[NB STIG]

BIMMERPOST / Classifieds

Asking Price:

USD 49,950.00

Item Interest

Hello Fellow Enthusiasts,

I am considering selling my 2005 BMW M3 E46 ZCP in Interlagos Blue and Dove Gray interior and SMG transmission. The car is in immaculate, museum quality (as told by everyone who has seen the car in person) with 88,9xx miles on the odometer. For the last two years, I have spent close to 18K and hundreds of labor hours to bring this car to new, showroom condition. The car is near perfect, and you won’t find a better one…The Carfax is clean with two owners (brother-in-law and me), but basically one family ownership.

Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price
Interlagos Blue Metallic
Gray Leather
Competition Package
Cold Weather Package
Heated Front Seats
Retractable Headlight Washers
Ski Bag
Premium Package
Power Glass Monroof Power Seats w/driver Memory
BMW Assist System & Services
Nappa Lleather Upholstery
Park Distance Control
Xenon Headlights
Navigation System
Harman-kardon Sound System
Sequential Manual Gearbox
MSRP: $63,095

The story of this car began when my brother-in-law ordered and purchased the car new in 2005. The car lived since new in my brother-in-law’s garage in Hollywood Hills. The car has just about every option available and is one of the best-equipped, highly optioned M3 cars out there (take a look at the original window sticker of $63,095). During his ownership and care, the car was driven 80K miles and was fully cared for. He loved this car and maintained it with an open heart and wallet. The car has a full history of maintenance and repairs. During COVID, he had to start working at home and converted his garage into an office. The M3 had to be parked outside in his driveway under a cover. Unfortunately, the heat, dust, and the dirty cover started to take the clear coat off the hood and roof and started to degrade the exterior rubber parts. He stopped driving the car except for a weekly drive to keep everything in good working order.

My son, who loved the car the moment he saw it a few years ago, convinced me to purchase the car from my brother-in-law. The plan was for my son and me to restore the car to new condition and give it to him once he graduated from Berkeley this year. My son has accepted a position in San Francisco, and he won’t be able to care for the car as it should, thus the reason we are considering selling the car. The most fun for me was the process to restore the car. Now that the care is perfect, I don’t have much to do. This amazing car should be kept in a garage and owned by someone who has the funds and passion to keep the car in the condition it is currently.

In April 2023, we convinced my brother-in-law to sell us the car, and we started the journey to restore the car in new condition at 80K miles. We have receipts close to 18K for maintenance, cosmetic upgrades, paint, upholstery, tinting, ceramic coating, ice cleaning, etc., and hundreds of hours of free labor to install, clean, and maintain the car. It took about a year to complete all the upgrades, reconditioning, and now we have one of the best examples out there. The car has about 88,9xxx miles as we speak.

The car was always in perfect running and cosmetic condition. It’s a 10 of a 10 inside and out. Most of the reconditioning was cosmetic and making sure every part, bolt and grommet was OEM and in the right place. I hired a few experts to perform the upholstery, paint, dry ice cleaning, and mechanical/suspension refreshment. We replaced every worn-out interior and exterior part and rubber inside and out. I made sure everything worked as it should and upgraded the areas I thought it would bring the car to the next level, like installing real Alcantara 9002 in the headliner and pillars, rear shelf, custom steering wheel with upgraded paddles, SMG lever, and hand brake, all with real Alcantara 9002 to match. We replaced all the worn areas of the driver seat and armrest with real OEM leather for a perfect match. All glass is OEM.

The car comes with all the history, receipts, books, keys, CDs, window sticker, tools, keychain, etc., that came with the car. Everything is there; there is nothing missing. This is definitely a collector’s car that can be driven and enjoyed. I have never owned a car that gets so much attention everywhere it goes. It is not only the amazing Interlagos Blue color but also the condition of the car. People can’t believe the car is 20 years old. The car lives in my garage in South OC, and it gets driven on the weekends mostly to cars and coffee shows and fun drives.

