ssbmw

I know this car well. It was a Singaporean import that was brought into NZ with very low k’s. Was purchased by an Aucklander who owned a famous furniture company. He owned it for a long time - and was serviced at BM Workshop. In 2007-2008 it was purchased by a friend of mine who worked at BMW NZ. He added the modern wheels and the M-tech CSI style Aero body kit. He drove the car moderately and was a fantastic custodian of it until he sold it 3-4 years ago. Very rare In Dakar yellow. Price is crazy cheap in my opinion. Great example of a classic car in a very rare and compelling colour.

I remember this car ( the white one) when it had arrived in NZ. There was a short-lived rumour that it was a special factory order for a wealthy Japanese customer who wanted a M88/3 powering an auto E24. As Brett alluded to these cars were modified to suit Japanese customers whilst in Japan. Interesting how Japanese purchased left hand drive European imports to add ‘authenticity.’ Always wondered how the M88/3 would go when paired to an auto box. The Sth Africans released their 745i with the M88/3 but they modified the camshaft profile.

Gorgeous car though. Wonder how this goes with the M suspension - the e39 540i Motorsport was such a good car… I had a boss in 2001 who thought his was actually a M5 because it went so well!

Looking at the spec sheet, it is a desirable e38 with Motorsport suspension / body kit etc. nice car. Factory spec’d with M parallels. The ‘Schnitzer’ packages were available by the marketing department to make cars even more compelling…. Just like the marketing department placed an ///m badge on the back of E34 540i sport six speed manuals or m badges on a E39 540 Motorsport- the solitary M badge makes the car more marketable than a car badged ‘540i.’ in this case, this is missing the wheels, the pedals, the gear shift, - it is bereft of a few things that would make it a fully blown Ac Schnitzer S7

This is a fine car. Owned by a friend who I met over 20 years ago when I bought a lovely 535is from him. An enthusiast who gave me so much knowledge about the brand from the 70's and 80's. He has had some fabulous cars from that period. I saw this car on the courtyard at Clark's in Parnell in 2000. Lovely car - Ex Sytner Alpina car - their agents in the UK. Drove it many years ago - incredible handling - truly belied its mileage. Special car from that era when Alpina was making cars as good or better than BMW M. Never had Alpina decals. Not sure why.

Yes been advertised over the last few months

Yes, the other e39 M5 we know of with ‘comfort seats’ is the pre LCI version in Imola red that resides in Auckland. Interestingly enough, the black leather / titanium trim has become the most popular option to have amongst the 2nd hand market. Titanium trim was originally the ‘poverty pack’ option.

Actually the strut brace is missing on the M3 because this is actually a Dec 01 car- missed having a brace by 3 months.

Haha! Great car! I had it offered twice and once @ $34k. Took it for a drive and the radiator blew. Took it as a bad omen!

I think you are referring to the example in Cosmos or Cirrus blue. Toy shop purchased it off a guy called Coventry who purchased it off Turners car auctions in the early 00’s. It was a nice car but suffered from being a UK car- it was rusty. It got semi- restored with a new paint job and had the all important timing chain replaced. It had about 120,000 miles and never got driven much after - and was always available for sale at the right price. To be fair, these are now 37-38 years old. They have been driven. There are like 3 examples with less than 125,000 km’s on the clock ( NZ new). The rest have all done -160-240,000 kms. There is one in the WBOP that has done like 320,000 kms! Hard to get get a really fresh example - and the low k examples have not been available for sale for 25 years plus. The M635csi’s were my first love- and selling my old example (number 312 /524) in Polaris silver was one of the saddest days in my life. I have a register of all the right hand cars made and am aware of most of the examples in NZ. If you want to track one one down, or need some info on a car in the future- please reach out!

I agree with you. Even the Australian market which for many years commanded premium prices (due to the fact they received only 2 new vehicles new out of the 524 made in rhd) has cooled off. For many years they found it compelling to import M635’s from NZ. That isn’t going to happen with these types of prices. Was that silver M6 the example In Auckland? Possibly my old car.

This car is one of the 20 or so that were exported to NZ, new in the 80’s. From about the late 90’s to the late 00’s they were marketed as a $30-$35k car. This one appeared for sale in Queenstown around 15 years ago for $30k. The market exploded for these internationally a few years ago, but the market has tapered off somewhat. Completely original, great condition, and in a rare colour. Worth $170k - in NZ???

Interesting how it is being marketed by a dealer from Christchurch. It was owned by the infamous Cantabrian eye doctor who’s associates brokered a deal to sell it to a car enthusiast from Auckland a few months ago. He in turn sold it to a friend of his in Auckland after a few weeks. Now up for sale again. The majority sold around the world were in Carbon black. However this is the only example in jet black known of the 35-40 sold in NZ new.

Funny you say that, I have seen this before on factory pipes, but this looks rather extreme!

Looks nice. I drove one when near new and it was epic. If you buy one with all the big-ticket expenses looked after, what’s not to like?

how do they sound?

Do you mean the instrument dial should be grey? It’s because this is a pre facelift. Has some changes to modernize the look (has the newer steering wheel etc) but not the instrument dial.

Huge issue in the US with flooded cars appearing for sale in different states. When I was looking for a E39 M5 came across a Philadelphia car that originated in Florida- and the price was compelling! Lemans Blau and the rare caramel leather. Lovely looking but had some suss looking stains on the the door skins. The PPI confirmed my suspicion- most likely water damaged.

I know these cars have appreciated. However, this has some issues with the paint and being an ex UK, probably has some issues with rust. Interior not properly presented. Additionally, with the price being asked let’s hope it’s had it’s all important timing chain replaced (should be onto its 2nd replacement by now). Mine cost me $4k to do 20 years ago, what would it cost now? For that money, I’d expect this to be a fine example with excellent provenance / historic maintenance.

Wow…. I never read this thread before. So it’s a ‘bitsa’. There are a few like this already in NZ- including a green one that Guido from BM workshop created from transplanting the running gear from a wrecked e34 M5. Personally, think you are playing big money here for a vehicle with murky provenance. It’s hard enough selling a left hand drive in NZ - but when the provenance / history is suss, hard to justify the value.

Hoping someone can enlighten me. Ran the vin and discovered that it is an early production E34 M5 that was built in late 1988. Additionally, the Vin indicates that she left the factory in black. So why now a 93’ and in blue? Arrived in Japan in 1993 and registered as a 93’, and at some point given a new colour? Either way (imho) a nice looking car!

Does anyone know who bought it?

The car market has gone berserk. This guy must have been influenced by the pricing of that M635csi for $170k currently. In my mind over $100k on the current market value. Same with this M5. Bizarre- “EAG like” prices in NZ (with more mileage too).