mozzaITA

Hi all im just about to sell my car and im after a fast reliable motor (if there is such a thing), have always been impressed with E36 M3 since my cousin owned a 3.0 for 2 years and only serviced it and changed 1 light bulb in 2 years of ownership.

I know the Evo are know for vanos problems so am a bit worried in going for a evo model. Is there anything i need to look for in particular? The last thing i want is to buy a car which could cost me a packet if a known issue goes wrong.

I have been offered an Evo M3 which im thinking about.....

Thanks for any feedback

chippy17

as long as you know the VANOS has been done, the only other problem is the six speed box which is not the most reliable and I have been they do not make the parts for this gearbox anymore
IMO I would buy a 3.0ltr car, has basically the same power with a much more reliable engine and a bullet proof gearbox, once you have sorted the suspension with a nice set of 'Billys' or something, they are every bit as fast...they are also much cheaper

Andy M3

Agree ^^^

I like the orange indicators and 3.0 wheels over the Evo too

http://oregonstate.edu/~crouchd/file...r-m3-angle.jpg

jespin

Don't worry too much about whether the Vanos has been changed or not. It is a common fault, but its also one that BMW never cured so the new unit is just as likely to fail as the original. I had a '98 Evo for 2 years and it never skipped a beat on its original vanos but maybe I was lucky.

Best advice I can give is try to budget for a Vanos replacement just in case. I would go for the Evo as it's a newer car. Nicer wheels IMO and nicer inside too. Sharper steering and the 6th gear is nice if you do any journeys. Despite what they say, the Evo is a bit quicker than the 3.0, it's just much higher up the rev range before it starts to pull away.... but then that's how they're supposed to be driven.

falkster

Depending on what year you buy you can get a warranty to cover all parts including the vanos. I was thinking of an M3 conv for the wife but decided on the Z3M and got a warranty for 400 quid which covers everything including wear and tear (after first 90 days...just incase you only get the warranty to cover faults you already have)

Think about 400 quid and the cost of most parts, its well worth getting one!

mozzaITA

hmmmmm, i just a bit fed up of owning 'old' cars be nice to get something newish...... Evo's were the latest model!!

Oh well, im cursed at the moment the last 2 cars i have bought/owned have cost me alot to run/own!

chippy17

performance cars are going to cost a bit more to run no matter what you buy.

Understand where you are coming from, the Evos are a lot newer, and in fairness to what was said above the Evo does have the added bonus of better steering and suspension straight out of the box, and if you get a good one and possibly get a warranty you can't really go wrong, but the Evo is becoming an old car, it is now two models old and at l least 8 years old, if you want a newer car (budget permitting) go for an E46!
Most reliable performance car I have owned is a Subaru!

chippy17

with you on the wheels, my fave on the E36, looking very cool in 80s white as well

mozzaITA

just bought a house so e46 is a dream.

I looked at an evo on a r plate, it had a rusty rear arch and bootlid, was quite surprised and all the rubber window seals needed replacing. Didnt think they suffered from this!

I red something somewhere that the diff on an evo was so harsh as the3.0l one? is this accurate?

scoobywhite74

Talking to a expert on bmw m3,s today.
He was getting his wife,s m3-e39 rolling roaded it made just 273bhp,
unhappy very, He told me most e39,s never make bmw,s 321bhp some down
25+bhp but his was down 48bhp.
He said when he drives the e36 they feel quicker than the e39
great cars.

RAJ27

Isn't some of the deterioration due to age? Most cars after a few years tend to not produce their max bhp? Plus could fuel be a factor too?

falkster

Dont mean to sound like a tit but if he was a M3 expert wouldnt he know that an E39 is a 5 series car?

scoobywhite74

MY mistake he was talking when the car was on the rolling road, it
was very loud the car was a R reg m3 evo with about 80,000 miles on it give or take.

jespin

It's common for the Evos to be down on power, virtually none make the claimed 321 bhp. Remap soon sorts that out though.... The rotten windows rubbers is a common fault with them too. You can buy replacement kits but I don't think they're that cheap.

sbk1972

Ive got an M3 evo, had it since new. Its a 98'R, evo convertible. Go over to e36coupe.com and you can read about the difference between non evo's / evos.

Vanos is a well known issue. Yes they `break` but not like a cambelt, performance just goes, and it gets noisey. Diffs can play up, as can the usual suspepion bushes etc. I had a little bit of rust on the rear boot lid edge, but thats quite common. New rubber will fix it.

My has done 65K miles, was in warranty until last year when BMW changed the warranty laws, so not worth it now.

Like all cars, buy a crap one and you will get problems. Buy a good one and you will have a smile on your face all day. Engine is lovely, pulls well and got a fair turn of speed. Yes, although the books say 321bhp, they all average around 300bhp. Quite good on fuel, due to 6 gears, and a lot of car for the money nowadays.

I had a subaru sti version 6 coupe, at the same time as my M3. Now that thing was worse in reliabilty and although quicker, wasnt a built well.

M3 evo's, good cars, but read up about them, and go see a few, as there are a lot of crap ones out there.

SBK