E46 M3 Opinions?
 

Folks, a good mate of mine has two motors lined up & is having a hard time deciding.

Performance is going to be the key in deciding.

One is a Version 5 335bhp Type R & the other is 2001 E46 M3.

We've driven both but its hard to compare the two as the gearing & power delivery is completley different plus the M3 feels a lot heavier.
Initial thinking is that the Type R feels sharper upto 100mph but over that the M3 would just keep pulling.:wonder:

The M3 is 343bhp, but they rarely ever stay there unless the shims are checked/changed during the car's inspection 1 or 2 services (alot of main dealer techs would not look at them as they don't give a shi7)
The M3 will keep going and going after 100mph, right up untill the limit of 155mph
But lets be honest, when are you going to really reach those speeds??

The type r will be fun,
The M3 will be a drift car thats very reliable.

What is your friend using the car for??

He'll be using it as a 2nd car.
If I'm honest I'm probably more interested in how my own type r will hold up against it lol it's running 330 bhp :Suspiciou

I'd say the Type R would have him in the twistys. hopefully...:norty:

The Impreza will be faster and feel faster.

Best thing is to try both to see which you prefer.

The Impreza will be faster and feel faster.

Best thing is to try both to see which you prefer.

As always!! The M3 is king on the motorway. You'll probably get to 100 quicker than an M3 in the type R. Then you'll watch him breeze past.
The M3 is geared for autobahns don't forget.
I work for BMW and i can honestly say my subaru is far far more fun, bombing down country lanes.

A classic of similar power that I tuned overtook and passed easily my E46 M3 SMG which was healthy and nicely run in with 7000 miles and was at full throttle in 3rd/4th gear changing at 8000 RPM.

Once the Scooby could hold onto a long gear it just came past! It was a maxxed out TD05 with all the trimmings.

My M3 and another two I was in didn't accelerate properly after 100mph. It is a myth.

Now the E60 M5 is on the other hand a true beast over 100mph.

John - so the M3s aren't disproportionately better beyond 100mph?

He's lost me as well :freak3: Did he mean that there was a problem with those m3's that they didn't accelerate properly after 100 or that it's just myth they go really well after the ton?

Its a myth that they go well after a 100mph ;) had no problem beating on from 60mph - *** when I was running around 330bhp.

Banny

===M3===
the M3 will be comfy and a smoother ride. Chances are if its fully loaded you will have all the toys.

Distances are worth looking at, as dont they have a bigger fuel tank?

the m3 will happily sit at 150 on the motorway for a lot longer than a scoob could.

===scoob===
quicker to 100
great street car
great sound
much much better handling than the M3
nicer toy


I used to drive beamers for years until I move to scoobs - i have found the scoob more fun and a much quicker car however it spends a lot more time in repair (just the 2.5 engine i guess)

services on a scoob should be cheaper than on the M3.

M3 is going to be heavier - but stronger on motorway

changes: so making changes to the M3's performance costs a lot more than subtle mods on a scoob. £ per bhp will be a lot more on the M3

hope that helps...i had the same choice a while back, and the scoob won, ended up getting a spec d, costs a lot less to get a much quicker car - the same money would have got me an older, slower M3

My M3 is a flyer at silly speeds , it get up to the speed limiter quite easily , er on a private strip ! its very good off the mark with the large tyres on as well , if I gun it off the line there is hardly any slip at all in the dry , it just sticks and goes , I have had customers cars in before now that did feel crap though.

I had a blast with an RB320 from about 30 to *** and pulled a couple of car lengths on him , so I'd say a classic with that power would just beat me . An M3 needs to be revved to get the best out of it , I have just bought an E92 M3 V8 coupé with the 7 speed DCT and that is better again , a lot more torque mid range , and the gear change is instant , but does feel a heavier car , haven't driven it much as it has been in the dealer for a week having some warranty issues sorted , and now its gone off for a complete respray to Estoril Blue so won't get it back for a few weeks now.

