Bring a Trailer Auctions, E30 edition

[MR E30 325is]

The rule of thumb when I started out with E30s (05-06) was that you were going to spend $15k regardless- whether that was the purchase price or what you had to spend to get it to be a nice car.

Definitely.

[reelizmpro]

^^He's talking about M3's though.

[MR E30 325is]

^^He's talking about M3's though.

Ah, of course.

[jpod999]

Ahh my bad, sorry for the confusion. Post edited for clarity.

[2mAn]

Another 318is went up today

http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1991-bmw-318is-13/

[djjerme]

Another 318is went up today

http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1991-bmw-318is-13/

Ugh, seriously.. They are just coming out of the woodwork now. BAT is just farking clickbaiting any more. That Carlsson Merc is the perfect example - seller no shows, but BAT doesn't do sh*t.

Sorry, just a little salty because we submitted a car, and they rejected it for stupid reason, but what ever.

[Zeemz]

Sorry, just a little salty because we submitted a car, and they rejected it for stupid reason, but what ever.

What did you submit and why did they rejected it?

[MR E30 325is]

What did you submit and why did they rejected it?

Also interested.

[djjerme]

Oh it was just that 4 door Bronzit we had for sale. It was clean as sh*t and had full history, rust free, just done everything top to bottom service, timing belt..etc. We had the reserve set reasonably, but they just gave some B.S. blanket response:

"We do not feel that your 1990 BMW 325i is a good fit for our site and audience at this time. We are very selective, and the most common reasons cars are not accepted to BaT Auctions are the following:

-Unreasonable reserve expectations
-Common models with many similar cars available (this one is utter BS..)
-Many same or similar models recently accepted (Again, utter BS as the recent flood of 318is..)

We appreciate...."

So basically, they didn't want it because it was Bronzit. Oh well, their loss, bunch of F*cktards. Car is off to Florida now with the new owner...

I have other channels to sell cars, figured I'd give them a chance, but it proved they are just more concerned with inflating bubble prices. Look at how many of the E34's didn't hit reserve. And that Merc will never hit reserve because they are trying to advertise it as something it's not..

sorry for the rant, they ran out of coffee in the office today.

[Poorhouse]

You're reading to much into a form letter.

Maybe it was the color, or the number of doors, or maybe they had a bunch of other E30s already lined up.

Lots of people think BAT is either creating a bubble or a bubble in itself.

The opposite is true. They push for really low reserves in most cases. They want a high percentage of sales.
That results in some very good deals on occasion.

Also note they typically list cars are in above average condition. That results in above average sale preices.

I had a conversation last week with the seller of the 8k mile '80 Rabbit. He was pissed that BAT insisted on a low reserve, and that is what the car sold for. No one forced him to list the car there, but he still walks away mad at BAT.

In the end it's just another website to sell a car. If you don't like their rates or how they do business there are many other options.

[djjerme]

Also note they typically list cars are in above average condition.

I'm going to call bullsh*t on that statement.

The whole name of the site is Bring A Trailer - implying that these could be anything from projects (or rusty Porsche on Plywood wheels) to running and driving.

How is this special:

http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1983-bmw-320i-3/

And what about this rusty gem:

http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1976-bmw-2002-27/

...and how many of recent auctions are RNM. It may have been just a form letter, but it seemed like a blow off to me.

#bronzitCarsMatter.

Either way, like you said, there are plenty of other venues to sell in, and I have a few dealer friends who've had plenty of success in those ways. I guess we had just been hoping for a better experience with BAT for a first time out..

[jpod999]

That Carlsson Merc is the perfect example - seller no shows, but BAT doesn't do sh*t.

I don't follow BAT that closely...what's the story?

[djjerme]

I don't follow BAT that closely...what's the story?

http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1986-mercedes-benz-190e-2-3-16-10/

You have to suffer through the 100+ comments, but basically, car is being advertised as something it's not. Maybe a tribute or something, but it's not a clone of the Carlsson Racecars. It's been picked apart pretty thoroughly and the seller didn't reply or offer any kind of feedback during most of the run. Judging from what it's been offered for at other Auctions, it's going to be a RNM.


I did just notice he finally replied late last night.

[Poorhouse]

I'm going to call bullsh*t on that statement.

The whole name of the site is Bring A Trailer - implying that these could be anything from projects (or rusty Porsche on Plywood wheels) to running and driving.

How is this special:

http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1983-bmw-320i-3/

And what about this rusty gem:

http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1976-bmw-2002-27/

...and how many of recent auctions are RNM. It may have been just a form letter, but it seemed like a blow off to me.

#bronzitCarsMatter.

Either way, like you said, there are plenty of other venues to sell in, and I have a few dealer friends who've had plenty of success in those ways. I guess we had just been hoping for a better experience with BAT for a first time out..

They did start that way. Seems like they have drifted to above average cars with some projects thrown in.

Their sold average is still quite high.

Regardless, it is what it is. I'm still a BAT fan. It certainly isn't perfect. I think they are experiencing some serious growing pains that result in the treatment you received.

[mr2peak]

Ugh, seriously.. They are just coming out of the woodwork now.

Yeah, because they made 40,000k 318is cars. Tons of them out there.

Did you know BMW only made ~4,000 318 convertibles?