The Sad Life of many Sports Cars

This is a 2008 BMW M3. This 4 year old car may look friendly and sociable, but lurking beneath its calm and collected exterior is a monster trying to break free. With a 4.0 liter V8 that generates 414 hp and 295 lb.-ft. of torque this deceiving sedan begs to be driven like a bat out of hell. The sport tuned suspension, oversized brakes and a sticker price of over $60k, back in 2008, are further proof that this is no ordinary family car. So only a diehard M fan with gasoline surging through his veins would dish out more than most peoples’ annual salary on a car like this, right? Well, sadly, no. Hit the jump for more!

As a full time college student I’m always looking for a little extra mula to cover my ridiculous tuition and textbook costs. So to come up with some more cash I started doing window cleaning door to door last summer. Most people that are willing to pay someone else to clean their stuff have enough money to feed a large village for a lifetime, so I tend to stick to the wealthier neighborhoods when knocking on doors.

Because I’m in these “high roller” neighborhoods I come across a lot of people with some pretty pricey cars. Such was the case yesterday when I came across a family that lived in a very nice 3 story house and the husband had a pristine 2008 BMW M3 parked in the garage. When I noticed the car I saw a good opportunity to take a break from cleaning and have a quick car chat with what I assumed to be a fellow car enthusiast. When I asked the guy if he liked his M3 he responded with a quiet and unenthusiastic “ya”. Surprised by his response I decided to dig a little deeper. “It’s got the 4.0 V8 in it right?” This time his answer changed to “Yep” but there still wasn’t the slightest trace of enthusiasm in his voice. What was wrong with this guy? Every single day he got in a car that so many people, including myself, would do a lot of stupid things to drive and yet he responded to my questions with the same amount of pride as when someone asks me if I’ve seen the movie Twilight. It honestly breaks my heart knowing that there are countless sports cars out there owned by men who never utilize them as the adrenaline pumping track destroying machines they were designed to be. I understand that the M3 is supposed to be a civilized sedan AND an exhilarating sports car but I think sometimes people buy cars like this and forget about the whole “sports car” part. I think dealerships should ask a series of questions before a selling a car like this which include; have you ever had a speeding ticket?, have you ever gone over 100 mph?, will you ever spin the tires in this car? If the buyer answers yes to all of these questions then they’re allowed to buy the car. If they answer no to any of them then they can buy a Toyota Corolla instead. What do you guys think?