Audi A4 3.0 convertible versus BMW M3 purchase circa £12-15K
Discussion
Looking to get one of the above, any obvious problems I should be aware of with either car, looking at a manual A4 3.0 convertible black 40000 miles for £13.5K and a red 2.4 Sport Con at £11.5 with 36000 miles in red.
Quite a bit of choice around the M3, not fussed about that being a convertible, any obvious problems I should be aware of? A few examples of 2002 models around £14K mileages between 55000-110000. Should mileage concern me if complete service history? I'm not too fussed about manual or auto or colour.
I'm looking to spend around the £300-350 a month mark and will be doing a daily commute around 60-70 miles, not had to drive to work for about 9 years so looking for something that might be good fun hence roof off.
Quite a bit of choice around the M3, not fussed about that being a convertible, any obvious problems I should be aware of? A few examples of 2002 models around £14K mileages between 55000-110000. Should mileage concern me if complete service history? I'm not too fussed about manual or auto or colour.
I'm looking to spend around the £300-350 a month mark and will be doing a daily commute around 60-70 miles, not had to drive to work for about 9 years so looking for something that might be good fun hence roof off.
Why would you ever compare these two cars? The M3 is a high performance car with high performance running costs. The A4 cab is an overweight poser-mobile which really isn't that quick - I was very dissapointed with the one I drive.
Surely you'd be considering an S4 or an M3 (And even then the S4 just isnt as good) or an A4 3.0 and a 330Ci Cabrio, where the 330Ci is considerably better in every possible way.
Surely you'd be considering an S4 or an M3 (And even then the S4 just isnt as good) or an A4 3.0 and a 330Ci Cabrio, where the 330Ci is considerably better in every possible way.
[TW]Fox said:
Why would you ever compare these two cars? The M3 is a high performance car with high performance running costs. The A4 cab is an overweight poser-mobile which really isn't that quick - I was very dissapointed with the one I drive.
Surely you'd be considering an S4 or an M3 (And even then the S4 just isnt as good) or an A4 3.0 and a 330Ci Cabrio, where the 330Ci is considerably better in every possible way.
Bit harsh, but fair points, two very different cars.Surely you'd be considering an S4 or an M3 (And even then the S4 just isnt as good) or an A4 3.0 and a 330Ci Cabrio, where the 330Ci is considerably better in every possible way.
The BMW is the choice for fun, performance and practicality.
The Audi is the choice if you want a bit of class, better build quality and the wind through your hair
I also used to own an A4 3.0 Cab and it's a much nicer place to be than a 3 series BMW, E46 and E90 included.
I found the build quality merely to be acceptable but then I guess my car is an E39 not an E46, I've not lived with an E46.
It was a nice cruiser, performance was less than I expected (Felt slower than my 530i) but either way it's nothing like an M3 at all.
Rattled as well. But then so does our Z4 so I guess thats a cabrio thing.
It was a nice cruiser, performance was less than I expected (Felt slower than my 530i) but either way it's nothing like an M3 at all.
Rattled as well. But then so does our Z4 so I guess thats a cabrio thing.
I have recently sold a 03 3.0 sport manual A4 Convertible,not a bad car but not as good as a 3 series,and iv had quite a few,struggled to get 20 mpg around town at best 25mpg on a steady motorway run between 75-80 mph,(330 will do 30mpg) also a bit more scuttle shake than a 3 series,softer suspension,comfy but doesnt go round the corners as well,Alot more blustery with the hood down even with a wind deflector,I wouldnt choose one again over a bmw unless it was alot cheaper.
We had a 3.0 A4 cab, interior was alright, but not as focused as an E46.
Drive wise I would take a 318ci over the 3.0 cab, fwd heavy and souless to drive. Ours had all the toys like DVD nav etc. but we were completely bored of it after a fortnight.
Only good thing was I paid £24k for it and sold it to a dealer for £26500 3 months later.
M3 is the only car I would buy again, absolutely superb and really rewarding.
Drive wise I would take a 318ci over the 3.0 cab, fwd heavy and souless to drive. Ours had all the toys like DVD nav etc. but we were completely bored of it after a fortnight.
Only good thing was I paid £24k for it and sold it to a dealer for £26500 3 months later.
M3 is the only car I would buy again, absolutely superb and really rewarding.
jo strummer said:
Well a dealer close to me has a very high mileage 02 330Ci for £6K so I may check that out tomorrow
What, cab? What do you mean by 'very high' mileage?High mileage BMW's come in two flavours - ragged examples which have passed through the hands of many owners and are scabby at best, and mint examples which have been owned since new by a high mileage driver and are often in better condition than cars with half the miles.
If this 330 is the latter it could be a good buy.
Number of owners means nothing, good history is the important thing to me.
I tend to find cars that have had a new owner every year are better than say a 6 year old one with only 2 owners. When you get a new car you tend to sort everything out, that little squeak, that annoying rattle etc. etc. Those that have had the thing for 5 or 6 years just live with these things, sometimes they don't even notice them as they get progressively worse over time. Take a 2001 M3, all the 3 or 4 owner cars I have tried always feel really tight, the 1 and 2 owner cars all feel a little twitchy, the rear trailing arm bushes are shot to bits, but the owner hasn't noticed it declining.
Of course you can also get a car that is constantly going wrong and people want shot of!
I tend to find cars that have had a new owner every year are better than say a 6 year old one with only 2 owners. When you get a new car you tend to sort everything out, that little squeak, that annoying rattle etc. etc. Those that have had the thing for 5 or 6 years just live with these things, sometimes they don't even notice them as they get progressively worse over time. Take a 2001 M3, all the 3 or 4 owner cars I have tried always feel really tight, the 1 and 2 owner cars all feel a little twitchy, the rear trailing arm bushes are shot to bits, but the owner hasn't noticed it declining.
Of course you can also get a car that is constantly going wrong and people want shot of!
You make a number of good points, hadn't considered that. I don't need the car till late August, given all that is going on M prices may fall a little more and that gives me more choice, seems to be a few around the £12.5K mark mileages 60K plus ( to avoid confusion these are not cabs). On picking a top performer like whats the essential check to have done, what are the obvious pitfalls?
gizlaroc said:
Number of owners means nothing, good history is the important thing to me.
I tend to favour 1 owner cars with full history at a single dealership. Especially when buying privately. It's much harder to verify history on cars with many owners. The condition of the car obviously depends on the attitude of the single owner, but you can easily work out whether they looked after it or not. uktrailmonster said:
gizlaroc said:
Number of owners means nothing, good history is the important thing to me.
I tend to favour 1 owner cars with full history at a single dealership. Especially when buying privately. It's much harder to verify history on cars with many owners. The condition of the car obviously depends on the attitude of the single owner, but you can easily work out whether they looked after it or not. Gassing Station | BMW General | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff