Rich man's problem ( or how to waste your retirement funds).

After 47 years of making scratch to pay the bills, I am hanging it up. For years, I promised myself a bucket list car and now the time has arrived. My budget is healthy ( up to $100k+) but after a single test drive, I have a dilemma.

 For 20 years I have driven the same e36 M3, first as a daily driver, then as a track day toy for the last decade. Every year I did a little more to the car, incuding engine rebuild with lots of bolt on upgrades, DA coilovers and various other suspension upgrades, a custom diff, roll bar, race seats etc.  in addition the setup has been tweaked by some top drivers in my area. The car is still street legal and the body is essentially rust free. I love this car. 

I test drove a 2016 Porsche Cayman GT4 last week. This car was raved about by everyone and it was amazing to drive. But not sure it was any more fun than my trusty M3. Definetly not $100k more fun. 

Problems with the M3:  I know how Miata owners feel as just about every other late model car has 100-300 more horsepower and spanks me on the straights. 

So my dilemma comes down to 3 choices:

get the bucket list car and enjoy the M3 for what it is( if so what car should I consider), or

throw more money at the M3 to make it a Porsche killer ( not sure that is possible), or

keep the M3 and build some sleeper that has more comfort than the M3 but can still take on a GT3 for half the cost.

Suggestions please  

Find a good shop to swap a GM LSwhatever into the M3, and spend the remaining $50k on a used 911.

AngryCorvair said:

Find a good shop to swap a GM LSwhatever into the M3, and spend the remaining $50k on a used 911.

You forgot the forced induction, but hit it right.

My vore, though, would be a late model 7 series, a teardrop camper, and all 50 states worth of race tracks and local diners. You could make 100k last for YEARS that way.

C6z, w/a check to Nelson for a set of mirror twins. Make 1000whp. 

Import a Delta, put a modern cage and computer in it and blast forever?

Just buy a 997.2 911 Turbo with the PDK and call it a day. I have been down this path before and that is the answer 90% of the time.

In reply to Flatspot : I vintage raced MG T series at first.  Had a ball!  Lots of grins and comradery.  After  time I wanted to go faster so I did and while I successfully raced the much faster car I never had as much fun as I did with my old group.  I enjoyed the MG group whenever I'd race both cars.  

My point is racing at this level is about fun not speed.  If that's the way you feel then continue with old faithful with maybe a few upgrades.  

Spend the extra funds on maybe a motor home to make track time more comfortable  or better tow vehicle etc.  

I suggest cheaper racing and more expensive street car. Even Randy Pobst has fun behind the wheel of a Lemons car. The best part is you don't need to sell your M3 to try it out. Just find a team that needs a driver and write them a check (usually $800 - $1200) and you can have a weekend of fun racing. Each car needs 4 to 6 drivers and so there are often openings at a given race. Vet the team! Don't just send a check to the first people you find. Some teams you end up watching them scratch their butt all weekend while they try to figure out why their car won't run, other teams you're on track all weekend and get a few good meals thrown in to boot.

Sonic here on this board is co-head of Three Pedal Mafia and they're organized and great fun to race with. If you're interested give him a shout.

My racing has wound down - only did two last year, none this year - thanks to a team of tiny humans at home. But when I get a chance I'll be back on track and probably at Lemons!

Just a heads-up: I'm moving this thread to the Grassroots Motorsports forum.

In reply to dculberson :

What he says.  I love racing my own LeMons car, and I love A&D-ing for other teams that run in the spirit of the game.  

Race cheap.  Drive fancy.  

In reply to Flatspot :

Really not enough info regarding intended use for your bucket list car selection.  According to your profile you have some nice DD/sedan/SUV Teutonic machinery.

Are you looking for a car that serves both purposes of a comfortable and fast street car that you can drive to the track, thrash it all afternoon then put spare in trunk and drive it home and take your wife to dinner in it?  Or is it gonna be a track only car?  You gonna enjoy it more now that you have $90k at risk for potential instant depreciation?

Play this out.  You spend $90k on a gt4.  The guy next to you on the grid spends almost twice that on a gt4 rs clubsport.  You still gonna be happy?  Point is there's always gonna be somebody who chooses to out spend you for a playtoy.  How fast do you want to spend?

As Pogo opined:  "you are faced with insurmountable opportunities."

Flatspot said:

After 47 years of making scratch to pay the bills, I am hanging it up. For years, I promised myself a bucket list car and now the time has arrived. My budget is healthy ( up to $100k+) but after a single test drive, I have a dilemma.

 For 20 years I have driven the same e36 M3, first as a daily driver, then as a track day toy for the last decade. Every year I did a little more to the car, incuding engine rebuild with lots of bolt on upgrades, DA coilovers and various other suspension upgrades, a custom diff, roll bar, race seats etc.  in addition the setup has been tweaked by some top drivers in my area. The car is still street legal and the body is essentially rust free. I love this car. 

I test drove a 2016 Porsche Cayman GT4 last week. This car was raved about by everyone and it was amazing to drive. But not sure it was any more fun than my trusty M3. Definetly not $100k more fun. 

Problems with the M3:  I know how Miata owners feel as just about every other late model car has 100-300 more horsepower and spanks me on the straights. 

So my dilemma comes down to 3 choices:

get the bucket list car and enjoy the M3 for what it is( if so what car should I consider), or

throw more money at the M3 to make it a Porsche killer ( not sure that is possible), or

keep the M3 and build some sleeper that has more comfort than the M3 but can still take on a GT3 for half the cost.

