Test drove a Salvage Title 2003 M3 - Feedback..

[Mtgman]

Here's the ad for the car I drove. It's a salvage title and the owner claims due to vandalism. It's carbon black with black interior, 6spd, 19" OEM forged alloys. I'm OK with owning a salvaged title car that wasn't crashed and totaled or in a fire or flood. You buy it for less and sell it for less. I have cash so financing won't be an issue. I would feel less guitly about tracking a car like this versus a well maintained creampuff. In CA, a 2003 M3 6spd with decent mileage is going for around $25K. I can probably get this car for $15K, but haven't officially made an offer yet. I'll post some pics of the car later today.

HERE'S THE AD:

You are looking at a flawless 2003 M3 with 64k on it. The interior is in excellent condition, nonsmoker. The car runs exceptionally, I have not had any problems with it whatsoever. The car has a manual transmission, it shifts very smoothly.I dont really want to sell it, as it is a nice car but I hardly ever drive because it is a pain to use the baby seat with it. The car has a salvage title, when I bought it, it was involved in vandalism. The car was keyed, glass was broken, and dented on the hood, quarter panels and bumpers. I had the car professionally repaired and painted with a fresh coat of BMW Metallic dark blue. As you can see in the pictures the car is clean inside and out.

[CRXnut]

if the guy provides pics of the damage and carfax matches his story then sure, go for it

[WHITEXi]

Run a carfax, and that will say exactly why it was totaled and salvaged. It sounds farfeteched to me as to that being the true reason but depending on if it was just dents or caved in panels I cant see that adding up to near 75% of the total value of a 64k mile 03 M3 to then total it out.

[Mtgman]

I test drive the car for about 20 minutes. I switched off traction control and hammered the car a bit. The engine, clutch, brakes, handling and allignment all felt good. On the drive, I ran through 1st and 2nd gear all the way up to the limiter and pulled 3rd through most of the rpm range. Got up to about 115 (open road, no cars) and no drama. Slammed on the binders bringing the car back down to 40- no drama everything seems to be in working order. All windows and sunroof work. All lights work. AC works, navi works. Coolant temp seemed normal. It seems mechanically right and pulls strong when revved (unlike the 01 I test drove a few months back).

Here are 2 pics of the exterior. The interior was clean with no major wear.


OK having trouble with the pics............let me try again.

[Mtgman]

Here are the pics.....

[Mtgman]

The seller is cool with me having a prepurchase inspection done at my expense. I figured that would be money well spent given the nature of the S54 motor. The other draw back is there is very little documentation with the car. So the past ownership and care to the car is unknown. But then again, if the car checks out mechanically and there's no sign of major body damage, what more should I expect for around $15K?

I have the VIN; can anyone run a check for me?

[sockethead]

The seller is cool with me having a prepurchase inspection done at my expense. I figured that would be money well spent given the nature of the S54 motor. The other draw back is there is very little documentation with the car. So the past ownership and care to the car is unknown. But then again, if the car checks out mechanically and there's no sign of major body damage, what more should I expect for around $15K?

I have the VIN; can anyone run a check for me?

You'll have to pay for your own carfax, you're not allowed to post asking someone for this.
You should be able to call the dealer and have them run a maint. history on the car.
Make sure your insurance company will insure it. Some companies won't insure cars with salvage titles

[Mstearnsy]

Given the history of salvage/theft, whatever it was, if there is little documentation then don't go anywhere near it.

[Mtgman]

You'll have to pay for your own carfax, you're not allowed to post asking someone for this.
You should be able to call the dealer and have them run a maint. history on the car.
Make sure your insurance company will insure it. Some companies won't insure cars with salvage titles

I'll check with my dealer and insurance company tomorrow. Thanks for the info.

[ThEnder]

The seller is cool with me having a prepurchase inspection done at my expense. I figured that would be money well spent given the nature of the S54 motor. The other draw back is there is very little documentation with the car. So the past ownership and care to the car is unknown. But then again, if the car checks out mechanically and there's no sign of major body damage, what more should I expect for around $15K?

a PPI will be the best $150 you can spend on that car, especially given its sketchy history.

