Biscuits Posted July 3, 2008 Report Share Posted July 3, 2008 Hi, Still got that M-itch ! There are a handfull of 2003/4 M3 CSL's on the BMW AUC locator... I know it's pretty essential to get a car with a CD player and aircon... any other essential things to get check? B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted July 4, 2008 Report Share Posted July 4, 2008 Morning chap. CD can be retrofitted - you'd be lucky to find one with the blanking plate still there! The market likes xenons and PDC, but condition is everything on CSL's - some have been used more than others! All the approved cars are pretty pricey at the moment, I can't see these prices staying above £30k for that much longer bearing in mind the car market today. Private sales for cars in Warranty still could be the way to aviod this - check servicing, clutch operation, brakes/tyres etc - most other things are covered by warranty anyway. Personally, I'd spend no more than £30k on a sub 35k mile car in warranty and with a/c, xenons as a minimum. I think buying a £35k dealer car will just be spunking £5k as you drive out the door - unless you really have to have that particular car. I think some dealers will have bought at the top of the recent CSL market and may suffer the consequences as people hold on to their cash at the moment - so don't pay more than you want to! I'm sure someone will disagree with me though! All the best Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_hargreaves Posted July 4, 2008 Report Share Posted July 4, 2008 Check how many services the car has had Biscuits, CSL's that have had a hard life will have had frequent services with shorter gaps between them than is usually normal. If they have been tickled every Sunday afternoon the services will be a lot further apart as you'll probably already be aware of. I've never seen a CSL without auto air-con. So you should be ok on that. Make sure the SMG gear change doesn't feel too delayed. Also if you're slowing down coming towards some traffic lights for example, the engine revs don't drop to the point where it feels like it's going to stall. Check whether it comes with the CSL standard slick tyres or if it's had some British weather appropriate tyres fitted (most, if not all, will have). Have a look at the boot floor aswell as they can be easily damaged because it's made of cardboard. Dealer buys are more reassuring for an M3, especially as seen as you get the warranty. Engine's in the M3 CSL are extremely costly to fix if not covered under warranty, i've seen 4k have to be spent on an M3 engine to be fixed before. I've just had a look and they all look tempting, depending on how much you want to spend. If you want a low mileage one buy this: Approved Used BMW It'll be easy to get a few grand swiped off that aswell i'd say (See what Ben said). If you want to spend a bit less then buy this. It also has more of the options that make having a CSL easier to live with: Approved Used BMW They both look to be in excellent condition judging by the pictures. I'm not sure how the distance of them from where you live affects anything? You could perhaps try and get your local dealer (who seem keen to sell you a car i.e E90 M3) to get it for you. If you do buy one of these, you might hit yourself in the face with a mallet for not buying one earlier :Edit: Another thing i've thought of. Check the carbon fibre in the roof. Carbon Fibre is very sensitive to sunlight and can become discoloured if it's been left outside often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuits Posted July 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 4, 2008 Thanks Tom, It was the one in Nottingham with 30k on the clock I was looking at, don't want to spend £40k! Shame I'm in Kent and shame I'm off the the 'Ring next Saturday... not much chance of getting a deal done by then is there.... ??? :D Think I may get my local dealer to do the negotiating, as I know they are not the usual b#llsh!t brigade so many dealers end up being. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuits Posted July 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 4, 2008 That CSL for £34k at Nottingham is a "clerical error"... it is on by mistake, so they have only the £40k car available... no zenons or park sensors no thanks. Going to take my time, have a look at a few and get the right one. I always rush into it, so will TRY and be patient. B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woppum Posted July 6, 2008 Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 yeah you defo want the better lights, they really do make the world of diff. What do you want to use the car for? If you want to track it - its worth looking for one with intrax, ap's - and have been set up by someone like BM Sport. CSL's are generally hard as nails. The engine and the rest takes a beating and you will never find a car that feels loose due to track work. Mine is as tight as anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuits Posted July 6, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 yeah you defo want the better lights, they really do make the world of diff. What do you want to use the car for? If you want to track it - its worth looking for one with intrax, ap's - and have been set up by someone like BM Sport. CSL's are generally hard as nails. The engine and the rest takes a beating and you will never find a car that feels loose due to track work. Mine is as tight as anything. Thanks Woops, I want the car for 80% road, 20% trackdays... Will try and take my time and get a car sub 30k miles, Xenons and Air Con... other options will be a bonus, but not essential. Silver Grey looks better than Black, just shows off the carbon fibre hood better. Plenty to choose from at the moment, so sure I'll find one shortly. The more I drive our 130i, the more I miss driving a manual. The 535d is a stonking road car, but not involving enough for me... I miss the feedback my 996 gave me... which is hopefully where a CSL will oblige. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woppum Posted July 6, 2008 Report Share Posted July 6, 2008 you know the csl is only SMG? dont let that bother you though. it is very very good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuits Posted July 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2008 you know the csl is only SMG? dont let that bother you though. it is very very good! Yep, I like SMG, DSG, Selespeed, et all... just the normal slushbox autos are not ideal. TBH, when I drove the new X6, 636d and X5 the other week at Millbrook, they all had the newer auto sport boxes and they felt much more connected (if that's the right word) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woppum Posted July 7, 2008 Report Share Posted July 7, 2008 dont like any autos really. you just cant drive them. as long as I have a quick change to help with the braking im fine! What part of the country are you from? We will have to get you on a track day once you are sorted! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuits Posted July 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2008 I'm in kent, sure I'll catch up at a track day before the end of the season. Just a couple of practical questions Woops. Do the rear seats fold down? Or is the rear seat fixed for added rigidity? What sort of mpg do you get? Do the front seats fold forward enough to get into the back easily? These questions may seem strange when looking at a CSL, but I have a family to convince too, not only the bank manager! cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merlot Posted July 8, 2008 Report Share Posted July 8, 2008 Sit in one before buying to check you are small enough for the buckets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuits Posted July 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2008 Sit in one before buying to check you are small enough for the buckets. I may have taken another step towards middle age today, but I've avoided the 'spread' so far. If I can squeeze my skinny butt into a gokart, I'm sure I'll fit in the CSL buckets. My 7 month pregnant wife however ! That and I'll probably sit in one before buying one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merlot Posted July 8, 2008 Report Share Posted July 8, 2008 Its amazing how many people don't sit in cars before buying one, especially relevant to new cars not yet released. Anyway, I find the problem with a lot of seats is shoulder room rather than a 'belly issue'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_hargreaves Posted July 9, 2008 Report Share Posted July 9, 2008 The seats aren't all to bad, just a little hard on the bum on long journeys. Fuel consumption with lively driving is around 19-20 mpg, motorway you'll be expecting about 25-26 if driven very lightly. On track is in the low single figures (not that it matters). I'm at the ring on a stag do' this weekend Biscuits. You in the 535 or the 130? Maybe i'll see you there Look out for a 21 car convoy, i'll be in a Pearl Blue R32! Or hounding Sabine Schmitz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuits Posted July 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2008 The seats aren't all to bad, just a little hard on the bum on long journeys. Fuel consumption with lively driving is around 19-20 mpg, motorway you'll be expecting about 25-26 if driven very lightly. On track is in the low single figures (not that it matters).I'm at the ring on a stag do' this weekend Biscuits. You in the 535 or the 130? Maybe i'll see you there Look out for a 21 car convoy, i'll be in a Pearl Blue R32! Or hounding Sabine Schmitz Thanks Tom, I'll be there in the 130 I think... the 535 would be better for the journey, but the 130 will be more fun on track. Might see you there... lets hope it dries up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_hargreaves Posted July 10, 2008 Report Share Posted July 10, 2008 Thanks Tom,I'll be there in the 130 I think... the 535 would be better for the journey, but the 130 will be more fun on track. Might see you there... lets hope it dries up Definately, it's forecast for showers on Saturday then light rain on Sunday. Although I might be recovering from a Saturday night out in Cologne on Sunday anyway.....Karting me thinks. The truck racing will be fun aswell, looking forward to that :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woppum Posted July 10, 2008 Report Share Posted July 10, 2008 woo hoo, im there next week, and Monza and maybe Spa - cant bloody wait! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_hargreaves Posted July 15, 2008 Report Share Posted July 15, 2008 I've just got back this morning, had a fantastic weekend. Torrential rain on Saturday but it was brilliant weather on Sunday. Hot and dry, didn't stop Sabine Schmitz going completely berserk round corners in the ring taxi. Got a great video of that. Quite a few accidents too, the track was closed for over 2 hours on Sunday and a bike came off on the back of flatbed, it was in about 3 different pieces. Biscuits, you have a good weekend? I saw two Le Mans Blue 130i's while I was there. Your reg doesn't begin in "T9" or "EA55" does it? If it's either of those you drove past me about 70 times You may have seen one of our cars that stood out, a grey Civic Type-R that was all stickered up as a "Safety Car". The trip on the way down proved otherwise though. The R32 I was in had "DON'T HASSLE THE HOFF" on the windscreen. We joke that my mate looks like the Hoff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuits Posted July 15, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2008 Hi ya Tom, Yeah, the 130i I was in starts with EA55... I'm blown away with how well the 130 went round there, I knocked 19 seconds of my best time I did last year in the 996 C2 ! (9.01 gantry to gantry, however I'd have needed another pair of pants to repeat that lap... ) Track knowledge and confidence is king, but the 130 was just SO well balanced and forgiving. Did you see the Saudi Grey CSL and his mate in the white rental 135i tti? They flew past me like I was driving a shopping trolly, up till the point I saw the 135i on the back of the ADAC lorry. Seriously thinking about chopping my 535d for either a mega spec 135i or a CSL now... infact more likely to be a 135i, it pulled away from all the cars in our group (2.0TT, 996 C4S, TVR Cerb) with such a difference, wonder if it had been chipped? The Scumball cars put all other cars to shame sticker wise, they were mad. Yesterday there was a group of Skylines going dredfully slow and using the bends for drifting... it looked quite impressive, but one of them nearly fish-tailed my mate in his new black TT There were some awsome cars and some sheds that were very quick too. The white Z4M Coupe with reg plate that said 'you are oh too slow' and the Finnish yellow 996 GT3 with the plate 'GT3', very cool. We had a great weekend, no casualties and plenty of pub stories to tell. Hope the stag weekend was good mate. Now where's that Autotrader ? B. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_hargreaves Posted July 15, 2008 Report Share Posted July 15, 2008 That white Z4 was quality, i'm gonna look into getting the alloys that were on that for ours. The noise it made was ridiculous, I have a good video of it I took from a vantage point. I saw you coming round at some speed man, your car looked very nimble and smooth through the S bends. That 135i was really quick through the corner we were at, I have a video of that and it absolutely anhilated a 911 GT3 on the straight. My favourite was the yellow Lamborghini Gallardo SE that's number plate was "FEED ME", that was something else. The stag weekend was good, I had liquid meals everyday in the form of Warsteiner (Warstarter). We had a night in Cologne which was good. The married man-to-be was bound by the ankles and wrists and given a joyride around the roads of Nurburg in the boot of the "Safety Car". There was 2 Skyline's in our group, it was the Skyline owners' club weekend aswell so that's why there was so many. CSL's were more common than actual people at that place, it was mind boggling. The bright green one looked a lot like Woppums but without the fade-to-black rear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuits Posted July 15, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2008 There was 2 Skyline's in our group, it was the Skyline owners' club weekend aswell so that's why there was so many. Something about girls in Skylines that just so very very right Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuits Posted July 15, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2008 Yee Haaaaar ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shark_90 Posted July 16, 2008 Report Share Posted July 16, 2008 Had a cracking weekend, didn't get much track time though CSL or 135i... now that's a difficult one. I still think the 1 series looks horrible and I really like CSL's but that's a very tough call. I think you'll lose more on the 1 series than the CSL, so maybe that's the way to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winton Posted July 16, 2008 Report Share Posted July 16, 2008 Tom I know of the bloke who has the white Z4M and he would prob be pretty keen to get his hands on the video footage that you got. His car has got a GruppeM CF air intake and a custom H&S exhaust, hence the sounds. If you need a hand sourcing the CSLs for your car let me know as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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