[G50]

Long post alert!

I've really missed having something either fast or fun or both since I got rid of the Up GTI for the G31 520d. It was never what I really wanted, but I really wanted another 5 series daily as I do at least 20k miles just for work, and at the time 20d was the best I could do.

I've been saving for a wedding, and as a massive petrol head since being a kid, a watcher of many car related YouTube channels on a daily basis and listener to many car podcasts etc, the feeling of not being able to satisfy one of my biggest passions has been growing and growing.

Some man maths later, and some money that doesn't need to go into the wedding fund and I'm in a position to change or get a second car. Initially I wanted to get an M340i touring, but the negative equity in the G31, and the inevitable high depreciation with my 30k a year mileage just wasn't sensible.

So a second car? Needed to be something that had done all it's deprecation, something that's on the way up would be a winner, keep the G31 for work and finally get something with an engine that satisfies an itch I've had all my life. V8, an NA V8.

Research started into e92 M3's and after a couple of months of following forums and reading buying guides, comparing different cars for sale, I got a feel for what constituted value and what I wanted spec wise for my money.
An enthusiast owned car with some modifications that I knew I would want to do myself anyway would be preferable.
Found a car on M3cutters that was a bit more "track spec" than I ideally wanted, with coilovers and after market alloys, but the build of the car under both the two previous owners is documented on cutters, both in terms of what maintenance has been done at what mileage and when the mods were installed, and the work both owners had done on the car for the price advertised jumped out from all others I'd been looking at.

The word meticulous is often over used when describing cars for sale, but when I went to see this thing I couldn't believe the condition for the age and mileage. 10 years older than my G31, which I like to think I've looked after, and it puts it to shame. It looked too nice to drive.

I'd never really thought too much about the e9x M3 before, but I think that was just ignorance, of the engine in particular. 8250rpm, 8 individual throttle bodies, a real characterful engine. Open up the exhaust a bit and they sound mega while still being quiet on part throttle, throw a carbon plenum on and they sound like nothing else.

Driving It home, it took some balls before I started to explore the higher reaches of the rev range, but talk about hairs standing up on the back of your neck. After driving it for a few days now, I can't think of any car that would appeal to my desires in a car more, not just for the money I paid, but for 4 times what I paid, in terms of excitement and aural pleasure. Nothing modern and turbocharged comes close to the drama of this engine. At 3000rpm it's making probably half the torque of the 20d, but the noise it makes and the way the power builds as you go through the rev range is so addictive, and I don't care that if I'm in the wrong gear I'll get dicked by a diesel. Exploring the throttle response, the rev range and the noises with a manual gearbox on a flowing Yorkshire Dales road is better than any track day I've done, and it's visceral within the speed limit. It also feels small compared to my G31 and F31's.

My most enjoyable car previously was probably my S2000, and this is similar but 100% more again (quite literally in terms of the engine).

I think I'll have this for a while, I'm in love.

[JD6]

That engine is something very special. A proper petrolhead buy.

One of the BMW days I went to some years ago, they had 2 of these being driven flat out by touring car drivers. The noise is something else.

Congrats on the new toy!

[boba-fett]

I’m a big fan, had a few now and would still have another.

Congrats and enjoy the revs, poise and noise!

[Alscoob]

Very nice always liked the e9x coupe shape and as a M3 even more so. Nice wheels too, enjoy

[danb1979]

That is lovely! Saw this for sale on M3C; it's hell of a car

I really like the wheels; think they suit the car to a tee

How are you finding the ride on the coilovers?

[Wills2]

The S65 is a fabulous engine the best I've ever enjoyed it's scintillating. A car you drive with the radio off.

Enjoy!

[TodmordenLad]

A V8 NA with manual box - now THAT is pure heaven! Congrats.

[SkyJawa]

Nice Can't beat a V8!

[Sennen]

A very special car with one of the all time great engines......... money in the bank....... well done OP

[danb1979]

Originally Posted by SkyJawa

Nice Can't beat a V8!

Sreten's really gone to town on his; absolutely superb build

[DaveA]

Two thumbs up from me... Looks great and that V8 is lush...

Sometimes wish I had the guts to try running something like this nowadays (am more risk averse in my older age) but I am worried about things like unexpected repair bills and buying one that isn't as well looked after as yours appears to be... hence my "fire and forget" on buying the M135 and owning from new, for the long term..."...

I found a load of pictures of my old E30 M3 the other day... including some engine po*n pics... Was a hoot to won and maintain/run but when it turned out that there had been a re-shell at some point and it was rotting from the inside out then I was not going to be able to keep on top of costs, so it went... Somebody kept it going, though, as it looks like it was MOT'd up until 2009 and is now SORN... New log book 2 years ago so I reckon it is somebody's project...

[rokut]

Congrats! That is a beautiful car indeed.

I have been working through the 'what's next' process in my head for the last few months since my divorce was finalised and I knew what the next few years likely look like re: financials, and the E9X M3 is on top of the list.
I now spend way too much time on Auto Trader, cutters and reading about rod bearings than I care to admit...
Other cars that are in the shortlist: C63, Mustang, even the 5.0 XKRs, but I think the E9X M3 alongside RBs and TAs being done, plus a plenum/ back box mod is where my heart lays today.

Wish you all the best with it. It looks fantastic and I bet sounds even better

[Watsey]

Great choice and a very nice looking car. Would be interested to read more about the modifications that the previous owner did, and what you've got planned for it.

[G50]

Originally Posted by danb1979

That is lovely! Saw this for sale on M3C; it's hell of a car

I really like the wheels; think they suit the car to a tee

How are you finding the ride on the coilovers?

It's surprisingly good! It's too low to enjoy properly though, I've had all different parts of the underside scrape, so I plan to take it to suspension secrets and have it raised a bit and a good fast road geo.

Coilovers are by ST which is a sub brand of KW, and have KW clubsport springs. I think they're basically the same as KW V2 except zinc coated bodies rather than stainless steel.

[G50]

Originally Posted by SkyJawa

Nice Can't beat a V8!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3s71WYgyYjo

I've flicked through this video over the last couple of weeks, the noise with the plenum when he's driving It at the end is mega. It's certainly on my (short) list of mods.

[G50]

Originally Posted by rokut

Congrats! That is a beautiful car indeed.

I have been working through the 'what's next' process in my head for the last few months since my divorce was finalised and I knew what the next few years likely look like re: financials, and the E9X M3 is on top of the list.
I now spend way too much time on Auto Trader, cutters and reading about rod bearings than I care to admit...
Other cars that are in the shortlist: C63, Mustang, even the 5.0 XKRs, but I think the E9X M3 alongside RBs and TAs being done, plus a plenum/ back box mod is where my heart lays today.

Wish you all the best with it. It looks fantastic and I bet sounds even better

Yes this was me, I was beginning to drive myself crazy with the research.

From what a lot of owners say, other than the RBs and TAs, they're actually a reliable car providing they've been looked after, and that's something you get a feeling from from the owner. Mines done 95k miles and feels solid.

I think there's bargains out there to be had with the e92 M3, I feel mine was, and I've also missed out on others that looked to be. There's a lot of over-priced stuff out there still though, where they're still hoping for 2022's prices.
Time is now to buy I felt, I can only see them going up from where they are now(the ones that are selling). They are about 7 years newer than the S2000, and I've seen the S2k go up a lot over the last 7 years, and I feel the M3 attracts a similar enthusiast.

[G50]

Originally Posted by Watsey

Great choice and a very nice looking car. Would be interested to read more about the modifications that the previous owner did, and what you've got planned for it.

Thanks Ian. I'll put something together on both points later.

[crAbb]

Originally Posted by G50

Long post alert!

I've really missed having something either fast or fun or both since I got rid of the Up GTI for the G31 520d. It was never what I really wanted, but I really wanted another 5 series daily as I do at least 20k miles just for work, and at the time 20d was the best I could do.

I've been saving for a wedding, and as a massive petrol head since being a kid, a watcher of many car related YouTube channels on a daily basis and listener to many car podcasts etc, the feeling of not being able to satisfy one of my biggest passions has been growing and growing.