If I were to sell the car, I probably would be asking $49K O.B.O. This is basically the cost of the car and all the receipts for the car since 2023. That does not include the hundreds of hours we have lovingly invested in the car to make it what it is today.

Now, let me give you a quick rundown of what we have done since our ownership. We professionally re-painted the front bumper, hood, roof, mirrors, and side fenders. We also had a few plastic parts re-painted in gloss black for a more custom, upscale look (bumper grill, hood grill, fog lights covers, and window trim). We also repaired all and any dents. We re-painted all OEM ZCP wheels and replaced M stickers and center caps. We reupholstered with real Alcantara 9002 the headliner, rear shelve, pillars, visors, steering wheel, SMG lever, and hand brake. We reupholstered the front driver seat, armrest, and door armrests with new OEM leather to match. We dried-iced and cleaned the underside of the car. We did a paint correction to the entire car and ceramic coated all surfaces. The car was professionally detailed inside and out to new condition. We hired European Auto Source (EAS) to go over the entire underside of the car and replace all the rear subframe bushings, differential, and rear suspension with street poly bushings for better feel and traction. All the differential seals and pinion seal were replaced, the driveshaft center support bearing, and the flex disk were replaced with OEM parts. The shaft seals were also replaced. The transmission and differential fluids were replaced, and the drain plugs were also replaced. The subframe was inspected during this time when all the components were removed, and the subframe showed no signs of cracking or stress. As you probably know, the later models like this one had different factory welds/reinforcements in the rear subframe that make these late models more durable and trouble-free. We also had all the belts replaced. We replaced the exhaust hangers with poly ones for lifetime durability. We fully flushed the radiator and engine block and replaced the OEM fluid and thermostat. We treated the fuel system and replaced the fuel filter. We replaced the cabin filter and air filter. We replaced windshield wiper arms and wipers with new OEM parts. We replaced all the floor mats and trunk mat with new OEM parts. We replaced all the BMW emblems and badges with new OEM parts. We replaced the headlights covers, parking lights, and side markers with new OEM parts, and those were PPF. We added LED Angel Lights for daytime visibility. We replaced the navigation screen and PFF. We added Bluebus with perfect Bluetooth audio, hand-free phone use, and auto lock and unlock doors. We replaced all the underside plastic panels that were not in perfect condition. We replaced 3 dented exhaust tips with OEM tips. All exterior rubber pieces and plastics were replaced with OEM parts. All old/worn-out bolts, grommets, holders, etc., were replaced with new parts. We changed the oil with BMW OEM oil twice and will do it again in the next week or so. The oil is always clean and free of any metal shavings. We have not done the rod bearings yet as it is not needed on the newer models since they used different rod bearings. I was planning to replace those once the car hits 100K miles as a precaution only, but unless you treat the car very badly, you should not need to replace them for a while. EAS also did the CSL SMG software upgrade. Huge difference and makes the transmission the same as an F1 transmission. We replaced any interior parts that were worn out or broken with OEM parts. We flushed and replaced the brake fluid, SMG hydraulic fluid, and steering wheel fluids with OEM fluids. We cleaned the intakes and the ICV valve. We replaced all the sensors (crankshaft, temp, coolant, oil, camshaft, etc.) in the engine with OEM parts. We replaced all the hoses/vents that were old or cracked. We replaced the front control arms. We also installed a 35% ceramic tint all around to protect the interior, including the windshield. I am sure there are a lot more things we have replaced/served that I can’t remember right now. However, rest assured that the car is mechanically, structurally, and cosmetically sound and needs nothing.

During my brother-in-law’s ownership, he had the VANOS redone and rebuilt. Several parts were replaced during that service, totaling over $ 4.5k. This service happened at 75K miles. All the ZCP brakes were replaced with OEM parts. The airbags were replaced, the rear mirror was replaced, and a few more minor issues were taken care of. I have the whole history in receipts and documentation.

If you are a serious buyer and truly interested in this car, I will be happy to answer any questions and provide you with any additional documentation, pictures, or video.