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1988 BMW M3

The legendary E30 M3 is becoming one of the most collectable German cars of recent years and the market reflects that. With asking prices reaching up in to the mid $30K range for clean examples and upwards of $15K for total basket cases, finding a well priced, and clean car is no east feat.

As the car that made M a household name, the E30 M3 is really what put BMWs M division on the map. In just a few years, the E30 M3 scored thousands of motorsport victories making it one of the most successful touring cars ever. Powering the M3 is a twin-cam, 16v 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine with Bosch fuel-injection making 192 bhp.  With a lightweight chassis (only 2850 lbs) and the 5-speed manual transmission, trhe M3 could do 0-60 in less than seven seconds, and a top speed was 140 miles-per-hour. Not bad for a little 4-banger.

This well kept 1988 M3 for sale in New York is a great piece of BMW M history.

1988 BMW M3 on bmwcca.org

Previous owner replaced oil-pan gasket, water pump, hoses, radiator, belts, power-steering hoses + reservoir, transmission mounts, upgraded rear shock mounts, fuel pump, fuel injectors, cap, rotor, plugs, EVO III wires & R134A retrofit, professionally-refinished wheels with new Toyo T1R tires, professionally repainted, mechanically stock except for TMS chip & upgraded timing-chain tensioner, purchased 3/09 at 89,532 miles, garaged & covered, driven regularly, clean history, no accidents, snow, salt or rain.

This is a clean example of probably the most desirable BMW (for enthusiasts anyway) in arguably the most desirable color combination. I’m not a fan of red, I like my M3s in Alpine White, but as the saying goes, beggars can’t be choosers. When the opportunity to own a clean low mileage example presents itself; you pounce. With a recent respray, and a ton of maintenance work done, this is a solid driver, not just a pretty face to be put on a shelf and looked at. 

Considering how these cars are appreciating in value and whet people are asking for them, the asking price of $25,500 is pretty reasonable. A little haggling would need to be done to get it where I’d want it, which is about $22-23K.

-Brian