Frode Dale recalls exactly when his affinity for BMW began. At 15 years old, still three years away from the legal driving age in his home country of Norway, Frode was left to admire the cars of his peers, and one in particular decided upon an E34 520i when getting a license of his own. In the three years that followed, until his 18th birthday, Frode’s passion for the marque grew, and eventually culminated in the purchase of an E92 335i in 2007.
At the time, an M3 was well out of his price range, but the 335i offered a nice balance between comfort and performance. The 335i was perfectly poised to bring Frode into the world of car shows, and in turn, it ignited a passion that has continued to grow over the past decade. Nevertheless, the interest in an M car never waned, and in time, Frode found himself swapping out the E92 for an E46 M3.
“I missed was the technology,” he says. “I’m a suckered for it, and I like my cars either with a lot of it, or without – like E30s.” It’s an understandable sentiment, and with that, Frode turned his radar towards the newest M3 chassis, the F80. “I had been searching for a used F80 M3 for 3 months but couldn’t find one that felt right.” Not one to settle, Frode upped the ante and went “all in,” ordering a brand new individual-spec F80 M3, featuring San Marino blue paint and Amaro brown leather. Just under a year ago, in August 2017, he took delivery of the beat in BMW Welt in Munich, kicking off the build of the eye-catching car he enjoys today.
Frode drove the car home back to Norway, and quickly got to work making the 2018 M3 Competition sedan his own. With the individual San Marino blue paint offering a vibrant focal point for the car’s exterior, he kept the trimmings to a minimum, opting for a front lips, side skirt extensions, and a diffuser, all clad in gloss black paint. A high kick trunk spoiler, color matched, finishes off the add-ons.
Clearly though, the car commands a presence, undoubtedly owed to its flat-out stature. Frode turned to Air Lift Performance for suspension, which allowed for a modification-less install, while also offering a number of features like 30-level adjustable damping, camber plates, spherical ball upper mounts, and modified swaybar endlinks. Of course, all of that is secondary to the massive 4.4″ drop the double-bellows bags allow for, which leaves the car sitting on the ground.
Currently, the M3 uses Air Lift Performance’s 3P management, although Frode says that the car’s next upgrade will be a switch to 3H. Nevertheless, the 3P system gives Frode the technological control he’s after, and integrates will with the M3’s interior.
“I work offshore doing well service on rigs. Working a rotation gives me a lot of spare time, which I spend in the garage, with my girlfriend and friends/family. I’m a sucker for classic wheels and like to search for new wheels to purchase. Wheels can change the whole look of a car and it is nice to have something that is rare.” Spoken like a true wheel fanatic. It should come as no surprise, then, that the car’s centerpiece is a set of 20″ OZ Futuras, which many would consider the holy grail of OZ wheels. Offering a classic, old-school style in a modern, new-school size, its a match made in heaved on the F80. Measuring out to 9.5″ wide in the front, and 11″ in the rear, the wheels fill the arches well, and are wrapped to stun as well: 245/30 front and 275/30 rear Michelin PS4Ss put the car’s grunt to the pavement.
Frode put a considerable number of wheels together for his E92, including oddities like Rondell D58s, OZ Futuras, BBS RS2s, and Hamann PG1s, and he’s following suit with the F80. Next on the docket is a set of custom 19″ Hartge Design Es, built specifically for the project, set to arrive in August or September. We’re eager to see the result, and following that, we’re eager to see what he conjures up next.
