Today’s Nice Price or No Dice 550i comes with three pedals and is advertised on a classified site of the same name because that’s all the place offers. Let’s see if such exclusivity comes at a cost.
It’s pretty likely that many people around the globe are looking for things to do at home in lieu of going out and catching COVID. Most expeditions out of the comfort of home these days are of necessity — going to a job that can’t be remotely controlled, buying two-ply for those long Wordle sessions sitting on the crapper, etc. Having something else to do at home without having to interact with other people is, of course, has long been the introvert’s dream For the remainder of society, it’s become a near necessity.
We offered one option for an at-home pandemic project last Friday, a 1969 MGB that looked to be 90 percent there and well within the capabilities of even the least skilled but eager to learn driveway wrencher. As I noted in the overview of the car, the $2,500 price was compelling enough to me that I would have pulled the trigger on it if only it weren’t so dang far away from me. The vast majority of you agreed with that wife-annoying edict, awarding the little sports car a solid 82 percent Nice Price win.
Do you recall the TV show Cheers? That was the one about the bar where ‘everybody knows your name,’ and you feel all warm and cozy tuning in since you likewise know Sam and Carla and the motley bunch of sots who habituate the bar’s stools. What if there was a classified resource that, to many of us, felt the same way? The site 3 Pedal Classifieds might be just such a place. It only peddles (see what I did there?) in cars with manual transmissions. Oh sure, you can sort Craigslist, eBay, and other classifieds to provide similar results but this site does all the work for you… all for cars that let you do the work. How cool is that?
One of the most intriguing offerings on 3 Pedal Classifieds is this 2007 BMW 550i, which as is required by the site, sports three pedals and a stick shift transmission. The gearbox is a six-speed Getrag, and that backs up a 4.8 liter N62 V8 engine with 362 horsepower and 361 lb-ft of torque.
Yep, that means this is a V8 with a stick in a car with four doors and a boot, making it that rare and seemingly unloved outside of a handful of the faithful commodity; a sport sedan.
As rare and desirable as such a beast is, it should be noted that the E60 edition of BMW’s stalwart 5 Series line is perhaps the most polarizing in style. The Bangle Effect is in full force here, with the model’s Dame Edna eyebrows and discordant boot lid and tail lamp line causing most of the controversy. Everything in between that is fairly mundane and is reasonably uncontroversial.
If you can move past the styling, however, there’s a lot to like about this 550i. To start with, the Monaco Blue over Auburn color combo is very nice. Add to that some decent-looking Style 124 wheels that aren’t chromed, and it’s a tidy package. The seller notes some curb rash on those wheels, as well as some peppering on the nose which is claimed to be “commensurate with 130Kmiles of usage.” There are also a couple of door dings, but otherwise, the body looks to be in really decent shape for the age and miles.
Inside, things are much the same, with the seller noting that everything in the cabin is in working order save for the driver’s side thigh bolster which won’t do its thing under electric power. The car is optioned to the hilt, with a heated steering wheel, the aforementioned sport seats, and the Harman Kardon premium sound system, which the current owner says sounds “incredible.”
According to the ad, maintenance on the car has been detailed back to 2009 and it shows no evidence of work needed at present. Everything is stock, save for an added Magnaflow exhaust. The classified doesn’t note title status but nothing in the description indicates any monkey business there.
The asking price is $7,400 and it’s now your duty to vote on whether that’s a good deal or not. What do you say, is this 550i worth that kind of cabbage? Or, does that seem too pricey even if it’s in good company?
You decide!
3 Pedal Classifieds out of Surprise, Arizona, or go here if the ad disappears.
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