I read recently in Sports Car Market that the 1988-1991 BMW M3 has appreciated around 27% in the past year alone, and will likely continue climbing. Not to mention, E30 M3 values have more than doubled in the past five years.
What’s going on? Well, a few things. First, tightening supply. Under 6,000 M3s made it to the U.S. during its E30 run, and many of them have been modded, engine-swapped and raced into the ground. Second, the cars have an exciting, compelling racing legacy from a heady time in touring-car-racing history. Third, they’re flat-out great cars. That’s already a valuable equation. Add some hype to that, and you’ve got all the makings of an E30 M3 bubble.
And so, I called up a few guys I knew could talk about E30s, and got them to come on AFTER/DRIVE to talk about it. Those guys are Travis and Mike Prichinello and Zac Moseley from Classic Car Club Manhattan, who’ve owned several E30 M3s — including one they just flipped for ridiculous money.
What did we decide? Watch and find out.