Brush with death makes this M3 driver grateful
Govender is not a big shot, just a thankful survivor
MOST people think Marcus Govender is just bragging when he drives around in his BMW M3 with a personalised number plates that read “1 SHOT - ZN”.
Little do they know that the petrolhead, who fell in love with the German luxury car as a teenager, has the plates as a reminder of a life-changing experience.
Two years ago, Govender realised his fantasy of owning the BMW M3 when a friend offered him the chance to buy his 1997 3.2-litre model.
“When I got the offer to buy this car, I grabbed it with both hands. Finally my dreams had come true — I had bought my very own BMW M3,” he said.
Govender, 31, a truck technician who lives in Tongaat, survived an attempted hijacking nine years ago. At the time, he was still a student and was driving his 1991 VW Microbus home from a night out on the town when he was confronted a few metres from his home.
“I didn’t see them coming — out of the blue I heard a gunshot and then felt an excruciating pain in my abdomen. I had been shot and immediately my instincts kicked in — I sped off, racing towards my home. Luckily the hijackers didn’t follow me. I had to spend eight months recovering from that shooting. The bullet had caused serious damage close to my spinal cord,” he said.
“My aunt gave me a nickname — ‘One Shot’— because of the single bullet that changed my life. So I decided to use this name on my personalised plates. People think it’s related to racing talk for cars that are powered by nitrous, but it has nothing to do with it.”
His BMW had brought him nothing but “sheer driving pleasure” in the past 24 months.
He said he owed his passion for cars to his dad, Kisten Govender, who used to own a VW Golf Mark 1.
“I have always been a fan of German cars, especially BMWs and VWs. My M3 is stock standard. I made changes to the interior — I got the seats reupholstered in black leather with red stitching and added the M3 logos.
“I also added the slimline boot spoiler, and the engine was upgraded to an E46 M3. For sound effects, I got a custom branch exhaust to enhance the car’s performance.
“The exhaust is pretty loud and people can hear me coming from miles away — I can’t say my neighbours are amused, but I suppose they have grown accustomed to my ‘noisy car’.”
Govender previously owned a 1982 Alfa GTV 2.5-litre (he was 18 and his dad helped him buy it). He then owned a string of VW Golf 1s, ranging from the 1997 to the 2009 models, as well as a 1996 VW Caddy pick-up and a few Toyotas, which he kept for a short while.
He still owns a 2009 VW Golf 1 for “running around” and because he loves collecting them.
He said his M3 turned a lot of heads and people often asked him if he was selling his “baby”. However, his car, like the Mona Lisa, “is just not for sale”.
“I’m keeping this car for old times’ sake — I did it for that boy in me who had big dreams of one day driving a BMW M3,” said Govender.