I test drove the e92 m3 and wasn't too impressed. When I drove the e46 it really made me feel alive, the engine revs really high and the sound and refinement feels perfect. Dare I say I prefer it more than my widetrack sti. I enjoy working the power and going through the gears of the m3.

With the Scooby, it felt like the turbo just does the work for you until it looses boost and you needed to up**** to the next gear.

 

My godson bought one recently. He was quite particular about the spec initially and was struggling to find one. He wanted a vert, ended up with a black one with black interior even tho tho interior wasn't his preferred colour. Think he paid around £11k. The car does need some work cosmetically, wheels are in a state. But mechanically it seems in very god shape for the age. He's in North London and theres a specialist local to him. He was expecting to spend a few grand to get the engine in perfect order so it has been in for work.

I've got an E36 which has been laid up for over a year. Putting that back on the road in the next few weeks. I find the scoob more fun, but the beemers are a great compliment cos they're so different. I actually like that the gearing is long plus the overall comfort and build quality.Wish I could keep both but I'm thinking the beemer will go this year.

 

How much does it cost to get the rear subframe done. Munich legends quoted me 1900 quid.

 

about the right ball park, depends on the extent of the damage and what you have done. reddish is about £1500 as a basic price but it can go up from that. Alot of people also have a few mods done (bush's and such) while the rear is apart.

http://www.redish-motorsport.com/E46...forcement.html

 

Seen an 2005 black m3 with 80k on it, what would be the reasonable price to pay for that.

I was thinking 10k ????

 

whats the spec on it?

 

Black exterior. Red interior , no DVD screen ( not really bothered) and that's it. 4 previous owners.

 

know what options it has? got a link to it?

Also what about the subframe?

 

Well it ain't got the mains ones that matter like HK, NAV/DVD so assume rest is pointless.

Can't post link as I saw it on an app. Not sure about subframe. Anyway what you think it should be worth.

 

if its not got the spec then 7-8k ish, but tbh i'd leave it be.

Have you got an actual budget in mind?

 

I would say budget is around 15k.

I'm not too fussed about the nav thing as I'm going to replace it with a new alpine stereo. but it's the colour combo that has really attracted my attention.

 

HK upgrade is nice to have, but there's all sort of other things like heated seats and such, smaller the number of blank buttons the better basically.

 

£15k is a lot to put into an E46 M3. I had an E46 M3 then an E92 335i within a week of each other, a year on the 335i is prob worth about £15k. They feel remarkably similar except the engine note and power band which on the N55 is very much midrange focussed. The 335i is guaranteed to depreciate of course, but you are getting a much newer car with fewer corrosion and subfloor issues. Depends what you are buying for.

 

Prices are going up on them pretty quick.

 

E46 M car is magnificent if you love driving the car and not being driven by one . It takes some effort and skill to do it thought . It has something special about it when you're driving it on track with minor bits done to it. It doesn't need all that power or torque , dynamic efficiency is worth much more than the straight line pull and tight corner exit speed pick up . 335i in standard for is just a barge with a mid range poke . M car is the whole new ball game if you know what to do with it. Not a spectacular road car thought .

 

I had an E46 M3 last year after wanting one for years....i looked for 6 months and eventually bought a nice, lowish mileage manual coupe with black leather...

Personally i found it one of the most disappointing cars I've ever owned..I was expecting a sports car, but it is not..It is an autobahn blaster...

After 4 months i grew to hate it..I sold it after 6 months of trying to love it and sinking money into it to improve it...The E46 is a flawed design..The rear axle carrier panel fault is well documented..Repairs can be had for as little as £750 but it WILL come back...I read online that even people who had Reddish repair them with new panels and a Vince brace found that they cracked again within 5 years...

My biggest gripe was the appalling Getrag manual box..It is horrific...It was so bad i took it to Synter for an inspection..The tech drove it for 30 minutes...he though it was lovely and was 'one of the best I've ever driven'...The gear oil needs to be at 90 degrees before it even begins to work properly..
The gearbox is notchy, grabby and clunky..It doesn't want to go into 1st when cold, and is reluctant when warm, then it doesn't want to leave 1st and go into 2nd...then it doesn't want to leave 2nd etc...Horrible..Then there's the"M clunk" from the rear diff (look it up)...I spent a small fortune upgraded all the bushes, gearbox mounts, rear donut, gear linkage, short shifter..everything...It was still crap and unsatisfying...

Then there;s the numb steering, the unsupportive, slippery seats, the obvious weight, the weak brakes.....Then there's the boring note from the gutless engine...There is relatively little torque below 5k, then it takes off and you get that lovely rasp..a 3.2 with a 7900RPM redline is a thing of beauty..sadly ruined by the ratios in the crap gearbox and rear diff...It's all wrong for B road blasting..The gearing is far too tall..Therefore you can sit in 2nd and 3rd most of the time, so you're not really driving it...If you got to 4th she'd drop below 5k so the power stops and the engine returns to that of an anonymous 3 series again.
The throw of the gear stick was huge..like my van...
The arm rest used to get in the way, so i had to lift it up, but then it would slam forward under braking....so you have to push it back up with your elbow..then it would slam forward again....I hated it..
Then there's the stupid seat controls...You have to squeeze your hand down the side to use the multi switch...I'd try to slide the seat forward but it would tilt..so i'd try to tilt it back but it would lift, so I would try to lower it and it would slide back...everyone i spoke to on the forums said 'they all do that mate'....
Mine was 100% reliable in my ownership, but the engine always felt fragile and i was always aware of the exploding VANOS, head gasket failures and rear floor ripping itself to bits...
As a daily it's not particularly comfortable, the transmission become infuriating as you try and pull and push it in and out of gear and as the rear diff thumps and clunks every time....It's too sporty to be comfortable in town, but too luxurious, refined and pedestrian to feel sporty when on the move....
Don't get me wrong, the E46 is a good car, but it isn't a great car..It isn't particularly involving or rewarding to drive..It tries to be everything but because of that it excels at nothing...And neither soothes when cruising down the motorway, nor thrills on the b road....it's a quick car, not a fast car...
If you want to use it as a track car it is totally unsuitable unless you invest thousands in modifications..the S54 is virtually untunable too..plus the car's real world weight is about 1700kg..it's a lump...
It is without doubt the most disappointing, aggravating, irritating and over hyped car I've ever owned and i rejoiced when I sold it..I didn't even give it a second look, and even to this day, I still can't quite believe how devastatingly average it was....A pumped up 3 series...but still a 3 series..it felt so...ordinary and try hard.

 

 

to each his own and all that, but i grew to loathe it... A race car has incredible feedback and supportive seats..The E46 doesn't..The handling was good in spite of the weight but everything else was just so over rated...As I said, the gearing is appalling, and the cars like to tear themselves to pieces....Even at full chat they're not particularly 'alive'...Something like a TVR is 10x the fun. It was quick though for what it was..Quick but not fast.

 

I enjoyed my second one with 120000 miles much more than my first with 7000 miles, but was used as a drift car where the lack of suspension travel wasn't a problem like it was on a B road.

 

I had an e92 M3; lovely looking car, decent interior and wonderful ride, and practical boot.
Problem was that unless you were ragging the nuts off it was out of the torque zone and in auto mode the gearbox made some bizarre choices, even after a reset.
Probably the most comfortable ride I'd had in a car (mine had the EDC), but 4 faults in 12 months of ownership on an 18,000 mile car knocked my confidence in its reliability - even though I have to say the BMW warranty service was absolutely first class couldn't fault it. Took it on the skid pan at Thruxton and couldn't believe how predictable it was in terms of handling, really fantastic for such a heavy car, but in the wet on the road the traction control kept stepping in, whilst in MDM mode it was very tail happy, couldn't find a good balance on the settings.

Not sure on the E46 but the 92's suffer from throttle actuator failure due to cheap plastic gears, and bearing failure which is an expensive proposition to have repaired - was common enough on the owners groups that I wouldn't want to own one without a warranty, just too much ££££ to fix.
After selling this and then having a Focus RS Mk3 (which got sold in 6 months due to being lardy and disappointing), I ended up with a W204 C63, which has the torque and the personality I wanted for a road car.
Yes it's not as precise handling wise as the M3, nor is the ride as comfortable, but the engine performance and sound is utterly superb, acceleration is brutal, and the interior is nicer.
The auto box is also much better than the M (although in manual mode it's not as responsive or accurate as the BMW DCT, but the difference is you don't really need manual mode to get the best out of it with that engine, the auto modes are much better on the AMG) and reliability wise I've had it for 18 months with not a single problem - other than being thirsty and eating rear tyres
It also doesn't have 200 settings for gear change ferocity, etc, and no stop start - which I'm appreciative of.

It's also handy as my mate works for Merc so servicing is somewhat cheaper than advertised