E46 M3 - Where to start!?
Discussion
Hi all,
Not that I'm in a position to actually go and look at any yet but I'm trawling the classifieds for potential next cars (enjoyable past time!).
The M3 is one car that I'd love to own and I'm doing a lot of research on what can cost a lot of money etc / what to expect will need changing now they're getting on to 7 - 10 years old.
Where do you start to look though!? There are so bloody many for sale with such variation in price / mileage / coupe / vert / manual / smg!!!!
How long / how many did you view before buying yours?
Not that I'm in a position to actually go and look at any yet but I'm trawling the classifieds for potential next cars (enjoyable past time!).
The M3 is one car that I'd love to own and I'm doing a lot of research on what can cost a lot of money etc / what to expect will need changing now they're getting on to 7 - 10 years old.
Where do you start to look though!? There are so bloody many for sale with such variation in price / mileage / coupe / vert / manual / smg!!!!
How long / how many did you view before buying yours?
In regards to finding out more about the cars, such as where to look for issues and info on running etc just sign up to one of the forums like M3cutters or the like and just have a sift through the buying guides and keep an eye on the chit chat. You'll soon pick up the info you seek.
In regards to buying one, well because there are so many up for sale it means the best course of action is to knuckle down the exact spec of car you want. Get a list together of what options you want e.g. coupe, vert, manual, SMG, exterior/interior colour combo, Sat nav, HK sounds, 19's etc. etc.
Once you know what you really want then the number of cars your looking at is drastically reduced and gives you more chance to compare like for like cars. If your in no hurry then you can just wait till the right car comes along and go from there.
Thats the route I went down and now after a year and half of ownership i'm still really happy with the car I chose and it carries out the daily duties perfectly.
In regards to buying one, well because there are so many up for sale it means the best course of action is to knuckle down the exact spec of car you want. Get a list together of what options you want e.g. coupe, vert, manual, SMG, exterior/interior colour combo, Sat nav, HK sounds, 19's etc. etc.
Once you know what you really want then the number of cars your looking at is drastically reduced and gives you more chance to compare like for like cars. If your in no hurry then you can just wait till the right car comes along and go from there.
Thats the route I went down and now after a year and half of ownership i'm still really happy with the car I chose and it carries out the daily duties perfectly.
cheddar said:
Y282 said:
i looked at them, drove them, did a ton of research on them then bought an e36 evo instead.
FFS - TELL US WHY THEN?- sob
With my first one I popped into a car dealer to look, ended up having a test drive and handed over my cash. Didnt look at any others, but I was aware of prices.
This time I bought the second one I looked at. First one would of needed a service and MOT, brakes and had an exhaust rattle and needed 4 tyres,and although it had stamps in the service book, I prefer reciepts. He had nothing. It was an 04 plate Mystic blue with 56000 miles on. He started at £11000 but got to £10000, as it had marks on the wheel arch and needed some paint,I needed it closer to £9500 to be worthwhile. looked a great car though
Second one which I bought was Imola red,52 plate with 71000 miles, but just had rear tyres, wheels refurbed, loads of new parts including brakes.2500 miles to service,paid £9k.
Ive just spent £1000 on having an insp 1 service, clutch as it had a stiff gear problem and as it was apart I put one in, and einbach springs as both rears snapped. so basically £10k all done.
If your not happy about anything, walk away. There is plenty out there.
This time I bought the second one I looked at. First one would of needed a service and MOT, brakes and had an exhaust rattle and needed 4 tyres,and although it had stamps in the service book, I prefer reciepts. He had nothing. It was an 04 plate Mystic blue with 56000 miles on. He started at £11000 but got to £10000, as it had marks on the wheel arch and needed some paint,I needed it closer to £9500 to be worthwhile. looked a great car though
Second one which I bought was Imola red,52 plate with 71000 miles, but just had rear tyres, wheels refurbed, loads of new parts including brakes.2500 miles to service,paid £9k.
Ive just spent £1000 on having an insp 1 service, clutch as it had a stiff gear problem and as it was apart I put one in, and einbach springs as both rears snapped. so basically £10k all done.
If your not happy about anything, walk away. There is plenty out there.
