BMW E46 M3 CSL /BMW E90 M3 / JDM Sti Hatch or new Saloon
 

Which used car from above to get, in the next year??

Any advice appreciated. :)

E90 M3 ... v8 :luvlove: are they really £28k already :eek:

TX.

Yeah the manual ones are & in approx 8 to 12 months Im sure the SMG's will be too.

V8 M3, not even close IMHO.

FWIW, CSL fanboys will soon crowd out this thread. It's a great/iconic car, no doubt, but at the end of the day it's a diet version of what is ultimately a dated car these days. By modern standards most e46 M3's aren't that well equipped...the CLS is laughable. I'd much rather have a nicely specced e90 M3.

After driving my boss 08 m3 the other day I would say the m3, great, well setup car and after all your time spent in an impreza it would be something new. Also with the BMW its buy and drive the impreza you will be chucking more cash on it

I hear what your saying the E90 M3 is better engineered, more modern & more powerful than the others.

But what draws me to the CSL is its rarity, depreciation proof & laps 15 seconds quicker than the E90 M3 round the ring, in fact its faster than a Lambo LP560 round the ring!!

Your right Stevie, all I seem to do is throw wonga at all my Imprezas!!!! lol :brickwall

According to Evo Mag the csl is only quicker cos of the tyres!

TX.

I would go for the CSL...

As a car is still a great motor and prices are still strong,and always will be..

Losing great wads of cash on the others in a short time is an instant put off for me.

The older and cheaper the M3 gets , the less is loses , its a bit of a kick in the nuts how much they do drop considering they are supposed to be the dog danglies , mine has dropped about a grand a month since I bought it last summer !

I'm starting to get itchy feet now , so am thinking either a supercharger conversion to take it over 600hp , or a GT-R

Anyone want the only Estoril blue E92 M3 ? £33k and come and get it :D

If it's an occasional car, I'd probably go for the CSL.

Love the CSL, but i's too much money for what it is imo.

E90 M3 is a bargain... http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3008400.htm

E90 M3 is going to drop like a stone. CSLs will go up but are already holding strong money.

E46 is a bargin of a car, pick one up for 9k and run it into the ground.

28k will see you in a 997 however.

Possibly add another few K and go for GTR.

-Surprisingly the choice between an E46 CSL & an E90 M3 is a tough one.
-Even more surprisingly no one has mentioned the new JDM Impreza!
-Also doesnt the idea of a 2006 BMW M6 with 560 bhp @ £25k seem interesting?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2005-BMW-M...#ht_500wt_1202

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2004-BMW-M...#ht_500wt_1202

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3008400.htm

The 997 CS & GTR are a bit too expensive to run for my liking though they are awesome cars.

About 3 years ago when I bought my Litchfield Hawkeye SpecC, I was also looking at CSL's, the prices of which have not moved at all, if anything they'v gone up a bit! Back then you could'nt get a CSL for less than approx £25k & that seems to be the case now, for an average mileage one. Bearing in mind they are now 3 years older and still the same price.

M6's at approx £25k, hmmmm tempting?
PH seems to like them too. :)

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/t...vs+Nissan+GT-R

CA Automotive fettling!
http://www.ca-at.co.uk/single_prod-c...wX2lkPTg=.html

I would be worried about the e90 m3 and m6 depreciation wise looking at the trend of e46 prices have nose drived, m5 and m6 have done the same.

I think if you intend to sell after a few years csl would be the way to go. If you plan to keep, probably the e90 or m6.

CSL is an awesome car but I couldnt part with that much money for such an old car. Im looking for a new car next year and thinking along similar lines with an E92 335i or an STi Hatch (dont like the saloon). The ringland/piston issues with the 2.5 make me nervous and looking at the JDMs more but then I think if I ever want to sell that on limited market. Im 34 and the more lairy / agricultural feel of the STi is luring me more as the BMW is a lot more refined (obviously the CSL is not) and would be better for munching the miles but Im lucky if I do 7k. BMW Id be looking at £25k for a decent low mileage 2.5-3yr old model whereas that would hopefully get me a very low mileage <1yr old STi.

P1 Fanatic, the newage JDM's are far easier to sell & for more £'s than a UK/Euro Sti. The problem wil be finding one for a reasonable price due to poor sterling to yen exchange rates.

I thought BMW dropped the SMG which by all acounts is meant to be poop, the guy I bought my 330 from had one and said he hated the SMG box, said he found it hard to get used to and from the little research I did they are not the most reliable either, the guy next door to my mum works for BMW and told me to stay clear of the SMG and stick to the auto if not the manual. Anyhow back to the orginal I thought BMW dropped.the SMG in the e90 for a dct box?

Either way I would stick manual as when the others go wrong its going to cost thousands to put right!

I can't see the m6 holding its value to well though pal although 560 on tap does sound a pleasure to drive but not to sure how chuckable round corners it will be as its a big old car

E90 still gets my vote, in that ice blue colour with carbon roof, it looks the nuts

E90 M3s do not come with carbon roof :)....and the DCT 7 speed box is light years better than the SMG .

Ive no doubt they are more sought after and therefore more likely to keep their value but the selling market is limited to enthusiasts who know the difference. If you want to part ex with a UK dealer Im sure theyd offer you less on the fact its not a UK car - I had same problem with my Euro sourced MY00 Turbo back in the day.

There is a 60 reg spec C on PH with 1500 miles for £28k now.

The Euro imports were many times poorly spec'd as compared to UK models & many lacked DCCD etc. IMO in terms of resale value and ease of selling a newage it would be:

1)JDM
2)UK
3)Euro

Stevie I think your spot on in terms of the SMG boxes they are the Achilles heel with the M5 /M6's. (most need replacing every 30k miles & costs about £3k to do IIRC). I suppose a few years old, manual, E90 M3 makes more sense.

335i manual and chip the barsteward to 500hp:D

I had an E46 M3 for a good few years and had no problems whatsoever with my SMG gearbox , if you read the forums most problems are traced to a relay , thats cheap to change , or with the SMG pump , which is expensive to replace , but there are people repairing these now which is again , I loved the SMG , the gearbox is the same as a manual , but with motors taking over the gear change.

My new M3 with the DCT 7 speed gearbox is amazing , miles better than the SMG , again this car has had no gearbox faults.

To clear any confusion , the E90 M3 is a 4 door model with a steel roof , the E92 is the coupe with the carbon roof , and the E93 is the soft top with NO roof !

I take it the DCT box is an optional extra - at least for the 335i?

with a predicted bad winter again , your bmw wil struggle , sorted hatch with awd for me all day long !

yr r8 there......RS3/RS Focus springs to mind :)

The latter shouldnt if you want AWD :)

Thats 15 seconds advantage across a 13 mile (or however long the ring' is) piece of track with no other cars on it. Roughly translated into real-world driving, that means shag-all.

So that sums up the carbon roof thing, you want a e92 with either manual but by the sounds of it a dct box

And the some piece of poop run around for the snow