2011.75 E90 6MT ZCP: 1 of 6, & last Melbourne Red Manual Competition car made for USA

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BIMMERPOST / Classifieds

Asking Price:

Sold

Item Interest

SOLD SOLD SOLD



Hello, and thanks for taking the time to look at my car.

As a brief introduction in case we don't know each other already, I've been in the BMW community for decades, a BMW CCA member (now lapsed) multiple BMW forum contributor, and owner/operator of basically every significant BMW chassis since the E30, especially having a lot of seat time in E30, E36, E39, E46, E9x, F10 and F30 chassis. I believe they should be driven, not parked - and that when they are properly maintaned, BMWs regularly but not excessively driven will always be better examples than those that sit. I drove my first E30, a 1989 325i 5-speed Euro import in Cirrsublau with light blue houndstooth cloth interior and insanely bright Hella headlamps, until 250k miles and sold it to a friend in need for a song, then he proceeded to drive it many miles more. Later, after time in E36, E46 and E39 chassis, I finished the build of an E30 swap car, and my for sale thread for that one may be found HERE: FS-FT-super-clean-1991-E30-M52-S52-cams-OBD1-E46-M3-6MT on Bimmerforums - I still keep in touch with the current owner of that car to this day.

This E90 M3 6MT ZCP is a Southern Car, originally delivered to Florida. It then spent just over a year on the West Coast with owner number two, until I discovered it when it popped up in one of my regular searches. I had been hunting in earnest nearly two years for a Melbourne Red E90 M3 with a manual transmission and the Competition Package. I bought this car from the second owner in April of 2017 with 55,456 miles, and had it shipped here to North Carolina in an enclosed trailer. It now has 105k so I've driven it an average of 6,200 miles per year over the last 8 years. It's always been garaged at home, and at work on the days I drove it there. Miles to go up slightly as I drive some to keep it in the best of shape.

Highlights

• 2011.75 E90 M3
• WBSPM9C57BE698975
• 105k Miles
• 6-Speed Manual Transmission
• Almost every option | MSRP $70,875 in 2011 dollars:
  Double Hump w/Individual Audio, Competition Package (ZCP), Premium Package 2 (ZP2), Convenience Package 2, Moonroof, Sunshades, Split/Folding Rear Seats, Comfort Access, Park Distance Control
• Southern car, never seen snow
• Never modded/bone stock (except full Eventuri recently, just for sound - stock intake parts come with the car)
• No accidents, clean title in my name
• Always covered in PPF
• Always garaged and regularly driven
• Hyper attention to maintenance including 5k oil change intervals, regular Blackstone analysis, all fluids and recommended additives on a schedule
• Proactive addressing of common E9x M3 big-ticket items & common BMW failure points including preventative replacement of RB's, TA's, clutch, cooling system parts and headliner
• All records including those from the prior owner and Blackstone reports, neatly organized in a binder
• Original owner's manual for this car, the M-specific manual and other associated literature, all present in the original clean book
• The same tech at the same shop has maintained the car and made regular corroborating Carfax service entries for the whole time I've had it
• Roads are nice here so the suspension still feels supple
• Never tracked
• Never seen an automatic carwash in my ownership - only hand washed using two-bucket method and high quality products

Fun facts about 2011.5 and 2011.75 models of the E90 M3
After the 2011 model debuted, the refreshes were as follows:

• 2011.5 model - updated to include Combox supporting album art display, Bluetooth music streaming, one-wire iPod/iPhone device integration via usb port, M Button on steering wheel can be programmed to include additional driver preferences, automatic start/stop (on DCT models), Premium Package (ZP2) now includes power front seats, Convenience Package replaces Technology Package.
• 2011.75 model - added BMW Apps. At this point, the E90 was now up to the 2012 software specification, though E90 production ceased with the 2011 model year.

So, why sell?
Well, life is too short to limit yourself to one fun car, even if it has been great. I've been bitten by the 981 bug and now that one kid is off to college and the other driving their own car, the possibilities are opening up. I've been the steward of this BMW for eight years, and we've treated each other well. I just did the 100k freshening, and now is a good time to see what she might fetch on the open market. Oh, about that: this car is only being listed right here for now. If the right BMW enthusiast isn't poking around M3post, then perhaps listing on BaT or giving Doug DeMuro a call will be warranted, but let's see what happens here first. I've always been part of the BMW enthusiast community and would like to keep it that way.


