[MAMSport]

I owned a '94 Acura Integra GS-R when I started looking at E30 M3s again (kind of fell in love at introduction around '86-87 but was not in any position to acquire one). Bought one in 2000 before prices went upward, and I drove it home to MA in Feb. Scary driving through West Virginia mountains on summer tires with a bit of melted frost and 34* temps!

Around 2004, I moved into an E36 M3/4/5 and sold the Integra. Artic Silber over black leather, and I swapped the manual, sedan seat for a sport seat (aka Vader), did a few mods (shorty headers with tune, Bilsteins, Autosolutions SSK).

A few years later, I started looking at ZHPs for over a year but only found one Mystic over black sedan at a price I though was too high. A local reseller had a Carbon Black over black coupe with the SMG which he let me drive (even let me take it home for a night!). My needs for a sedan changed, so I widened my range of interesting vehicles. Given some of the potential issues, I decided to stay with a 6 speed. In Feb. 2009, I found an interesting E46 M3 through BMW CCA, flew to Indianapolis on St. Patrick's Day, liked it, and drove it home to Boston. Put the E36 up for sale, but for a brief spell, I had the E30, E36, and E46 M3s.

Topas Blau over black cloth was a rare combination, especially without the moonroof but power sport seats with lumbar. The seller, who was the original owner, told me he went to a Boston dealership with a helmet to see whether he would fit under a moonroof (he didn't), so he special ordered the car without one and with the cloth power seats for less sliding and maximum adjustability as well as xenon lights. While he intended to use it for autocrosses and maybe some HPDEs, his priorities changed when he and his wife had a son shortly after taking delivery. He told me he didn't get to accomplish his intended goals with the car, and after 7 years and only 45k miles, it was time to get a sedan for a car seat. I guess the local dealership didn't offer him much toward a new 335i, so he posted on the CCA website. Lucky me!

Even though I still refer to it as the best car I've owned, I decided to sell it when an interesting 128i came up. I didn't like the high level of maintenance nor the upkeep costs of the E46 M3 after a second round of rod bearings (PO had them done under the service action). Rear floor issues and VANOS cam concerns scared me into selling it.