An interesting but touching email

[BMRLVR]

I got an interesting email a little while ago that I want to share with you guys.

The email came from the person who bought my written off 2009 E90 M3. He bought the car from a wholesaler in Montreal in September of 2009, proceeded to fix it and is currently driving it and it looks great.

The cool part about all of this is that the new owner took the time to track me down and let me know that he has my old car and it is repaired and he loves it. This goes to show what a good group of enthusiasts M3 owners are. I have made lifelong friends across Canada and the US as a result of this common bond we all have...... Cars, more specifically BMW's.

Here is the original text of the email and the photos of the car before, during and after the repairs:

Good evening Jamie,

I got your email address via Gustav from MBoard.com. I live in Québec City and I’m the new owner of your former BMW M3 E90 2009 that you had an accident summer 2009. I bought this car as is in Montréal from a whole seller last November (5401Km). It took all winter long to get repair with brand new OEM parts and the result is awesome. I drive the car since June and I got over then 12 000 on speedometer. I really love the car and it run like new. I’ve seen some pictures of your new IND E90 2010 (http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/e90...moonstone.html) and it look very sexy. Do you like the sound of this exhaust?

See attached some pictures before and after the repair on my E90. Please feel free to reply me anytime!

Bye!

Louis Larue

[needspeed]

Very cool.....It is interesting that the car could be put back together for a cost that makes sense. But good for him and for you.......Steve

[GOLFFRR]

pretty cool but kinda of random at the same time. I wonder how much all that cost him. looks great though he did a great job on the project

[Crazy Bimmer]

Very cool!

Same thing happened to me many years ago. Totaled my 330ci and ended up getting a phone call few months later. It was a kid who bought my car at auction and was in the mist if repairing it. He found my cell number on one of the invoices from a tint job under the seat. He didnt call much after that though.

From what i heard from local friends that they kept seeing my old car around a college near by. It looked identical to mine, down to every mod. So i was glad someone else was able to enjoy her like i did.

Still wouldnt want to be in an accident with a car that was already wrecked that badly.

[joelk]

That's awesome. Thanks for sharing.

[Jaypod]

That's pretty cool Jamie - Glad to see someone restored the old car and touched base with you to let you know!!

[gthal]

Great story Jamie.

[cmk227]

Good post. We all luv our M and it nice that others feel the same way.

[BMRLVR]

Originally Posted by needspeed

Very cool.....It is interesting that the car could be put back together for a cost that makes sense. But good for him and for you.......Steve

Since the car only had 5401KM on it and it was about 93K MSRP a person could spend a lot of money and still get a good deal.

Originally Posted by GOLFFRR

pretty cool but kinda of random at the same time. I wonder how much all that cost him. looks great though he did a great job on the project

I don't know but I expect that he spent at least $40-50K Canadian to repair it.

Originally Posted by Crazy Bimmer

Very cool!

Same thing happened to me many years ago. Totaled my 330ci and ended up getting a phone call few months later. It was a kid who bought my car at auction and was in the mist if repairing it. He found my cell number on one of the invoices from a tint job under the seat. He didnt call much after that though.

From what i heard from local friends that they kept seeing my old car around a college near by. It looked identical to mine, down to every mod. So i was glad someone else was able to enjoy her like i did.

Still wouldnt want to be in an accident with a car that was already wrecked that badly.

The nice thing about Louis is that he has stayed in touch and even invited me to come and visit if I am ever in Quebec City!

Originally Posted by joelk

That's awesome. Thanks for sharing.

Originally Posted by Jaypod

That's pretty cool Jamie - Glad to see someone restored the old car and touched base with you to let you know!!

I thought it was pretty cool myself!

[BCA]

That is very cool! Thanks for posting. Looks like he spent a ton on the repairs, and I'm sure it still isn't perfect, but it's a great story nonetheless. It's definitely still a great car and it sounds like he loves it, so that's what matters.

I wrecked my 1997 Chevy Z71 pickup (not my fault) in June 1998 when it was a year old. The body shop spent a month repairing it and when I went to pick it up, I noticed signs of frame damage (things just didn't line up correctly). It was then totaled and I ended up with a new one. I don't have a story like yours to tell but I have always wondered what happened to that truck because it surely made it back out onto the road.

