Advice wanted, about to purchase an M3
Discussion
ok im new to this website/forum as of a few days ago, not really going to get time to read everything i need to on here which is why im asking for advice.
I have always wanted an M3 but never got round to buying one, probably because im tight, lol, anyway been looking through autotrader over recent months then decided to take a look at one that wasnt a million miles from where i live. I wasnt expecting to be too impressed as im a fussy wotsit when it comes to buying anything, and i would never normally consider buying the first car i see, but i really liked the car, visual inspection seemed very good, doesnt seem to have had any paint, estoril blue colour was lovely, dont even ever remember seeing this colour before! Went for a short run in it as a passenger and all sounded good etc. Kinda fell in love with it straight away which is rather scary!
I have not owned anything powerfull since my saph cossie approx 10 years ago and the power seemed to be very similar but without the turbo lag. Ive actualy never been in an M3 before this point i might add!
I have owned a few BMW's over the years (2001 530 sport/ 2002 320 coupe and others) and found they are extremely reliable and simply a pleasure to own. What i want to know is, will i still be saying the same about BMW's should i go ahead and buy an M3?
The car im looking at has just under 90k miles with fbmsh although according to the current owner (trader) the car has been sitting around for the past few months, and when i arrived to view needed a jump start, engine was cold and sounded very nice with no rattles or tapping, just sounded very tight like i imagined it should. Is there any kind of tests or checks i can do to ensure the engine is as good as i think it is? What checks would you suggest doing when looking to buy an M3.
I have contaced the Main dealer where the car was purchased and serviced up to 77k in 07 and i can find no reason to doubt the car except for the last 2 and half years it has only covered 11k and not been serviced in that time. I cant remember how many miles it says until next service but obviously wont be too far away.
The way i see it is that i could pay another £4k or £5k and get the same car with low mileage but im happy with paying less and getting less, for now anyway, i just want to know your opinion on what i should expect from a 90,000 mile M3.
Just to clarify, im looking at a 2003 individual estoril blue just under 90k miles, fbmsh, no sat nav, no harman kardon, refurbed 19's, manual, black leather, and is up for £13,500 shall i go for it or not?
Any help, advice or opinions very welcome!
Sorry for the essay!
I have always wanted an M3 but never got round to buying one, probably because im tight, lol, anyway been looking through autotrader over recent months then decided to take a look at one that wasnt a million miles from where i live. I wasnt expecting to be too impressed as im a fussy wotsit when it comes to buying anything, and i would never normally consider buying the first car i see, but i really liked the car, visual inspection seemed very good, doesnt seem to have had any paint, estoril blue colour was lovely, dont even ever remember seeing this colour before! Went for a short run in it as a passenger and all sounded good etc. Kinda fell in love with it straight away which is rather scary!
I have not owned anything powerfull since my saph cossie approx 10 years ago and the power seemed to be very similar but without the turbo lag. Ive actualy never been in an M3 before this point i might add!
I have owned a few BMW's over the years (2001 530 sport/ 2002 320 coupe and others) and found they are extremely reliable and simply a pleasure to own. What i want to know is, will i still be saying the same about BMW's should i go ahead and buy an M3?
The car im looking at has just under 90k miles with fbmsh although according to the current owner (trader) the car has been sitting around for the past few months, and when i arrived to view needed a jump start, engine was cold and sounded very nice with no rattles or tapping, just sounded very tight like i imagined it should. Is there any kind of tests or checks i can do to ensure the engine is as good as i think it is? What checks would you suggest doing when looking to buy an M3.
I have contaced the Main dealer where the car was purchased and serviced up to 77k in 07 and i can find no reason to doubt the car except for the last 2 and half years it has only covered 11k and not been serviced in that time. I cant remember how many miles it says until next service but obviously wont be too far away.
The way i see it is that i could pay another £4k or £5k and get the same car with low mileage but im happy with paying less and getting less, for now anyway, i just want to know your opinion on what i should expect from a 90,000 mile M3.
Just to clarify, im looking at a 2003 individual estoril blue just under 90k miles, fbmsh, no sat nav, no harman kardon, refurbed 19's, manual, black leather, and is up for £13,500 shall i go for it or not?
Any help, advice or opinions very welcome!
Sorry for the essay!
Edited by just1e on Sunday 9th May 23:20
The car is a manual, i have driven an SMG and i really couldnt deal with that gearbox, has to be manual for me.
I have only spent a short amount of time with the vehicle and i cant see anything that is needed immediately, although im no expert!!! I did speak to someone at BMW's today that seemed to know what he was talking about and told me to listen to the engine for a sound like a train coming down the tracks when the engine is warm, i am told if noisy, this is worn vanos gears and at £2k to replace sounds pretty important! I will make sure i have a good listen to the engine when i go back tomorrow for my 2nd viewing!
Yes it is the facelift model!
Yeah the price seems a little over but i dont intend paying the asking price, i know the price is negotiable, not sure what the margins are though.
I am considering paying to have an RAC or AA vehicle inspection done on the car, is this going to be money well spent? Or will it just be stuff i can check myself? Or is there a better compayn i can use?
I have only spent a short amount of time with the vehicle and i cant see anything that is needed immediately, although im no expert!!! I did speak to someone at BMW's today that seemed to know what he was talking about and told me to listen to the engine for a sound like a train coming down the tracks when the engine is warm, i am told if noisy, this is worn vanos gears and at £2k to replace sounds pretty important! I will make sure i have a good listen to the engine when i go back tomorrow for my 2nd viewing!
Yes it is the facelift model!
Yeah the price seems a little over but i dont intend paying the asking price, i know the price is negotiable, not sure what the margins are though.
I am considering paying to have an RAC or AA vehicle inspection done on the car, is this going to be money well spent? Or will it just be stuff i can check myself? Or is there a better compayn i can use?
I bought one about two months ago. It was a 2003 (53) in Carbon with black leather.The car has just over 32,000 miles on the clock and I paid £14,550 for it.
Apart from the obvious things, check the rear springs; these are prone to breaking. Difficult to check without either jacking it up or having it on a ramp. Replacements are about £85 - £95 direct from BMW but are easy to fit yourself if you are any good with a spanner!
Another possible weak part is the power steering pipes that are behind the undertray, again, difficult to check without a ramp.
Hope this helps.
Happy hunting!!
Apart from the obvious things, check the rear springs; these are prone to breaking. Difficult to check without either jacking it up or having it on a ramp. Replacements are about £85 - £95 direct from BMW but are easy to fit yourself if you are any good with a spanner!
Another possible weak part is the power steering pipes that are behind the undertray, again, difficult to check without a ramp.
Hope this helps.
Happy hunting!!
theres probably plenty out there - just go for low number of owners if possible is a good rule....and 12k miles PA is a good steer, anything less - with large amount owners steer clear.
They are good at hiding mileage....
IMO
Prefered colours -
Black/blue
Grey
silver
Avoid
Yellow
red
i paid 12k for my one owner 61k bmw warranty back in 2008, so prices have firmed up since then....
They are good at hiding mileage....
IMO
Prefered colours -
Black/blue
Grey
silver
Avoid
Yellow
red
i paid 12k for my one owner 61k bmw warranty back in 2008, so prices have firmed up since then....
Hello,
I've just been reading through your thread and decided to join the forum and hopefully make up your mind on the purchase.
I own a 55 reg estoril blue M3 and the thing i hear time and time again is people comparing the price of common silver and black M3's (Sorry) to the colours that are rare such as estoril Blue!
They cannot be considered in the same price bracket i'm afraid.
If the car is sound then go for it mate I've been complimented from complete strangers about the colour! it defo makes the car stand out in a crowd!
I've just been reading through your thread and decided to join the forum and hopefully make up your mind on the purchase.
I own a 55 reg estoril blue M3 and the thing i hear time and time again is people comparing the price of common silver and black M3's (Sorry) to the colours that are rare such as estoril Blue!
They cannot be considered in the same price bracket i'm afraid.
If the car is sound then go for it mate I've been complimented from complete strangers about the colour! it defo makes the car stand out in a crowd!
Yeah i agree about the colour! I would pay more for an M3 in estoril blue all day long, just wish there were more to choose from!
I didnt end up getting the one i was looking at, the trader wasnt willing to play ball when it came to the price, i made what i consider to be a good offer after taking into consideration a couple of things that i pointed out but no joy, i always find that traders will never budge on the price and this was no exception!
So i guess i will continue to look. At least i have learnt a lot more about these cars through looking. And also glad to find a very friendly forum!
I didnt end up getting the one i was looking at, the trader wasnt willing to play ball when it came to the price, i made what i consider to be a good offer after taking into consideration a couple of things that i pointed out but no joy, i always find that traders will never budge on the price and this was no exception!
So i guess i will continue to look. At least i have learnt a lot more about these cars through looking. And also glad to find a very friendly forum!
Edited by just1e on Wednesday 12th May 18:56
Agreed, best to just be patient, i was looking for best part of 6 months for a good one.
All i would say is to check that it has had the running in service, this should be the first stamp at around 12K.
Also try get one with full BMWSH you then know the previous owners were'nt cheap skates. Other than that you should be fine after all they were built to take some hammer.
All i would say is to check that it has had the running in service, this should be the first stamp at around 12K.
Also try get one with full BMWSH you then know the previous owners were'nt cheap skates. Other than that you should be fine after all they were built to take some hammer.
OMG, every car i look at is the same, people just trying their luck with the price, ive heard so many lies and crap in the last few days i feel like killing myself!
Owners seem so surprised when i tell them half the car has been painted and point out all the overspray marks on the door shuts, and i cant understand why when i look at a 50k (ish) mile car that it is in worse condition than my 170k mile car??? Yet they still seem willing to show me the history book that PROVES the mileage.
Also how come so many people still using what i would class as the oldest trick in the book, the old "you better be quick as someone is coming to look later today and they deffinately going to buy it" story. Even had 1 guy recieve a text whilst i was looking at his car, he instantly showed me the text that said something like "did that guy buy the car as i really want to buy it now" and it deffinately wasnt his wife or friend sending the text! Honest!
I first heard the above story for the first time some 17 years ago when buying my first car, it didnt sell the car then, and sure as hell didnt do the seller any favours this time either! I really cant believe the same story is still doing the rounds! What is wrong with people?
In my opinion the best way to sell a car is to say nothing and only answer questions that are put to the seller! Cant believe so many people seem so desperate! The worse the condition the car is, the more desperate the seller sounds!
Owners seem so surprised when i tell them half the car has been painted and point out all the overspray marks on the door shuts, and i cant understand why when i look at a 50k (ish) mile car that it is in worse condition than my 170k mile car??? Yet they still seem willing to show me the history book that PROVES the mileage.
Also how come so many people still using what i would class as the oldest trick in the book, the old "you better be quick as someone is coming to look later today and they deffinately going to buy it" story. Even had 1 guy recieve a text whilst i was looking at his car, he instantly showed me the text that said something like "did that guy buy the car as i really want to buy it now" and it deffinately wasnt his wife or friend sending the text! Honest!
I first heard the above story for the first time some 17 years ago when buying my first car, it didnt sell the car then, and sure as hell didnt do the seller any favours this time either! I really cant believe the same story is still doing the rounds! What is wrong with people?
In my opinion the best way to sell a car is to say nothing and only answer questions that are put to the seller! Cant believe so many people seem so desperate! The worse the condition the car is, the more desperate the seller sounds!
on the flip side selling a m-car means that allsorts come around seeing the car - and really waste time - im sure you are not. But having sold a few over the years, i dont enjoy the experience of selling....the M3 can have a few strange followers...
estroil blue car - yep i loved that colour, I had an E36 in that colour until some fit bird at work said "why the gay colour", Seriously she did and she had assets that defy gravity so couldnt argue......maybe if shed been in the Q for weight watchers, shed have taken a fall from the top step at work....after making such a comment...
good luck with your search
estroil blue car - yep i loved that colour, I had an E36 in that colour until some fit bird at work said "why the gay colour", Seriously she did and she had assets that defy gravity so couldnt argue......maybe if shed been in the Q for weight watchers, shed have taken a fall from the top step at work....after making such a comment...
good luck with your search
reccy with claws said:
ive been looking around for the last couple of weeks.every car i go and look at is discribed as immaculate then when i get there its far from.looked at 2 this weekend 1 for 16k i wouldnt give him 13k never mind 16.why cant people be honnest it would save alot of messing around.
I've found this when shopping for M3s over the years. More than other models that I've owned, it is almost mandatory for all M3 adverts to describe the cars as "immaculate", and "the best available", even when they are rough as fook with more layers of paint than the Forth Railway Bridge - Cars from independant dealers are by far the worst offenders for this!Gassing Station | M Power | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff