My Silverstone Metallic E92 V8 M3

Looks absolutely beautiful, I wish you many safe drives with it, you will absolutely love this V8.

The only thing I’d do to it is put the LCI taillights and the comp wheels (OEM 359m), but otherwise, it’s still very beautiful.
 

KPM3_30

Moderator
Staff member
A MASSIVE thank you, to each and everyone of you that took the time to comment and share your well wishes. It really is appreciated and valued.. I had never imagined this thread getting to 4 pages, with just a single post.. I suppose it is testament to the love we all have as BMW fans for M cars.

If I am being honest, I have only driven the car a few times since collecting it and it is still running on the fuel that was filled on the drive down..

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I had obsessed about getting it home and now that it is here, I am quite content knowing that its parked downstairs. I don't use the car much and try to go for a long drive every 2 weeks or so, partly because it's not meant for short distances. I find that it takes a while to warm up and following the warm up procedure takes time and patience. I usually start the car, let the cold start cycle complete before proceeding off and keeping gear changes to <2.5k RPM, until the oil has warmed past 75 degrees.. Once it gets up to temperature, I utilize the full rev range.

I have a small list of things I would like to do on the car over time, none of which are pressing:

- Tint the windows with Smash and Grab film.. The car has sun protection glazing which is just rear darkened factory glass.
- Redye the driver's bolster. Common niggle on most of the E9x M3's I have seen.
- Gloss black grills.
- E92 LCi tail lights + coding.
- A complete detail on the interior and exterior + ceramic coating.. Will look at this once I have had a chance to complete the above.

There's been no fanatics meet up since COVID, so I haven't really taken any pictures.. Quick snaps from when I used it last weekend:

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AdiS

Well-known member
BTW, on the cold start procedure - it’s much better to cold start it and start driving immediately than let it sit idling. The reason is because the oil warms up much quicker when you’re driving compared to when it’s just sitting, idling. So rather just jump in and start driving gently immediately.


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K0dAx

Active member
That is truly a timeless design. Just wow :praise:

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zama

Active member
The LCI lights will just finish the car extremely well IMHO. Beautiful example  :praise:
 

F21GP

Active member
KPM3_30 said:
- Redye the driver's bolster. Common niggle on most of the E9x M3's I have seen.

Bro in relation to this my car had the same bolster wear. I looked at options and in the end went for a leather panel replacement using factory leather and the original stitching. It came out phenomenal. Get a quote and decide what you want to do from there, can pm me for details. Here are pics of mine before and after at exact same mileage as your car. I did driver and passenger.
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KPM3_30

Moderator
Staff member
It's been almost 6 months with the car and in that time I have covered just over 2k in mileage, which is interesting given the 30i doing the same mileage in a year.. I know a driving impression review is due, however I think @"gavsadler" has done a stellar job on covering most of the key points in his thread. 

There is an old adage about never meeting your heroes, for fear of disappointment but I am happy to share, that this really isn't the case with this car.. There is something really special about it - From the time you fire it up and hear that off-beat V8 idle while the car runs through the initial warm up cycle, to hearing it scream all the way to the dizzying RPM limit when it is warm. Another thing that I can't get over is the fact that this 'old' car still has the ability to turn heads, whether it is guys catching up to me to give me a nod/thumbs-up on the highway or approaching me to ask about the car in the parking lots - The pictures below were taken after a good wash and the first purchase offer I had was whilst taking pictures, not even a month later... 

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Had the urge for a few cold beverages and since the car was just cleaned up, felt like taking a drive.. At the request of @"SubLoaded", we met at his local haunt in Westville and a few mandatory potato pics below.


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A meet up with some of the Durban fanatics was overdue since the purchase and we ended up having a small photoshoot, after we caught up. Managed to take a few snaps of the 'E-series cars' together, luckily @"Kyle" still had his E90 at the time, however @"Riaad" missed the E9x memo..

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The car was last serviced at TuneTech when the bearings were done in November 2019 at 123k, which means that it was due on time (and mileage, since I would like 5k intervals). The car was treated to a full service at Old Dutch Racing on the recommendation of @"S1NGH 911" and @"Peter@AEW", as I wanted to continue a service history with a BMW M-car specialist. Vee was kind enough to accommodate me on a Saturday morning and the service was done fairly quickly. The filters were quite dirty surprisingly but I chalked that down to life at the Highveld. I also had him take the car for a drive, he was very impressed with the condition and most noticeably, the drivetrain which he mentioned felt "exceptionally tight".. Music to my ears, especially considering the M-tax associated with replacement parts and part of the reason I have since decided to part with a not so insignificant amount of cash..

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..I have decided to bite the bullet and go for OEM LCi tail lights, I considered the DEPO and second hand route but ultimately decided it would be more prudent to go OEM, especially considering the condition of the car.. It is something I have agonized over but to me, it is the single most transforming exterior modification.. I can't help but notice the lack of LED's whenever I look at the rear and I believe that it adds years to the car. Thanks for the push @"Neven", I have already ordered them. 

A mileage milestone from a few days ago, to end my 2020 update..

 

SubLoaded

Resident Derailer
Staff member
Sweet update. The local haunt - was indeed - haunting, and is now overdue again :roflmao:

Looking forward to seeing the tail-lights.... Said no M520d driver ever....
 

KR_19

Well-known member
Seeing this thread for the first time although I have seen pics of the car, but what a great story and magnificent achievement to own this ride!
Awesome color. Wishing you many happy miles again, I hope to see it in the flesh soon

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KPM3_30

Moderator
Staff member
Following my last post and some thinking, I decided that I would prefer to keep the visual mods to a minimum as I have seen many modified examples and have grown to quite like the classy look it exudes in stock form. With that decision, I opted to sell off the carbon bits I had procured for it and used that to help fund a mod which I personally feel adds proper value to the car.

I had thought long and hard about going the DEPO or second hand route but my OCD wouldn't allow it and I decided to bite the bullet.. I ordered a set of OEM E92 tail lights from the dealer, including the wiring harnesses needed for the conversion.

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When these arrived late in December, I wasted no time in getting this fitted and decided it would be easy enough to DIY, after watching a few YouTube videos. Realized I didn't have the tools I needed so decided to visit my now late friend, Don at the BMWorkshop and started on it. To me this is a must for any E92 with the pre-facelift lights, as it adds years to the car and also makes it feel a lot more current with the use of LED technology.

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Decided to get the car polished at Blak Automotive once these were on and a mandatory Blak money shot was taken.. Big shout out to @S1NGH 911 for coming through and assisting with coding to remove the bulb warnings and checks, thanks a lot bru.

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KPM3_30

Moderator
Staff member
Next up, I was very two minded about putting on the Gloss Black kidney grills I had, I quite liked the stock chrome but at the same time I felt like the grills would go well together with the trimmings and vents on the car. Got back home and decided to give it a try with the thought of returning to stock if I didn't like it.. That said, having man sized hands doesn't help when you need to work with small clips behind the bumper and I decided at that point if I don't like it, someone else could fit the chrome ones back.. Also fitted the sticker kit whilst I was busy to change the BMW roundels to black and white, something I have done on all the BMW's I have had.

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Some pics of all the mods working together..

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As the car stands now, I am exceptionally happy with the way it looks and next up is some window tint as every drive in the sun is a roasting session.. I have already had a few offers for purchase from people in the area..
 
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