In BMW land, Dakar Yellow is one of those colors that gets enthusiasts’ blood pumping. First of all, fast, yellow cars just ooze speed in every way possible; heck, there’s even a paint code called “Speed Yellow” that you can order on a Porsche 911, so it’s no surprise that a yellow sports car ranks high on the list of vehicles to own for some of us. This particular BMW is a rare car in and of itself before you factor in the Dakar Yellow paint scheme. The Z3 M-Coupe, affectionately known as a “clown shoe” owing to its unique shape, is listed here on eBay with under 50,000 original miles and bids to $30,000 with the reserve unmet.
The Z3 was offered in coupe form for just a short while, and it was immediately a cult favorite. What I mean by that is there were plenty of purists who didn’t love the shape, but there were others that absolutely loved it – and the short-lived production cycle and the unusual proportions thrust it into the category of limited-production sports cars that quietly became a collector’s item. The M-powered versions featured either the S52 or S54 engine from the M3 along with a host of other chassis upgrades. Whether you buy the M version or a standard model with the 3.0L inline-six, you’re getting into a phenomenal driver’s car with plenty of room to go up in value.
The seller’s car is not only desirable for the exterior color but the interior as well. Some M Coupes featured two-tone color schemes that didn’t quite look as good as BMW perhaps intended. In some lighting, it almost looks garish. The fact that this M Coupe wears solid black Nappa leather makes it quite desirable, as any sports car with a black leather interior is generally a sought-after specimen. The cabin is in outstanding condition with no apparent blemishes and the leather looks way better than I’d expect for a car with almost 50,000 miles. It’s clearly been looked after, without even an aftermarket radio being swapped in and altering the cabin. As an added bonus, this example is a rare sunroof-delete model.
The other benefit to buying an example like this is there are no apparent modifications, which is particularly impressive for an M-Coupe with no sunroof. The M-Roadster and M-Coupe are fantastic road cars, so they make perfect sense as a vehicle you can use in town while also building a very competitive track car out of one for tracking on the weekend. That being said, many M-Coupes have been modified with upgraded suspensions, exhausts, and other bolt-on components. Finding one that is bone-stock while also featuring a sought-after color combination and low mileage is just a home run, and why I’m not surprised the seller has listed this one-of-nine specimen with a reserve that’s currently higher than the top bid.
I’m the biggest yellow fan out here but yellow on this car just doesn’t look right. Nice cars though.
No color looks good on these Bob. I know they are desirable but the look kills me. I own a 2000 Z3 ragtop, even with the 2.5 motor it’s a blast for me. Some of the coupes bring huge money. I will be watching.
Rag tops are good looking cars.
I like this one.
I owned a 2003 porsche boxster with the speed yellow paint , i drove it like i stole and loved it but had to sell to finance a renovation in a commercial unit that i owned…did i say i loved it !
I now have a z3 with 2,8 and its not anywhere close to the boxster…
For this clownshoe , it is definitely a very good looking car and its an M, wich means 3,2 engine and that spices things up !
It must be a tighter car but i need to drive topless !
Thank God it isn’t a two tone interior! Mine was silver over black and there is no way I’d have a yellow one. The S54 is something you don’t want and be sure the rear end connections are not cracked! I loved mine but got rid of it at the right time.
I currently have a 01 3.0 ragtop and it’s a blast. 2 years ago a 97 2.8 clownshoe with 70K miles was being sold by a neighbor for his mother who had past. We came up with an agreed price of $12,000 and he said he was taking it to his mechanic to do an oil change before we close the deal. 2 days later he called and told me his mechanic paid him $12,500 for it and he sold it to him. I told him, if he had called me back I would have beaten that price.
I haven’t talked to him since…
That guy is a real dirt bag!
I’m not sure if this affected the coups, but I remember reading that a common problem with these were the rear suspension mounting points. They were prone to cracking causing an ugly and expensive structural failure.
This morning on my way to work I passed a red Clownshoe and a couple of other cars that had been comprehensively crunched sometime earlier in the commute. It was a very sad morning.
I own 7 BMW’s and you don’t want me to comment on the Z3 but I do love the M coupe.
Let’s hear it.
I remember when around when they came out we were at Road America for the June Sprints. There were one of these. The consensus in the padock was it was so ugly it was desirable.
I thought it looked like a MGBGT done badly.
I have a soft spot for BMW’s, I used to own a 2001 e46 330ci
Loved that car …..
This would be a hoot to drive I am sure…but too expensive for me as I have no garage to keep it in.
Auction ended. Don’t think it sold. Belongs on Bring a Trailer. Limited production, high performance, respected manufacturer. Every year there are a few less so clean, well maintained examples will continue to increase in value. These are headed into the six figure range. Not for everyone, they were never meant to be. Fantastic driving experience.
Ended:
Nov 17, 2022 09:42:46 PST
Current bid:
US $31,100.00
Reserve not met
A duplicate of the MCoupe I owned, 2000MY, Dakar over black. These photos do not show the color accurately, it is not as taxi-yellow as pictured. I did a radio upgrade to a Harman disc-based GPS but provided the OEM radio to the seller.
The coupes had a surprising amount of luggage space: We drove to Las Vegas from the SanFran Bay Area with a long weekend’s worth of luggage.
Just after I bought it, drove from San Antonio to home, I stumbled on “Dorkfest,” an MCoupe get-together. We had 6 Dakar yellow coupes lined up and 5 were M’s.
“Dorkfest” – I love it!
And I always thought BMW owners had
no sense of humor.
If Ur going to go for a Clownshoe BMW Coupe why not just go all in & paint it in the loudest BMW Paint colour/code, well done my Man.