new member St. Louis MO, likely future ZHP owner

[ryanstl]

hey everyone! new member here from St. Louis, MO. I do my homework on cars online and have been a member of quite a few forums over the last 10+ years. I'm very impressed with the knowledge, love, and overall culture here. glad to donate and join!!

I have owned audi's, an infiniti G35 coupe, a G8 GT, and a VW ... but never a BMW until a year ago. I pulled the trigger on an all new model 2015 435 Gran Coupe M sport. I'm getting hooked fast and don't see my garage in the future not having a BMW or three in it.

Fast forward to this spring. Simultaneously my daughter is getting her drivers license and the wife and I are looking for a 3rd car (we'd share it with my daughter). My wife drives a 2015 Jeep Rubicon 4 door. My daughter is almost 17, very responsible, and honestly doesn't drive much. She's a good driver, it just seems kids don't drive as much as they used to? anyways...

My daughter loves my car and wants to look at BMWs. We test drove a few e46 325's and the car is a joy to drive. The more I looked, the more sense it made to look for a convertible (3rd car fun factor). Out of the nowhere, a 2006 imola ZHP convertible with low miles pops up on Craigslist for $10k. I drove it, had a PPI done, and I was in love. I was honestly debating in my head that it was a better driving experience than my 2015 435 M sport. I offered $10k for the ZHP and the seller froze. I offered $11k and the seller pulled the car and wouldn't sell. crazy

So now, here I am ... hooked on getting a ZHP and realizing how hard it is to find a well maintained car at the right price. I really think we are in the sweet spot for these ZHP cars in terms of holding their value for the foreseeable future.

I think I've found another 2006 ZHP vert with low miles (83k) at a decent price ($13,xxx). The car was a BMW CPO and has quite a few maintenance records. The car is a short flight away, but I think worth the trip. Car is being sold by a BMW dealer and I'm going to call & feel them out today. If everything works, maybe I jump on a plane tomorrow and drive it home.

any thoughts & advice are welcome. thanks for looking and welcoming me to the forum!!

[ELCID86]

Could be a good find at that price. Not sure if the dealer will allow a PPI from an Indy shop or not, but if so its worth the second (independent) opinion. You could see if any members here are nearby and can take it for a drive too.
Check bimmershops.com for Indy shops. GL with search.


Thumbs, iPhone, Tapatalk.

[fredo]

Welcome, sir. Hope this is "the one." I never bought a BMW from a dealer, so can't offer advice here. GL.

[Vas]

Welcome and good luck on finding the right car.

[danewilson77]

Ryan, welcome

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge

[ryankokesh]

Hi, Ryan!

-Ryan

[Silber92]

Hey Ryan, welcome to the gang! You truly won't find a better group than the folks on this forum.

I'm on my third E46 vert, and if there are any questions you've got about your potential purchase, I or anyone here will do their best to answer them for you.

Plus if you're ever in my neck of the woods (just south of I-70 near Kingdom City) please give me a shout. Always looking for other local enthusiasts to talk Bimmers with.

Cheers, Michael

[ryanstl]

thanks for the welcome everyone. i was torn all night whether to jump on a $200 flight to check out & maybe buy this 'vert but I'm not in love with the color... sparkling graphite metallic on black interior. The car looks classy for sure, but I'm trying to hold out for an imola, alpine white, or blue one.

if I get imola, I'll have the 3 ///M colors in my garage which is kindof cool. (navy 435, light blue jeep, red ZHP). plus the red just looks like the most fun. back to the search

[Silber92]

Actually SGM is a pretty cool color in person, at least to my eyes, it has a fair amount of purple in it in certain light.

I would definitely steer clear of a vert with a black interior with leather, especially around here. My old E30 vert had a dark grey leather interior, and it was still like sitting on lava in the summertime. My two cents, try and find one with an Alcantara/cloth combo, or at least go for the Sand leather. Not sure if it's to your taste, but the cloth is a much more vert friendly option and doesn't require the constant conditioning that leather does, especially as our cars continue to age. The Alcantara does require some gentle treatment, mainly on the bolsters, but the fabric is available if you need to have anything repaired. Taking mine to St. Charles next week to get the drivers bolsters and old cigarette burns (grrr) repaired.

[oldzilla]

Welcome and glws. Stick to getting a vert you will never regret it.