Warning!
We have 15 years of archives. Links older than a year may have been updated to point to similar cars available to bid on eBay.
This site contains Ebay partner affiliate links, which may earn us a commission at no additional cost to you.
Of all the cars to spend the extra money on for a BMW Individual color, this was not one I would have guessed. This is a 1999 BMW 316i, better know as the ti to us Americans. It was the compact hatchback body of the E36 and generally known as the “cheap” version. For the rest of the world, not so much, as little hatchback versions of luxury brands are the norm and not looked down on in any way. They just exist. That probably explains how this car ended up finished in the very cool Fiji Green and how it seems so inexpensive today. Too bad this one needs another two years before it is welcomed to the US because it has some great equipment on it.
I wonder where the E9x series cars will trend over the short-term future. If you look at the E46 as the rough equivalent of the Porsche 993 – last of the “classic” formula – then where does that leave the E9x? Perhaps it’s more like the 997; modern, but not too modern. Fast, but not too fast. Good to look at, but also not so shouty that you stand out in the crowd.
Well, at least most of the time that’s the case – but not with today’s car. This is actually the second time I’ve looked at one of the rare E92 coupes painted by BMW Individual in Java Green:
Green with Envy: 2013 BMW M3 Individual Java Green
Though it looks the same, today’s car is one of the other claimed 11 made for North America. What will it cost you today?
Back in August 2020, I took a look at one of the more odd celebrations of BMW history – the BMW M3 30 Jahre Edition:
2017 BMW M3 30 Jahre Edition
Why was it odd? Well, first off they chose to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the M3 with a car that shared almost nothing outside of the Roundels, the color – Macao Blue – and the M3 nameplate. That meant it was a sedan instead of the 2-door coupe, turbocharged instead of naturally aspirated, and full of gadgets that couldn’t even be considered when the original first arrived. Still, they’re neat and potent cars, with the S55 banging out 444 horsepower in Competition Package trim. At the time, I said the one to get was one of the rare manuals. Would you know what I’ve come across today?
Developed by BMW Individual, the ZHP Performance Package added $3,900 to the price of your 330i model. That sounds like a lot, but you got some meaningful upgrades. M-Tech body pieces adorned the car front, sides and rear and blacked out trim replaced the chrome. So too were M-branded special Style 135 18″ wheels, with tires to match the width of bigger brother M3. Lower and stiffer suspension was met with more negative camber, special reinforcement, and revised control arms. The engine was upgraded too, with unique cams and a revised engine map resulting in 10 more horsepower, but the ZHP was more than 10 hp quicker off the line thanks to a shorter final drive and a 6-speed manual borrowed from M.
These are fan favorites, and can draw really big bids – indeed, some sell for more than M3s. Let’s take a look at this Imola Red example and see where it falls:
BMW’s Individual department really hit its stride in the F8x series cars, with a tremendous amount of custom-painted M3s and M4s streaming into our country alone. A claimed 1,193 M3 sedans were specified through BMW Individual before making their way to the US; to give some perspective, that’s only slightly less than the entire North American E28 M5 run. 96 of the F80s run through Individual were finished in today’s shade of Ferrari Red, but this one also has a special surprise inside:
