Throwback Thursday! 08/07/14

We're going to start things off here at The Daily Driver with Throwback Thursday. As you may have guessed, that means we're going to be picking a legendary classic to discuss. We understand that "classic" can mean very different things to different people, but we try to keep things simple by defining "classic" as a vehicle that is somewhere in the ballpark of at least 20 years old, that had a significant impact in the automotive industry. So while tastes may differ, hopefully we can all agree to sticking to that definition.

We here at The Daily Driver love a good European vehicle. There's something about them that evokes both class and performance simultaneously. This seems to be something that European vehicles have always been able to do, too. There's something to be said about an auto industry that has the average driver hesitating at the thought of purchasing a vehicle with European origins. These vehicles just carry that classy intimidation factor; that rumored unaffordability, similar to that of an unattainable supercar. There's just no way around falling in love with European performance. And no one does European performance better than the Germans.

This is the E30 M3. Quite possibly the most important BMW to every enter the US, it's a pretty valid argument to say that this is the car that began BMW's reign in the States. Why, you ask? Well, just have a look at it. But of course, besides its beauty, it offers a great deal of power for its age, wonderful handling, and just brilliant overall performance. After its introduction, this thing won countless races around the globe.

The only real downside of this car today is the constantly inflating price. These things are slowly approaching price ranges shared with newer M-Powered vehicles, such as the E9x M3, which can now be had for just about $30k without too broad of a search. Nevertheless, the E30 retains its ability to seemingly beg one to drive it. I don't know about you, but I can't bare to look at it for too long without considering harvesting my own organs to obtain one.

Overall, this is definitely a car to desire. The price keeps trying to push enthusiasts away, but there's no denying that this car keeps drawing us in. This car is just about 30 years old and I'd still choose it over a pretty large majority of modern vehicles. One might even venture to say that BMW's first attempt at the M3 was possibly their greatest attempt to date...