So long e30 M3s...

[eur04lif3]

They were race cars 20 years ago. They were purpose built with fresh shells for a professional career on racetracks; they had their time of dominance, and now those days are long gone. The legacy of those days are the beautiful homologations that graced the showroom floors. Ignoring what it took to make these cars what they were and throwing away such craftsmanship for the sake of returning it to its "roots" kind of vitiates what these cars represent to BMW enthusiasts in general, especially with a chevy pushrod under the hood.

5 to 8 years ago, decent ones were going for at least $10k, closer to $15k, but everytime a roll cage is welded in one, that's basically another one to scratch off.

I agree with your statement. I think the true way to enjoy these cars is in the way they were sold to the public.
Putting cages in, and swapping v8 motors should be done to the non-M cars. By that point your so highly modified, that all you have is a non-M car with wider flares..etc.

[E30 Wagen]

Um.. They are race cars. That's kind of the point. Someone who "guts and hacks" a m3 to track it is using the vehicle for the purpose it was created. It was not created to drive around to car shows and be pampered.

They were race cars 20 years ago, purpose built with fresh shells for a professional career on racetracks; they had their time of dominance, and now those days are long gone. The legacy of those days are the beautiful homologations that graced the showroom floors. Ignoring what it took to make these cars what they were and throwing away such craftsmanship for the sake of returning it to its "roots" kind of vitiates what these cars represent to BMW enthusiasts in general, especially with a chevy pushrod under the hood.

5 to 8 years ago, decent ones were going for at least $10k, closer to $15k, but everytime a roll cage is welded in one, that's basically another one to scratch off.

[cwatt]

Don't forget that up until the last five to eight years you could buy a decent one for around 7k... racers were the only ones buying them!

7k? Ugh. I wish I were around before this big inflation. I suppose I'm a bit of a cleché. Ah well...

[kingston]

Fewer and fewer of these will be getting gutted anymore, with the prices climbing the way they are.

Personally I'd LOVE to own a track-prepped E30 M3. I wouldn't be able to bring myself to gut one that was in good shape, but I found one that was ALREADY gutted? That'd be perfect!

[swingard]

Don't forget that up until the last five to eight years you could buy a decent one for around 7k... racers were the only ones buying them!

[LSM3]

Um.. They are race cars. That's kind of the point. Someone who "guts and hacks" a m3 to track it is using the vehicle for the purpose it was created. It was not created to drive around to car shows and be pampered.

[cwatt]

Has anyone else noticed how many e30 M3s there are that have been gutted and hacked into track cars? I know there are some haters out there on the rising prices of e30 M3s, but it seems to be with good reason. I don't know production numbers, but I can't help but wonder...


thoughts?


side bar - I've seen an M3 lately (in my area) being winter driven. Such a shame.