JohnM575

Yes I've been impressed so far; the extra torque over the M54B25 is a nice addition. Can't wait to see what the Koni's will do for the ride too.

I originally missed out on buying this Touring when it came up for sale in October (and settled for this instead). It sold within a couple of hours of it being listed on Trademe to a friend of the seller, despite the seller promising me the car was mine after I had negotiated to buy it sight unseen... To my surprise it came back up for sale on Trademe just before Christmas. Once again I pounced, and this time I was successful in acquiring it. So, the car: NZ New E46 330i Motorsport Touring (1 of 4 NZ New examples so I am told). Sapphire Black. 207km. Facelift. Leather electric seats. No mods other than the TSW Valencia wheels (great fitment but not my taste...will be changed in due course). The seller had mentioned that the shocks were due for replacement, and this was confirmed on the first Auckland to Coromandel drive over the new year break. Compared to my lower km E46 325i MSport, the car lacked dampening and felt considerably harsher (partially due to the 18" wheel/tyre combination). A set of adjustable Koni Sport shocks have been ordered to tighten things up and provide rebound adjustability if and when so desired. After that, a set of Style 68's or other OEM BMW wheels will replace the TSW's. Cosmetically the car is in great condition given the mileage. I have started a deep leather clean and condition on the interior (Pears soap method) which is lifting an unbelievable amount of grime from the leather. A time consuming process, but ultimately worth it!

Yes I recall that one - appeared to be tidy and original, pre-facelift, and had a tow ball fitted which was odd for an M3. And yes it sold for $32,XXX from memory.

That M3 appears to have sold pending payment.

@Michael. Care to share what page the commentary about the ad is on? Has certification been confirmed with all the mods including those post-Ray's ownership? Depends when the most recent cert was issued I guess. Could be costly if the cert isn't inclusive of all those mods listed on the ad. It will be interesting to see how quickly this gets snaffled up; given the uniqueness I wouldn't be surprised about there being offshore interest.

Thought that was the case. Got my hopes up for a second!

@qube are you saying there's another way around paying the $369 to 'redesign' your government issue plate as set out on their website?

3...Sport . Picked this up on Trademe a couple of weeks back sight unseen, and flew down to Tauranga on the weekend to pick it up. 2003 E46 325i MSport Individual - NZ New, 161km, auto, facelift, leather. Has a near full Coombes Johnston BMW service history from new. Ticked the boxes for what I was after for a daily driver. Given the overall condition of the car there are no plans other than replacing a few little cosmetic items (faded emblems, wiper blades etc), and a paint correction/protection in due course. Got stuck in yesterday tidying it up inside and out and she came up okay!

As per title, I am after a E46 325i/330i sedan or wagon. Basic requirements: NZ New with comprehensive or full service history. Full MSport kit. Auto. Stock (or close to it). Ideally <160,000km, but would budge for the right example. Unfortunately I missed out on one last week that ticked all the boxes, hence I am still on the look. Cheers.

This example has sat on Trademe for what seems like the past 18-24 months without selling. No VIN or plate on auction...K's seem suspicious as personally I don't think the photos reflect a 45,000km car (or at least someone who has properly cared for it over the claimed '45,000km'). My 2c? Tasteless mods, import, lack of service history, potentially troublesome SMG = overpriced. There are plenty of other M3's that will come up for sale at or around $27,000 that will be far better value for money.

Congrats, I was following this car also. What areas require TLC just out of interest?

Yikes, what happened to the shifter @sweetm3?

I can't find a definitive answer, but BMW Ferric Grey looks close. How bad are the chips? I recently had my Style 67's refurbished by Wheelfixit. They diamond cut the face, and re-cleared the inserts. I thought the inserts needed repainting, however once stripped back and re-cleared they look like new.

Sold.

Selling my RTD Short Shifter (non-locking 'mini' lever version). Anodized black. Essentially in brand new condition, but was installed for a handful of drives. Fits E30/E36/E46/E82 BMW's. Mounts to the OEM tunnel's holes (No need for drilling). Shift knob can be unscrewed and standard 'press fit' OEM BMW knobs can be installed to the lever without modification. Pickup Central Auckland, or happy to ship at buyers expense. Video of RTD Shifter in an E46 M3 SOLD.

For an M3? Or Non-M? I have one available in Silver Grey.

Was just having a laugh given the paddles are still there. Good luck with the sale!

Very rare SMG with stick shift option

Awesome to see you add to the fleet Tom! Looking forward to see where this is heading.

http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/bmw/auction-1187906407.htm This is one of the lowest km hardtops I've seen for sale in some time. No modifications too which making it quite appealing to the purists out there. Looks like a very tidy example. Just not the most desirable colour (Titanium Silver) in my opinion...$36k-$38k and you would think this would move hands reasonably quickly?

Still looks the business mate. Got any ideas on what direction you want to head with the car, or planning on leaving it as-is for the moment?

Having recently purchased a set of OEM 19 rears for my M3 (thanks Brent BMWorld), I put on my square OEM 19" wheel set. Hard to come by these wheels, but it was well worth the wait. Fills out the front guards like they should have from factory.

Great to see you found the M3 you were after. Certainly has saved you some $$$ and time with the mods done to it so far. Is that bootlid really a genuine CSL bootlid? The photos give me the impression it might be aftermarket - the aftermarket examples all have pretty poor fitment, most often given away by the gap at the bottom of the bootlid. This can be dependent on how well the boot was originally fitted too... Your gap just looks a little larger than what genuine CSL's have. A shame you didn't have this a few weeks back when the E46 M3 dyno day was on!

I agree. $30k is probably realistic. Pros: 100km (on the lower end of k's in the E46 M3 market). Topaz Blue. Body appears to be tidy. Three pedals + Rogue short shifter (OEM shifter is junk). Cons: Ex-Singapore. 20" aftermarket wheels . No mention of Inspection II being completed, or major service in the last 15,000km . Pre-facelift (mainly cosmetic items), and rod bearing issue if not already addressed. The subframe issue is something I would only really be concerned about if it was on coilovers or aftermarket springs, and/or was SMG. If the PPI gives the all-clear then just keep an eye on it, or foam reinforce it before it begins to crack.

That's mine. It was Tom's (M3_Power) from brand new. Those are the stock 18's. I have two sets of the stock 18's so I can run a square setup to fill out the front guards a little better, and have a full set of the 19's plus a set of the rears (thanks Brent), so I can run those square if I want too.