A nice RHD M3

[bss325i]

A Birds car. Black leather highbacks to!

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/784947.htm

[tomtomiS]

nice car, nice price too

[Theo]

There are a few RHD M3s for sale at the moment, the owners probably think their cars are seeing the same value increase as unmolested LHD cars...

[mattm]

If I had the cash I'd buy in a heartbeat!

[frogman]

Thats a tasty car with a matching price tag...

Whats the problem with RHD M3s? How bad are they? Is is a purist thing to go for the LHD versions?

On a seperate note, the Japanese are crazy for LHD cars, the reasoning being that the car should be LHD/RHD according to country of origin, hence loads of LHD Mercs and BMWs in Japan.

[maxfield]

Nice car.

I thought there were only about 25 RHD cars made by Birds?

[bss325i]

Some people say its a crime to convert one and that it ruins the car.

The ONLY draw backs are a slower steering rack (which is sortable with an E36/E46/Z3 rack) and not quite as direct brake linkage as LHD but this is the same for ALL RHD E30's.

Some of the RHD conversions have been done shit with the wipers still in LHD format and other LHD features still apparent but the Birds converted cars were done properly.

Prices are noticably lowwer than orginal LHD cars all though sellers of RHD cars do try their luck.

[Rich_W]

Some people say its a crime to convert one and that it ruins the car.

The ONLY draw backs are a slower steering rack (which is sortable with an E36/E46/Z3 rack) and not quite as direct brake linkage as LHD but this is the same for ALL RHD E30's.

Some of the RHD conversions have been done shit with the wipers still in LHD format and other LHD features still apparent but the Birds converted cars were done properly.

Prices are noticably lowwer than orginal LHD cars all though sellers of RHD cars do try their luck.

It's just a completely pointless thing to do in general. It's expensive to do and kills a percentage of the value of the car. And as I say time and time again. LHD is not exactly impossible to drive and live with.

PMSL at nearly £13k for this car though!

[bss325i]

Some people say its a crime to convert one and that it ruins the car.

The ONLY draw backs are a slower steering rack (which is sortable with an E36/E46/Z3 rack) and not quite as direct brake linkage as LHD but this is the same for ALL RHD E30's.

Some of the RHD conversions have been done shit with the wipers still in LHD format and other LHD features still apparent but the Birds converted cars were done properly.

Prices are noticably lowwer than orginal LHD cars all though sellers of RHD cars do try their luck.

It's just a completely pointless thing to do in general. It's expensive to do and kills a percentage of the value of the car. And as I say time and time again. LHD is not exactly impossible to drive and live with.

PMSL at nearly £13k for this car though!

But thats the thing, there is a point to it and thats some people dont do LHD. There is a market for these cars here and even more so in Aus as LHD is a no go there.

[tomtomiS]

its funny how different licensing and tax laws bring out some obscure models

[Rich_W]

some people dont do LHD.

Some people should buy another car then...

[bss325i]

some people dont do LHD.

Some people should buy another car then...

Stop being so sentimental.

One thing i must stress though is that when i buy an M3 it will be LHD.

[barryj]

some people dont do LHD.

Someg people should buy another car then...

Why? They can buy this one in the! LOL

[Rodderz]

If I was in the market for an M3 I would rather have a RHD but only 1 of the Birds converted cars!

I would say that this car is £3-4000 overpriced tough!

[Andy325i]

Thats a lovely looking car

Andy

[twallwood]

seems silly to me paying money to convert to RHD when it devalues the car. each to their own tho. the car looks great, if i got one it would have top be LHD tho

[csl]

Very nice car.
I to would only buy a LHD when it comes to e30 M3s thou!

[motorsport325i]

sweet!!!

[Morat]

I'm quite happy with LHD, and drive one most days but they can be a real arseache if you're regularly using tolls, parking in multistories etc. The actual driving bit is fine, as long as you're not one of these people who doesn't know the width of your own car. Having said that, swapping between the two you DO need to take a bit of extra care or you automatically drift to the right to correct your sightline and end up with the right hand wheels on the verge/rumblestrips/oncoming lane!

Overall, its really no big deal and I wouldn't mess up an M3 for the sake of it. Lets face it, its not like an M3 is likely to be a daily driver anyway.

