eBay Find of the Day: 1995 BMW M3 CSL
Pay more, get less. That's okay, looking at the pictures of this rare lightweight E36, it's not exactly slumming. There were under 150 of the 1995 "Coupe Sport Light" M3's produced and here's your chance to part with a lot of cash to own one.
The cars were intended for competition, so some of the creature comforts of the more pedestrian M3s were removed. Extravagant things like air conditioning and sound deadening, gone. Steel door skins were replaced by aluminum; you'll forego leather seats, a sunroof, even a radio. Who cares about all that stuff? Leather looks crappy after a while, a sunroof cuts into headroom, and with handpicked, extra-strong sixes underhood, the CSLs obviated the need for a radio. To us, it sounds less like a penalty box and more like the M3 we'd want, anyway. Power seats and geegaws have no place in a car with sporting intentions, but the market demands them. What all that extra equipment eventually translates to, besides weight, is stuff to fix. The CSL M3's return you to a simpler time, offering an equipment level closer to the beloved 2002tii; a moment of silence, please.
This particular example has just over 7000 miles on the odo, and looks to be meticulously kept. We'd love to take it out and flog it 'til the cosmoline stinks. Exclusivity has its price, for the mere starting bid of $39,975, you can start dreaming of the day you're wheeling your ultra rare Bimmer around and some cretin at the supermarket dings it.
Thanks for the tip, Spencer!
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
gkz 10:40AM (1/16/2007)
obviously an awesome car, but what's with the tacky exhaust tips... they look very out of place on such a pristine car.
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srivendel 10:55AM (1/16/2007)
Isn't that awful wing an add-on, too? Maybe if this car were 100% OEM it could justify this price, but not looking the way it does. I'll pick up a new 335i for that price, thanks.
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Spencer Mayes 11:02AM (1/16/2007)
Even though it is ugly the wing is stock. According to BMW World.
"Designed for racing only, the performance options were:
* An oil pan with a dual pickup. The dual pickup helped ensure constant oil flow in hard cornering.
* A non-DOT spoiler to increase down force. The spoiler does have a penalty of a few mph at high speeds.
* The spoiler included an upper GT Race wing with two spacers. The spacers could be used to raise the upper wing further into the air stream if desired, like in the above picture."
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nagmashot 11:08AM (1/16/2007)
this car would be worth the money if it would be powered by the real M3 engine S50B32(321hp)not that pointless engine for the US Market.
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Andrew M 12:03PM (1/16/2007)
Hey when was the last time you could get a V6 in a BMW. Another case of stupid sales guys gone mad.....
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JP Dane-Castro 11:47AM (1/16/2007)
Octane cars has an M3 GTR and a Subaru ESX STI Easystreet. Check them out: www.octanecars.com
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Green Lotus Elise Blog 12:16PM (1/16/2007)
I got to see a heavily modified lightweight do it's thing at a BMW club race in Ohio several years back, still stands out as one of those "How can it be that fast" cars. The regular lightweights really do perform damn well though. I've seen a few on track and one at SCCA and all have definitely commanded respect with their times.
This thing was a hell of a performer in its day and, in the right hands, could still raise some eyebrows today.
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Erik 12:38PM (1/16/2007)
Looking to reduce weight? Get rid of that rediculous spoiler. Those graphics are hideous as well. I can't imagine someone would pay for an interior like that. Only BMW.
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Carzzi 2:23PM (1/17/2007)
Well #5 nagmashot, the Euro the M3 3.0 (s50b30) of that year made 286hp not 321hp; the 321 hp 3.2 litre s50b32 came later.
You may call that S50B30US "pointless"; but it did make the car less expensive to produce and certify. I recall reading that the producing and certifying the Euro engine equipped M3 would have cost around $15-20K more than the version that did make it to the US.
Even so, it produced a healthy 240hp/225 lb.ft, a deficit of 40hp/11 lb.ft from the Euro S50. Is that something that $20K could fix? Sure! Yet, out the box, it would run mid-fives to 60 and 14s@100mph in the 1/4mi. Times like that are competitive even today, with the likes of the 350Z and S2000. And the US M3 could handle every bit as well as the Euro. Not bad for a 12 yr old car that cost a competitive $35K back then (not the LTW of course).