Suggestions please  

 

 

Flares, huge Hoosiers, built LS motor (easy to north of 500whp on one), some aero.

Profit?

(If you wanted to make the M3 a real monster.

I think for me, I'd be using that on bucket list experiences as opposed to cars. Every time I flip to the back of a Top Gear magazine I see the adverts for track days at Spa and the 'Ring, and I think about how cool that would be to do someday. For me, I'd be going to Europe, renting something cool, and putting in time at Spa, Hockenheim, the 'Ring, Portimao, Silverstone, Brands Hatch...you get the idea.

I'd do powertrain mods to the E36 to make it a Porsche-killer or at least a Porsche-competitor (maybe some flares and wider wheels too?), and spend the rest on experiences. A new Porsche is a very efficient way to make a lot of money disappear.

Drop the M3 off by Jakeb for a BMW V10 install!

Flatspot said:

So my dilemma comes down to 3 choices:

get the bucket list car and enjoy the M3 for what it is( if so what car should I consider), or

throw more money at the M3 to make it a Porsche killer ( not sure that is possible), or

keep the M3 and build some sleeper that has more comfort than the M3 but can still take on a GT3 for half the cost.

Suggestions please  

Buy a reasonable, nice car for the road, not a hybrid track car or brutal sporting car. Buy a real race car for the track not a kludged street car.  Get a nice small truck to tow it and to use for those occasions when it seems like a good idea to tour Moab.

My choices would be:

Road: Boxster/Cayman S (depending on your topless preferences)

Track: Radical SR3 RS or similar

Truck: Tacoma TRD Off-Road

I track a 79 3-series, a 302-swapped E36, and an E92 M3. 

All of the following assumes you're looking for something to drive, not something to occupy your time repairing and maintaining.

The E92 M3 is an incredibly sweet road car.  It has a ton of room in it, including room in the back seat for 4 track wheels w/275s.  With just pads, camber plates, and tires it really shines as an HPDE track ride.  Keeps up with everything from a Cayman S and 997.1 on down, given equal drivers and tires.  Well worth the $30k or so it costs these days, with either transmission. But, the track drive feel is a bit different than an E36, due to the additional weight, the really stable electronic dampers and progressive suspension travel, and the cozy cabin insulation.

Re-motoring your M3 has its ups and downs.  Mine is at 250 crank horsepower-ish now, on its way to 375.  The V8 torque is a blast; the American transmission gates are not.  These things are custom work and I wouldn't advise someone to track one unless he knows how to fix whatever goes wrong with it, OR you can get it set up by a supremely professional outfit that does it a lot.  I know the 302/T5 package does not destroy the car's balance, in fact it improves it a touch.  An LS and transmission, even aluminum block, weighs more than the stock S52 combo.  People say it won't matter but I have yet to meet anyone who tracks one regularly and really knows.

The other easy button in this situation is a C5, most preferably a Z06 by a long shot.  Great track car, and plush enough to drive it there.  A little short on room to pack your stuff.

Another way to go with it:  friend of mine has a retired Porsche race car.  He stores it at the track (Summit Point), so he doesn't have to trailer it, and the mechanics on Gasoline Alley will keep it in good running condition for $85/hour plus parts.  This is in a whole other league of driving experience.

You already have a fun track car and you're reached a station in life where presumably you have nothing to prove to anyone.  Why throw $100k at a rapidly depreciating asset like a new Porsche?  Treat yourself to a classic car that will hold or appreciate in value.  

Then when all you and all your peers exhaust social security system in a few years, you can sell it and won't have to resort to a reverse mortgage.  ;)   (KIDDING)

Congrats on your retirement.

Unless you're Paul Newman, you'll be street driving long after you hang up your helmet. Go be awesome on track now. You can rub a pretty car with your adult diapers later.

You could drop a LS in a 911 and call it a day.

With your budget, I would be calling Keith at FM and asking when I could pick-up my new LS swapped ND.

The rest of the 100k would be hookers and blow.

Or tires, cause tires are good also.

At issue here is really setup and safety.  Any bucket list car you buy isn't going to be as safe or setup as your current M3.

I'd keep your M3, either as is, or do an S54 swap into it, then buy your bucket list car and keep it as a street only car.

Why not LS the M3?!  Well, having been down that road and LS swapped my 944 Turbo, I don't think I'd do it again. 

#1  If you S54 swap the M3, you can still compete in GTS with it, or BMWCCA classes.

#2  Once you LS swap the car, you get into the realm of bespoke builds.  It's no longer a bolt this one, plug that in kinda thing.  My 944 (on the track, it was bomb proof on the street) would need work here and there, and it was always custom fab work, the type of work I can't do and a typical shop can't do.

#3  These swaps take a long time to truly shake out, if you want OEM type of integration.  I did, and I wanted it to be smog legal.  That was ALOT more work.

I'm currently doing the head gasket on my S52, decided to throw in a mild set of Schricks as well as a big bore throttle body.  I would've loved to have done an S54 swap, but that's easily $10k to do, with OEM integration.  End of the day I decided to work on the nut behind the wheel more....

Go drive more stuff and see what trips your trigger. Combo street/track cars are always a compromise - part of the question is do you want to go all out with a no compromise car or prefer more versatility? Cayman GT4 is a pretty safe bet on the depreciation curve btw. Crazy amount of options - take a euro delivery of a Cayman S - go drive around the continent for a month.

After a lot of thought (not really - just temptation) I am going with an s54 swap.  This M3 just has too much history with me to replace it.  

Awesome choice man!  Enjoy, it will be a blast, and it will still be all BMW.  Nice.