I’ve enjoyed my 1999 BMW E36 M3 for more than 10 years. When the car was introduced back in 1995, it sparked criticism from some BMW enthusiasts. The E36 M3 wasn’t as raw as its E30 predecessor, a truly iconic car. The version sold in North America also did not have the more exotic and […]
Nothing is official yet for the North American market, but a lot of information has been released about the new BMW M3/M4. In case you haven’t been keeping up with BMW nomenclature, the venerable BMW 3-Series now refers only to sedans, while the two-door coupes are now considered 4-Series. So for the first time there […]
I own two BMW M cars, a 1999 M3 and a 2002 M5. I’m a fan of the manufacturer and the M line. But BMW has muddied the M identity by producing so many models in the past couple of years. This point was brought home yesterday via a discussion on the Facebook page of […]
My post last Friday questioning whether there is a future for BMW enthusiasts struck a nerve. To date the article has been viewed over 500 times, and there have been numerous comments made in online forums. Here’s a sampling of what I’m hearing from fellow enthusiasts. Many agreed with me, but some thought I was […]
I’ve been a subscriber to Bimmer Magazine for a long time. I really like their coverage of all things BMW. In the most recent issue I read an article that in my opinion spelled out bad times coming for BMW enthusiasts in the U.S. First I should define what I mean by enthusiast. It doesn’t […]
Here’s the second part of my interview with Mike Miller, writer for Roundel and Bimmer Magazine. Part one was published Monday. Thanks again Mike for agreeing to take these questions, and thanks also to the forum participants for helping me come up with the questions. Don’t agree with something you read below? Drop a comment, […]
I’m excited today to publish the first of a two part interview with Mike Miller. Mike is a long-time columnist for both Roundel and Bimmer magazines. He’s also a former mechanic, a holder of a Master’s of Environmental Law degree from Vermont Law School and basically a lifetime lover of BMW. However, that doesn’t prevent […]
I’ve been worrying about BMW reliability lately. And not about either my M3 or my 530. It’s how BMW’s quality and reliability have worsened in recent years. A little background — I don’t buy new BMWs, I like to buy lightly used ones that have been well maintained by their owners. So no one in […]
It’s past time for another wheel post, but (thankfully) neither the M3 or the 530 have given me much to write about lately. So I called up my good friend Rich this weekend to meet up and take a look at the black 2007 335i he purchased back in May with about 40,000 miles and […]
This month my M3 turns nine. It was built in April 1999, one of the last E36 M3s (BMW speak for the 3 series body style from 1992-1999) ever built. The design of the M3 version goes back to 1994, yet it’s still more fun to drive than 99% of the cars out there today. […]
Paul Valliere, a guy I know solely through an Internet forum dedicated to M3 owners, just had a feature story done on his car by Bimmer Magazine. He has one of only 45 Euro version E36 M3’s imported into Canada in late 1994, and from the look of the pics it still doesn’t have a blemish. […]