Enthusiasts Blogging Our Favorite Classifieds
The M Coupe has really emerged as the next great thing in the BMW world, with nearly every single for sale advertisement riddled with hyperbole about how they’re the next big thing and how incredibly rare each particular color combination is. The truth is that if you’re just trying to get on to the M Coupe train, you’re a bit late to the party – but that doesn’t mean it’s not worthwhile to check out a good looking one:
The conundrum of the Z3 is for me wrapped up in the model’s signature appearance in Goldeneye. There was lots of promotion for the new model; after all, the change from Bond’s signature Aston Martin must have been for a car worthy of such a distinction. Granted, Audi beat BMW to the punch when James sported twin Type 44s in The Living Daylights but the fanfare surrounding the leap to BMW was unprecedented. And, as it turned out, largely unwarranted. Despite the hefty amount of advertising and anticipation of the debut, the 1.9 liter light blue convertible barely appeared in the movie at all – in fact, only long enough for James to toss the keys to someone else. This seems to largely sum up how enthusiasts feel about the successor to the Z1; cute, but a little too soft and not very BMW. Of course, as the model progressed it became more in keeping with the brand – especially true of when outfit by the M division. The resulting M Roadster and especially Coupe versions of the Z3 have become hot commodities in the marketplace, but if you’re willing to forgo the Roadstars, quad exhaust and especially the “S†motors in the front, you can still get quite a bit of sport in the 3.0:
With all the hoopla surrounding the BMW M Coupe, it’s easy to forget about its sibling, the M Roadster. This wide-hipped roadster offers a lot of power in a very small package along with the ability to drop the top and listen to the noise of that straight six out the quad tailpipes. This Estoril Blue M Roadster is for sale from former GCFSB contributor Aaron Kraljev in Portland, Oregon. This M Roadster was his personal car and has been meticulously maintained. It also comes with a host of nice options and accessories, such as the hardtop, AC Schnitzer alloys and exhaust along with Dinan performance software. Looking to stand out a bit with your M Roadster? Read further…
A few weekends back I took a ride out into the hills of Connecticut to check out the inventory at Coventry Motorcar. It’s always worth the trip, because though on the grand scale they’re a small dealer they’ve always got some very interesting second-hand cars that you just don’t normally see gathered together at one spot anymore. Like a European-only car show, there were Porsches, BMWs, and of course Audis lining the lot. A cool Volvo C30 T5 stood out, along with a lineup of M3s as my search for a nice one continues. But the car that really grabbed my attention was a M Roadster. It wasn’t a case of the color being outstanding in this case; while some wild combinations were available on the M Roadster, Titanium Silver Metallic was the most popular option, and within that color the Black Nappa Leather was the most common interior. According to the M Roadster Buyer’s Guide, there were some 1,562 (15% of total production) ordered in Titanium, with the majority of those at 1,134 having the black interior. In fact, nearly half of all M Roadsters had all black interiors, amazingly – since it seems the really wild colors are the ones that stand out in my mind. But something else struck me as really special as soon as I saw the date; a 2002 would make it the rarest year of the M Roadster, with only 643 sold. That’s nice, but what’s nicer is what that means under the hood – the full bore, 315 horsepower S54 motivating the small roadster.
The BMW S54 engine is right up there in a long line of wonderful inline sixes from BMW, marking a large step forward from its predecessor, the S52. While the S52 provided great sound and smoothness, it lacked the brute force that other great BMW engines have shared. The S54 brought an extra 75 (!!!) horsepower to table, an increase of over 30%, for the last two years of the E36/7 and E36/8’s lives. This one comes claims to come with an extra 30, matching the power of the E46 M3 – not bad when you’re carrying several hundred fewer pounds. The clownshoe may be the funkier of the pair, but the M Coupe keeps all the drop-top fun of the Z3 while losing most of the hit to the self-esteem via some swollen fenders, quad pipes, and serious power. Like an 18 year-old jumping the border to drink, you can hop to Canada for some cheap thrills with this classic silver example, coming with fewer miles and priced a good $5k less than the nicest US examples. And according to the ad, it’s the ONLY example sold in Canada with headlight washers! That’s gotta do something for the rarity-resale value down the road, right?!
