1991 BMW E30 M3 Cabriolet

A handful of cars throughout history become an industry benchmark, a benchmark in the way all luxury 4x4s are pitted against a full-size Range Rover. If you’re out to build a performance medium-sized saloon or coupe, your competition is the BMW M3.

Except, the BMW M3 didn’t start that way. The M3 was a product of motorsport regulations, Group A specifically. The head honchos in Bavaria wanted to take to the track to prove their might against Mercedes and Ford.

And prove their might they did, globally. Beating out Cosworth-powered Mercedes and Ford’s at everywhere from Bathurst to Brands Hatch, over 1,400 wins. Part of the Group A regulations required BMW to build 5,000 road-legal M3s. Despite its motorsport roots, BMW’s performance coupe was given the open-top treatment a few years into production, fewer than 800 were built which makes the E30 M3 Convertible one of the rarest E30s produced.

This example was supplied new by BMW Sytner in Nottingham in August of 1991. Externally, the car is finished in a particularly special shade of Macao Blue, a colour that originated from the ‘Europameister’ special edition. Whilst a dark shade of blue, its lighter undertones show under direct sunlight.

The paintwork itself is in good condition, the standard E30 lines are accentuated for the M3 by a full M-tech styling pack with chin-spoiler, rear bumper extension and side skirts. The wide box arches scream eighties and as an E30 in convertible form, they look even more imposing.

Housed within those aforementioned haunches are a set of 16” BBS alloy wheels, finished with a satin-silver lip and a darker grey centre and are wrapped in a matching set of tyres. As the first production convertible M-car the E30 utilises a black fabric roof which is in excellent shape with no rips or tears. The motor for the roof has stopped working so it has been disconnected so it is currently operated manually. The car also comes with a rare, black, removable hard top roof too.

Step over the M3 branded door sill moulding and you’re greeted by a host of M-Tech goodies. A 3-Spoke M-Tech II steering wheel is the first thing to greet you, it's mounted in front of an all-silver leather interior, with textured seat centres. The seats are in great shape, and offer plenty of support, the most impressive part of the interior is that the dash remains free from cracks, something that is increasingly difficult to find in E30s.

Under the bonnet, you’re greeted by a 2.3-litre S14 inline-four-cylinder mated to dog-leg 5-speed manual transmission. As a later 2.3-litre car, it produces over 200bhp which is more than enough. It’s fed by individual throttle bodies which make for a truly intoxicating driving experience.

The engine bay is clean, tidy and free from anything nasty and wears its BMW M-Power cam cover with pride. The excellent condition is in part due to an assortment of service records, loved and cared for over its life, service records exist right back to 1991.

• 01/1992 - 1,987 km - Sytner Nottingham
• 03/1993 - 18,747 km - Sytner Nottingham
• 04/1994 - 35,748 km - Sytner Nottingham
• 08/1995 - 48,344 km - Sytner Nottingham
• 06/1996 - 60,741 km - Sytner Nottingham
• 11/1997 - 74,711 km - Sytner Nottingham
• 10/1998 - 88,663 km - Sytner Nottingham
• 11/1999 - 97,575 km - Sytner Nottingham
• 09/2001 - 119,335 km - Sytner Nottingham
• 10/2002 - 127,474 km - Sytner Nottingham
• 12/2014 - 258,124 km - Independent
• 07/2017 - 271,087 km - Independent
• 10/2019 - 271,494 km - Independent
• 07/2022 - 274,387km - Independent
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On top of the above, there are records to show regular wheel alignments, tyre changes, MOTs and general maintenance, throughout the car’s 33-year life. It’s hard not to love the BMW M3, any generation really, but the car that started it all was the E30. Whilst the car does present well, it is not without some defects and marks - hence this not being a £100,000 example. We have a walkaround video available that shows these in more detail. Please contact us for this.

BMW’s tagline of the Ultimate Driving Machine has existed for so long that it has become self-deprecating, as the brand releases models aimed less at the driving enthusiast and more at the general public it's hard to imagine a time when they released hits like the E30 M3.

Subtlety is something lacking from today’s M-car range, it’s all grill and go, but the E30 M3, especially in convertible form is manic and yet elegant. With fewer than 800 built, and being finished in the special shade of Macao Blue, this surely is the car to add to your stable.

As with all our vehicles, a full digital folder is available on request containing more images, walk-around videos, and scans of the service history. The car can also be viewed by appointment at our West London showroom.