An E46 is a surprisingly good car in the twisties in the dry , I rallied RWD for years so can drive one , but it can be a handful in the wet ! if someone who doesn't drive RWD takes it for a blast in damp / wet conditions I could see them getting into trouble quite easy with the traction control off.

I have a type R rally car as well ( for sale for £12,950 for any budding rally drivers out there :D ) , but that has an FIA restrictor fitted so is only running about 300 hp , and is only geared for about 120mph , in the woods that would beat my M3 easily lol

The M3s were working as they should, but they don't accelerate past 100mph anything like people claim they do.

Cheers Ian - it's good to see you still enjoy your driving! ;)

I think he is swaying toward the M3 at the minute so we'll soon find out how the Type R does lol :norty:

running costs of an m3 are abit diff. to say the least

Day to day running I would say the M3 is cheaper to run , will certainly be better MPG , i'm averaging about 25 in my E46 , up to over 30 on a gentle run
Tyres are expensive as I have always fitted the factory fitted Conti's , there about £900 a set , discs are also expensive as there's very little choice , I have always fitted standard OEM parts on mine , your probably talking not far off a grand for discs and pads all round , I wanted my car to be all original and standard
The only non standard parts on my car are the springs , the rear springs are prone to snapping , to the OP , if your mates going to look at one check them out , the ends of the springs snap off , I have fitted eibachs to mine , and I have CSL wheels , apart from that its all bog standard , and for sale :thumb:
https://www.scoobynet.com/private-fo...-m3-coupe.html

He's just put lowering springs in her and my mates pricing the CSL rims.
They're the only wheels to put on them IMO:cool:
http://belfast.gumtree.com/belfast/14/63924414.html

My wheels cost me about £2.5k when I got them new when I bought the car , there are some pretty good copies available now for around £500 , I still love the look of my car :D

Just sold my E46 M3 and now have a hatch Sti (hawkeye sold for the M3)... running costs were very low in the M3, not a single hick up either. Tyres are expensive (with the 19"s) and discs and pads aren't the cheapest but £600 will get you a front and rear full set (OEM) from people like BMminiparts.

Reason i got rid, will be needing 4 doors again soon ;) .

For good info try m3cutters.co.uk

My thoughts, is the M3 a better car.... very most definitely :D . Is it more fun... no.

Different cars for different needs

I have recently changed from a 340 bhp 330 lbft blob STi (UK) to an e46 M3. Was expecting the M3 to be quite a bit slower tbh and that was not a problem for me. Difficult to tell without a side by side comparison, but I certainly was far from underwhelmed by the M3 performance. My Impreza was probably quicker to 60, but not by a large margin if the M3 can get traction :lol1:. Above 60 it is bye bye. 100 in 3rd vs 80 for the STi helps here. From 60 onwards the M3 absolutely flies. Cannot comment as to how it goes above 100 mph but based on what I have seen before backing off I can believe it will be pretty rapid.

At first the car did not feel amazingly quick............but a glance at the speedo and it's OMFG, a real license loser. 90 in the beemer feels like 60 in the impreza. Peak torque is not huge but the curve is very flat and the car is much more responsive from 2000 rpm tham the impreza (80% of peak torque available at 2000 rpm - in Tony Burns talk that's almost a JDM twinscroll ;))

Don't get me wrong, it is far from the fastest car out there and there are very many Imprezas that would embarass me in a race. It is though a great overall package combining effortless speed, comfort and driver enjoyment. Can't say I'm much looking forward to driving it uphill in the snow though :lol1:;).


dnc (looking forward to another classic in future for back-lane blasts)

Could you please define 'much better handling'? I think you are confusing handling with grip.
dnc

hey mate,

im talking country lanes in this piece, as when in the scoob, not many M3's keep up on the twisty roads.

Maybe im getting it confused with grip, but the awd is certaily a plus :D

Agree with both your comments. As said, I'm not looking forward to going uphill in the snow :lol1: You might be surprised at how good it is in the twisties in the dry though ;)
dnc

true - would be unfair for me to comment any further though. all my beamers were a nightmare in the snow, unless on open land :)