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A BMW for every budget: M Roadster Roundup

A BMW for every budget: M Roadster Roundup

Published October 5, 2018 by Carter

The E36/7 M Roadster remains an interesting microcosm of not only BMW, but more specifically BMW M, products. Similar to the SLK and Boxster, the Roadster offers you a unique experience and expression of your favorite brand. But because “true enthusiasts” don’t value you them as much, these models often come to market below the value of similar models. While the E36 M3 Coupe is enjoying an uptick in value and the E36/8 M Coupe has been more highly prized, it’s possible to get a lower mileage and great condition Roadster for less money still though the experience is quite similar.

Today I’ve stitched together three interesting examples – one for every budget. From a very inexpensive example through an unusual low-mileage collector, which one grabs your eye?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1999 BMW M Roadster on eBay

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Evergreen Forest III: 1998 BMW M Roadster

Evergreen Forest III: 1998 BMW M Roadster

Published May 15, 2018 by Carter

So, you have to drop $40,000 for a unique M Roadster? Hardly. If you’re willing to forgo the additional grunt of the S54, S52-powered Roadsters are still very affordable. And, they can be plenty unique in their own right. Take today’s ’98 for example. Evergreen is probably a bit polarizing in tone, but it’s also quite distinctive. The total pool of Evergreen examples represents only 2% of overall production of M Roadsters, though. Out of the 10,501 produced, 201 were shipped in the bright green shade – and out of those, 176 were equipped with the equally distinctive two-tone Nappa leather interior color matched to the outside. I’ve looked at a few of these examples previously:

Evergreen Forest: 1998 BMW M Roadster

So you get an unusual color, a more unusual interior, and still quite a potent convertible in the early M Roadster. What is the price delta, though?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1998 BMW M Roadster on eBay

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Evergreen Forest: 1998 BMW M Roadster

Evergreen Forest: 1998 BMW M Roadster

Published November 3, 2016 by Carter

This past weekend I drove by the spot where I first encountered the M Coupe. The year was 1998, and to be honest the Z3 lineup had been pretty forgettable. In many ways, the car’s signature launch through the James Bond film Goldeneye summed up how most felt about the Z3:

“Hey, look, a new convertible BMW!” (moves on)

But that changed with the launch of the M-tuned models. The E36/7 and /8 suddenly had the performance to back up the hoopla associated with the launch when the S52 from the M3 found its way under the hood. Augmenting that were upgraded brakes, giant shadowline Roadstar wheels with massive (and awesome) lips, and wide flared fenders culminating in quad exahusts emerging from the rear middle of the car – what would become signature on the next round of BMW M models. It looked great, it drove great, and was available in some pretty wild colors. It was pretty much the instant recipe for a collectable, but values languished for some time before the Coupe models really started taking off a few years ago. But it’s still possible to get into a collector-condition Z M model for not an outrageous sum:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1998 BMW M Roadster on eBay

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Pre-Production: 1998 BMW M Roadster with 41,000 Miles

Published May 16, 2014 by Carter

A few weeks ago I went on a rant regarding production numbers, and while I thought I was going to be chastised by the masses the reaction was rather surprising – it seems I’m not the only one ticked off by the over-use of “rare”, “limited”, and “1 of X produced”. I have to admit, I think I’m even guilty of it; there are many uncommon cars that we write up that we often refer to as “rare” when the reality is that the company just didn’t sell many. Perhaps it was a bad choice of colors, or bad market conditions, or any number of factors combining into low sales numbers, but not often were these cars limited to only a few examples. Does that make them less or more desirable? Well, that depends a lot on the customer I guess; to me, I really like having something that everyone else doesn’t have. Phoenix Yellow is a great example of this; a polarizing color that I love on the E46 M3 but many hate. So what we have here today is a claimed 1 of 1 that’s just cannon fodder, right? Well, not today – this is a legitimately neat car; a pre-production M Roadster in a ultra-rare color combination of Evergreen and Kyalami: