The Official Bring A Trailer (BaT) Thread

[2004LSB]

Beautiful car! But what's up with the front bumper scratches?!

[jet_dogg]

Yeah, I hear you… but 25 years on, low mile 500E are selling for above original MSRP… and the guys who are saying “they’re meant to be driven” are basically making themselves feel better for having driven theirs to the dirt when they could have quadrupled their money instead… or doubled their money by driving it like an adult… takes all kinds… granted those cars are much rarer than these… but I watched a Porsche 928 GT manual go for $100k the other day, when I could have bought one for 1/3 that just 10 years ago… some cars are just special and when you know it, you know it… this owner apparently knew it… or didn’t and just had more cars… and now they’ll have more money.

maw

I hear you, but the guys that drove theirs into the ground are the guys who enjoyed the cars the most and got their money's worth. Sometimes it's not all about the money, man. The sunday m3 drivers doddling along on pch aren't maximizing their dollar imho and they tell themselves the converse to make themselves feel better.

As great as a e46 m3s are, at the end of the day they're not really all that special.

[lemoose]

As great as a e46 m3s are, at the end of the day they're not really all that special.

So in 2021, what do you buy new that scratches the same itch?

[jet_dogg]

Personally, as much as I love my e46 if I had to give it up and choose I'm buying an e92 m3 (even with the corny stock halos), an m2c, 997 gt3, 991.2 gt3 or 992 gt3 all in manual no automatics.

I used to say (and still do) I wouldn't wish an e46 m3 on my worst enemy. It is the highest maintenance car I've ever come across despite what forums try to tell you. I don't know any other car whose chassis literally falls apart and has catastrophic engine failure potential all in one. Add to that proven unreliability for the average driver who doesn't preemptively replace sensors (how I used to be) and you're in for a guaranteed unpredictable night. Plan to drop at least ten racks just to update any used example you pick up.

I don't give a shit about utility like most people here and it's not my daily so the all-in-one package draw means nothing to me. What I do love is the shape, airbox, compression ratio, high redline and ITBs. The car is fun as hell to mod too (stock anything sucks).

[maw1124]

…at the end of the day they're not really all that special.

???

How do you reach that conclusion, at a time when most of the automotive world is concluding the exact opposite? They’re wrong and you’re right?

maw

[oceansize]

I think the e46 M3 is awesome but at the same time it is collectors playing a game that drives the market. A car like the e46 m3 achieves notoriety from enthusiasts. Collectors take note. Collectors then start paying top dollar for said car. People catch on that player 2, the collectors, have entered the game. Prices then rise again and the cycle continues until a group of collectors decide that the car has hit its ceiling. And make no mistake the collectors treat this as an asset and that is why you see them on auction sites heaping praise, encouraging bids, saying stuff like "well bought" even though the price was kind of nutty. Collectors definitely like to pat themselves and their cronies on the back. Don't get me wrong I like watching, I'm the guy that scraped the BAT site and created the spread sheet but that was more so I could know what I should pay for a second e46 m3 should I find one I liked.

My overall impression is people take making money off of stuff far to seriously but I realize my brain has never worked that way. I can't be bothered to fool with cars, baseball cards, houses, art, coins, guns, etc. I seriously don't want to spend a single second on any of that stuff. Bottom line is I'm not broke, not even close and I don't want to sit in my garage or office enumerating stuff that I own or counting the dollars its worth. Holds no appeal.

[Malloy]

Collector value ? Lol no such thing on a car with 80k miles on the clock.

Mileage matters less as cars get older. E30M3 sale prices prove this but look at much older cars - originality and condition matter a ton. I'm not saying a 150k mile car (or even 80k) is a collector's dream, but a minty 80k car will have significant value in the future. Less than a 25k mile car, of course.

[Maxima SE]

Mileage matters less as cars get older. E30M3 sale prices prove this but look at much older cars - originality and condition matter a ton. I'm not saying a 150k mile car (or even 80k) is a collector's dream, but a minty 80k car will have significant value in the future. Less than a 25k mile car, of course.

but E46 is not E30 M3 old. Hence why 80k is still lots of miles for these cars TODAY.

[Davis]

I used to say (and still do) I wouldn't wish an e46 m3 on my worst enemy. It is the highest maintenance car I've ever come across despite what forums try to tell you. I don't know any other car whose chassis literally falls apart and has catastrophic engine failure potential all in one.

I don't give a shit about utility like most people here and it's not my daily

100% agree. When I bought my car years ago it was because it was the only naturally aspirated euro car I could afford with a manual transmission, limited slip diff, and decent HP. I daily drove it for about a year until I realized how terribly built it was and missed my gutless S2000. This car just doesn't feel special enough to justify the insane amount of preventative maintenance it requires at 70k miles. It's an old 3 series, not very exotic.

Of course I then fell into the trap of $$$ mods to really make the car feel "special." CSL wheels, airbox, recaros, supersprint, ground control. It still doesn't satisfy me the way a 997.1 GT3 does, or even a C6 Z06!

Now the car has appreciated enough I can get out what I put into it with all of the mods and maintenance, I am tempted to sell it and buy something actually well engineered (and fast!)

I don't care about the utility of the M3 as I have a much more reliable GX470 I use to haul people and tow my track car. I think I used the back seat once. Now every drive in it I just worry about ripping out my subframe or bending my CSL wheels as the roads here are so rough.

[Maxima SE]

$72,500 for that IB 05 ZCP. 5 years ago people were asking mid to high 30s for them. and in 10 years it will be 150k?

1 owner is worth a few extra bids for sure !

can't wait to see what the other IB comp will go for.

[VisorM3]

$72,500 for that IB 05 ZCP. 5 years ago people were asking mid to high 30s for them. and in 10 years it will be 150k?

1 owner is worth a few extra bids for sure !

can't wait to see what the other IB comp will go for.

insane price!

I'm in Canada but starting to consider listing my 2006 interlagos blue on black coupe with SMG and sunroof and 55,000km (34.3k miles). Surely won't reach 72K because of SMG lol
but I wonder how much I could get. Car is in incredible condition!

[Nate047]

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2005-bmw-m3-70/

This should be fun to watch

[Nate047]

When grey is clean and well maintained, it looks nice IMO.

E46 grey interiors are like, the worst. They literally look like a 3D model that hasn't been textured yet. I don't know why they didn't do a two tone black and grey like the E36 Mulberry instead.

[maw1124]

I'm in Canada but starting to consider listing my 2006 interlagos blue on black coupe with SMG and sunroof and 55,000km (34.3k miles). Surely won't reach 72K because of SMG lol ... but I wonder how much I could get. Car is in incredible condition!

My advice is (and has been), if you don't expect to keep it through the next downturn (figure 10 years) then sell it now... and that thinking is, IMO, why you see so many of these (and some others) for sale now... this is TTMAR time, depending upon your entry point... I just happen to think there's always gonna be room in my fleet for an athletic 4 seater convertible that doesn't break the bank... any appreciation is gravy at this point.

maw

PS… like it or not this is the new E46M market… https://bringatrailer.com/listing/20...ertible-53/… guys who were in college when the E36M were out, words like “custodian”, “leisure car” and “no modifications”, not revving past 4500 RPM, etc., with more money to spend… by and large I’m ok with it, even though I know that’s not most forum guys.

[oceansize]

Not an e46 but the first 2022 M3 I've seen go out to auction. Competition model and xDrive so will be fun to see how it goes.

https://carsandbids.com/auctions/35JavlAj/2022-bmw-m3-competition-xdrive