Sold 12/23/10 - Disappeared from AutoTrader again, maybe it sold this time?
12/3/10 Update - Relisted on AutoTrader, guess it didn't sell.
10/7/10 Update - Another non-favorable review of this coupe's condition:
I too checked out this car…What a shame. It almost made me sick. It would need a completely new paint job. For a low miles one owner, nothing could have prepared me for what I walked into. Cat hairs and claw marks on it. DISGUSTING inside. Crumbs from 2001. A really good detail could have solved that. There were multiple dents in the passenger side door. All of this he said he never even noticed. He must have ran into 20 parking curbs. Bumper was trashed in the front. Would have needed totally redone. He has probably hit every curb in pittsburgh with his wheels. All four totally thrashed. He said he would get them redone, but it would just happen again due to the wheels sticking out past the tires (it never crossed his mind to STOP HITTING CURBS!) It pulled a little to the right when driving. He said the clutch had been replaced (wow, must have been a TERRIBLE driver with only 52000 miles). I got him down to 20k. But I wasn’t looking to pay anywhere near that after seeing it. If I knew that it only needed a paint job, then fine. But I can’t imagine what lurks below. It took me a minute to find the hood release as this was the first one I’ve looked at. He had no idea where it was, which was scary to me. The engine bay was filthy. The car had tree branches and leaves in every crevice.
Everything did seem to work on it though. Seat heaters, gauges, lights, wipers, heating, A/C, stereo. So I think for the right price, this is still a viable purchase. But like the previous commenter said, 15k is about where the car is due to the known work needed. I’d be changing every fluid in that thing immediately. I would guess it needs a suspension refresh, spark plugs, air filters, the whole 9 yards.
10/4/10 Update - I guess we have an answer for why this coupe hasn't sold yet at a seemingly great price. I got a report from a Bimmerforums member who checked it out in person.
The car is in very poor shape and has not been taken care of at all. Front bumper is scraped and scratched heavily on the bottom as well as the sides. Rear fenders and scraped and dented, Rear bumper is hanging off on the one side someone either hit him or he backed into something. Interior is filthy and seats are scraped up, both interior door panels are faded and discolored, plastic ///m decal on the drive side rocker is pealed off. Valve alignment has never been done. I could go on and on, such a shame seeing this car in this state. Being totally realistic this car needs anywhere between 4-6k in repair and maintenance.
I adjusted my condition and value ratings accordingly. It goes to show you can't always tell a coupe by its photos.
9/14/10 Update - Price reduced to $22,000 from $24,500 making it a really, really good deal for a clean, stock S54 M Coupe.
This looks like a pretty good deal on a nice, stock, one-owner coupe. It seems to have been well taken care of and in nice condition for the mileage. Black on black S54 are rarer than you might think with only 74 made.