Strictly European Autosport




Bobby Nguyen's 1999 BMW 328i
It's not everyday you see a yellow BMW, much less one worth mentioning....
By Ruben Pina Jr. Photography by Jeremy Kenisky June 2005

There are not many cars at San Antonio College worth a second take. However, every time I saw this 328i sitting or driving through the parking lot it always warranted a second look. Maybe it is the yellow paint job, the outrageous body kit, the sick 19's with the polished lip. Whatever it was, the car really stands out. However, it wasn't easy getting the car where it is today. It has taken work, dedication, patience, and, above all, money.

This car started its life as a bone stock 328i when Bobby got a hold of it back in 2001. What was his reason for buying this car? "Because it is the ultimate driving machine, duh!" says Bobby. However, as ultimate as it was, it didn't stay in stock form for long. Bobby says he bought the car knowing he would mod it. He said he didn't want to allow the car to be just another BMW; he wanted a BMW that would be set apart from the rest. And a mighty fine job he has done if I say so myself.

During the first few weeks of ownership Bobby had already been keeping his eye out for what type of body kit he would be putting on his ride. It didn't take long before he found an M3 front bumper with splitter, Reiger sides and rear that caught his eye. With the new body kit sitting in his garage Bobby contemplated over what color he would be repainting his then white 328i. After weeks of deciding what color to paint it, he finally decided on yellow. And not just any yellow, Ferrari Modena yellow.

When asked what is the one thing that Bobby could not live without on his car he responds with, "the rims definitely." And I couldn't agree more. The staggered 19" Stern ST1's add so much to the car that they are almost necessary. One thing he could live without though is the automatic transmission. That is the only thing that Bobby dislikes about his ride. Problems that he faced during the making of this show stopper are one problem that every car tuner faces, money. "Just because it's a BMW, performance shops think you have money and charge you more." says Bobby. Ad it's not only the performance shops that give him heat. His girlfriend and family continually tell Bobby that the car is a waste of money. However, with all the attention that he gets from the car, he adamantly disagrees, although he does sometimes wonder if the money was all spent the right way.

With much more in store for this "Yella BM-Dubya" there is little doubt that this car will be stopping traffic and snapping necks for a long time. We have no doubt that Bobby will continue to make his car better and better and we will stick around for the ride. We appreciate Bobby joining our club and hope to see him become and active part of our club. Stay tuned in the forums for more updates and changes to his car and all the other cars in our club.

Click here for Forum Discussion Owner info: YLWBMW Name: Bobby Nguyen Occupation: Nail tech (lol) Talk ** all you want but, when you make $3000-$4000 a month then you can talk! Vehicle Specs: Year: 1999 Make: BMW Color: Modena Ferrari Yellow Model: 328i Engine: 2.8 liter Engine Modifications: Shark injector chip, Euro-Sport CAI, BB Tri-Flo exhaust Transmission Modifications: Stock Suspension Modifications: Stock Brake Modifications: Cross-drilled rotors Wheels and Tires: 19x8.5 19x9.5 inch Stern ST1's hyper black, Toyo Proxes TLS 245/30/19 and 265/30/19 Exterior/Body Modifications: Yellow paint job, molded grilled to hood, M3 front bumper w/splitter, Reiger replica rear and sides, blackout grill, 20% tint, yellow and black roundels Interior Modifications: Yellow trim panels, yellow shift knob, yellow interior lights, white face gauges, yellow gauge rings Mobile Electronics: Kenwood Excelon head unit X579, 2 12" Kicker Comp VR's, 1000 watt class D Rockford Fosgate amp mono, custom bass control knob Lighting Modifications: HID 8000k headlights, Xenon blue corner lights, smoked headlight, smoked tail lights, smoked side markers, smoked clear corners, JLevi angel eyes, M3 fog lights Shoutouts:** Give a shot out to the whole StrictlyEA crew, and especially Ruben for recruiting me hahaha, and Jeremy for taking the photos of my car. It was nice meeting everybody else too.