Some man maths later, and some money that doesn't need to go into the wedding fund and I'm in a position to change or get a second car. Initially I wanted to get an M340i touring, but the negative equity in the G31, and the inevitable high depreciation with my 30k a year mileage just wasn't sensible.

So a second car? Needed to be something that had done all it's deprecation, something that's on the way up would be a winner, keep the G31 for work and finally get something with an engine that satisfies an itch I've had all my life. V8, an NA V8.

Research started into e92 M3's and after a couple of months of following forums and reading buying guides, comparing different cars for sale, I got a feel for what constituted value and what I wanted spec wise for my money.
An enthusiast owned car with some modifications that I knew I would want to do myself anyway would be preferable.
Found a car on M3cutters that was a bit more "track spec" than I ideally wanted, with coilovers and after market alloys, but the build of the car under both the two previous owners is documented on cutters, both in terms of what maintenance has been done at what mileage and when the mods were installed, and the work both owners had done on the car for the price advertised jumped out from all others I'd been looking at.

The word meticulous is often over used when describing cars for sale, but when I went to see this thing I couldn't believe the condition for the age and mileage. 10 years older than my G31, which I like to think I've looked after, and it puts it to shame. It looked too nice to drive.

I'd never really thought too much about the e9x M3 before, but I think that was just ignorance, of the engine in particular. 8250rpm, 8 individual throttle bodies, a real characterful engine. Open up the exhaust a bit and they sound mega while still being quiet on part throttle, throw a carbon plenum on and they sound like nothing else.

Driving It home, it took some balls before I started to explore the higher reaches of the rev range, but talk about hairs standing up on the back of your neck. After driving it for a few days now, I can't think of any car that would appeal to my desires in a car more, not just for the money I paid, but for 4 times what I paid, in terms of excitement and aural pleasure. Nothing modern and turbocharged comes close to the drama of this engine. At 3000rpm it's making probably half the torque of the 20d, but the noise it makes and the way the power builds as you go through the rev range is so addictive, and I don't care that if I'm in the wrong gear I'll get dicked by a diesel. Exploring the throttle response, the rev range and the noises with a manual gearbox on a flowing Yorkshire Dales road is better than any track day I've done, and it's visceral within the speed limit. It also feels small compared to my G31 and F31's.

My most enjoyable car previously was probably my S2000, and this is similar but 100% more again (quite literally in terms of the engine).

I think I'll have this for a while, I'm in love.

The perfect antidote to those dreadful plug in cars the government wants us to drive.

[Sennen]

Originally Posted by crAbb

The perfect antidote to those dreadful plug in cars the government wants us to drive.

Totally agree Crab...... a proper petrol head instead of the usual 'must have the latest' brigade

[G50]

For those interested here is the thread from the previous owner:
https://forums.m3cutters.co.uk/threa....256995/page-2

He didn't update it after this, but he had the whole front end off and cleaned it all, replacing any bits he wasn't happy with.

He freely admits he enjoys this process more than driving them, and his E46 is a work of art and has been featured in a BMW magazine.

[G50]

My main plans are to make it a bit more "fast road" as it's too low and probably too aggressive camber, so a proper geo and raise it is the first thing. It just can't handle any depressions in the road at speed, and if one half of the lane has sunk more than a couple of inches you need to make a quick decision where you're going to place the car or you're going to scrape the whole underside.
I'm just a bit worried that 1) it won't look quite as good, and 2) that the camber it's currently running is necessary to make the wheels fit. If so then the second modification might have to be a set of OEM Competition spec wheels as how it drives on the road is the priority. Lots of guys run these wheels on the track, Inc Team Schirmer I believe, but obviously lots of camber is preferable on track.

The next thing will hopefully be a carbon plenum as I'm a huge fan of induction noise and ITB noise specifically, so I'm eager to free some of that noise up. Then probably a map. It made 436bhp on Surrey Rolling Road with just gutted primary cats, which is very healthy as standard they generally make less than 400bhp. With a map and gutted primary cats you can get up to 450bhp on a healthy engine, but more importantly a lot more low-mid range torque.

Car still passes Emissions test with the secondary cats intact.

[un1eash]

E92 is still one of the best looking cars on the road. Loved mine even though it was only a 320d.