Bring a Trailer Auctions, E30 edition

[djjerme]

Curious if the bloke who bid 6k is having second thoughts..

[2mAn]

The real question is, is the reserve already met at this price, because it might not

[djjerme]

What gets me, is the excuse that they went to regular E30 front glass for cost saving..

The only classes that require glass in the front, would require the S14 drivetrain (Improved Touring..etc.) So, then you do a swap to something else, you are in SP or German Touring and then you can use Lexan.

I think they just couldn't find a replacement front window frame.

[reelizmpro]

Bonded windshields used to be a big deal but now it's very common. You can have any windshield glass shop come and do it. Certainly worth it on an M3 since they came that way. I think they got the roof and glass from a 318/325 (slicktop + non vented glass...maybe a 91 318?) and welded it on as a cheap fix. You can see the A pillar is silver in one of the pictures although the car is DS. Same color as the hood I might add. They do it to save a buck but it will end up costing them in the long run.

[E30 Wagen]

It's a shame that lachs M3 was clearly in a front and rear end collision

[2mAn]

It's a shame that lachs M3 was clearly in a front and rear end collision

Are you talking about the "M3" on eBay or the low mileage one on BaT?

[Javier h]

Yeah, even Francisco Montoya wouldn't touch it!

Man, does that story date me or what?

[Stanley Rockafella]

Yeah, even Francisco Montoya wouldn't touch it!

Man, do that story date me or what?

oh shit, even I remember that story

[reelizmpro]

The stolen M3 titled as a 318?

[E30 Wagen]

Are you talking about the "M3" on eBay or the low mileage one on BaT?

The low mileage BaT one. It's obvious it was hit.

[reelizmpro]

The low mileage BaT one. It's obvious it was hit.

What makes you say that?

Seems a lot of E30's and I'm sure other cars on BAT are sketchy. I noticed they painted a bunch of things black under the car but that could just be rust proofing. Also the valve cover shouldn't look like that after only 50k miles. I'm at 150k miles and my VC still looks factory fresh. The plug wires don't look like they are designed for the S14 either. The body seams in the rear look distorted. I didn't notice anything obvious in the front though.

[E30 Wagen]

What makes you say that?

Seems a lot of E30's and I'm sure other cars on BAT are sketchy. I noticed they painted a bunch of things black under the car but that could just be rust proofing. Also the valve cover shouldn't look like that after only 50k miles. I'm at 150k miles and my VC still looks factory fresh. The plug wires don't look like they are designed for the S14 either. The body seams in the rear look distorted. I didn't notice anything obvious in the front though.

The joint between the fenders and valence panel under the headlights is messed up. It looks like a new tail panel was welded in but that doesn't line up perfectly either. If this was truly an all original car then everything should be perfect, no reason the front bumper or side skirts should have been repainted or even the seat reupholstered... I'm guessing it got sandwiched in a low speed accident that took out the front bumper and valence and the rear panel. On unusually low mileage cars like this I always suspect it was in an accident at some early point in it's life or had careless owners. If I was in the market for a M3 I'd rather find that rolling shell project for a rotisserie restoration to guarantee everything is perfect. If the whole rebuild process is well documented and the car remains mostly original, then its value ought to be higher than this one in my opinion.

[reelizmpro]

I hear you. A 50k mile car should be nearly perfect if they were taken care of but they often are not. Maybe someone should ask if the odometer stopped working? lol. That's what's so deceiving about low mile cars. A lot of these cars have simply been neglected. It will still bring good money just for the mileage alone and those guys won't flinch at the details mentioned above. The reupholstered seat is certainly a red flag. The rear seat seams are split on top which is common on sun exposed cars. Being a Japanese car, there's no history of it here in the US which is risky since I know we have shipped out many junk title M3's to other countries.

I went to a meet at a local dealership and met a guy who had a white M3 that was really clean inside but looked pretty rough outside. It was an original survivor but it was aged. I assumed it had 100K or more miles on it. To my amazement it had only 7K miles on the odometer. Looks like it had been sitting outside somewhere exposed to the elements all these years.

[vitiokas95]

Nice black 325is was listed today on BAT. I will be listing mine soon so will be watching it to determine my reserve price.

[jpod999]

Damn, Alpina car went for $63k.