Buying The Cheapest BMW M3 In The USA Is Our Kind Of Madness

If you spend any time on CT, you’ll know that we take great interest in the brave/concerning car buying decisions of YouTuber Tyler Hoover. After all, they’re usually the kind of cars we’d love to buy but don’t have the guts/contempt for our bank balances to take the plunge.

Now though, we’re more worried about the Hoover’s sanity than ever - having only just bought bought a $7500 850i (yep, the V12 one), he’s gone and bagged the cheapest M3 in the USA. Well, almost: this automatic, E36 convertible is the least expensive non-basket case M3 kicking around, as Hoover explains, before going on a meandering chat about his girlfriend ad the “friend zone.” Don’t worry, it’s relevant, kinda…

The US-spec M3s received a different version of the S50 3.0-litre inline-six, which had a more basic Vanos system, and did without individual throttle bodies. Factoring in a lower compression ratio, these America-bound M3s made only 234bhp and 225lb ft, compared to 282bhp and 236lb ft.

Still, that’s a hell of a lot of car for just $3000, and we’re looking forward to seeing how this latest bargain slice of Bavaria turns out.