New M3 in the driveway!

[tadmcmichael]

Been looking for a used M235i with low miles and wasn't having much success. Had finally decided I was going to order one and have my wife take ED in November when she was headed to Europe for work.

Had filled out the order sheet and was talking to different dealers about the best price. Wanting to make sure I was making the right decision, I test drove an Lexus IS-F and a DCT equipped E92 M3.

The IS-F gets much better mileage in real world driving and I have always been a big fan of Toyota reliability. Handling and steering were improved dramatically in 2011, but the car still lacked something (no 6MT was also a big factor).

I had always lusted after the E92 M3 after reading all of the reviews when it was introduced. After driving the E92, all of a sudden the M235i felt lacking. On paper, The M235i is just about as fast, gets much better fuel economy, and should be cheaper to maintain. But it always felt like I would be driving a cubic zirconia instead of the real thing. I also periodically go to the track and knew the M3 would have a bigger advantage there with the LSD and the stiffer suspension.

I looked far and wide for a white 2013 6MT E92 with low miles. I finally found one on eBay with 1,600 miles up in Connecticut. Second car, garage kept, and clear Car Fax. Car had comp package, carbon roof, nav, cold weather pack, premium sound, red leather etc. I won the auction with a max of $53k, but the reserve wasn't met and he wanted $55,500 as the reserve. That seemed like too much, as I was already taking a huge leap of faith buying something sight unseen. I was sick about missing out on the car, but felt that $53k was already pretty pricey even for a car with such low miles. A few days went buy and I got a second chance offer of $53k.

The car showed up in Atlanta and it is absolutely flawless. I couldn't even find a rock chip on it. Car is stock with the exception of a drop in K&N filter, tinted windows, and ACM mod OEM exhaust. Since the car was in such good shape, I also added a clear bra to the front (pic below).

I'm absolutely loving the car so far. About the only negative with it is even worse mileage than I expected (12), although I have been driving like an ass clown since I got the car.

I'm not big on modding, so don't plan to do much else to it. Was thinking about getting the wheels powder coated black, would welcome any opinions about doing so. The silver wheels are starting to grow on me now that I see them in person.

[dparm]

Nice looking car, OP. Gas mileage be damned. If I cared about shit like that, I'd have bought a Prius.

I say leave the wheels silver, as it's a classic look and very understated. I agree that there's not much need to mod the car, it's just so great in stock form.

[tadmcmichael]

Thanks. I don't drive much, maybe 8k a year, so fuel mileage was not a very high priority for me.

I would prefer the black wheels, but how would I feel about them a few years from now? I generally keep my cars about 10 years, so definitely a long term commitment. The silver never goes out of style.

[IB M]

Congrats. 1300 miles white on red ZCP is quite a find. Nice Ferrari doing a photo bomb.

[Bushum]

Congrats, beautiful car!

[roastbeef]

beautiful car, welcome to the club.

[tadmcmichael]

Originally Posted by IB M

Congrats. 1300 miles white on red ZCP is quite a find. Nice Ferrari doing a photo bomb.

Yes, the place doing the clear bra (Atlanta Protective Films) also does the Ferrari dealership. I was sandwiched between a 458 and a brand new 458 Speciale A (about $400k).

[avol3xo]

Welcome, awesome car! I also have White/Fox Red 6MT and I am in Atlanta. Have you heard of the ///MAtlanta group on facebook?

[RickP]

Congrats and welcome to the club. I vote for keeping the wheels silver. Plus, a coat of paint adds weight to the wheels. I know it's minuscule but the silver looks great IMO.

[X5-User]

Originally Posted by dparm

Nice looking car, OP. Gas mileage be damned. If I cared about shit like that, I'd have bought a Prius.

I say leave the wheels silver, as it's a classic look and very understated. I agree that there's not much need to mod the car, it's just so great in stock form.

If you track your gas spending on this car for 1 year if it was your DD, then you will care. The amount I spent last year on gas for my M3 is equivalent to the price of ESS VT1 550 SC

Congrats OP. Enjoy the car in good health.

[Blindside_137]

Congrats! I'm hoping to find a mineral white fox red E92 zcp in a few years when I need to upgrade my 328.

The car sure does look immaculate!

[1MOREMOD]

What year with so low miles.

[ksa]

Congrats and welcome, looks way better than the Ferrari

[cenix]

Congrats on the car. Keep the wheels silver, classy and timeless.

[GVIFlyer]

Nice car. Great find at 1,600 miles. Here's another vote for keeping the CSL wheels silver.

[Helmsman]

Welcome aboard Michael and congrats on that 1600 miles find!

Heres another on keeping the 359s stock. Silver can never go wrong and that OEM color is awesome.

[radiofrequency]

That's a great car, congratulations. I am biased, for sure, as mine looks exactly the same! IMHO the silver ZCP rims are classic. I know that the trend nowadays is to go black on the rims, but black wheels seem to disappear, to me the appearance is akin to someone with missing teeth.

The 235i is a great looking car, but you have managed to acquire one of the really exceptional M cars.

You have a very special car, watch this:

Building the S65:

[digitalpersona]

Great find. Congrats OP. Keep it as close to stock as possible. Too many modders out there, i feel that well maintained stock e9x will be worth something in the future

[vincE92M3]

In addition to the K&N filter and OEM ACM mod, it looks like you got some ///M Performance bits also (splitter, spoiler).

Keep the wheels silver!

Congrats to a fellow Atlantan and E92 M3 owner!

[STooK]

1600 miles?? You got a steal my friend. Beautiful car, enjoy it!

Also, yes we all know we bought a gas guzzling V8 but I really don't get comments like "i would have bought a prius if I cared about mpg". Maybe some of you have money trees in your back yard but I definitely feel the pain every time I go to the pump. While I didn't buy a M3 for its gas saving abilities, I sure as hell wouldn't mind if it got 20 mpg mixed vs 14-15 that I'm getting. Luckily, I don't daily drive mine or I will be visiting the pump every 3 days. After a while it starts to get a little old.

[Raek]

Nice find!

[Helmsman]

Originally Posted by STooK

1600 miles?? You got a steal my friend. Beautiful car, enjoy it!

Also, yes we all know we bought a gas guzzling V8 but I really don't get comments like "i would have bought a prius if I cared about mpg". Maybe some of you have money trees in your back yard but I definitely feel the pain every time I go to the pump. While I didn't buy a M3 for its gas saving abilities, I sure as hell wouldn't mind if it got 20 mpg mixed vs 14-15 that I'm getting. Luckily, I don't daily drive mine or I will be visiting the pump every 3 days. After a while it starts to get a little old.

I don't mind the actual pump visit frequency but paying $6.50+ a gallon hurt. If we only could be close to the pricing you get in the US I'd be laughing all the way to the station...