1997 BMW M3

Sedan

WBSCD9321VEE06085

Clear

Gasoline

Selling my daily driver E36 M3. I think it still runs great, but at a minimum it's a great project or parts car. Overly detailed description of maintenance and condition below.Reason for Selling: I am purchasing a fixer-upper home and need to replace this vehicle with something with room to haul materials/equipment. I cannot justify having two vehicles in the city. Otherwise I had every intention of driving this car indefinitely—it has cost me very little as my daily driver for the past several years (as you will see below) and I am unaware of any significant necessary impending repairs.Current/previous use/maintenance style: Not performance-oriented. I drove it pretty hard for the first 20,000 miles after I bought it, but I have never raced the vehicle and have never modded it for that purpose. Previous owner’s smooth jazz CDs were left in the changer when I bought it so I suspect he didn’t either. It has been my daily driver since 2008, and all of my repairs have focused on just keeping the car running smoothly. I have pretty much babied it for the last 100,000 miles. I am selling the car AS-IS, but I am providing very detailed information about the vehicle upfront below so you can make an informed bid. I tried to make this as complete as possible, but I am in no way claiming that I remember every repair or that I am aware of every issue with the vehicle. Still, this is the kind of information I personally would want before buying a high-mileage vehicle so I hope it’s helpful to you. *Please ask all relevant questions prior to bidding* *Winning bid is a contract to buy. Please do not attempt to negotiate after the sale*NON-ROUTINE MAINTENANCE HISTORY What follows is a history of non-routine maintenance to the car since 2008, to the best of my recollection. If I don’t mention something here, it may or may not have happened—please feel free to ask. 2009: Left trailing arm bushing replaced. (Right trailing arm bushing never installed—included in sale) Front struts and hats replaced Water pump replaced (metal impeller) Thermostat housing replaced with metal Emission control secondary air pump replaced Front sway bars replaced Rearmost exhaust hangers replaced 2011: Radiator body replaced Thermostat replaced Trunk latch replaced Power steering coil pipe replaced Under-body stabilizer bar replaced Tie rods replaced 4x O2 Sensors replaced Belt tensioner and one or more pulleys replaced Cooling fan coupling replaced 2012: Drive shaft replaced w/used (at least rear portion) Front window replaced Hood latch cable and mechanisms replaced Brake light switch (at pedal) replaced Security alarm hood contact replaced Front brake lines (flexible hoses) replaced 2013: A/C condenser pulley replaced Rear shock mounts replaced Starter replaced Central exhaust hangers replaced (Left front?) ABS sensor replaced 2014: Hydraulic hood shocks replaced*Please ask all relevant questions prior to bidding* *Winning bid is a contract to buy. Please do not attempt to negotiate after the sale*CONDITION / KNOWN AND IMAGINARY ISSUESBelow is an alphabetical list of components/systems detailing every little issue I am aware of, and whether/how I addressed it. Please take all of the following into account before bidding. Please assume that all regular maintenance items, including fluids, are probably due unless noted below. I also assume you may want to replace all bushings as well, though I have not noticed any issues during daily driving.Alternator: Never replaced, no issues.Battery: Replaced January 2016. Body: When I purchased the car, it had the beginnings of surface rust on the trunk. The rust has grown over the years to the point that much of the trunk is pretty bubbly and nasty (see photos for the worst of it). There are also isolated areas of body rust at the bottoms of the doors. The first winter after I bought the car, my dumb ass scraped the hood pretty extensively trying to lift several feet of snow off the car with a shovel (see photo). If I remember the vehicle history report correctly, a previous owner had minor bodywork done (front left fender perhaps?) after an accident—I never noticed. Soundproofing fabric (or whatever it is) underneath hood is damaged in the middle (see photo).Brakes: Front pads between 3/8-1/2”. Rear pads between ¼-3/8”. Rotors probably due at time of pads. Parking brake always gets looser and requires retightening. Console: Check engine light was on for my O2 sensors for so long that it burned out. Never replaced the bulb, so I just check for codes every month or so. (Checked today—clean.) Radio display has had a loose connection