I am trying to buy this E36 M3

[nuskool]

Hi..

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I am trying to buy this M3 but the price seems to be a bit high.

Has 3 owners all from CA w/ clean title.

I was wondering how much would be a good price, so my friends won;t make fun of me...

yea~ Im Mclovin!!

any suggestions and concerns are welcome.

thanks

[Xear0]

im not an expert, but it does seem a bit high.

[92318is]

Yep, that's waaaayy too much. I hate how people ask so much for e36 m3's. I mean, I know they're great cars, but what I guess peope don't realize is that since the new e92 m3 is coming out, people are dumping their e36 and e46 m3's in favor of upgrading. The current e36 people are trying to get e46's for cheap, and the e46 people are getting rid of their's for the new e92's. I see '01 and '02 m3's consistently for $24,000-$28,000. I mean, I know $8,000 or $10,000 is a big difference, but I wouldn't pay almost $20,000 for an e36 m3 when I knew if I saved up another $5,000 for the downpayment, I could have an e46.

/soapbox

Anyway, yeah, thats too much. I'd say for a '98 e36 m3 with 71k miles, anywhere from $12,000-$13,500 would be a fair price. The only way I'd say it'd be worth more is if it had a Euro engine in it or something along those lines. If I were you, I would check on craigslist classifieds: jobs, housing, personals, for sale, services, community, events, forums and New Cars, Used Cars For Sale, Car Prices, Car Reviews, Forums, Videos and the largest automotive community & social network at Roadfly.com, and even the classifides in the dtmpower.net forums. If you're a bmwcca member, check that website as well. If you can get an m3 that's enthusiast owned, the better off you are, since they are more likely to have done all of the regular maintenance (changing diff and tranny fluid, radiator flushes, tune ups, and not to mention regular oil changes). Also, I don't know how much you know about e36's, but the most common failure on all of them (including m3's) is the cooling system. I had a '92 318is, and I had every part fail; radiator, thermostat, waterpump, and the hoses. So make sure you ask about that stuff for sure, since if it hasn't been done already, that should be the first thing you do right after purchasing your car. And if it hasn't been done by the seller, I wouldn't pay what they're asking for it, unless its pretty cheap already.

[Evo Lud]

I bought the exact same car but with 98,000miles on it and I got mine in good condition (excluding the rear shocks) for $12,000. They were asking $16,000.

Good luck, I was there just a few months ago.

Check out autotrader.com. The best way to find any car in your budget, area and overall what you want. Check it out. I bet you'll be surprised.

[RacerJames666]

Its not too bad really....71k is still pretty fresh. Haggle with em I say

[92318is]

Originally Posted by RacerJames666

Its not too bad really....71k is still pretty fresh. Haggle with em I say

No its not too bad...its a rip off Seriously, just keep looking, you'll find another e36 m3 in good shape for a hell of a lot less than that. And mileage shouldn't be a HUGE factor while looking, but you don't want something with like 150,000 miles either. Lower mileage doesn't always equal a car thats in better shape. In fact, sometimes lower miles is worse than higher miles. It means the engine doesn't get used very often, couple that with poor maintenance, and I'd take a high mileage, well maintained bimmer any day.

Either that, or like Evo and RacerJames said, haggle with them, tell them you won't pay any more than $13,000 or $14,000, whatever you're comfortable with. Just trust me that they're asking too much.

[itsabimmerthing]

Dont pay that, its not 13k in car. I wouldnt pay over half that.

[Evo Lud]

Give us an update, when the final decision comes.

Find another one? Did you get it? Did you haggle?

Im excited for you.

[92318is]

Originally Posted by Evo Lud

Give us an update, when the final decision comes.

Find another one? Did you get it? Did you haggle?

Im excited for you.

I'm always excited for people buying m3's, lol. I want one so badly, but have yet to find one in my area with the color and year and tranny I want

[nuskool]

Thanks guys.

I finaly made up my mind to save some more money and buy a e46 m3.

hope huge price drops by this summer.

[cky751]

yeah but an e46 m3 is not going to feel the same.

[Evo Lud]

Originally Posted by cky751

yeah but an e46 m3 is not going to feel the same.

Different weight and gas cost but more power.

Im staying with the e36 but lets see what others have to say.

[BMW Maniac]

If that car was overhauled with new bushings, cooling system....I would give him 14K for it at the most. And must have a great interior...no issues.

[itsabimmerthing]

The E46 is a killer car, but I prefer the E36s ease of power gains over the E46.

[Magical Trevor]

Originally Posted by Evo Lud

Different weight and gas cost but more power.

Im staying with the e36 but lets see what others have to say.

E36 - nimble track tool, high aftermarket power potential for pretty cheap...

E46 - personal luxury rocket that 16k to break 500whp...