BMW aficionados know the story of this factory-built M3 E30 pickup conversion built in 1986 and used for more than 26 years. The M3 Pickup came along in 2011 for that year’s April Fools’ joke and was actually a road-legal vehicle. In 2019, the German luxury brand revisited the wild idea of a workhorse with the X7 Pickup. If you have a soft spot for BMW trucks, this custom-made build should be right up your alley.
It too started out as an E30 convertible before receiving the truck treatment. This is a right-hand-drive car with an E28 M5 spoiler, a sliding rear window, and an M3 badge. It has gone through a heart transplant since it uses the engine from a newer E36 328i hooked up to a more modern six-speed manual gearbox. This “M52” mill is an inline-six with a 2.8-liter displacement and close to 200 horsepower or about as much as BMW’s own E30 truck.
Painted in Ice White, the utilitarian 3 Series rides on 17-inch BBS wheels and has been brought closer to the road courtesy of a modified suspension. Additional changes have included fitting the front and rear bumpers from an E30 M3. As nice as the truck looks, we’re bigger fans of the blue one since it looks even cleaner and has a body kit sourced from the 333i that was sold exclusively in South Africa. The engine came from a 325iS, another special E30 that was only available in the country.
Later in the video, the white bakkie with original E36 seats hits the road and we get to learn a launch control function was added during the conversion process. Of course, we mustn’t omit the other interesting car featured in the video. It’s a rare and rather unusual Baur convertible that was also sold during the days of the original 3 Series (E21).
Source: Cars.co.za / YouTube
