Old E92 owner looking to rejoin the family

Hey all,

New to the forums. I used to drive a 2011 Jerez Black E92 M3 and over the past couple years I've been longing badly to seat my ass back in the saddle. I kick myself nearly everyday for not keeping that thing (it was a 2.5 year lease). One of my longterm goals in life is to own an M3 from every era. I've been patiently monitoring these markets and feel like I have an OK sense on pricing. My biggest downfall in this search is that I am not savvy at all when it comes to cars, mechanically, or in general really.

I came across an '09 E92 that caught my eye. I may bring unwanted attention to the bidding, but I much rather prefer the invaluable advice from this board. As far as my eye can tell, this is rather good condition and mileage. And the fact that it is local makes it more appealing as I won't have to expense the shipping costs.

I was hoping the good folks here could guide me as I throw my hat in the ring. When viewing the pictures and information, is there something my untrained eye might not pick up on? (red flags). As far as pricing, in your opinion, what is a steal here? What is a fair price? What is an overpay?

I appreciate anyone who takes the time to read my story and provide insight on the situation. Looking forward to getting acquainted here as I hope to rejoin the family.

Thank you all

Well, the BaT post is long and of course they mentioned that rod bearings were replaced at the very bottom. That's the biggest issue to look out for so it's good to know they're done.

Others may disagree, but personally I steer clear of modified cars unless I can confirm it wasn't tracked or abused. Of course, once I get the car the mods quickly follow but at least I know everything is on the up and up that way.

Other things that I'm sure others will mention is that an 09 uses old Idrive, and prefacelift tail lights. Not a major thing but many do prefer the look of the newer lights and additional capabilities of the newer Idrive system.

Given the current market the price is hard to beat, but no way of knowing how high it will go before selling.

My '09 has CIC idrive late March build.

Asianoak wrote

Well, the BaT post is long and of course they mentioned that rod bearings were replaced at the very bottom. That's the biggest issue to look out for so it's good to know they're done.

Others may disagree, but personally I steer clear of modified cars unless I can confirm it wasn't tracked or abused. Of course, once I get the car the mods quickly follow but at least I know everything is on the up and up that way.

Other things that I'm sure others will mention is that an 09 uses old Idrive, and prefacelift tail lights. Not a major thing but many do prefer the look of the newer lights and additional capabilities of the newer Idrive system.

Given the current market the price is hard to beat, but no way of knowing how high it will go before selling.

Only 08s were CCC (old Idrive) - you can see on the BaT listing that this car has CIC.

Car looks pretty clean and decent to me, OP.

Throttle Actuators have not been done according to the comments section. Expect to pay ~$1K+ for new (rebuilt) T.A.s and $300+ for installation. Something about the mods and Cup 2s makes me think this car has been driven pretty hard. This is supported also by the photos of the front and rear rotors which show grooves.
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The mileage is low(ish) for a 2009 car but I believe there are better ones out there which may not have been beat on as much. Just my 2 cents.

^^^

Very good chance that car was tracked. Those are very lightweight 18's which are typically bought or used for the track. Add the tires and the rotor condition I'd say 90%+ sure this was tracked. How much who knows but I wouldn't touch it personally.

lagunablue1 wrote

Only 08s were CCC (old Idrive) - you can see on the BaT listing that this car has CIC.

Car looks pretty clean and decent to me, OP.

I was thinking more along the lines of Bluetooth audio but yes... It would have CIC

Just wanted to express my appreciation for everyone that has commented and offered their advice and opinions. Your knowledge is invaluable to someone like me and I will keep learning from this community on my pursuit. Thank you everyone!

edit: And as far as iDrive goes, the car wouldn't be a daily driver for me so whichever version of iDrive it comes with won't be too much of a concern. I'm a basic guy in that I use my phone for GPS and just use FM radio while I drive. None of that fancy carplay/apple play stuff.

Glad to be of assistance.
I'll tell you what though... I said the same thing when I bought mine. I put less than 5000 a year on it and music/GPS etc wasn't a priority at all at the time. Now though.... I wish I'd at least gotten a 2011.5 with audio streaming. When I do take it on a long drive it would be nice to have the safety of changing tracks from the steering wheel rather than taking my eyes off the road to change it on the phone. However, I'm in the PNW where radio is terrible in the mountains and deer are around every corner so I might not care if I lived in another area.

DrFerry wrote

Throttle Actuators have not been done according to the comments section. Expect to pay ~$1K+ for new (rebuilt) T.A.s and $300+ for installation. Something about the mods and Cup 2s makes me think this car has been driven pretty hard. This is supported also by the photos of the front and rear rotors which show grooves.
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The mileage is low(ish) for a 2009 car but I believe there are better ones out there which may not have been beat on as much. Just my 2 cents.

Good catch! Can even see the lips on the rotors.

OP, nothing complicated but expensive(!), so better calculate with new rotors/pads.