Production Data
In terms of rareness, this particular vehicle spec makes it a 1 of 6:
1 of 56 model year 2011 E90 M3 cars produced for USA in Melbourne Red with the Competition Package
1 of 22 of those that were also paired with a manual transmission
1 of 11 of those that also came with a Sunroof and Navigation
1 of 6 with also Black Novillo Leather (5 were Bamboo, 2 were Speed Cloth/Leather mix)
So, if you don't find the sunroof and double hump especially desirable and also don't have an interior color preference, then you can just think of this as a
1 of 22 Melbourne Red E90 M3 Competition Package cars with a Manual Transmission (all trims).

...and this particular car is the very last one of them built for North America
Here are the final qualifying E90 Competition Package cars ever built, by the last 4 digits of their VINs (thus in build order):
*2753
*2802
*2933
*3120
*3150
*3406
*3546
*3789
*3790
*8892
*8964
*8975 <---- This car: VIN WBSPM9C57BE698975, Production Date 2011-08-31

* Special thanks to dar2008 of E9XM3.com for the statistics!

[cognoscenti]

Ok, enough about rarity. On to the pics!

Still loving the M3 7.5 years later and approaching the 100k mile mark, I decided to reinvest and keep the car for another 100k miles at least.
Every time I drove something newer, I just wanted to get back in my own car.
New cars have grown a LOT in dimensions and weight, while losing handling feel. So here is how she sits right now, following the 100k refresh (just flipped 105k miles) -

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100K Refresh: ~$22,500

Goals:
1. Approach EAG condition at less than half the price, and
2. To be ready for the next 100k miles needing absolutely nothing but fluid changes and regular wear items.

COSMETIC
Parts & Labor: $8,875

• Replace both A-Pillar Shadowline trim mouldings (one had a chip so I did them both) - OEM
• New windshield top seal rubber - OEM
• Replace all felt undertray bits (this is $800 in parts alone) with OEM parts
• Rims refinished in authentic Hyper Silver II from Germany, rebalanced, new M stickers, roundels, valve stems, caps and OEM LCI TPMS
• New Llumar Nano Ceramic window tint and top quality moleskins - Lifetime Warranty
• Full paint correction
• Paint Protection Film (PPF) redone on entire front clip, full rockers, headlights and mirror caps, with edges wrapped where possible - 10 Year Warranty
• Gtechniq Crystal Serum Ultra Ceramic on entire body, over the PPF and on full rims off the car including barrels - 9 Year Warranty
• Headliner professionally redone - it wasn't quite due yet but it was only a matter of time and seemed to be getting a little loose at the very back, so why not go all the way?
• New OEM M3 floor mats
• New (all 4) active carbon cabin filters
• Various other small bits

MECHANICAL
Bottom: $5,430

• New OEM LUK Clutch and flywheel kit install incl. pilot bearing, crank seals, gaskets, o-rings
• Transmission fluid
• Rear diff fluid including the crucial OEM gear oil additive
• New front tires (rears not ready yet) - running Michelin Pilot Super Sports in OEM BMW STAR spec
• 4-Wheel alignment accompanying the M359 reinstallation

Top: $8,175

• Installed new OEM throttle actuators
• Tune up including new NKG spark plugs, rebreather valve and hose
• Cooling system refresh: thermostat replaced, all new OEM hoses, elbows, water pipe, o-rings, gaskets
• Installed full Eventuri carbon fiber plenum, intake, airbox cover and air filter (all stock parts retained and come with the vehicle)
  Details at
  - Eventuri E9X M3 Carbon Inlet Plenum
  - Eventuri Carbon Fiber Intake System
  - Eventuri Carbon Fiber Airbox Lid
• New OSR Xenon 85v headlamp bulbs

OTHER KEY MAINTENANCE
89K miles, $3,368.95

• New OEM alternator
• New OEM AGM Battery
• All four brake pads replaced with Akebono Euro Ceramics, with new sensors
• Replace hood struts

75K miles: $3,292.78

• BE Rod Bearings and ARP bolts (BE Spec) - original parts retained so prospective new owner can inspect them
• Motor mounts (while in there/preventative)
• Oil Pan gasket, oil level sender, oil pump gasket
• New OEM steering wheel and the super hard to find BMW Individual Alcantara trim (OEM M3 trim in perfect condition retained and comes with the car - see pictures)

I feel like the picture below (taken by the shop that did the RB install) shows that I'm doing the right thing with my easy warm-up, low-rev routine and religious 5K-mile oil changes.

