RE: M3 Newbie Q's and advice

["Mel Silva" <melsilva@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Mike,
	I agree with Dan on all of his points listed below.  I own a 97 M3/4dr with
a 5 speed.  This was a difficult combination to come by, as most 4 doors I
found were automatics.  My wife complained at first about me getting a
standard transmission, but after 10 months when I go out of town she insists
that I leave the M3 for her to drive.  People do change.  Because the 4 door
5 speed thing was getting difficult for me to find, I used an Auto Broker
www.autosolutionsusa.net (Their server was down when I checked or they have
gone out of business, don't know which) you can see my car at
http://www.amt.org/mel/Penny_BMW_M3.htm.  I paid 28.5, but the car only had
18K miles on the odometer.  I used Carfax (www.carfax.com) and my local BMW
dealer to check the car's history and condition.  The dealer also updated
any TSB and recall services while it was there for no charge.  (It is good
to pretend to know nothing about cars and that you are looking for a
reputable shop when getting the car checked out, the service managers at the
dealers I talked to responded well to that approach.

Good luck,
Mel

- -----Original Message-----
From: owner-bmw@domain.elided [mailto:owner-bmw@domain.elided]On Behalf Of Dan
Hermann
Sent: Monday, February 18, 2002 10:19 AM
To: bmw-digest@domain.elided
Cc: mike@domain.elided
Subject: RE: M3 Newbie Q's and advice


>>I'm looking into buying a m3.  I'd ideally want a Coupe with automatic.
Which years offer me this option?  I've only seen one so far, and it was a
1997.  How does the auto trans hold up on these cars?  How hard are these to
find?<<

i believe the M3 auto was only available as the following:

- - model year 95 coupes
- - model year 97/98 four-doors
- - convertibles (not sure what years they were made)

>>Personally, I wouldn't mind the 5 speed, but the girlfriend is worried the
5 speed won't shift smoothly, and will make her nauseous like my turbo
eclipse does.    Any comments here?<<

convince the girlfriend you can shift it smoothly.  it would be a shame to
allow some auto transmission brain to usurp a great portion of the pleasure
of driving such a well-engineered car.

>>My budget is less than 25K.  For those of you with the 4 door auto, how do
you like them?  Any regrets to purchasing the 4 door auto m3's?<<

it seems that reasonable M3 specimens are available these days for that
amount of money.  as for the 4-doors, the performance is the same as
2-doors.  some racers actually prefer 4-doors due to claims of increased
structural rigidity and aerodynamics.  note that i'm talking about 5-speed
4-doors, not automatics.

>>Also, what should I be looking out for specifically when looking at these
used cars?  What's usually the first to go in these vehicles? Common
problems, etc?<<

always have the car inspected by an experienced BMW technician.  water pumps
on 95 and early 96 models were prone to failure with potentially disastrous
results.  missed downshifts (from 5th to 2nd or 4th to 1st) are not
altogether uncommon which is why an experienced tech should examine the car
for that kind of problem.  tracked cars are likely to have more suspension
wear than non-tracked.  all in all, these are pretty solid cars with most
drivetrain components performing quite well over the long term if
well-maintained.

>>Also, I remember one of my friends in College used to have one of these
cars.  I believe he had a 96.  The seats were black leather, and had the m3
lines "///" embroidered in the seats.  Really cool.  W hich years offered
this as an option?  Is that part of a special package?  I haven't seen that
on any that I've looked at recently.<<

the motorsport stripes are present on the sport seats which are commonly
referred to as 'vader' seats due to their wraparound style and unique
headrest.  as far as i know, the sport seats came in all coupes that did not
have the luxury package (interior wood trim, power seats plus other odds and
ends).  i do not believe the 4-doors or convertibles had sport seats, but
don't quote me on that one.  i only researched hardtop coupes as that's what
i wanted.

>>And lastly, any recommendations on how/where to find these cars?  I'd like
to buy one at a dealer so I could get a warranty of some kind.  None of the
dealers near me (orange county) have any older than 98.  Where are the 97's
and 96's?  How important would it be to get a warranty on a 96 or 97 m3 with
~60K miles?<<

autotrader.com?  i don't like paying the premium included on a dealer-sold
car.  a well-maintained private party car with service records is the best
deal in my opinion.  a warranty is simply a gamble on whether the future
repair costs will exceed the cost of the warranty.  i gambled on a warranty
and won but my car was not quite as well-maintained and required more
repairs than it should have.

btw, the links ryan sent you are good sources of info.  i would also suggest
bmw-m.net and its associated mailing list specifically for the E36 M3.  lots
of very knowledgeable, capable, and helpful people there.

good luck,

dan
88 325is
96 M3




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