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I’ll get this out of the way right off the bat, this car has a salvage title. I’ll get this out of the way as well, I don’t care. For what the seller wants for the car, and what you could likely get him to come down to, you’d be getting enough car for the money that a salvage title shouldn’t matter. The way I see it this is a car you buy and drive into the ground. It is not an investment, it is not a collectors item, it’s a W202 Mercedes that happens to be an AMG car. Even if you paid what the seller is asking I think you’d be getting a fair deal. The car appears to be in great condition now and depending on what earned it a salvage title, this could be a real steal, especially with a little big of negotiating. Salvage title cars are really hard to sell these days, given that everyone has access to the internet, and has seen those commercials with the smug Fox. I agree that 9/10 it is a bad idea to buy a salvage title vehicle, but there are exceptions, and this might just be one of those.
In the last few weeks I’ve done a series of posts covering some well priced, good condition E36 M3s. The genesis of those posts came from a low mileage, slightly modified Dakar Yellow M3 which apparently really raised my ire. As with any car, there are opportunity costs for buying an example which is lower miles and near pristine condition; you’re paying not only for the exclusivity of having had someone store and not heavily use the model you’re clearly seeking, but then often you’re also paying extra for what they think it’s worth. In some cases – classic Ferraris, for argument’s sake – that won’t matter to the prospective buyers, whose bank accounts often align with small African nations. In others, the opportunity cost for getting into a low mile older car is that you could have a much newer car, with better features, performance and perhaps reliability. As such, today I’m looking at two very similarly priced M3s; the last of the run E36 versus the first of the run E92. 9 years, 45,000 miles, 2 cylinders and some 174 horsepower separate these black beauties – which is the one you’d choose?
In my recent “Gimmie Five” 10K Friday, I charted some of the developments of the venerable Audi powerplant. Though the Eurovan would continue using I-5s in some applications, ostensibly 1997 would see the end of the line for the original configuration with the discontinuation of the S6 even if it’s returned in spirit in the new 07k turbocharged 5 seen in the TTRS and RS3. Those cars are the successors of the original small turbocharged Audis; the Quattro and the S2 coupe and Avant, and while we briefly got the 10V Quattro, none of the later small turbocharged variants came to the U.S.. For enthusiasts that were unwilling to wait for either the new models to launch or the European models to become legally eligible for importation, a popular pursuit has been to recreate the turbocharged package in the small chassis. Adding the turbocharged motor in 20V form instantly transformed the B3 and B4 into performance machines, and with plenty of tunability in the package it was possible to create a really serious package. That tuning has been taken to another level by an entire generation of new electronic fuel injection management which exploits the longevity and stout construction of the inline-5 and makes absolute monsters. Sure, it was impressive that Audi produced versions that managed the best part of 1,000 horsepower in certain tune in the 1980s – but that, of course, was a major manufacturer with near unlimited budget. What’s more impressive is that small tuning firms subsequently have been able not only to match but to exceed those power levels, with companies like 034 Motorsport and Dahlback Racing making 1,100 – 1,200 plus horsepower variants on their own. Even though the B3 chassis is fairly heavy, if you can turn up that boost to high levels you’ve got yourself a rocketship – and this S2 replica certainly has the right ingredients for that recipe:
Pretty though it may be, it was not the appearance of this Ming Blue Metallic Audi C5 S6 Avant that won me over. I think pretty much all C5s look good, Avant or Sedan, 2.7T or RS6, they’re all visually pleasing in my book. No, the reason I’m writing this car up is because the seller has equipped the car with a 6spd manual transmission. The automatic Audi stuck us with here in the United States probably didn’t seem so bad when it debuted, but in 2015, the 5 speed ZF 5HP24A can go suck an egg. These enthusaist focused machines deserve 3 pedals, shame Audi didn’t feel that Americans did when they sold it new. On the upside, it seems more and more folks out there are stepping up and plunking down the money to make the change to a manual. While it’s not the most expensive procedure in the world, it’s by no means cheap, especially if you do it the right way. It seems this is one of those jobs where no expense was spared, as the parts list below reads like an Audiphile’s Christmas list.
Time for another Wednesday Wheels Roundup, and I have a few neat sets of wheels I stumbled across. First is the super rare and super awesome (but also super priced) Speedline 3-piece wheels for Porsche Turbos. Though they’re listed as 930 wheels, I more often associate them with the 993 Turbo model. They’re not exactly like the Supercup wheels, but they’re not far off. Next is a non-German set of wheels, but a pretty spectacular one – the Clio Williams is one of my favorite hot-hatches, and these would really suit a BMW or Volkswagen 4-lug well, in my opinion. How about the 7 1/4″ width? Next are some rare Carlsson and Abt wheels that need some work but are both hard to find, and we round out the review with some show-ready Style 29 BBS BMW wheels. What are your favorites and why?