At last analysis for these bearings, Blackstone had reported: "This is the least amount of metal to come out of this engine so far. There's just 2 ppm aluminum, and iron is in great shape at 9 ppm. Your BMW is wearing well for the type, and shows no signs of poor bearing wear, or any other issues for that matter. Insolubles tested at just a trace level, so oil filtration is working well, and there's no contamination in the sample. You're taking great care of this M3!".


Tracked?
See highlights above - no, this car has never been tracked. I always thought I would, but I could never bring myself to put such a pretty car with any historical relevance on track. It's is a shame, really - I think that someone should finally track this M3 as these cars were made for it. Will it be you?

Known Cons
- One tiny ding on the driver's side rear door (see pic) - really hard to see on camera but you can find it with the naked eye. I thought of asking a PDR guy to take a look but haven't gotten to that yet.
- The car has had paint work: hood, left front quarter panel, and front bumper. Last year, a yearling (stupid!) doe probably in rut, ran in front of my car while I was traveling at low speed at dusk in my neighborhood. The damage of the bump was light and cosmetic only and the deer simply ran off - Carfax calls it "light to moderate." The PPF on the front helped, and this gave me the excuse to redo the PPF which was not as shiny as new anymore anyway. Just being up front for full disclosure.
- Shift knob is starting to show some wear (see pics). I wanted to do the M5 weighted knob upgrade, but decided that this was a taste item so I'll leave it for the new owner.
That's it!

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Full set of pictures - click on each to see full resolution versions as desired:

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...and some undercarriage pics taken at the same time as the outside pics. I don't have a lift at home so this is the best I could do, but I think they illustrate one of the benefits of being a Southern car. Despite dust from the road, you can see clearly that everything is clean, dry and corrosion-free right down to the felt-covered undertray, there are no leaks from anywhere including brake lines, fittings, boots around bearings/joints/etc. and all the M suspension bits including EDC. I didn't do the whole dry ice thing as this is a driver's car and I'm not sure that I want the factory cosmoline removed by an unproven process. Maybe that will become a common standard for cleaning in the future, beyond just garage exotics that never go anywhere but car shows?

As above for all of these, click on each to see full resolution versions if desired:

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Price?
IMHO what matters when buying a car are basically the following categories, in order of priority:
1. Variant (chassis, colors, options, rarity)
2. Condition
3. Miles (especially if condition of anything is unknown)
4. History & provenance

BASIC MATH
So, the math adds up something like this:
$28K Your basic E90 M3 6MT in passable shape that wasn't beat on, few owners, has service records, etc.
+$10k for a 1 of 6 example, 2011.75 Competition Package car high in options, rarity and provenance in a desirable color from the South (i.e. clean/dry/no corrosion anywhere)
+$22,500 insane reinvestment that covers everything, with records and warranties
- $7000 for 105k miles, because this isn't a 75k mile car even if it has been fully refreshed
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TOTAL $53,500

BUT that price needs a sanity adjustment! Unless someone is just waiting patiently for one of these 6 cars to pop up, the audience willing to pay for what I did to this car is small. It's a simple fact. We are stewards of these cars, we never get it back. I've been watching the forums, BaT, Cars & Bids, Car Gurus and the like to guage the market. It's either cars for way more than this that are super low miles and/or heavily modded, older pre-LCI survivors that are getting tired, or DCT cars. Sometimes a good stock ZCP manual car pops up and it gets sold - and these Melbourne Red ZCP 6MT cars don't sit for sale long, that's for sure. Regardless, I have to either keep it to get the benefit of my reinvestment, or adjust to market and accept that the next guy gets to enjoy the benefit of the work done.

REALITY CHECK MATH
$28K Your basic E90 M3 6MT in passable shape that wasn't beat on, few owners, has service records, etc.
+$10k for a 1 of 6 example, 2011.75 Competition Package car high in options, rarity and provenance in a desirable color from the South (i.e. clean/dry/no corrosion anywhere)
+$22,500 insane reinvestment that covers everything, with records and warranties
- $15,000 market correction, because people are often wary of BMW maintenance past 100k, even if you can prove an outstanding mechanical and cosmetic investment/condition
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TOTAL $45,500

PPI's welcome. Willing to ship.

