[The Cleaner]

I have been an active forum member in everything forum from Jeeps to Porsches over the years and much of what I read is about how to modify or personalize your car. When it come to my Jeep or track cars I am an eager participant. At the same time I have owned cars where keeping it stock is far more important. I did a search on keeping cars stock and found very little in a lot of forums. So I thought I would ask if anyone else has cars that they prefer to keep stock and why.

I have purchased and sold a lot of cars and in every case the stock cars have sold for significantly more than the modified cars. Even at auction a stock car will command a better price. This is not unpredictable since a modified car could be abused or costly to bring back to stock. The fact that so many owners pour money into a car to personalize it only to make that car less valuable is interesting. When I do up a car the donor car is one step from the junk yard and I know it’s only for the track or trail, yet so many people modify a daily driver.

So why?

[Briancanadiano]

Cosmetic Personalization to be unique is one reason and performance is another, and I think most of these people are modifying there cars for there own personal preference, and not with the intentions of selling or getting there money back...
My 2 cents

[michaelalex17]

you kind of answered your own question, we are personalizing our vehicles. we are not doing this for resale value. if i wanted to make a profit i would not buy a car, i would buy a painting or something that appreciates. cars are not really good investments unless your car is a classic or you restore it. I want to personalize my DD and put in components that make it look and perform better than it would if it was stock. if keeping the car from depreciating more is your main objective then keep it stock. hope that helps

[Miller335]

My 335i isn't my daily driver.

It's my fun car to tinker on, keep nice and to drive when the mood strikes.
I'll end up taking off all mods and selling them before I sell the car, it's not like we're swapping out heads and cams here.

[Hops128i]

there's also the case of keeping the car so long, it becomes a parts car or junk, in which case enjoy modding it, who cares about resale, it won't matter if it's OEM or not. In a sense, 'growing' a track car over time.

[Mardio]

I am in the minority on this forum who does not mod (except for tint). I don't have the time or desire to really do it. What is impressive to me is the performance you get straight out of the box with BMW.
I feel my car is fast enough and have a hard time finding safe places to really open it up. If I tracked I could imagine mods for more power for sure.

I do however enjoy the photo forum and can appreciate all the hard work some members put into these cars.

[csu87]

I get bored so I mod my cars. And the performance level I want, in a car that I can enjoy, just isnt out there. Thats why I have already gotten bolt ons and tune for my week old car. And why my last car had a turbo swap before it reached 3k miles. And why my wife will probably divorce me soon.

[DC_Oldboy]

I don't think modifying a car will make it less valued but it depends. If you're an enthusiast and you're in the market to find a nice modified BMW for example, people are willing to spend a little more than a stock car. Sure, you're not going to get ALL your money back but that's just the way it is. Also the general population don't want to deal with a modified car maybe because they don't care or they don't see how we see in a car. That's my 2 cents.

[VTECaddict]

Self expression. Personalization. Customization. Hobby/enjoyment.

Does it make financial sense to modify a car? Absolutely not. But not everything has to make financial sense. Arguably, most (if not all) of the fun and enjoyable things in life make zero financial sense.

[hardtothepaint]

Originally Posted by Mardio

I am in the minority on this forum who does not mod (except for tint). I don't have the time or desire to really do it. What is impressive to me is the performance you get straight out of the box with BMW.
I feel my car is fast enough and have a hard time finding safe places to really open it up. If I tracked I could imagine mods for more power for sure.

I do however enjoy the photo forum and can appreciate all the hard work some members put into these cars.

I am the exact same way. I have not modified my car except the tint. I have a 328 and am extremely limited by how much i can modify it (performance wise). Plus cosmetic mods i try to limit so that i am not viewed as a ricer. I do want to get the black gloss kidney grills for my car though.

[Taran.J]

This is a good thread lol

Fully understand, family cars, v12 powered cars I keep stock. Rest are up to fulfill the "childish" behavior a loved one calls when I come home with a $1000+ receipt in hand.

