BMW G8X M3 values remain high

The auction for my car is over, and G8X M3 values remain strong. But I've learned a few surprises along the way.

g8x-values

Gotta love Google – the form for responding changed, and so no one could answer if the 1M or M2 CS was better. We’ll revisit again in a few months. Now, it is time to nerd out hard core over G8X M3 values. I’ve sold mine and it did well, but I wanted to take a look around and see if I should pat myself on the back, or if something else is happening.

Are manuals worth more?

G80 manual
Will this make it more valuable?

The assumption is that manual M3s are worth more. Let’s take the last five examples sold across both Cars & Bids and Bring a Trailer.

Last ten manual M3s sold

  • C&B: $70,000, $58,500, $70,500, $65,500, $61,500
  • BaT:$63,300, $66,500, $59,500, $72,000, $65,995
ammo-nyc-m3-pdc
The Competition has proven to be more popular.

That averages out to $65,329. Each of these are different model years, with different levels of equipment. Let’s simply average that out by using the base price of $70,100 for a 2022 example. Do the math, and the M3 Base loses about 7% of its value over three years.

Next, let’s pull some Competition models.

Last ten M3 Competition cars sold

  • C&B: $62,500, $81,000, $62,333, $87,111, $69,250
  • BaT: $75,600, $80,000, $85,000, $78,600, $90,000
M3 Competition
The ZF eight-speed of the Comp model.

That gets an average sale price of $77,139. There’s a story behind each of these, from being xDrive to a few 30 Jahre examples, so let’s use a 2022 averaged base price of $81,625. That nets out to a 6% loss in depreciation.

This is a small sample size with some flawed data (a few cars have sketchy history so their value dropped, while some were sold before the car was widely available), but by and large, it seems that the car loses the same percent of money regardless of the stick in the middle. Though it is worth noting that Jahre editions pull the value of Competition models up.

Is the M3 worth more than the M4?

BMW M4
The M4’s higher MSRP seems to pull it up a bit.

Again, the assumption here is that the M3 is worth more than the M4. I’d love to provide you with data that proves the question, but though the auction sites list quite a few M4s, less than five have sold.

The M4 gets skewed data because of the expensive CSL, Kith and convertible versions, things the M3 never received. Because of that, Classic.com shows the average price of an M3 as $75,000, and an M4 as $118,000.

M3 and M4
An M3 CS, and an M4 CSL.

    But just for giggles, let’s focus on the 2021 models, before anything fancy came out. By doing so, we see the average price of an M3 is $69,613, vs the M4 at $83,061. So, technically speaking the M4 is always worth more than an M3, but that could simply be because more M4 Competitions vs base model M3s were purchased in this small sample size.

    Are special editions of the G8X worth it?

    M4 CSL
    Cars like the M4 CSL are not holding their value.

    No. Here’s an M4 CSL with 1,900 miles that sold for $105,000, from an original MSRP of $145,395. I can provide other examples. Like the F82 M4 GTS, the market for high-end M4s falls off sharply after $100k.

    Another example is the KITH Edition. The base price in 2022 was $112,950, and the results show that just one sold for its asking price. All the others listed were well under, showing what the market believes the car to actually be worth.

    What options matter?

    BMW M3
    Options are dependent on the buyer.

    I don’t think there’s a definitive answer, and the G8X is a hard car to compare to itself, as no two model years were alike. The xDrive model wasn’t available right away, the curved screen came out in 2023, and now there’s the LCI.

    My car had almost no options on it (one potential buyer wanted a HUD), yet sold for more than many others. Color is perhaps the biggest item; it’s either an immediate turn-off, or something you can live with. There’s no “meh”.

    Do modifications make a difference?

    BMW M3 nose install
    Tasteful modifications are key.

    Yes, but not in the way you might think.

    Most of these cars have been modified in some way. Good examples include an M Performance Exhaust, and bad examples can be something like this Purple Silk M3 with red-trimmed carbon fiber. Yuck.

    m3-purple-silk
    18-inch wheels with red carbon trim. Photo: Cars & Bids

    My advice is if you are going to mod, keep the car tasteful and well-matched. OEM+ is a common term that means the car has modifications that could have possibly come from the factory, so things like carbon fiber roundels, aftermarket wheels, slammed stance and wraps are going to only hurt you down the road.

    As always, PPF makes no difference when you go to sell your car. Here’s an example that sold for just $500 more than my car, despite it being fully PPF’d and having 15k fewer miles.

    The benefit of being in your face

    M3 vs Caddy
    Sick of me yet?

    By now you may have noticed that my M3 went for a bit more than market value, but I honestly have no idea if it has anything to do with me or this site. The car simply has a clean history, a good amount of extras, and some nice pictures. The only two examples I could find in comparison:

    Both examples went for above market value as well, and both have a much larger reach than I do.

    At the end of the day, if you’re thinking of selling your G8X, it seems that values are holding steady for many common examples. You’ll never make money on one, but breaking even while getting to drive a car with 503 horsepower is hardly a sin.

    So is it still four doors for you, or has the M4 finally won your heart?

    Want MWS to review your car?

    If you live in the tri-state area and would like to be featured, contact MWS. Each review comes with a free professional photo shoot.

    Please Support Machines With Souls

    Consider supporting MWS affiliates, which helps the site continue to grow. Nikon camera bodies and lenses, a Westcott Ice Light 2, Manfrotto tripod, B + W filters and an iMac Pro are used to make the art on Machines With Souls.

    2 thoughts on “BMW G8X M3 values remain high

    Leave a Reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *