Where It All Began

Over the years we’ve met thousands of enthusiasts through Eurowerke, but every now and then someone reminds us why we all fell in love with cars in the first place. Aaron and Vanessa are two of those people, and if you’ve spent any time around the Eurowerke community over the past couple of years, there’s every chance you’ve already seen their BMWs.

As impressive as both cars are today, they are not the reason we wanted to share Aaron and Vanessa’s story. The BMWs are simply the latest chapter in a journey that began more than twenty years ago, when two teenagers met through Sydney’s car scene and discovered they had far more in common than a shared love of performance cars.

Back in the early 2000s, Sydney’s enthusiast scene looked very different to what it does today. Friday and Saturday nights weren’t organised through social media, and nobody needed an app to know where everyone would be. Different groups crossed paths at cruises and car meets, conversations started around open bonnets, and before long complete strangers found themselves talking for hours because they shared the same passion. Aaron and Vanessa were part of different friendship groups, but they kept crossing paths often enough that familiar faces gradually became familiar conversations. Eventually Aaron decided to stop relying on chance encounters, “borrowed” Vanessa’s phone number from a mutual friend and made the call that would quietly shape the next twenty-two years of both their lives.

More than a ‘Hobby’

They have now been together since they were eighteen, married at nineteen and have spent almost their entire adult lives growing alongside one another. What stood out most while talking with them was not how long they had been together, but how naturally they spoke about everything they had experienced along the way. There was never any suggestion that one person’s passion came before the other’s, or that cars had ever become something to give up as life became busier. They were simply part of who they both were long before they met.

“We were both already car people before we met,” they told us. “Aaron was also heavily into bikes, so anything with an engine was always going to be part of our lives. Cars, bikes, boats, jet skis-we’ve always loved machines that make you grin and your heart beat a little faster.”

That shared enthusiasm explains why cars have always felt like such a natural part of their relationship. Neither was trying to convince the other to enjoy the hobby because they had already found someone who understood exactly why a Sunday morning drive could be the highlight of the week.

Like every enthusiast, they both started with fairly humble beginnings. Vanessa laughs now about her first car being a Hyundai Excel, while Aaron’s first car was a Series II RX-7. “We were broke and ambitious,” they joked, and there probably isn’t a better way to describe being a young car enthusiast. Somehow there’s always enough money for fuel, another modification or the next road trip, but never quite enough to tick every item off the wish list.

The Cars That Became Memories

As the years passed, different cars became attached to different memories. Vanessa still remembers her Nissan Silvia S15 as the car that cemented her love of Japanese performance, while her WRX STI became memorable for a completely different reason because it was the car that brought both of their newborn children home from hospital. Aaron didn’t need long to answer the same question. His RX-7 Series 7 remains the car he still thinks about today, describing it as “one of those cars you never forget, and if you ever let one go, you spend the rest of your life wishing you hadn’t.” Somewhere along the way, every enthusiast seems to end up with one car that becomes far more than a collection of mechanical parts, earning a permanent place in your memory because of the chapter of life it shared with you.

The more we spoke with Aaron and Vanessa, the clearer it became that the cars were never really the centre of the story. Instead, they marked different stages of life. One represented weekends spent with friends, another became part of raising a family, and another carried them on countless road trips that still come up in conversation today. As careers developed, children arrived and life became busier, the cars changed too, but the role they played never really did. Rather than competing with family life, they simply became part of it.

“Cars have always been part of our relationship,” they explained. “They’ve taken us on incredible road trips and created countless memories. They’re part of our lifestyle.”

Discovering BMW M

Looking back now, the Japanese performance cars of their younger years were never going to be the final destination. As life evolved, so did the cars they drove. Practical family cars arrived when they were needed, followed by a brief taste of Audi and AMG ownership, while raising two children influenced every decision about what sat in the driveway. By the time both of their kids had grown up and were driving themselves, however, Aaron and Vanessa found themselves entering a completely different stage of life. For the first time in years, they could choose a car simply because they wanted one.

Aaron got there first. While visiting a BMW dealership, he sent Vanessa a photo with a simple message: “I just bought a new car.” A few weeks later she joined him to finalise the specification for his new G80 M3 Competition, but somewhere during that visit she had a realisation of her own.

“I realised both our kids were now adults and driving, so I no longer needed a family car,” she laughed. “I just needed something that could fit me and my handbag.”

What was supposed to be Aaron’s day quickly became theirs. Vanessa walked into the dealership expecting to help choose the finishing touches on the M3 and walked out having ordered her own G87 M2 in a special-order colour. It meant waiting a little longer for delivery, but she still says it was worth every extra week.