[///M3NACE]

I honestly would not fetch out money to buy a car thats been modded. If it has wheels and suspension im okay with but other than that I don't like it. I have a daily E90 I had for 8 years and is not stock. My E36 M3 is 100 percent oem and full oem condition and thats hard to find. No modifications whatsoever other than I took out the tape deck and put an alpine unit with a CD player( this is a must lol).

[gzim335]

Originally Posted by ihsanshaik

I honestly would not fetch out money to buy a car thats been modded. If it has wheels and suspension im okay with but other than that I don't like it. I have a daily E90 I had for 8 years and is not stock. My E36 M3 is 100 percent oem and full oem condition and thats hard to find. No modifications whatsoever other than I took out the tape deck and put an alpine unit with a CD player( this is a must lol).

Just bought a 1999 e36 m3 vert estoril blue/dove and plan on keeping it bone stock including wheels
my 335 is fully modded lol

[pepsih]

I only do cosmetic mods, csl trunk, wheels, AE, m3 steering wheel
no performance mods at all.
and i keep all my stock parts, when the time will come to sell the car i will put it back to stock and sell all the parts separetly

[gzim335]

Originally Posted by pepsih

I only do cosmetic mods, csl trunk, wheels, AE, m3 steering wheel
no performance mods at all.
and i keep all my stock parts, when the time will come to sell the car i will put it back to stock and sell all the parts separetly

It's a shame not go fbo on a n54 lol

[ad500]

I didn't mod mine because I figured it would effect re-sale. Now that I'm selling, it feels like the completely stock factor (rims etc) might to be counting against me.

[SwannE90]

I have an 05 acura tl that I keep completely stock because it is my daily driver. But i did mod out my 335i because it is my fun car that I drive every other weekend or so.

[Dsport]

I do mod my own cars but would Not buy a car that's already been messed around with, I think it's all about how you mod them, if you come out of your local accessories store with loads of stick on or bolt on crap you will instantly devalue your car, things like adding leather trim can only add value, I just sold my 320cd for 1k over book as it had mods like Genuine M3 mirrors exclusive napa leather Csl wheels,

[gds52]

Originally Posted by The Cleaner

I have been an active forum member in everything forum from Jeeps to Porsches over the years and much of what I read is about how to modify or personalize your car. When it come to my Jeep or track cars I am an eager participant. At the same time I have owned cars where keeping it stock is far more important. I did a search on keeping cars stock and found very little in a lot of forums. So I thought I would ask if anyone else has cars that they prefer to keep stock and why.

I have purchased and sold a lot of cars and in every case the stock cars have sold for significantly more than the modified cars. Even at auction a stock car will command a better price. This is not unpredictable since a modified car could be abused or costly to bring back to stock. The fact that so many owners pour money into a car to personalize it only to make that car less valuable is interesting. When I do up a car the donor car is one step from the junk yard and I know it’s only for the track or trail, yet so many people modify a daily driver.

So why?

I always add new wheels to my cars, which give a car better look than the stock, normal and considerably thinner wheels. For performance mods, I go with something like BMW PE, nothing major. For car enthusiasts its all about enjoying the ride to the max. Resale value is not a priority.

[Yvette]

part out when you sell your car, simple

[J38]

Another why mod? thread...

Reasons to mod:
1) the N54 is hilariously detuned from the factory.
2) it should have had an LSD OEM.
3) stock wheels are heavy.
4) stock tires are usually a compromise, i.e. not great in the cold, not great in the hot.
5) same with suspension. Better ride and handling out there for a fraction of OEM stock.
6) improve appearance in the eye of the beholder.
7) improve functionality per the user.
8) daily drivers are not a sound financial investment in and of themselves.

Anybody that buys a rapidly depreciating asset as an investment should probably look into an Accord*, although with diligence you can "break even" on a used car buy-and-sell.

*exceptions being anyone that is in a certain sales environment where the status symbol means something to their respect level, etc.

[Andrey]

Every car i owned, i found that original/stock lasts longer than modified, which in return means i get to enjoy my car longer. 3 series just like others cars like honda civic, mini cooper etc, are highly customized and in 5-10 years there are few original, "unmolested" which look great, and are more desirable in the long run.
I like light cosmetic mods but ppl go above and beyond to make their cars look like 1990 civics