I looked for a long time before buying (though I bought the first car I test-drove), but I had particular requirements: the car had to be on 18-inch wheels with matching OEM rubber all round (usually a sign that the car's been looked after), had to be a manual, had to be a facelift model and had to have the DVD-based nav. That narrowed down my options considerably, especially the 18-inch wheels - virtually all E46 M3s are on 19s, but the ride is better on 18s, and I just preferred the looks of the smaller wheels. I spent weeks looking through the PH classifieds until a example cropped up within my 100-mile radius.
I ended up with one in Titanium silver, and aside from the quad exhausts, to the non-petrolhead eye it looks fairly subtle. I certainly wouldn't say it attracts undue attention - quite the opposite, in fact; I think it's probably one of the most subtle cars I've owned, probably because there's so many silver E46 3-series out there!
Criteria: like all the buying guides say, buy on condition rather than miles. Make sure it's had the running-in service at 1500 miles from BMW, and I'd want to see a full BMW service history on a lower-mileage car (<60k). Make sure you know what colour combos (exterior/interior) you're prepared to have, and what stereo/nav and electric options you'd like. That'll instantly narrow down your potential cars.
I ended up with one in Titanium silver, and aside from the quad exhausts, to the non-petrolhead eye it looks fairly subtle. I certainly wouldn't say it attracts undue attention - quite the opposite, in fact; I think it's probably one of the most subtle cars I've owned, probably because there's so many silver E46 3-series out there!
Criteria: like all the buying guides say, buy on condition rather than miles. Make sure it's had the running-in service at 1500 miles from BMW, and I'd want to see a full BMW service history on a lower-mileage car (<60k). Make sure you know what colour combos (exterior/interior) you're prepared to have, and what stereo/nav and electric options you'd like. That'll instantly narrow down your potential cars.
Thank you for all your input guys.
I was a bit worried that if I was that selective with spec I'd cancel out so many good cars.
Ideally I'd want a grey one with black or possibly red leather (I'd want the full black dash), Sat Nav / TV, HK sounds, no wood trim, 19's or CSL's. SMG / Manual... I don't want to turn this in to a boring SMG vs Manual thread but I need to drive an SMG to really make my mind up there! Convertible / Coupe... sounds crazy but either!
Mileage... is 100k with FSH and looked after too much? I've had high mileage BMW's in the past but not an ///M. Should I be looking at max of say 60k?
PH Classifieds - I wish I could refine my search better!!!!!!!
Has anyone put Eibach springs on their M3's? Has it suffered? I see a few guys using Tein springs (I thought Tein were JapCrap only!?)... Are these just cheaper Eibach's which ruin the ride?
I'm going to do a good amount of research as it will be a fair few months before I can do something but thank you for your replies so far.
I was a bit worried that if I was that selective with spec I'd cancel out so many good cars.
Ideally I'd want a grey one with black or possibly red leather (I'd want the full black dash), Sat Nav / TV, HK sounds, no wood trim, 19's or CSL's. SMG / Manual... I don't want to turn this in to a boring SMG vs Manual thread but I need to drive an SMG to really make my mind up there! Convertible / Coupe... sounds crazy but either!
Mileage... is 100k with FSH and looked after too much? I've had high mileage BMW's in the past but not an ///M. Should I be looking at max of say 60k?
PH Classifieds - I wish I could refine my search better!!!!!!!
Has anyone put Eibach springs on their M3's? Has it suffered? I see a few guys using Tein springs (I thought Tein were JapCrap only!?)... Are these just cheaper Eibach's which ruin the ride?
I'm going to do a good amount of research as it will be a fair few months before I can do something but thank you for your replies so far.
Y282 said:
stop shoutin, you're just like my parents
This man speaks sense.- sob
I sold my e36 vert to get an e46 vert. You know what, im actually ashamed to admit this, but now the 'honeymoon' period is over with the e46 i really do miss my e36
The e36 drives a lot better tooo, they have to be the perfomance bargain at the moment, so much for so little!!
Silver grey with red leather is a very nice colour combo.I have a convertible in this combo,it was the spec i wanted but took me several months of searching before the right car came along.
You really need to make your mind up if it is a convertible or a coupe that you want as they are two very different cars.I bought a M3 convertble not because i wanted an M3 but because i wanted a convertible car and the E46 M3 ticked all the boxes i was after at the time,looks,performance price etc.
If it is cars abilities yor are wanting an M3 for go for the coupe as they are a much better 'driving machine'.The convertible is still a great car though and on a sunny day on a good road can still give you plenty of thrills!