[djk]

There won't be many on here who think a RHD M3 is a good thing. The wider market is a different matter - some people, no matter how wrong headed we might think it is, can't get their head around LHD. Whether this sort of gimp 'should' be in the market for such a specialist vehicle as an M3 is an entirely different matter that can be argued some other time. The fact remains, there is a market for RHD M3s, and from the growing number of threads on here about the things, it would appear that it is a growing one.

Apart from anything else, this car looks exceptionally straight so ought to command a premium on that basis alone.

[Felix79]

I have to admit if I was going to buy an M3 I want RHD ( hides). If it's done in a professional manner back in the start of the cars life I see no problem. However I think converting a LHD in good conditon now is a bit sad ( for the car ) to happen.

This car was ordered from the start to be converted over by a reconised company for BMW so I don't see the issue with one like this.

[maxfield]

Agree with Morat, LHD really isn't hard to drive.

I've driven an M3 on the road a few times and I've only had my license 8 months and found it easy. As for tolls etc then as long as you're reasonably flexible not a problem.

[Maxus]

Good points made from djk. The seller of this particular car is certainly not a gimp though! He previously had an Evo Sport (LHD!) which he sold. This car was a particularly good M3 example that a localish garage to him was selling, it just happened to be RHD which for him was an added practicality bonus.

As you may notice from the M3's home it is a very pampered car sharing its garage with a 3.0 CSL. When he says no expense spared in its upkeep this is in the truest meaning of the word.

In the current tough economic climate finding buyers with the cash to spend on this sort of toy is tough but someone after a genuine and mint M3 would be hard pushed to find a better example "condition" wise.

Let the RHD v LHD and what special editions you get get for the money debate continue.................

[neamem]

not sure i'd want to go for a rhd one. part of the appeal for me is the fact that they are lhd. the rhd ones were converted using parts from the 325 i believe which weren't quite as good as the m3 parts. ie quick rack, different brake servo etc.

lhd or nothing for me. although it is funny when you first start driving a lhd. sore knuckles on left hand from punching the door when going for the gear knob and driving down the middle of the road to get the same perspective as when driving a rhd lol.

[barryj]

Try saying you like LHD the firts time you rock up to your car and get in the passenger side by mistake, come on I dare a LHD owner to try and say it hasn't happened to them! It certainly did to me in my LHD Carrera 4.

[e21Jason]

I am actually thinking about buying this car or the other RHD one on pistonheads, but it is a long way to travel to view a car, and I currently have both a RHD & LHD cars at the moment. Generally LHD is no problem, except when I go for a drive, which is on minor roads across the Scottish borders, Northumbria and Cumbria. LHD is a pain as you have to work harder and are limited for overtaking on narrow twisty roads.

And as I would use the M3 for these trips that’s why I fancy RHD, also from what I can gather the e30 m3 market in Germany is going up and a lot of the UK cars are going back there as it’s cheaper to get a UK one these days than in Germany. And as the pool of LHD dries up I guess gap between RHD and LHD will close

Jason

[Rich_W]

Try saying you like LHD the firts time you rock up to your car and get in the passenger side by mistake, come on I dare a LHD owner to try and say it hasn't happened to them! It certainly did to me in my LHD Carrera 4.

Never whacked my left hand on the door in my M3. Never got in the passenger side by mistake.

But then I have eyes that work. And I can tell the difference between my BM and my Seat runabout. Anyone who tells you it takes time to adjust when getting back into a RHD after LHD (or vice versa) probably shouldn't be driving in general as their spatial awareness is severely limited!

[neamem]

Never whacked my left hand on the door in my M3.

Always hold onto the gear knob then?

[tomson]

The fact remains, there is a market for RHD M3s, and from the growing number of threads on here about the things, it would appear that it is a growing one.

Thing is, how many people on these threads will actually ever own one? Not many I would think....

Some good points none the less though.

[ratraz]

a very clean car and a great sample of a well kept e30 m3, but no no to the rhd, it lets it down, lhd only e30 m3.............

[Bob_S]

definately prefer lhd and I have got into my m3 on the wrong side, and my 320 was in a petrol station, pretty tired just climbered in and thought oh bollocks tricky when you alternate between 2 e30's all week.
not bashed my hand though, although the urge to change gear with your right hand does become odd I usually hold onto the door handle bizarrely