Doing some research on throttle actuators. Seems like this is something all V8 M3's will have to replace/fix at some point in their lives. Luckily I found a nice DIY guide from this board that was posted in 2012. Not that I am gifted enough to do it myself, but at least I have some reading material to familiarize myself with that aspect of the car. Had never even heard of a throttle actuator before this, so that helps a lot!

And regarding the potential of this car being driven hard at the track, I got some insight from the seller; car had been geared to be tracked, but only taken once. Of course we don't know the extent of the track session, but it definitely helps knowing it was only tracked once. I trust the word of the seller, they are a prestigious and well-known autoclub here in SoCal.

Asianoak Thanks for your perspective regarding iDrive! I'm down here in SoCal so the extent of my drives are usually traffic filled snoozefests haha. I don't imagine I'd put more than 2000 miles in a year on this car, but who knows. I'm sure once I'm back in the saddle I'll probably be wanting to drive it more than I anticipated.

That looks clean but a few things to note. It has KW Clubsports which are more track focused suspension, good quality kit so no expense spared on this car but something to consider if you’re primarily street driving.

As far as tracking goes, those tires don’t have any track events on them, you would easily be able to tell if they did. Tracking is also not that big of a deal, I would rather have a well maintained, loved car that’s been on track a couple of times vs a neglected daily driver that hasn’t been warmed up properly etc. I wouldn’t worry about the track thing too much, these cars are made to be driven once warmed up and maintained properly.

GeorgeA Thanks for the perspective George! In your opinion, what is the biggest takeaway from the OEM suspension versus the KW suspension for someone like me who will only be driving this on the streets/highway? Less comfort?

With what the seller mentioned about it being only tracked once and the overall condition of all the parts + everyone's opinion and advice, I think the biggest thing that sticks out is just having to replace the throttle actuators. That will come at a cost of 1k-2k depending on some factors. But I also get to save on the car since I won't need it to be shipped! But then again, there is a 5% auction fee if I were to win, so a nice balancing act going on 😂

e92orbust wrote

Doing some research on throttle actuators. Seems like this is something all V8 M3's will have to replace/fix at some point in their lives. Luckily I found a nice DIY guide from this board that was posted in 2012. Not that I am gifted enough to do it myself, but at least I have some reading material to familiarize myself with that aspect of the car. Had never even heard of a throttle actuator before this, so that helps a lot!

And regarding the potential of this car being driven hard at the track, I got some insight from the seller; car had been geared to be tracked, but only taken once. Of course we don't know the extent of the track session, but it definitely helps knowing it was only tracked once. I trust the word of the seller, they are a prestigious and well-known autoclub here in SoCal.

Asianoak Thanks for your perspective regarding iDrive! I'm down here in SoCal so the extent of my drives are usually traffic filled snoozefests haha. I don't imagine I'd put more than 2000 miles in a year on this car, but who knows. I'm sure once I'm back in the saddle I'll probably be wanting to drive it more than I anticipated.

Here's a few informative (and mature) threads about T.A.s. See the links below. They're worth a read as a sort of "all you need to know" about T.As..
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https://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1068709
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https://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1234084
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Then there's the helpful "For New Owners - What I wish I knew when I first bought my E9X M3:"
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https://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1418410
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These are a portion of the Cliff-Notes regarding E9X M3 ownership. Enjoy.

GeorgeA wrote

That looks clean but a few things to note. It has KW Clubsports which are more track focused suspension, good quality kit so no expense spared on this car but something to consider if you’re primarily street driving.

As far as tracking goes, those tires don’t have any track events on them, you would easily be able to tell if they did. Tracking is also not that big of a deal, I would rather have a well maintained, loved car that’s been on track a couple of times vs a neglected daily driver that hasn’t been warmed up properly etc. I wouldn’t worry about the track thing too much, these cars are made to be driven once warmed up and maintained properly.

Spot on.

Track cars are maintained cars.

I've never had a more reliable BMW than the one I track.

I drive with clubsports on the street, definitely stiffer but nothing that bothers me

wheezyF wrote

I drive with clubsports on the street, definitely stiffer but nothing that bothers me

Same. You can drop them to 9-10 from full stiff on compression and it won't be so bone jarring.

Find a local car that you can check out and buy. Sounds you have time to spare for the purchase……get exactly what you want, cosmetic mods are ok as long as they are reversible. Engine mods I would stay away from.

This post reinforces that I should hold on to my 2009 M3

Ab28 wrote

Spot on.

Track cars are maintained cars.

I've never had a more reliable BMW than the one I track.

I'm with you here. These cars are meant to be driven and taken to redline when warmed up, not babied. I don't think it's hurting the car to drive it hard, as long as it's warmed up first and well maintained.

Anyone surprised with the winning bid for the one the op linked on BAT? Seems like a strong price for the spec.