Enthusiasts Blogging Our Favorite Classifieds
After failing to sell at auction for the estimated $600,000 – $800,000 projection, the AHG Studie modified M1 is back and now on eBay. Bidding as of writing is sitting around $300,000 – a steal for even a poor condition M1 these days. While it’s not likely to remain there or meet reserve, it will be interesting to see where the pricing ends up!
As with E30s, E36s, Volkswagen GTis and Jettas and Audi A4s, there seem to be a tremendous amount of modified 2002s. A popular tuning platform, they take many different forms in their personalization – not all of them good. Indeed, some of the modded 2002s that pop up for sale really leave me scratching my head as to the intentions of the owner. But when you see one that got it right, they always make me smile. Some of those “right” cars are period-look Alpina or Schnitzer cars, some are more subtle – just low, clean and with a nice set of Hella or Marchal fogs and some BBS Mahles. Then there are the updated cars, such as this more wildly Zender flared example. To me it looks pretty slick!
I still remember when my father purchased his first German car. It was a 1982 BMW 633CSi in metallic grey with tan leather and a 5-speed manual, with the original BBS Mahle wheels. It was otherworldly to me; long, lean and low compared to the Toyotas I was used to being carried around in, the BMW had a feel of quality that the other cars I had been in couldn’t match. It snarled with a wonderfully raspy exhaust note and I felt invincible inside. The 633 was also the first car I displayed at a show myself; in that case, I proudly spent hours cleaning it and getting it ready for the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix in 1993. At that point, the 6 was still a pretty new car – but even then, it was rare to see 6 series and since then it’s even more rare to find them. The best of the bunch are arguably the ones that came after my father’s car was made and got the post 1983 E28 chassis updates. Although considered the lesser model due to the lower displacement motor, in fact the 633CSi was only 1 horsepower short of the 3.4 that made its way into the 635CSi replacement for the United States in 1985. Today, there are three lower mile examples of these clean coupes up for sale – which would you choose?
The stunning 1974 Fjord Blue 2002 Touring, reportedly built for a BMW executive with some rare options like the unique sliding roof, has reappeared on eBay. The reserve is on and the auction has garnered no bids at a $25,000 opening price. While that’s pretty steep for a 2002, this is certainly one of the most special models that is out there. What do you think it’s worth?
I posted a couple of Laguna Seca Blue E46 M3s yesterday that looked like they were owned and modded by a couple of similarly-minded fanboys. Today, we’ll shift gears and look at one of the most tastefully and maturely modified E46s out there (chrome exhaust surround notwithstanding). Carter featured this car for Tuner Tuesday earlier in the month and it’s received the full Dinan treatment, earning enough points via supercharger, exhaust, suspension, and more to get the official Dinan badge. The badges sit on a custom and beautiful red paint job, with CSL nods in the wheels and trunk spoiler. It has only covered 40k miles in its 10 years and was honored with the cover of BMWCCA’s “Roundel” magazine a couple years back. The seller says its “generally considered to be one of finest E46 M3 in the country,” and it’s hard to argue against that.
-NR