...and here's the actual data to show where the market is for 2011 ZCP Manual cars at auction:

So, there you have it. This car is well sorted - extremely so, if I may say so myself. It's a smaller buying audience once you go over $40k but a LOT easier when the investment was not mods (except expensive full Eventuri CF), but instead all OEM parts to be ready for the next 100k miles. I didn't reinvest in the car in order to sell it, I reinvested in order to keep it - but if you have ever driven a Porsche then you know they can tend to mess with your mind! Also, I can sleep easy knowing I set the next owner up with a great car that will serve them well. I'm proud of how much I've contributed to the BMW owner community over the years, and I feel this can continue the tradition.



Thanks for reading.

[dabernethy]

Incredible! Very very nice example of a well loved M3! I am in the hunt for a nice example, but this is too nice for what my kids may do to it!

[Twilson25]

Beautiful car. great listing

[MT135]

pm'd

[baosimple]

Great presentation, I'm interested but don't see an option to PM you, maybe because my account is new. Do you have an email address?

[tbuck]

Great listing, insane car and fantastic price IMHO. GLWS!!

[Melbourn3]

Great listing. GLWS.

[rapishorrid]

Tremendous listing and attention to detail from the seller. Exactly the type of owner you would want to buy from. Interested to see what this sells for because despite that, the price still seems crazy to me.

A single owner E92 6-speed with 50,000 less miles, an MPE (original exhaust also included) and rod bearings done by a BMW dealer, just sold on BaT for less than this one is listed for. Not a ZCP and not Melbourne Red, but you’d have to really, really want those two things to ignore less money for half the miles.

Edit: You’d have to really want an E90 too - maybe I shouldn’t underestimate those sedan guys…

[cnofar]

Great listing, tons of details, very friendly owner. I had the pleasure of discussing this car with the owner. Ultimately I couldn't purchase the vehicle due to closing on a new house, but this is a wonderful car, well preserved, well documented. Secretly I hope this car is still for sale later this year so I can buy it

[brown_bison]

Unquestionably the best listing I have ever seen in my life. Wow! GLWS

[shane060]

So sad to see you are letting her go. Nonetheless BEYOND EPIC for sale post. This car is is amazing and so very well maintained. I think the sale price and all that has been done to the car reflects properly. GLWS and I have no doubt this will sell fast and go to a proper new "steward" as you say! If I had not lucked out with my previous MR E90 ZCP find I would be calling you right now, again GLWS this one is special for sure.

[Cyberdemon]

With this level of presentation if it doesn't go on here within a week just put this thing on BaT.

[M3_Legend]

Damn just keep it. no worth selling but happy you got to enjoy it. What a beauty

[Hoonigan]

Man this is perfect, I feel like you’d regret selling it.

If you happen to be a watch guy, I’ve got a trade if you’d be interested (YG Daytona Oysterflex, “Newman” Spec, 2024)

[rickiee92]

PM sent.

[Orbar18]

Still available? If so please DM me. Been patiently waiting for a Melbourne red, no idea how I missed this when posted a month ago! Great detailed post BTW

[cognoscenti]

A couple of updates:

Shipping
All of the parties I am currently negotiating with for the sale of this vehicle are located out of state, which points to the national market for E9x M3's. As a reminder, I will ship and of course anyone is welcome to fly down South to visit with me & the car here in North Carolina (actually, for one buyer in Florida that is "up", but you get the idea).


Eventuri
Also, multiple people both local and online have asked if I would sell them all of the Eventuri carbon fiber intake & plenum parts. I'm not looking to part them at the moment, because most buyers want the Eventuri left on the car. Furthermore, if I keep the car I will definitely be leaving the Eventuri installed, because the sound is insane and it was definitely worth the investment.



However, for a serious buyer that is really price conscious and needing that extra price reduction beyond regular negotiation, I would be willing to reinstall the stock plenum, intake, airbox cover and a new air filter before sale. That would require a pending sale with a deposit in-hand. Thanks in advance for respecting this. Have a great day out there, and keep enjoying these Ultimate Driving Machines!