£10k e46 M3 Cab - how much bork?

[mattman]

Still bouncing around trying to decide what mid-life crisis car to get.

Narrowing it down still but top 3 are;
911 996
645 cab
or a e46 M3 cab

I like the look of this one, I know the larger wheels aren't meant to provide as good a ride, but they look sooo good - what levels of bork can you expect with an M3 of this age and mileage?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2004-BMW-M3-3-2-smg-2-co...

[leeson660]

Wow that looks fantastic and really good spec. Love the colour

If you want a better drive go for the coupe with a sunroof. I find with the sunroof, windows and rear windows you do feel very 'out in the open' and the noise is brilliant. Not quite the magic of a convertible though I'd imagine

[Cheburator mk2]

mattman said:

- what levels of bork can you expect with an M3 of this age and mileage?

My brother just picked up a CAT D Phoenix Yellow 2001 manual car with 95k on the clock for £5.4k as he wants to build a drift car for the BDC. The condition is amazing - not a single spot of rust anywhere, two stonechips, no cracked boot floor, no worn seats or blistered door handles, no worn bushes or snapped springs. This coupe wants for nothing and feels half the miles showing on the odometer. In fact the car is so good, striping down the interior is a painful process as we feel we are wrecking something way too nice to be drifted around. On top of that the repair, which made it a CAT D was done by BMW, thus it was to a very high standard.

The point I am trying to make is that mileage/age should not put you off at all if you like a particular car. Go in with your eyes wide open and buy on condition/service record rather than an arbitrary number on the odo.

[FamilyDub]

The same seller has a nice mystic blue '04 SMG coupe for sale too...

that grey cab, bad licence-plate spacing aside, looks gorgeous! WANT!

[TaylotS2K]

I'm always put off by e46 M3's. Shame - good car, but the amount of rude boys driving them these days ruins it for me. Would rather have an E39 M5.

[mattman]

TaylotS2K said:

I'm always put off by e46 M3's. Shame - good car, but the amount of rude boys driving them these days ruins it for me. Would rather have an E39 M5.

Done the E39 (albeit a 528i) but must be one of the only people not to see what all the fuss is about - its not a bad car, but it always felt old to me, certainly not the pinnacle of motoring that some seem to harp on about at every possible occasion.

My boss had an E60 M5 and the running costs for that were horendous.

Not really after the on the limit performance and want another convertible so a coupe isn't an option for me this time

[Zebrs]

I've just bought a 2003 SMG coupe; bork potential with these cars is reasonable, not least in the areas of SMG and boot floor, the latter being covered to a certain extent and conditions with BMW. A cab gives another potential headache in the roof as I'm sure the motors are not cheap. Agree with the sunroof point above (which is what i went for) so you could go coupe with sunroof/manual if you want to remove some of the risk.

There are lots of specialists willing and able to deal with the M3 issues much cheaper than MD would/could which is encouraging. I think they're a bargain for the cash.

Incidentally, the chap you've linked to has a rep for advertising cars once sold, although i admit the examples he gets tend to look pretty good. He had a lovely techno violet coupe i missed out on and it was on the website for weeks after.

[HerrSchnell]

Zebrs said:

Incidentally, the chap you've linked to has a rep for advertising cars once sold,

See also this thread:

http://forums.m3cutters.co.uk/showthread.php?t=397...

As for the concept of a 2004 70k M3, absolutley not a problem provided you find a good one.

Take time and patience would be my advice.

[TEKNOPUG]

mattman said:

Done the E39 (albeit a 528i) but must be one of the only people not to see what all the fuss is about - its not a bad car, but it always felt old to me, certainly not the pinnacle of motoring that some seem to harp on about at every possible occasion.

People harp on about the E39 M5, never heard anyone rave about the 528i.

I think that you are comparing apples with oranges.

[mattman]

TEKNOPUG said:

People harp on about the E39 M5, never heard anyone rave about the 528i.

I think that you are comparing apples with oranges.

Have a look on a few more general threads, the e39 seems to be held on a pedestal for some reason, still wouldn't have a e39 m5 though.

prefer the newer M3 or 6 series, but would a 10-11k e46 M3 be a better everyday proposition than a 645/650 of similar miles/value?
Do about 10-12k a year, Mix of station runs (sub 6 miles each way), longer motorway runs once a week (300miles ish) and weekend use

[TEKNOPUG]

mattman said:

Have a look on a few more general threads, the e39 seems to be held on a pedestal for some reason, still wouldn't have a e39 m5 though.

prefer the newer M3 or 6 series, but would a 10-11k e46 M3 be a better everyday proposition than a 645/650 of similar miles/value?
Do about 10-12k a year, Mix of station runs (sub 6 miles each way), longer motorway runs once a week (300miles ish) and weekend use

I'd imagine that the consumables would be pretty similar cost wise. Tyres, brakes, servicing etc. A 645/650 would cost more to buy + depreciation + fuel. Both will be expensive if the engine goes wrong or gearbox if SMG. There is a thread on here comparing running costs between M3 & M5. Consensus is that other than fuel, you should expect to budget the same for both. Don't know much about issues with 6series - E46's can have problems with rear chassis cracking.