Hello #planetauto,
In this post, I will be talking about the dream of my dream car, the BMW M3 GTR(E46) and how much will it cost me if I could afford to get one.
This is a screenshot from my game of the game Need for Speed Heat.
So, most of you guys who has played Need for Speed will know this car, which got it's attention from the game Need for Speed Most Wanted. For me, personally this was THE car that I ever drove in a game and immediately fell in love with it. The look, the sound, the way it sailed on the road, it was perfect. Since then every game I can get a M3 GTR, I get one and customize myself.
This car has been around since 1986 although the model that I'm referring to is the 2001 version used in Le Mans race.
Here's me building the car in Need for Speed Heat on my YouTube channel.
BMW M3 GTR History
BMW M3 GTR or E46 as it is called sometimes first came in early 2001. It was the first M3 from BMW to feature a V8 engine. This car had just one motive - win the American Le Mans 24 hour race. Since there were rules in Le Mans that only street legal cars can participate in the race, the company made 10 street versions of the car which was roughly priced at $300,000.
This car went on to win the 2001 American Le Mans and later became a pinnacle for BMW's win in the same competition in 2010.
Features
Further details on the engine can be found here.
The street version of the car had a horsepower of 380 at 7000 rpm (which was wild!!). To power this up, a racing style twin disk clutch to a 6-speed manual gearbox was used with variable locking M differential. It also had an extensively stiffened chassis and a sporty suspension setup taken from the race version. Also, ride height was also reduced comparatively to that of the stock M3 to make it even more aerodynamic.
Even the weight was dramatically reduced by using Carbon fibre reinforced plastic for the roof, rear spoilers and hood vents. It also only hosts 2 seats both of which are made from with reduced materials to reduce the car's overall weight and make it easier to sail in this beast.
Additionally, if you ask me the exhaust, which comes from it's side is enough for me to die for.
How much it's gonna cost me
So here's the thing, you technically can't buy this car as those who have it either know it's value or are people who somehow got it and are like me and they won't sell it no matter what the price I have to offer.
BUT, I can build this from scratch using a BMW M3 and parts that are available online. BMW M3 in India will cost me at least ₹510,000 and can go all the way up to ₹3,000,000. Then the parts can cost me up to a total of another 500,000. So at the minimum I'm looking at ₹1,000,000 at the bare minimum, which would be around $13,500.
These are some of the people who had the same dream like me and made it come true.
People like them inspire me to one day go out and make this absolute beauty of a car come true and one day someway or other I'll get this car.
Source of the price of this car in aftermarket can be seen here.
Source of the car's history can be seen here.