[BMRLVR]

Originally Posted by BCA

That is very cool! Thanks for posting. Looks like he spent a ton on the repairs, and I'm sure it still isn't perfect, but it's a great story nonetheless. It's definitely still a great car and it sounds like he loves it, so that's what matters.

I wrecked my 1997 Chevy Z71 pickup (not my fault) in June 1998 when it was a year old. The body shop spent a month repairing it and when I went to pick it up, I noticed signs of frame damage (things just didn't line up correctly). It was then totaled and I ended up with a new one. I don't have a story like yours to tell but I have always wondered what happened to that truck because it surely made it back out onto the road.

A good shop would not let a car out unless it could be made as good as new. I saw some pretty smashed up machines made perfect by IND/A&L autobody when I was there this past summer.

If the shop did a good job on my old car it could be as good as new however not all shops are created equal. The new owner didn't seem to spare expense on the repair so it is probably a good repair job. I think what happened with your old truck is that the shop just wanted it out the door and weren't concerned with the final product and that happens a lot of time with insurance repairs. One thing going for my old car is that the new owner paid for a the repair and he didn't have to deal with insurance companies trying to nickel and dime on the repair.

[Prince_of_Persia]

That's sick man!! I found a lot of good friends because of my car as well. Although they say M3 drivers have no friends lol

[Gkap]

absolutely awesome that the new owner tracked you down!
you must of been shocked when you saw the email .

I too have met and become friends with some very genuine people
through the car scene.

[Mark's M]

Great post, great story...nice to see something so special as your first M come back to life!!

[BMRLVR]

Originally Posted by Prince_of_Persia

That's sick man!! I found a lot of good friends because of my car as well. Although they say M3 drivers have no friends lol

Apparently M3 drivers' only friends are other M3 drivers

[BCA]

Originally Posted by BMRLVR

A good shop would not let a car out unless it could be made as good as new. I saw some pretty smashed up machines made perfect by IND/A&L autobody when I was there this past summer.

If the shop did a good job on my old car it could be as good as new however not all shops are created equal. The new owner didn't seem to spare expense on the repair so it is probably a good repair job. I think what happened with your old truck is that the shop just wanted it out the door and weren't concerned with the final product and that happens a lot of time with insurance repairs. One thing going for my old car is that the new owner paid for a the repair and he didn't have to deal with insurance companies trying to nickel and dime on the repair.

Yep, there are definitely some good shops out there.

Not to thread jack, but you're right about the insurance companies. There was a bit more to it in my case: my service advisor was familiar with my truck as it had been in several times in its short life (it was a Chevy after all ) and he knew that I took really good care of it. One of the final steps in the repair process was that the body shop sent it over to the service dept for an alignment. It clearly wasn't ready for just an "alignment" because there were still suspension parts bent. My SA raised heck about it and ended up getting fired. There probably was more to the story but I do know that he went to bat for me and knew that the repairs that had been done were incomplete. Undoubtedly the fault of the insurance company more than the body shop, though...

Originally Posted by BMRLVR

Apparently M3 drivers' only friends are other M3 drivers

Sounds about right

[JohnnyRoaster]

They did a great job on the repairs. Dare I say it almost looks like the paint is better looking than the factory with zero orange peel. I love moonstone and wish I had gone with it despite the cost.

[BMRLVR]

Originally Posted by JohnnyRoaster

They did a great job on the repairs. Dare I say it almost looks like the paint is better looking than the factory with zero orange peel. I love moonstone and wish I had gone with it despite the cost.

It certainly does look like they did a great job!!!

One thing to note though, Individual paint is always flatter than standard BMW colors. I am not sure why this is but I have noticed this many times when comparing the two. The Paint on both the 09 and my 11 M3 was really nice right from the factory, granted many shops can put paint on even better than OEM.

[OC3]

Great story

[jonasaurus]

Nice one! At least it all worked for him!

[TheDealer]

Sick houses. Lol. Cool story .

[Brosef]

awesome story. I've always kept an eye out for my old cars that I have sold locally, but I have yet to see one.