So, is that engine "pointless", even in a LTW? One shouldn't think so. It is a factory original LTW with that US engine, and should be sold that way to retain its provenance. Sure, I could buy it and swap-in an S50B32-Euro... but then I'd keep that factory-cherry-picked original engine shrinkwrapped for when it came time to pass it on the next bimmerphile.
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hennescrewed 1:17PM (1/16/2007)
here is a very small group of people that cares that that is a m3 lightweight 90% cant afford it anyways
the other 9% think the price is dumb.
IMO there isn't a market for older 70s-90's bmws BMW's yet. Right now it's just a used car.
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Rocket Punch 12:44PM (1/16/2007)
The US spec engine sucks. Thats all I am gonna say. I remember when the E36 M3 was out, people in USA flocked to Canada to get the 280+bhp version.
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Andre 1:07PM (1/16/2007)
Why do non-enthusiasts bother commenting about appearance? The "tacky" wing is standard functional equipment. The "hideous" graphics are standard BMW race flags that you see on most BMWs that are actually track-specific models. The exhaust looks like a SuperSprint. While not as nice-looking as the straight Free-Flow Dinan version, it is very functional.
If you want a luxury boat, go pick up a 750 and leave the real race cars to those of us who can appreciate them.
Beautiful model. I could only dream of owning one.
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G35 1:08PM (1/16/2007)
To me, I don't care about the rarity of a car. I want a car with the latest and greatest gadgets in them. Dial knobs? No thanks.
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Bryce 1:18PM (1/16/2007)
The irony here is that the opening bid is probably more than most US LTWs originally sold for. Charging a premium for a car stripped of all amenities turned out not to be a successful formula for BMW and dealers had to heavily discount the LTWs to get rid of them.
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gkz 1:22PM (1/16/2007)
Andre -
All I said is that the exhaust "LOOKS" tacky. For you to infer from that simple comment that I'm a "non-enthusiast" and don't appreciate this car is pretty judgemental on your part. as i thought i made clear in the original comment, i think the rest of the car is fantastic and would love to own it; the only other thing i'd like to see different about it being the deletion of nuisances like power windows and trunk lining.
next time you should read more carefully before ripping people.
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MikeW 1:40PM (1/16/2007)
Those 235/40 17 look way too small, 225/45 17 would look more appropriate, especially on 7.5" wide wheels
That is even mentioned on TireRack
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/tirespecskey.jsp#rimwidthrange
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BMW M3 videos 3:47PM (1/16/2007)
I used top dream about this car.
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Robert 3:17PM (1/16/2007)
Very well said Carzzi, Andre, and hennescrewed. While the starting price might feel high for a decontented car, this is a great example of a sweet spot in automotive history. It has just enough electronics, plenty of power, yet without excessive mass that curses all, but Lotus products. I'm sure there are E30 M3 fans on one side and E46 M3 on the other that will disagree, but this may be the best BMW.
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RR 5:49PM (1/16/2007)
That's NOT a CSL. The CSL's of that era had a large front scoop spoiler, had nowhere near that amount of weight inside (carpets, leather, air-con and all the other heavyweight stuff). They also had CSL logo on the rear and had 350+HP - not 240. No M car has ever had less than 286BHP. The M factory would be embarrassed to let such a weak-ass car leave the factory. I reckon this is some kind of special American model. It sure ain't a CSL.
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PGAero 8:09PM (1/16/2007)
Um, I don't see any leather, or AC. I see cloth seats, and a functional heat/vent system. Are we looking at the same car RR? Oh, and as this car is an American spec car, you're right, it is "some kind of special American model." And, BMW called this model the CSL.
As for the 286HP comment, a little bit of research would tell you that all American-spec e36 M3's had less than 286HP (240 actually). And I'm sure there were people in BMW-M who thought that was a bad thing, but it's what happened.
What other M-cars have had less than 286HP? The first M3 comes to mind. The e30 M3 had 200+/- (depending on the year, later Evo cars came with more). That was an M-car that very few would be embarrassed about. In fact, I have yet to drive a car that handles better than my dad's '89 M3. (I admit, I haven't driven a lot of exotic cars, but the e30 M3 handles like it's on rails... curvy, sinuous, glorious rails).
So, if you're trying to redefine what an M-car is, you go ahead and believe what you want, but don't rail on someone who's selling a car for advertising it under the model name which the manufacturer gave it. (Go ahead and rail on someone selling a '95 e36 M3 with a 3.2L V6... that's a car that BMW didn't ever make.)
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