For many enthusiasts, moving from Japanese performance cars into BMW M cars might seem like a dramatic change in direction, but Aaron and Vanessa never saw it that way. Their years with Civics, 180SXs, Silvias and turbocharged imports had taught them to appreciate well-engineered performance cars regardless of where they came from. BMW M wasn’t replacing one passion with another; it was simply the next chapter. Anyone who knows lifelong enthusiasts also knows that buying the cars is usually only the beginning, and by the time both BMWs had arrived in the garage the conversations had already shifted from colours and factory options to suspension, intakes, exhausts and tuning. As it turned out, owning two BMW M cars under the one roof came with one unexpected problem: every time one received a new modification, the other somehow needed one too.

His & Hers…. Ours

If there was one thing Aaron and Vanessa agreed on from the very beginning, it was that neither BMW was ever going to stay standard. The conversations about modifications had started well before either car arrived in the driveway and, like most enthusiasts, they already had a pretty good idea of where they wanted to end up. The goal wasn’t to build the most powerful M3 or M2 possible, nor was it about chasing the biggest dyno figure they could post online. They wanted two cars that remained enjoyable to drive every weekend, looked purposeful, sounded incredible and, above all else, felt like their own. As Aaron explained, “We’ve never been the type to leave things stock. For us it’s all part of the fun, taking something that’s already an incredible car and making it our own.” That approach became the foundation for both builds and also introduced a little healthy competition into the garage.

Like any couple who share the same passion, every modification became part of the conversation. New ideas were discussed over dinner, parts were researched together and, before long, each build was beginning to influence the other. Vanessa laughed that every modification gets “talked about, debated…” before Aaron quickly interrupted with “…argued,” which probably tells you everything you need to know about how these projects evolved. While each car still reflects its owner’s personality, they were never intended to head in completely different directions. Aaron and Vanessa wanted the M3 and M2 to complement one another, describing them as “different personalities behind the wheel, but when the two cars roll out together, they’re unmistakably a pair.”

That philosophy explains why neither of them gets too caught up in who owns which car. “They’re his and hers cars,” they told us, “but they’re our cars first. We’ve built them together and neither of us worries too much about whose name is on the registration because our name is on both.”

That’s It, It’s Finished

One thing that made us laugh while chatting with Aaron and Vanessa was just how quickly “finished” stopped meaning finished. Vanessa admitted there was a point where she confidently declared the M2 was done after reaching Stage 2, a statement Aaron clearly hasn’t let her forget.

“She said, ‘That’s it’,” he laughed, looking across at Vanessa. “Now look where we are.”

Like every good car project, one idea led to another. There was always another part to try, another improvement to make or another conversation that began with, “I’ve been thinking…” Neither of them pretends the cars are ever truly complete because they both know the next modification is only a matter of time.

When we asked whether there was one modification that transformed the cars more than any other, we expected to hear about tuning or perhaps the move to flex fuel. Instead, they both answered almost immediately: the exhaust.

“Everyone chases horsepower,” they explained, “but nothing changes the character of the car like hearing it come to life. There’s something satisfying about turning heads before you’ve even arrived. If you only do one modification, make it the one that makes you smile every time you hit the start button.”

It’s a sentiment most enthusiasts will understand. Power figures are exciting, but the emotional connection to a car usually begins with the way it sounds and the feeling it gives you every time you press the start button.

That certainly doesn’t mean the performance was overlooked. Both cars have evolved carefully over multiple stages, with every modification chosen because it worked as part of a complete package rather than simply adding another number to a specification sheet. Aaron’s G80 M3 Competition now produces 559RWKW and 961Nm on E50 Flex Fuel, figures recorded on our previous Dynapack Hub Dyno. Since moving to our Mainline ProHub AWD Hub Dyno, those numbers are no longer directly comparable, which is why we’ve deliberately avoided comparing the two cars on paper. Vanessa’s G87 M2, meanwhile, has continued evolving well beyond its original Flex Fuel package into a full E85 build, now producing 591RWKW and 1,048Nm on our Mainline ProHub Hub Dyno.

Impressive as those figures are, they were never the end goal. What Aaron and Vanessa enjoy most isn’t the dyno graph hanging on the workshop wall, but the fact both cars remain just as enjoyable driving through the Royal National Park as they are surprising the occasional unsuspecting supercar. As Aaron joked, “It wasn’t about trying to beat supercars… at least not at the start.”

Vanessa laughed and admitted the shocked expressions are still one of the more entertaining parts of ownership.

Finding EuroWerke

Aaron and Vanessa first heard about Eurowerke the same way many of our customers do: through the BMW community. Enthusiasts have always been good at sharing recommendations, and good workshops tend to build their reputation one customer at a time. Considering the distance they travel every time they visit us, we asked what keeps bringing them back instead of choosing somewhere closer to home. Aaron’s answer came without hesitation.

“Trust. When someone treats your car like it’s their own and consistently delivers quality work, distance becomes irrelevant. We’d rather travel further and know the job is done properly.”

Comments like that genuinely mean a lot to our team because relationships like this are what Eurowerke has always been about. Aaron and Vanessa had already spent more than two decades creating memories through cars before we ever met them, and we’re grateful to have played a small part in the latest chapter of that journey.

