No love for ZHP coupes?

[Bird-Dog]

I get that ZHP sedans offer something that couldn't be had any other way with e46's and ZHP convertibles are a sensible DD alternative to M3 vert's. But why no love for ZHP coupes?

The numbers I've seen indicate ZHP coupes are by far the rarest of the breed (and across-the-board for all e46's), well behind sedans and convertibles in production numbers. Perhaps that's precisely why I see so few talked about here... or maybe not (???). But, it seems to me the relatively low production numbers should make ZHP coupes highly desirable.

The main reason I ask is that I'm shopping for a coupe for my 17 y/o son. I'd expected to have to settle for a base 330Ci due to our budget (max $8,500). Well, I've found an 04 ZHP with ~120K miles we can pick up for $6,500 (and expecting to put at least $1K into repairs & preventative maintenance before we even put it on the road). Looks like a steal to me. Did we just get lucky, or is the market for ZHP coupes that far depressed from the other body styles?

[Smilez]

Nobody likes coupes. Haha jk. You right though. I see more zhp sedans than I do coupes. $6,500 is a good deal. Long as the pre inspection checks out, should be a good ride for your son.

[LivesNearCostco]

I think some of the people who would buy ZHP coupes buy the E46 M3 instead, which was only available as a coupe (or vert).

[Bird-Dog]

I think some of the people who would buy ZHP coupes buy the E46 M3 instead, which was only available as a coupe (or vert).

This is certainly true, but there's still a lot of enthusiasm for ZHP verts (mine included!). Essentially, verts would appear to face the same juxtaposition, though the mitigating factor may be more a matter of convertibles offering less in terms of maximum handling than their coupe counterparts, particularly with regard to M3's, and therefore, selected more for DD than all-out performance.

[fredo]

In my case, I prefer sedans for the 2 extra doors convenience. My boy is almost 4 years old and that is a big factor for me. I have a Mini Cooper and it has become my weekend car for that reason.

When it's time to replace the Mini, I will be happy to consider a ZHP coupe, as long as it's IR.

[johnrando]

Not sure about the coupe numbers, but the ZHP was originally intended to be the 4 door version of the M3-lite. So, extrapolating, BMW likely produced more sedans (and maybe verts but that doesn't really make sense). They probably figured (or hoped) if you wanted a performance coupe, then you'd go to an M3. Just conjecture on my part.

[Hermes]

Every car I own is a coupe, and one of them even is a true coupe (no B-pillar)

[sillieidiot]

it's because the coupes cost slightly more than the sedans when it was available. plus sedan is more practical. I don't think the zhp is supposed to be the m3-lite lol i'm pretty sure we got that cause all the other countries got special versions of the 330 and we didn't.

[Bird-Dog]

Not sure about the coupe numbers, but the ZHP was originally intended to be the 4 door version of the M3-lite. So, extrapolating, BMW likely produced more sedans (and maybe verts but that doesn't really make sense). They probably figured (or hoped) if you wanted a performance coupe, then you'd go to an M3. Just conjecture on my part.

Not to be argumentative, but these were in production long enough that production numbers weren't just based on guesses. The market dictated. But, you'd be right either way... up to a point. And that point revolves heavily around price differences. Consider that sticker prices for the M3 when new ran... what?... $10K to $15K higher?

Furthermore, though I know 3-series sedans have been hugely successful, the line's lineage, the 3-series DNA, was originally based on selling coupes (all the way back to, and including the 2002 that put BMW on the map).

Still, the question remains, are current ZHP coupe resale values typically expected to be lower than sedans and convertibles?

[sillieidiot]

no, they are usually higher than sedans for all car makes, not just bmw. verts (except hard tops) are usually about the same as coupes.