Dpat

Well.. to start, the e46 m3 has always been my dream car... and always will be until the day i finally own one. But the reason behind is because my father used to have a e36 m3, then later upgraded to a Laguna Seca Blue e46 M3 in 2002. I was still a youngin at this time, cars really didn't mean much to me so i thought but still to this day, I find myself wanting an M3 extremely bad.

Don't get me wrong, I love my acura and I'm grateful to have such a luxurious nice car at such a young age. I've found myself going to meets lately, none of which acura.. just random cars.. and I'm starting to want something a bit faster.

I guess this should've went into ramblings since I'm just spilling my inner car desires lol, but heres a video for your time...


If you know about e46 m3's then you forsure know about HPF.

Thanks for reading!

ttribe

I still really like the E46 M3. It's just a sharp looking car.

ASASN21

Every time I see a Laguna Seca M3 (rarely) I shit myself. I absolutely love that car. There's an 03 for sale not too far from me with 52,000 miles, but it's been in an accident and has had 4 previous owners

ttribe

From the Car Photo of the Day thread:

myron

iTrader: (4)

laguna seca with a dove gray interior? Yea pretty much my dream car right there. Dream that's obtainable

Dpat

That's unfortunate. One day i'll own LSB m3 mark my words.
I agree, its engine far outweighs its looks too.

charliemike

As an owner of a E36 328i I would say that my desire to own a decade-old BMW has waned significantly.

The bitch is bleeding me dry

NIGHTEHAWK

I love the E46 M3, my neighbor has a red one with HPF stage 2 kit.

Rick_TL-S

I missed out on this exact configuration around a year or so ago. Car was for sale in Lubbock & was already to make the drive out there. Day I wanted to leave, they just sold the car.

myron

iTrader: (4)

really? are they that bad? I always wanted an e36 m3. They are damn old now so I am scared of maintenance costs

Rick_TL-S

The good thing about the E36 M3 is that the car is old & cheap enough where the parts don't carry an equal premium anymore. They can be pretty solid built cars.

Dpat

Hahaha, thats unfortunate but atleast you own a classic
Oh mannnnn . . . you gotta get inside that and give it a lil test drive around the neighborhood.
That's unfortunate i've been looking for used M3's LSB with Low miles, almost nearly impossible to find... but hopefully when my time comes i'll find a owner of one whose ready to give it up

mY sLOW UA6

Ive wanted and e46 forever too. Your not alone lol.

JS + XES

iTrader: (1)

I still remember the day I drove my friend's E46 M3 6MT down the Big Bear Mountain. The thing was SO FUN to drive.

BLKOUT714

This VIDEO brought back some feelings of an 06' Dark Gray m3 i test drove before buying my 09' TSX .. Man that car has power stock i can imagine with some proper tuning done to it =) it was love at first sight I loved it but just didnt fit into my daily life.. One day i shall own and sit behind an e46 best model ever IMO nice post this will be a true classic sports car in the future.

neuronbob

I drove behind an E46 M3 today on the way to work. We were in the 80 mph flow of traffic...was fun listening to the exhaust.

JS + XES

iTrader: (1)

I really didn't like the exhaust note of it though. It kinda sounds like a messed up VTEC.

Crazy Bimmer

Just need the right combo, helps tone down the rasp

Heres my buddys girlfriends car.
<iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TR--f4KnIJ4" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="480" width="853"></iframe>

batman

that sounds good.

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

I want one

speedemon90

this sounds amazing


I want an M3 from each generation in my garage
thats not asking for too much right!

Rick_TL-S

I love Eisenmann products. Have never heard a negative word about the company & everything's top notch.

CAgine

Definitely one of my dream cars, and hope to own one that is pristine and hasn't been abused....Yea right I best keep dreaming.

HeartTLs

iTrader: (5)

Houston we have lift off!

rockstar143

iTrader: (6)

^^^badass picture.
I've always wanted one too...I remember being in college and seeing these kids that were given them driving around.

Actually, a HS friend of mine got one, in that dark bluish/black color...it's lowered with Racing Dynamic 19's. He bought it like that for $22K almost 5 years ago. Blows my mind...he's an engineer and wrenches himself. The maintenance has scared me away...otherwise I'd probably be driving one.

juniorbean

iTrader: (5)

Definitely one of my faves. Personally, I like it better then the current M3. I know that makes me crazy, but for some reason, these things still get my attention...

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

^ I feel the same way. The current M3, while I would love to own it, looks fat. The E46 looks lean, and the fender flares really accentuate that IMO.

rockstar143

iTrader: (6)

Plus, the older M3's didn't get confused with every OTHER 330 and 335 out there on the road. They were a big cut above the non M's.

charliemike

Here is what I see the average M3 needing. Keep in mind I have a 1998 328i but the issues are the same:

Costs including labor:
Rear trailing arm bushings $600
Entirely new cooling system (rad, electric fan retrofit, water pump, expansion tank, etc) $800
Four new O2 sensors $800
Control arms plus alignment $800 at least
Shocks and struts plus Shock mount reinforcement from Rogue engineering $300-800 depending on condition of existing parts
Vanos refurbishment $500-700 - don't have to do on the 328 yet
Wheel bearings - not done yet

I could go on but you get the idea. There are other bushings in the rear, the guibo, etc that would have to be fixed at some point too. Plus the 5MT tends to have an issue after a while that locks out fifth due to a worn part.