Back Where It All Began

When we began planning the photoshoot, Garie Beach was an easy choice. The drive through the Royal National Park is one of Sydney’s best, and the combination of winding roads, dramatic coastline and ocean views made it the perfect backdrop for Aaron and Vanessa’s two BMW M cars. It wasn’t until we arrived, however, that they smiled at each other and mentioned this wasn’t just another destination. More than twenty years earlier, when they had first started dating, this had been their place. Almost every summer weekend they’d drive through the Royal National Park, park beside the beach, go for a swim, relax for the afternoon and eventually make the drive home again.

“We didn’t need anything fancy,” Vanessa told us. “It was just us, our cars and the beach.”

Twenty-two years ago they were just another young couple heading through the Royal National Park in whatever performance car happened to be parked in the driveway. Today they’re making that same drive in a pair of heavily modified BMW M cars, but the reason for getting behind the wheel hasn’t really changed. They still enjoy the drive, they still enjoy the journey, and they’re still doing it together.

“The HEXX family is about determination and making the most of life. We work hard so we can enjoy the things we’re passionate about, and we do it together as a family. Cars have always been part of who we are, and that passion has rubbed off on our kids. They’re already talking about their own builds, and soon we’ll all be cruising together.”

As we wrapped up the morning, we asked Aaron and Vanessa how they would describe the HEXX family to someone who had never met them. Their answer summed them up perfectly.

It’s funny how places can hold onto memories without us ever thinking about them. Standing there with Aaron and Vanessa, it was impossible not to picture those weekends from more than two decades ago. Back then they arrived in Japanese performance cars with very little idea of what life had in store. Today they returned as husband and wife, parents whose children are now beginning to develop the same enthusiasm for cars, and owners of two remarkable BMW M cars that represent another chapter in a journey they’ve shared from the very beginning. Without intending to, the photoshoot had come full circle.

Aaron & Vanessa’s BMW G8X M Builds

Aaron’s BMW G80 M3 Competition

Aaron’s vision for the M3 was to build the ultimate all-round performance car; something that remained comfortable and refined on the road while delivering the sort of performance capable of embarrassing far more exotic machinery. Developed over multiple stages at Eurowerke, the M3 now produces 559RWKW and 961Nm on E50 Flex Fuel on our Dynapack Hub Dyno, while also producing 483RWKW and 854Nm on 98 Octane.

Suspension & Exterior

• Eibach Lowered Suspension
• WERKE Wheel Spacers
• BMW M Performance Carbon Fibre Air Ducts
• BMW M Performance Carbon Fibre Front Side Splitters
• WERKE CSL-Style Carbon Fibre Front Grille
• Paint Protection Film (PPF)

Performance Modifications

• FEMTO DME Unlock
• bootmod3 License
• TUNE+ Custom Flex Fuel ECU Tune
• xHP Transmission Tune
• bootmod3 Flex Fuel Kit
• WERKE Forward Facing Air Intakes
• WERKE Performance Downpipes
• WERKE 3.5” Mid Pipe

Vanessa’s BMW G87 M2 LCI

Suspension & Exterior

• Eibach Lowered Suspension
• WERKE Wheel Spacers
• WERKE 930-M Style Beadlock Wheels (Aaron still reminds us he missed out on those… poor baby.) also available in: 826M-Style for M3/M4.
• Mickey Thompson ET Street 305 Section Tyres
• ZAERO Design Body Kit
• Paint Protection Film (PPF)

Performance Modifications

• FEMTO DME Unlock
• bootmod3 License
• TUNE+ Custom Flex Fuel ECU Tune
• xHP Transmission Tune
• bootmod3 Flex Fuel Kit
• bootmod3 REV2 Controller
• bootmod3 10 Bar Fuel Pressure Sensor
• Precision Raceworks Port Injection + LPFP
• Bosch 1000cc Port Injectors
• WERKE Forward Facing Air Intakes
• WERKE Performance Downpipes
• WERKE 3.5” Mid Pipe

Vanessa’s G87 M2 has evolved through two distinct stages, beginning with a Flex Fuel package before progressing to a complete Full E85 conversion. Additional fuel system upgrades, port injection and custom calibration have unlocked even more from BMW’s S58 platform while retaining the drivability that was so important from the outset. Today the M2 produces 591RWKW and 1,048Nm on our Mainline ProHub 3600CS AWD Hub Dyno.

Thank You

Aaron and Vanessa, thank you for trusting us with your cars and, more importantly, for letting us share your story with the Eurowerke community. It’s been a privilege to play a small part in your journey, and we have no doubt we’ll be seeing both BMWs back in the workshop before too long because, if there’s one thing we’ve learnt, “that’s it” usually isn’t.

Built Together w/ The HEXX Family & Their Two BMW M Cars – Full Gallery: