Is it the CC effect? Only recently I’ve captured and posted this E32 rolling up the motorway, and as luck would have it, I’ve captured yet another same-era BMW.
This was a day after capturing an even older classic, the 1967 Mustang, so it marks a fairly fruitful week (or so). Anyway, on to the video:
This particular example has had its wheels (tastefully?) upgraded, repainted all white (covering any black trim), but most importantly – treated to a Nurburgring decal (left rear); those can fetch up to twenty percent power increase.
This is another BMW that needs no introduction to Curbside Classic readers (and if you do, just read Perry Shoar’s post). Suffice to say that this car is the one that finally placed BMW as the ultimate sport-sedan manufacturer, and has been that way ever since. It still looks good today, more than twenty-five years after introduction.
And again, as I wrote in the E32 post, I never bothered to take photos of E36s when seeing them, because I never thought of these to be classics. I certainly didn’t take photos of four-door sedans, but I did manage to photograph M3s, which always stand out – especially in Israel where they were extremely rare. Here are two:
That yellow M3 is as original as can be, and if I’m not mistaken, a recent import to the country. Since I’m cheating and posting two-door “hot” E36s, I’ll go all the way and include photos of some racing cars, taken when I attended Salzburgring in 2014:
It looks as though the M3 is leading the Escort, but in reality is about to be lapped. That Escort is a very fast car, a regular local front-runner – and winner – of classic saloon car races.
These two racing M3s were running in the “Young Timer” class, and would later meet up on track:
The #241 yellow car won the race, here it’s on a slow-down lap, returning to the pits after the race was finished. As well as this post.
I have good remeberings on the E36. When I had my drivers licence fresh, my dear colleague let my drive hers regularly to car wash and back. It was also a 318, in green with color matching rims.
318 is hardly a sport sedan, after my disappointment test driving one Ive since seen 5th gear’s test that came to the same conclusion as I did,
The M3 is a completely different critter to the shopping cart model, they are visually similar but thats all.
My brother recently bought a runabout 318 four door to keep fuel costs down and mileage off his FG XR8.
My e36 318i even had drum brakes and window cranks, but power mirrors. And I couldn’t keep up with most 99HP housewife-hatchbacks. But in a way it was sporty, namely that it was lower than a Ferrari. Indeed the e36 has the lowest ground clearance of any mass production sedan.
I loved it. But last year I gave it to the scrapper. I didn’t sell it, because I hated to see a lowlife ride it.I still have the alloy rims – most important parts of any BMW.