[Mtgman]

At was point was the rod bearing no longer an issue? I can always offer less and see what happens. It will depend on the findings of the PPI.

The paint looked pretty good for a repaint. I did notice a few areas of overspray, but nothing that was too obvious. It's a decent paint job and the color looks factory. The original paint was carbon black according to the sticker on the shock tower in the engine compartment.

Before looking at this car, I was mainly looking at '03 and '04 Z4s w/ 3.0 6spd sports pkg. The M3 is a better overall package. Seats four, more power, fold down rear seats (I can throw my bike in this car!) and more fun factor. Coming from an E36 M3, this seems like a more logical progression. I have the funds to buy a non-salvage M3, even a new M3. I have a hard time justifying spending a lot on a car that will not get driven that much. I do much of my work from home, so even my daily driver (E90) will sit for 2 or 3 days at a time. I'm OK with a car that isn't perfect. Recently, I began exploring picking up a high mileage E30 M3 and doing the S52 swap. The budget do that can vary a lot and I've never done an engine swap. Prices on E30 M3s seem to hover around $15K or more, but they are coming more rare and hard to find.

[Forrer330]

Some parts are a good bit more expensive for the M3
Compare water pump prices on www.pelicanparts.com

$69 for a metal impeller water pump for a NON M3 E46, and $635 for a M3 pump...

[Smilez]

wow --^ didn't know parts cost that much more.

[ChuckDizzle]

a PPI will be the best $150 you can spend on that car, especially given its sketchy history.

+1. CarFax and PPI

[Mtgman]

Totaled by an insurance company back in August '05. A flood vehicle should not need to be repainted. The interior looked great and I saw no obvious signs of flood damage. I'm going to see if I can get more info from the seller. I'll keep you guys posted.

[PK330iZHP]

flood... FTL

[Mstearnsy]

Talk about super sketchy. Why would you even bother speaking to the seller again? He has proven to be very dishonest so far. Flood cars are pretty much the worst you can buy yet he says it was simply vandalized.

[WHITEXi]

I knew that it was way more than a vandalism. I was told that if the water touches the seats and carpet it gets new seats and carpet. It needs to touch the dashboard and above parts for the insurance companty to total it out.

[huggybear]

befriend somebody w/ a dealer/auction license. my buddy's friend picked up an '05 with under 30k miles on it for $17k at an auction. car was still under warranty.

[Mtgman]

befriend somebody w/ a dealer/auction license. my buddy's friend picked up an '05 with under 30k miles on it for $17k at an auction. car was still under warranty.

Was it a clean title?

[huggybear]

yes; clean title. one of my other friends up in the bay area got an '02 w/ average miles on it for $18k. These deals are around but you just have to look for them. good luck. I was thinking about getting into one as well; just need the extra garage space. hehe.

[DamSutt1986]

He didn't say it was a flood damage. I think he was saying he's assuming it's not, since flooding wouldn't cause a car to be repainted. Good luck with it, if you're getting it for $10k less than book... I'd say do it and as long as you put less than $10k into it to make it suitable for you, then you're ahead.

[sockethead]

wow --^ didn't know parts cost that much more.

Yea, it's ridiculus. The alternator is like $600... you know it's probably the same thing with a different pulley on it or something

flood... FTL

Yea just think of all those electrical connections, relays, modules etc touched by water.

[Mtgman]

The seller sent me these pics from when he purchased the car. The damage in the photos is not what caused the salvage. Carfax stated flood damage was the total loss.

[Mstearnsy]

He didn't say it was a flood damage. I think he was saying he's assuming it's not, since flooding wouldn't cause a car to be repainted. Good luck with it, if you're getting it for $10k less than book... I'd say do it and as long as you put less than $10k into it to make it suitable for you, then you're ahead.

Yes he is, this
CARFAX shows Total Loss due to flood damage
was the title heading of that post.