The E46-generation BMW M3 is rightfully regarded as one of the finest iterations of the sports car so it’s little surprise that values have soared in recent years. If you have a spare €60,000 (~$65,000) or €70,000 ($76,000) to spend, this M3 is probably one of the finer ones you’ll come across.
Immediately making this unit stand out from most others is that it is painted in a special shade of Estoril Blue Metallic from BMW Individual. This color harks back to that of the E36 M3 and while we haven’t been able to find a reliable source that knows precisely how many E46s are painted in Estoril Blue, it appears to be no more than around 200 worldwide, making it one of the rarer colors ever offered for the M3.
RM Sotheby’s has been tasked with selling the car and notes that it was first registered back in May 2003 and delivered new in Germany where it currently resides. It will be available at a Munich sales event on November 25 and has been driven just 51,350 km (31,907 miles) since new. No, that doesn’t make it a low-mileage museum piece, but it is less than many other E46 M3s out there.
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The listing says that the M car lived out some of its life in Tenerife, Spain before it was returned to Germany in 2022. It looks to have been lovingly cared for and is in excellent condition. And that paint? Damn, it looks good. The same can be said about the interior.
Adorning the seats is a combination of black leather and black cloth and while the leather bolsters do show signs of wear and have plenty of creases and cracks, that’s to be expected of a car that’s 20 years old. What’s more important is that all of the instruments appear to work, including the central screen. Making this M3 all the more desirable is the fact that it has the six-speed manual transmission, rather than the widely-hated SMG.
