i would buy that.

Read the sticky titled "Buying an E36?". Well answer many of your questions.

Tidan said:

Is 5950.00 USD a good price on a 98 M3 sedan? Looking at possible picking one up.
- 120k
- 5 speed
- sedan
- has maintanance records
- Appears to have replaced/updated cooling system
- pretty clean inside and out
- no noticeable mods
- had minor rear end accident which was fixed, but it gives the car a salvage title for some reason.

Thanks in advance.

http://i615.photobucket.com/albums/tt235/Nuvimarketing/1998 BMW M3 SEDAN SILVER/IMG_0890.jpg

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I've read the sticky years before when buying my 328is. Just wondering if the price is decent or if I should look elsewhere.

Thanks though.

jonesin said:

Read the sticky titled "Buying an E36?". Well answer many of your questions.

Click to expand...

So you've followed the advise in that sticky?

What did the mechanic say when you took it for the PPI?

Salvage title makes it an OK deal. I would at least go drive it.

I drove it. Seemed fine. Felt different from my 97 328is though. But then again, this ones a sedan.

I did a visual inspection and everything seems in order....new alum. thermostat housing, water pump looks pretty new, radiator looks newer, hoses look good, no appearent mods outside of a stereo....

Though, it wasn't too much faster than my 328is?!?

TRaV MaNN said:

Salvage title makes it an OK deal. I would at least go drive it.

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its not going to be.

it has a huge 50 hp more!!!

Price is totally dependent on the wreck. Cars don't get a salvage title for no reason, and salvage seems to confuse a lot of people. All it means is the damage cost more to fix than the car was worth, so the insurer paid out the value of the car and left the owner to deal with fixing. So, when it was salvaged is of paramount importance. If it was wrecked and salvaged a year after purchase, it was an enormous wreck and I wouldn't buy it at any price. If it happened last week it probably wasn't too bad and as long as it was repaired well you're fine.

See if they have pictures of the wreck and any insurance paperwork. That should help some.

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It was hit about 2000 miles ago. But thats a great idea...I'll see if he has the insurance papers regarding the wreck.
He's kept very good records of the maintanence and seems to have done all the usual problem areas already.

E36 Phantom said:

Price is totally dependent on the wreck. Cars don't get a salvage title for no reason, and salvage seems to confuse a lot of people. All it means is the damage cost more to fix than the car was worth, so the insurer paid out the value of the car and left the owner to deal with fixing. So, when it was salvaged is of paramount importance. If it was wrecked and salvaged a year after purchase, it was an enormous wreck and I wouldn't buy it at any price. If it happened last week it probably wasn't too bad and as long as it was repaired well you're fine.

See if they have pictures of the wreck and any insurance paperwork. That should help some.

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Whoever did the repair after the wreck did a nice job. Looks pretty clean. If it has a salvage title it was damaged badly enough to have been totaled and then rebuilt. If it was hit higher in the rear you could get enough damage to get totaled but not affect the suspension. I'd definitely get a PPI and get it up on a rack where you can get a good look at the under body to see if it's had a rear clip installed.
If it aligns OK and drives OK, the salvage title is a good negotiating point. It will make it more difficult for you to sell the car should you decide to later on so there should be a discount for that.

Looking at the pictures of the wreck, the only thing replaced was the rear lower diffuser. still has the same bumper, so I'm guessing it wasn't too hard of hit?!?
What would I be looking for underneath to verify no important structural damage occurred?

There's absolutely no way the bumper was all the damage that happened or it would still be clean title. Hit that low the unibody and suspension probably took some damage, so you'll need the insurance paperwork. Look at the adjusters report to see all the parts they recommended repairing. And keep in mind while a body shop may write work that doesn't need to be done, the adjusters estimate will be a bare minimum. You'll want to see the receipt from the repair shop to make sure everything on the adjusters report was done and they didn't cheap out.

Also, 2000 miles tells me they have been finding some hidden drivability issues and that's why they're selling. Caveat emptor.

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Have you pulled the CarFax on it yet? I know CarFax doesn't always have everything reported but it still something I'd check with a salvage title. The wreck you know about may the the second wreck this car was in.

I would never ever ever ever buy a salvaged car without having a thorough professional pre-purchase inspection performed. There are a million ways to incorrectly "repair" a car. Talk to anyone who works at a body shop, and they'll tell you all sorts of horror stories about cars that were crashed and then "fixed". There are a lot of very nasty secrets which can be hidden under the surface.

Great ideas!
I found out the guy selling it has a dealer license and buys/sells cars alot.
I'll see if he'll let me look over the insurance papers.

Thanks!

With so many one or two owner BMW 328 M3's out there for sale that are not salvage titled, why would you even look at this one. Just my thought.

As mentioned get it checked out by a pro. Theres nothing wrong with rebuilding one and they can make great cars as long as the repairs are done right.

About 20 years ago there was a shop in the next town that had a dealership that sold nothing but salvage titled cars and they were nice. You couldnt tell they were ever wrecked and drove perfect. Everyone I knew that bought one loved them.

What they did was buy 2 wrecked cars. One totalled in the front and one totalled in the back. Cut both cars in 1/2 and weld them together. Ive gone over a few of them looking for the welds and never found where they cut and rewelded them. Amazing work. So I wouldnt be completely gun shy of salvaged title but Id make sure it was fixed right.

$4k.. Max.

The guy says he had it inspected by BMW and everything came back great.

There's definitely no M3's with this mileage and condition available on CL around here...especially ones that have had the cooling system done and with maintenance records.