e39 m5 or e46 m3

[torqueofthedevil]

I'm considering either as my next car.

Currently drive an e46 330d but loved an e39 i used to drive - nice cars inside.

Not sure which one to go for. sure they both feel fast. does the 5 series ever feel heavy? the 528 i drove was a bit slow really. big delay when hitting the pedal and not too rapid.

id imagine the m3 is quicker to get going.

What is the VANOS issue? does it affect both? is it best to get one which has been repaired? or just a well maintained one? How much is it to fix?

[The Stiglet]

Surely your name would imply that Sir would prefer the M5...?

[TJW]

See my thread just the other day

http://pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f... M5 Vs E46 M3.

[Fox-]

The E46 M3 is a great car, but the E39 M5 is the best car ever made in the history of the universe, ever.

[foz01]

Fox- said:

The E46 M3 is a great car, but the E39 M5 is the best car ever made in the history of the universe, ever.

Nope.

[Patrick Bateman]

foz01 said:

Nope.

[Fox-]

foz01 said:

Nope.

Yup. It's actual fact!

[Chan6192]

gota be the e46 m3, you say you have a 12k budget? why not treat yourself to a e36 m3 evo and a e39 m5, have the best of both worlds lol

[ortontom]

I ran an E46 m3 and E39 M5 for two years and hand on heart the M3 felt like a toy compared to the beautiful linear powered beast that is the M5.....anyone beg to differ???

we still have the M3 and do like it, but you will miss that shove in any gear and the build is even better on the m5......

[Fox-]

Chan6192 said:

you say you have a 12k budget? why not treat yourself to a e36 m3 evo and a e39 m5, have the best of both worlds lol

Because you want £12k to buy a lovely E39 M5, you dont want to touch the 4 figure abused and tired cars.

[The Stiglet]

Worth pointing out that depreciation will be higher on the M3? Other posts also mention that the servicing costs are more.

[Patrick Bateman]

Fox- said:

Because you want £12k to buy a lovely E39 M5, you dont want to touch the 4 figure abused and tired cars.

But being a 4 figure car doesn't automatically mean abused and tired.

They're getting older now and on high miles- that doesn't necessarily mean tired though.

[briers]

its a thought choice, i'd say the m3, it feels more at home at speed.

But spend a little bit more and get the m3 CS

nearly a halfway house between the normal m3 and the m3 csl.

[Fox-]

briers said:

its a thought choice, i'd say the m3, it feels more at home at speed.

Really? Surely the bigger, more powerful car would feel more at home at speed?

As academic as this is given that neither are going to feel out of their depth at speed.

[rich85uk]

driven neither but a friend of mine works at a bmw indy garage and i remember i asked him this a while back, his opinion was the m5 IS the more special car and was on his 'wish list'

however he did trackdays and commented that the m3 was better at handling, and is a brilliant car in its own right

also it took him around 10 mins to be happy with his answer, so it might be a case of trying both before you decide

[Cemesis]

I've had both and I find each one more suitable to about 50% of my driving so keep wondering if I should change.

Driving long distances the M5 is much better, for carrying people and stuff its better and for a relaxing drive its better. On the track and for A-B fun the M3 is better and it will use less fuel but servicing is cheaper on the M5 if you goto the right places or do it yourself.

The M5 is cheaper to buy too as theres no need to spend anywhere near £12k on an E39.

Drive both and chances are you will prefer one or the other outright. Ensure you get Nav on either car, SMG on the M3 and try and get bluetooth with voice control if you can (available on both).

[Fox-]

Cemesis said:

The M5 is cheaper to buy too as theres no need to spend anywhere near £12k on an E39.

There is if you want an immaculate low mileage facelift model rather than a leggy prefacelift one

[Cemesis]

Fox- said:

There is if you want an immaculate low mileage facelift model rather than a leggy prefacelift one

Not at all. They are depreciating fast so buying one of these £15k 40,000 mile examples seems like madness to me. You can get some very good examples for under £12k.

[williamp]

does it have to be M3/M5, or would you include Alpina B3/B10 too??

[sparks_E39]

torqueofthedevil said:

I'm considering either as my next car.

Currently drive an e46 330d but loved an e39 i used to drive - nice cars inside.

Not sure which one to go for. sure they both feel fast. does the 5 series ever feel heavy? the 528 i drove was a bit slow really. big delay when hitting the pedal and not too rapid.

id imagine the m3 is quicker to get going.

What is the VANOS issue? does it affect both? is it best to get one which has been repaired? or just a well maintained one? How much is it to fix?

1) Wouldn't call a 528 "slow" but an M3 or M5 is a different league of "fast" compared to the standard range.

2) M5. M3 is awesome, M5 is, erm, superawesome! My mates uncle picked up a 2001 Y Plate for £8000, 65k and its showroom condition. Does 20 mpg to a tank though, he likes that pedal on the right...