FS: Dallas - 1997 328is - 121k - Hellrot/tan - sport - 5-spd. $7000 OBO

[thurst0509]

BIMMERPOST / Classifieds

Asking Price:

None

Item Interest

Well the day has come – my 328is is officially up for sale. I can’t express how much I’ve thoroughly enjoyed every minute with this car. I wouldn’t ever think of getting rid of it, except that I’m replacing it with something even better! I took European Delivery on a 2008 135i in July, which should finally be arriving home to me within the next week. So sadly, it’s about time for the E36 to go.

As the title says, it is a 1997 328is with Sport package and 5-speed manual transmission. The exterior is hellrot (bright red) and the interior is tan/beige leather. Mileage is currently at approximately 121,000. Located in Dallas, TX.

The car is functionally 100% stock. I have added a clutch stop to decrease pedal travel, and I swapped out the front/rear/side indicator lights to “crystal clear” style indicators. I love the crystals and think they give the car a newer updated look, but I’ve heard plenty of differing opinions. Regardless I still have the original front corners, tails, and sidemarkers in case the buyer doesn’t care for the crystal clears.

The wheels are also pretty unique. They are the standard 5-spoke sport wheels, but dipped in chrome instead of the standard aluminum look. I don’t know if this option was purchased from BMW or if a previous owner had the wheels dipped. Regardless my car is the only one I’ve ever personally seen with these wheels. Again, personally I think they look great but I understand some do not agree.

My understanding is that I am the third owner of the car. It was leased for three years when new, then purchased as Certified Pre-Owned by the second owner. It was most likely traded in at a dealership after that and then auctioned – I purchased it from a wholesale dealer in 2003 with 77,000 miles.

As you’ll see in the pictures, the exterior paint is about as good as you’ll see on an E36 of this age. I’ve always been pretty anal about keeping it clean and waxed. It has been garaged or covered during the entire time I’ve owned it, and most likely before that as well. As expected there are a few minor door dings on the sides and the standard rock chips on the hood/bumper, but again I think it’s in about as good of exterior shape as you’ll see.

The interior doesn’t show quite the same shine as the exterior of the car, but it is an 11 year old car. All of the dash and console instruments are in proper working order. The on-board computer has a few dead pixels which again are pretty much expected at this age. The back seat looks almost brand new; however the front seats, particularly the drivers’ side, are showing their age by now. They’re still supple and comfortable, and there are no tears, but there is a fair amount of cracking in the top layer of dye over the leather. I’ve always believed (and still do) that they could be restored back to new by stripping, sanding and re-dying them – I’ve just never had the time to do it. I’ve taken good of care of them during my ownership – they looked almost exactly as they do now when I purchased the car so I think they can hold up just fine if taken care of.

I’m not going to go into too much detail about maintenance or service history here – but if you’re seriously interested in the car feel free to email or call and I can tell you what’s been replaced recently. I’ve done most work on the car myself so I don’t have extensive receipts, but I’ve kept a maintenance log of each thing I’ve done. A couple highlights though: Mobil 1 has been used regularly every 6000 miles; new BF Goodrich G-Force Sport tires were put on a few months ago; front brake pads were replaced less than a month ago (rears were ok but I have the pads already which I’ll include with the sale); power steering pump and all engine drive belts were replaced less than a month ago.

Also included in the sales price if you’d like:
Peake R5/FCX-II scan/reset tool, used to read check engine codes from the computer and reset maintenance lights.
Bentley E36 Service/repair manual
Autographed copy of “101 Performance Project for your BMW 3-Series” by Wayne Dempsey of Pelican Parts
Original front corners, rear tails, and sidemarker indicator lights
New set of rear brake pads and the wear indicator sensor

PRICE: $7,000 OBO.

No lowballs though please – I’m not in a major rush to sell. This car is still my daily driver so I can’t actually get rid of it until the 135 arrives; but it should be here less than a week.

Contact information:
tim(dot)hurst(at)gmail(dot)com
214.773.4225

Finally here’s a large gallery of pictures taken just this past weekend. If you’re seriously interested, email me and I’ll be glad to take additional specific picture requests. I'm not going to post the VIN in this forum but if you care to run a CARFAX you can find a picture of the VIN plate in the pictures.
http://s299.photobucket.com/albums/mm313/thurst0509/328is%20For%20Sale/

Thanks for looking!