You really need to make your mind up if it is a convertible or a coupe that you want as they are two very different cars.I bought a M3 convertble not because i wanted an M3 but because i wanted a convertible car and the E46 M3 ticked all the boxes i was after at the time,looks,performance price etc.
If it is cars abilities yor are wanting an M3 for go for the coupe as they are a much better 'driving machine'.The convertible is still a great car though and on a sunny day on a good road can still give you plenty of thrills!
Its worth going to have a look at a few in dealers, its easier to browse and walk away. Then once you have seen the one you want you'll know what to look out for.
I did this and found some unusual issues, stuff like rubber door seals can rip, seat bolsters wear easily and interior plastics scratch easily.
The trouble with forums is that most people will tell you about the problems not the years of trouble free motoring. So quite often you will get a feeling that a marque is problematic. Porsche and their engines are a good example of this.
I did this and found some unusual issues, stuff like rubber door seals can rip, seat bolsters wear easily and interior plastics scratch easily.
The trouble with forums is that most people will tell you about the problems not the years of trouble free motoring. So quite often you will get a feeling that a marque is problematic. Porsche and their engines are a good example of this.
I bought one around 2 months ago.......
Im tight with cash so had been looking a researching FOR AGES!!!!!!!
Ended up with a carbon black with SMG, all extras and champagne interior.
Things to look for.... just make sure it drives well and has been serviced. I checked out a few in dealers, but they werent great.
If i were you, there are so many for sale, pick what you want. Like colour etc, i origionally wanted a Lagauna Seca blue but couldnt find one without the matching leather interior (which i think is horrid)
Then pick SMG or manual. I love the SMG, there is a reason why they used it for the CSL.
Pick if you want a coupe of a convertible.
Once you have done that, just pick a good one and buy it!
Pick one thats just had an inspection service.
Decent tyres and depth (can be expensive) but buying online can make them cheaper and not buying the pilot sport 2's. Something like Vredsteins perform just as well, and better in the wet apparenlty.
Pick one that has the correct options. 19's (or CSL wheels), Satnav, centre arm rest, HK stereo, parking sensors etc etc.
Apart from that, just go look at them. Drive them!
Im tight with cash so had been looking a researching FOR AGES!!!!!!!
Ended up with a carbon black with SMG, all extras and champagne interior.
Things to look for.... just make sure it drives well and has been serviced. I checked out a few in dealers, but they werent great.
If i were you, there are so many for sale, pick what you want. Like colour etc, i origionally wanted a Lagauna Seca blue but couldnt find one without the matching leather interior (which i think is horrid)
Then pick SMG or manual. I love the SMG, there is a reason why they used it for the CSL.
Pick if you want a coupe of a convertible.
Once you have done that, just pick a good one and buy it!
Pick one thats just had an inspection service.
Decent tyres and depth (can be expensive) but buying online can make them cheaper and not buying the pilot sport 2's. Something like Vredsteins perform just as well, and better in the wet apparenlty.
Pick one that has the correct options. 19's (or CSL wheels), Satnav, centre arm rest, HK stereo, parking sensors etc etc.
Apart from that, just go look at them. Drive them!
M3333 said:
Y282 said:
stop shoutin, you're just like my parents
This man speaks sense.- sob
I sold my e36 vert to get an e46 vert. You know what, im actually ashamed to admit this, but now the 'honeymoon' period is over with the e46 i really do miss my e36
The e36 drives a lot better tooo, they have to be the perfomance bargain at the moment, so much for so little!!
I guess the first thing to decide is whether you want a manual or an SMG?
Y282 said:
a little, maybe. the only way to own one now is as a completely standard car. right wheels, no mods, lowering, nothing.
This. I had an M3 replica when I was 19. When I say that now I know everyone is thinking 316 with a dodgy fitting kit but it was amazing! It was a 325 with full Vader interior and original M3 everything! I look back at pics and still think it looks nice... However, I'd be getting the E46 for the looks as well as the performance and the comfort! (I'm used to french tin boxes).
I like the E36, i would defo buy one, i think its a really good looking car. I didnt drive one, i just bought the E46........
If i had to downgrade for cash reasons or whatever then i would totally get the E36 Evo. Hopefully in that estoril blue colour. Looks ace on the E36..... not so good on the E46 though.
If i had to downgrade for cash reasons or whatever then i would totally get the E36 Evo. Hopefully in that estoril blue colour. Looks ace on the E36..... not so good on the E46 though.
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