5.7-Liter LS-Powered BMW M3 Is An Arrow-Straight Sleeper

A very clean-lookingE36 BMW M3from 1997 has appeared for sale onBring a Trailer, and it's going for an absolute song.

At the time of writing, with six days remaining on the auction, the bidding has yet to reach $10,000. That should tell you that something is wrong, and it is. Only, the thing that makes this a lousy collector car is also what makes it an excellent enthusiast car: theoriginal inline-six engineis gone, and in its place is a 5.7-liter LS1 V8 hooked up to a six-speed T56 and a 3.38:1 differential.

But that's not all that's been changed. We have suspension upgrades and better cooling too. Did somebody say, "Ideal track toy?"

Finished in Arctic Silver Metallic with a black leather interior, this example - listed in Littleton, Colorado- has just 67,000 miles on the odometer, and the stock 17-inch Style 23 wheels coupled with no apparent aesthetic mods - besides yellow fog light lenses and black kidney grilles - help create a clean, unimposing look that belies what powers the beast.

The LS1, however, won't keep the ruse going for long once you start it up. To help the car cope with its increased output, thisM3features an upgraded radiator from the later E46 M3's S54 engine, while H&R sport springs and Powerflex suspension bushings help keep things tight in the turns.