking out, he said he is always scanning the advertisements and might be interested in another classic.

“But I’d have to kick my wife’s car out of the garage and I don’t know how that would sit,” he said. “But then I’m always in and out of trouble anyway!”

Auto Biography is a feature that tells an interesting story about a car and its driver. If you think you have a newsworthy story to tell about your car, write to Auto Biography, Features Department, The Providence Journal, 75 Fountain St. Providence RI 02902 or e-mail projocars@projo.com. Be sure to put “Auto Biography” in the subject field.

The car doesn’t have to be a classic or expensive, but it should be somehow unique. The driver must be willing to be interviewed by a reporter about what makes this car special and to be photographed with the car.