Egyptian Refuses to Pay $150,000 for BMW 1M Coupe

If you live in the States and can justify spending a little under $50,000 on a car, the $47,010 BMW 1M Coupe (335hp) is a sound choice for those looking for a fast and fun to drive bimmer as it only costs $7,710 more the $39,300 135i Coupe (300hp) and $13,090 less than the $60,100 M3 Coupe (414hp).
However, in other parts of the world where governments apply ridiculously high taxes on cars, not even the 1M Coupe is a reasonable choice. Take Egypt for example.
According to 1addicts forum member “hatembmw”, the 1M Coupe costs some US$150,000 in Egypt because of the insane taxes! Who can blame him for not wanting to pay that much money for BMW's entry-level M model?
“Hatembmw” settled on a different solution: he took a 120d Coupe, stripped it down and swapped the four-cylinder diesel engine with a 414hp 4.0-liter V8 from the latest M3!
The tune, which was completed in less than a month and cost him around US$45,000, also included the 1M's wider fenders and bumpers, side skirts, mirrors, and wheels, plus uprated suspension and brake bits.
You can check out the car in the photos and the videos that follow below.

[From Hatembmw's posting]
"Complete mods cost around $45,000. In Egypt we pay 300% custom charges on imported vehicles above 2000 cc, which makes a 1m cost a fortune to buy here. (more than $150,000 custom charges+ original car price) so we had the idea of having a standard e82 and fitting it with a bigger engine."
"The V8 dream came to mind since the whole car is gonna be stripped. I thoght the V8 has more roar sound than the turbo six 1m engine, more hp , and of course more challenge. The idea was thoroughly studied and thank god, it went perfect."

PHOTO GALLERY

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Former BMW Employees Charged with Misdemeanor after taking New 1 M Coupe for a Spin

What happens in Vegas may stay in Vegas, but what you upload on the web is there for the entire world to see.
And that's one lesson learned the hard way for Vacheh Margoussian, 21, and Artin Yazidjian, 22, both of which were employed as a valet and a tire technician respectively at the Pacific BMW dealership in Los Angeles when they allegedly took a brand-new 1 M Coupe for a joyride and uploaded a video on Youtube.

Now, both men have not only lost their jobs but are also facing misdemeanor charges filed by the LA County district attorney’s office.

The young men, employees of Pacific BMW at the time, took a newly delivered BMW 1 M Coupe out for a high-speed ride at East Windsor Road on August 12. Margoussian was sitting behind the wheel of the turbocharged coupe, which still had its plastic covers and window stickers in place, and Yazidjian videotaped the ride from the passenger’s seat.

Now, taking a brand-new car that’s about to be delivered to someone who has actually paid for it for a joyride is, in itself, not a commendable action.

Uploading the video of your deeds on YouTube -of all places- the next day is an epic fail and proves beyond doubt that you simply don’t realize how the real world works.

The incident became a talking point among BMW fans on the web, the police found out about it a month later, and on September 14, they finally arrested the two wrong-doers.

The owner of the car was informed about the incident, but it is not known whether he has returned or kept the car.

VIDEO

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