And the point here is all this stuff goes whether the car has 65,000 or 120,000 miles on it. It is age and not use. And that is what makes me crazy about BMW

myron

iTrader: (4)

DAMN just DAMN

SaaBaaDoo

I love mine! While it is costly to maintain, damn it is fun to drive! I'm also a huge fan of the raspy exhaust, when driving it normally it's not too bad but get on the throttle and it is loud!!!

I've done RTABs, and oil change, and new rear tires in the last year. I need to do the Inspection II service on it once I can find some time.

juniorbean

iTrader: (5)

^^ Gotta pay to play!

SaaBaaDoo

That's it exactly!

charliemike

I don't agree with that sentiment to be honest. You could argue that a company like Ferrari builds parts for performance with very low tolerances knowing that the life of those parts falls far short of the life of the car in terms of years or miles. And I'd be fine with that because it's a Ferrari.

But BMW is not a supercar manufacturer. They're a volume builder that just happens to build subjectively better cars than say Honda.

And if you took my 328i and a 1998 Accord and compared what you had to replace on each car by 100,000 miles the BMW would not only be twice as many parts but then on top of that they cost more and so does the labor.

And for what reason? Perception is the only thing I can think of because of those things I listed, some of them are completely inexcusable for the holy BMW ... Like the shock towers tearing off, the Vanos failing when a DOHC Lexus engine will do 200,000 miles without issues.

Or the little shit like a plastic plunger that breaks and kills the entire taillight circuit ... The plastic bushings in the steering column that wear down and require the entire column to be dismantled to replace them ... The ignition lock seizing and locking the steering wheel ... Sometimes while you're driving.

I could go on and on but my point is that BMWs are great cars for about 3-4 years ... And then it's a steady decline in quality from there until you've basically replaced a shitload of parts.

And this does not even take into account the plastic on the exterior of the car that is now completely brittle to the touch.

BMW, at least through 1998, had everyone fooled. They made the cars look good and drive well when they were new. Little did we know that they were actually using shitty parts all throughout the car that broke/wore out/disintegrated way before most Honda/Toyota/Nissans did ...

Which brings me back to my point on that E46 M3 ... If you cannot function as a serious wrench turner then you better have deep pockets because it will try to take every last penny from you.

pttl

^
Well said.

PyroDave

my buddy has a 328i e46, and we went to a guy to get the vanos done(we watched most of it get done, both being car guys) and i think my boy payed less than 200

Osamu

I've been looking at them too, specifically the convertibles, as potentially a next car. I'm not one to drive fast, but man they look good. I kinda feel like the M3 would be wasted on me though.

I probably won't be ready to buy a car for another year or two, so maybe a E93 (convertible) would be better suited for me. Think I like the hard top of the new 3 series, but I think the E46 M3 has that timeless design vs. just a regular an E93 which will probably look old in a few years

Costco

I've always really liked them but for the reasons charliemike mentioned (learned a few others as well) I'd never get one. A guy I know recently bought an E39 540i, one of my favorite sedan bodystyles ever.... he spent like $1000 in parts just to get everything running nicely.

Not to mention HPF kits are ridiculously expensive just looked them up again, $15k for a stage 2 kit.... that doesn't even include installation!

juniorbean

iTrader: (5)

Which pretty much agrees with my statement.

I'd say it's a fairly common conception that the likes of BMW, Mercedes, and Audi are a step above Acura, Infiniti, and Lexus. How big of a step is debatable... but seems to be a fairly common opinion. And with that step up comes an increase in maintenance, part, and labor costs. I don't think it's a secret to anyone that German cars are more expensive to maintain then Japanese. So, as you "move up", your expenses increase... hence the gotta pay to play statement.

As someone who has moved from a 3.0CL to TL-S, then into the mid-level of German luxury over the last 10 years, I can tell you that statement is 100% true. And older German cars... forget about it!

pttl

Well, there is also the thinking that the step up is more percieved than actual. I will say that BMW will offer a more enjoyable driving experience than Ack. But is the long range cost of a BMW worth it? That can only be answered by the individual owner. Almost every BMW owner on AZ will say that the Germans are great while under warranty but after that..."forget about it".

However this brings the question: If the Japanese makers can design and spec parts that will last 100K + miles why can't the Germans? Is it planned obsolescence? Is it strictly because of the percieved step up form the Japanese that keeps BMW owners on the hook for $$$$?

At some point the cashe of owning a German car will wear off, and what will remain is a car that will bleed you to death.