The seller of the day Youce price or no dice BMW The X3 claims its manual transmission makes it as “rare as the Porsche Cayenne.” Considering it’s offered in Southern California where every third car seems to be a Cayenne, that might not be the best description. However, its price can be well informed.
Car manufacturers really like to name their cars after birds. And not just real birds, they also use bird names from mythology and when they run out, from marketing. The 1990 Pontiac Sunbird we thought last friday sounds like one of the latter – a made-up bird name – but is actually the name of a real bird model, a member of the family Nectariniidae which includes sunbirds and spider-hunters. Our Pontiac Sunbird was the real deal too, with decent specs and a convertible top, just in time for summer fun. Most of you thought $4,500 was asking to be a real deal, too, since that gave the car a solid 60 percent Nice Price profit.
It has been said that birds of a feather flock together. As a contrast, another old saw is that opposites attract. When it comes to the sheer number of products offered by Germany’s BMW, I think both are true. First, all BMW cars and trucks feel like BMWs. The company’s ethos of being ‘The Ultimate Driving Machine’ is evident in all of its products, regardless of the category they occupy. It is perhaps engendered by a secondary ethos of harnessing the best parts of some models to imbue that passion in others. That’s how we get vehicles like this 2006 BMW X3 which takes many of the best bits from its kissing cousin the 330i to make it an engaging SUV.
Key bits stolen from the 3 Series include the sublimely smooth M54 DOHC straight six and a six-speed manual gearbox. A good bit of the 3 Series DNA also went into the X3’s suspension design, so it really is a family affair even though the 3 Series and X3 are in completely different segments of the automotive market. Looks? Opposites attract.
Here in X3, 3.0-liter six makes 228 horsepower and 221 lb-ft of torque. The six-speed matched it gets an extra sporty M-series gear knob, but the rest of the interior is standard, without any kind of sports wheels or extra grippy seats. That’s ok, though, as what’s here looks to be in very good condition, including a full number of pixels on the instrument cluster’s digital display. Above the tidy cabin has a panoramic moonroof, so large that the front cross member of the roof rack can be reached through it in perfect position for impromptu chin-ups, should the need arise.
With just 126,000 miles on the clock, the exterior seemingly hasn’t had much of a chance to have been struck either. There is a noticeable dent on the driver’s door, but otherwise everything looks clean right down to the handsome factory alloys. A trailer hitch under the rear bumper serves as a mounting point for what appears to be either a bike rack or an attempt to fend off tailgates. It is probably removable and thus not a permanent risk of backup accidents.
According to the ad, the wagon comes with full service records, all of its manuals, and both original keys. It has never been smoked in by people or pets and has an accident-free history. A clean title and new Yokohama tires just might seal the deal on this Bimmer tall wagon. That is, of course, if we can get past its $11,900 asking price.
What do you think of the idea of a three-pedal X3 for that kind of money? Does that sound like a good deal for the car as described? Or, in this case, doesn’t X mark the spot?
You decide!
Los Angeles, California, Craigslistor go here if the ad disappears.
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