Elvis Presley's Lost BMW 507: Found in a Pumpkin Shed After 46 Years

In December 1958, a 23-year-old soldier named Elvis Presley took delivery of a worn-out BMW factory race car in Frankfurt — a feather white 507 roadster that Hans Stuck had raced through the 1958 hillclimb season. Fans kept writing messages on it in lipstick, so he had it repainted red. Two years later it followed him home to America — and then it vanished. A disc jockey cut its chassis for a Chevy engine, it sat unsold in a dealership basement at $1,000, and it spent 46 years in a California pumpkin shed before a stamped chassis number and a 1958 insurance policy proved it was the King's car. This is the full story of chassis 70079: the race car, the repaint, the lost decades, and the two-year BMW restoration that brought it back. What is the best car ever found hiding in a barn, a shed or a warehouse? Tell me in the comments. CHAPTERS 00:00 The King's Lost BMW 00:41 A Factory Racer 01:29 Private Presley 02:25 The 507 03:09 The Fall 04:06 The Pumpkin Shed 05:16 Return to Sender 06:29 The Comeback SOURCES BMW Group Classic press releases, August 4 and August 16, 2016 (press.bmwgroup.com) — purchase and Germany delivery, the find, chassis 70079, Castor, the restoration and the Pebble Beach debut. Jackie Jouret's investigation for Bimmer magazine, "A Comeback Worthy of the King" — the paper hunt, the 2009 shed visit, the insurance-policy proof, the car's American years. Rob Margeit, drive.com.au, "Return to Sender: the remarkable story of Elvis Presley's lost BMW 507." Wikipedia, "BMW 507" — production, specifications and pricing background. PHOTO CREDITS (Wikimedia Commons) Photos of Elvis Presley's actual car, chassis 70079: "Elvis' BMW 507" — Steve Jurvetson, CC BY 2.0 (BMW Museum display) "1957 BMW 507" (two views, Goodwood Revival 2018) — David Merrett, CC BY 2.0 "BMW 507 d'Elvis Presley in the BMW-Museum" (three views, 2025) — Wikisympathisant, CC BY-SA 4.0 "Becker-Mexico-receiver of BMW 507 d'Elvis Presley" — Wikisympathisant, CC BY-SA 4.0 (the car's own radio, as found) Same model, other cars (not Elvis's car): "1957 BMW 507 Series I in Resale Red" — Mr.choppers, CC BY-SA 4.0 "507-Motorraum" (engine bay) — Wikisympathisant, CC BY-SA 4.0 "Engine of BMW 507 in BMW-Museum" — Jiri Sedlacek, CC BY-SA 4.0 "BMW 507 Armaturen" (dashboard) — Norbert Schnitzler, CC BY-SA 3.0 "BMW 507, Classic-Gala Schwetzingen 2022" — Alexander Migl, CC BY-SA 4.0 Narration is an AI-generated voice (disclosed per YouTube policy). Photos were edited for size and motion only.