since I bought the car—goes in and out randomly. Small clock/date display JUST went out last month. No current or recent errors / warning lights with one constant exception: brake light circuit warning routinely comes on. It very rarely means that a brake light is actually out. I have tightened every connection I can find and have just learned to live with it.Cooling System: Replaced water pump with metal impeller ~110,000 miles. When I installed new pump, I sheared the head off one of the four bolts. The fourth bolt has had no head for the past ~90,000 miles—I have kept an eye on it and have noticed no issues. Thermostat housing always has spots of dried coolant on it, but I have to top off coolant less than once a year. Clutch/Transmission/Gearshift: I have never replaced the clutch, so I assume it was done prior to my purchasing the car at 78,000 miles. However, it is possible that the car still has the original clutch. I do not detect any signs of slippage though for years I have been expecting to have to replace the thing. Have never had any transmission work done. Shifter knob will pop off if you get aggressive with it—have not replaced because tortoiseshell knob is no longer available. Clutch pedal creaks annoyingly in the summer—I purchased replacement bushings but never installed and will provide with sale.Cruise Control: Hasn’t worked for years. No idea why.Engine: I am unaware of any engine issues. Car has always lost about 0.5 L of oil per 1000 miles. I have never touched the VANOS system or replaced anything other than the O2 sensors and spark plugs. Oil in filler cap always has yellow gunk in winter even if you get the engine up to operating temperature. Has always gone away in warm weather. Boot between mass air flow sensor and throttle has a crack. I have replacement boot, uninstalled—will provide with sale. Have noticed no effect on performance or fuel economy.Exhaust: Exhaust system looks pretty rough, though it has not thrown any error codes since replacing the O2 sensors. That said, I have not had the car tested for emissions since 2009 because I have never switched the registration from my home county which does not require testing. My greatest annoyance is that the system has rattled for about a year, and I cannot for the life of me find what to tighten to make it stop. The heat shield was removed years ago, so that’s not it.Heating & Air-Conditioning: A/C works perfectly as of today. Heat worked perfectly as of March and I have no reason to believe that has changed.Interior: Leather is visibly worn. Carpeting is fine to my eye. Floor mats in fine shape except driver’s, which is in crappy shape. Black stuff on underside of all four floor mats is disintegrating. Tortoiseshell trim is generally fine, but cracked around console in places. Small section missing. Black vinyl is fine. Cloth ceiling came loose recently behind sunroof—annoying at higher speeds with roof open. I have tacked up. Piece of tortoiseshell trim above glove box popped off—plastic bracket is broken (see photos). Still have piece which can surely be reattached creatively if you want to.Power steering: Leaks a bit every year in the spring and fall. I assume it has to do with the temperature swings. I expect to have to top off reservoir once during these seasons. I have had replacement hoses and rings ready to install for years and have never needed to—will include with sale.Sound system: Harmon-Kardon system is great, but the right speaker blew out recently. I have not looked into replacement options—I think it’s the main speaker, not the tweeter. Yes, I have the radio code (plus what I believe is the complete original documentation that came with the car—see photos).Tires: Continental ExtremeContact all-season tires. Roughly ¼” tread all around.Wheels: Set on car in generally good shape, some scratches. Front left wheel in worst condition (see photo). All keep a good seal. Fifth wheel in trunk has (very old) full-size spare. I have a second set of wheels and tires in generally worse condition—more road rash, and one or two don’t hold a seal well and need to be topped off every couple weeks. Can include second set in sale—make me an offer. Windows: Windshield has a star crack but it’s very low, where the windshield is in contact with the dash—see photo. Crack has not spread since I noticed it about four years ago. Both front windows started popping off track. I had the driver side fixed and just unplugged the passenger window. Rear windows totally operable. Sunroof too. *Please ask all relevant questions prior to bidding* *Winning bid is a contract to buy. Please do not attempt to negotiate after the sale*