My new 1998 318is Sport with... Supercharger!

After several months of searching for my next car, last night I spotted a 1998 318is Sport for sale. Not only was it priced quite low, but the advertisement said it was supercharged.

The next morning I was the first person to see the car. At first I was disappointed as there were plenty of little dents, possible from hail, and a few bigger dents. But I was still interested, mainly due to the supercharger, and made a low offer, which to my surprise was accepted.

Money changed hands and I drove it home. First impressions were that steering and suspension seemed good, and there was evidence during my inspection that the control arms had been replaced not too long ago. However, at 100km/h any changes in direction felt strange, so one of the first things I will need to attend to is a wheel alignment to see if that helps, before I start looking under the car at some of the much worse possibilities.

The other thing I found was that the clutch throw out bearing was noisy, so looks like I will be replacing the clutch very soon.

The car is Avus Blue Metallic, and has been fitted with 17" 5 spoke (double-spoke) wheels. Being a "Sport" model it is also factory fitted with the Mtechnic body kit, and has alcantara/cloth sports seats.

This model is also one of the only models that had black headliner and associated parts.

This particular car does not have a sunroof or cruise control, which to me is perfect.

I'm not sure what supercharger kit it has but it looks very well done, and it looks like similar to pictures I have seen of the Downing Atlanta kit. The throttle body is a Bavarian Motorsport 57mm unit.

So far, here's my to-do list and list of parts and services requirements:

* Clutch (will need to check it has the original setup)
* Various vacuum hoses, and a new intake elbow
* Replace gearknob
* Driver's side front guard
* Key buttons worn out
* Fix tachometer as needle starts 500rpm too high
* Fix headlining (has just been done but needs a bit of extra glue)
* Fix 10 or 20 small dents
* Replace rear window seals
* remount pod air filter
* Check and replace vacuum lines
* Replace broken fuse box
* Investigate oil consumption
* Fix fuel leak
* Climate control module needs fixing
* Fix the glovebox lid
* Fix sagging door trims
* Replace windscreen cowl plastic panel

And here's my wish list and (reverse) modifications to-do list:

* Find and fit original 16" style 32 wheels
* Find and fit original audio system
* Find and fit original mirrors (current M3 style ones are damaged and badly painted anyway, plus they are so small)
* Find and fit original airbox rather than pod filter
* Centre arm rest
* US spec cup holders
* Find and fit original exhaust (this one is too visible and noisy)
* New numberplates
* Remove M3 badges