M3 was never a special exclusive car, there were probably more E46 M3 around than 330CI around 5-6 years ago when they were still "new".... btw... thats when people were buying it for 80-100k brand new, and weren't "affordable" like now at 25k USED

I dont consider my GSR anywhere remotely close to being powerful. I was in a pinch for a vehicle last year before heading out to edmonton for work, and a friend happened to be selling his JDM fronted GSR at the same time.

Ive had Integras for too many years now, and something from BMW or Subaru would really hit the spot!

Hmm. Sounds like the e46 M3 would be pretty terrible for a track car then. Is there specific preventive maintenance you can do to prevent these issues?

The M3's straight six will never, ever, in a million years sound better than a Z06's V8.

Subframe issues were a design flaw in the E46 chassis and not just the M3. There was a recall on the subframe after a lawsuit with BMW of America in the US. Unfortunately the claim doesn't apply to canadians. The M3 is a awesome track car. VANOS issues really didnt' happen that often and only to a select few.

Hey shyguy, did you change cars to an E55/63?

different class of cars.....

dumbass

An engine's sound has nothing to do with a car's "class" fucktard.

but u cant really compare a 4 banger to a V10

obviously the V10 will sound better?

:grenade: :spin:

Don't let the haters fool you, it's a fantastic track car. That's what it was built for.

Subframe and VANOS issues were resolved for 03+ models I believe, and even in the early years they weren't "common" issues. The engine itself is bulletproof and the build quality is top-notch aside from the usual Euro issues.

And yes, proper preventative maintenance can ensure the car is very dependable, especially 2003 and up models with less than 200,000km. It's certainly not a Honda Civic in terms of reliability, but by no means will it be a nightmare to own, either.

Plus, it's an amazingly fun car to drive, which in my opinion more than makes up for its reliability shortcomings...

hmm the only thing i can think thats really expensive on those cars are.....



tires. knowing any person that would buy one, would drive it quite frequently. And any owner would go through quite a few sets over the ownership of the car.

as for engine sounds. they're completely different. how can you compare?

Yeah, but that is obviously true of any high-performance vehicle. Most performance freaks opt for the 18" M3 wheel to reduce weight/rotational mass, which probably reduces the tire cost a fair bit over the 19" rims. Regardless of the vehicle, if you drive like a maniac you'll wear out your tires pretty damn quickly.

Still, you're definitely right to some extent. I bought a set of 4 new Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 all-season tires a couple of weeks ago for my 330ci (factory-size 17" wheels) and had to fork over nearly $1300. Comparable tires in 18" would probably be another couple hundred bucks on top of that.

But, if you went to the States and bought "decent-but-not-insane" summer tires, you wouldn't have to empty your savings.

The M3 is actually a very good track car.....as long as the sub frame issue has been addresssed. The issues I quoted are worst case scenarios...for my M3...I never had any of the issues I listed. Most of the common problems on M3s is due to owners not following the BMW recommended service intervals or using inferior oil.

If that doesnt' sound like a tinny gutless fartmobile I dont know what does. Ferrari may sound raspy but in no way do they EVER get confused with a fartmobile.
Well theres one advantage of owning a m3 with an exhaust over a ferrari... it would be that i'd never floor it because it sounds so bad so i'd save alot in gas.

buy a 04+ and you good to go.

Jesus, it's not the beefiest sounding exhaust in the world but "tinny gutless fartmobile" is pushing it. Still sounds better than 99% of the ricer Ebay mufflers out there.

^ the rasp from an E46 M3 at first sounds weird....same kind of way a 911 flat 6 sounds...different.....everyone is different, I actually like the rasp from the M54 motor. If you don't like it, just get a rasp eliminator pipe. The sound is completely different. I actually got mid pipes that made the rasp sound even more aggressive!.......

to be honest...it sounds pretty shitty

not feeling the raspy sound AT ALL


prefer the VQ engine, sounds much better

Who cares about the sound. The S54 is a way better performing engine then the VQ
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^+1.

The VQ engine, especially the 3.7L, is very raspy top end; it's not very refined. The shifter vibrates quite a bit and it just doesn't sound too good. It definitely has lots of power though.

S54 on the other hand was smooth as hell. Revs up fast and sounds great.

i thought its due to FR layout, therefore the shifter vibrates like a dildo. At least that was the case for 350z


which engine is the S54

S54 is the e46 M3 motor. 3.2L inline-6. Easily one of the best motors of the past decade; I doubt there are many car freaks that would even try to argue that. Smooth, linear power - and lots of it, all the way up to 8,300rpm.

VQ sounds beefy, but I agree with rawr, it lacks refinement. Still a good motor, don't get me wrong, but it was really never in the same league as the S54. Not from a driver's standpoint, anyway. It's not nearly as smooth as the BMW motor (an I6 is inherently more balanced than a V6 obviously) and it's still doesn't make the same top-end power as the S54.

But yeah, if you buy a car based only on it's exhaust note, you should buy a VQ-powered vehicle and not an M3. :joy

fixed

i find the S54 on the M3 feel exactly the same as the VQ35DE from 1000-6600RPM... from 6600RPM to 8300RPM is where the M3 takes over

actually i felt the S54 lacks low end torque. VQ was able to drive around town shifting anywhere from 2000-2500rpm, and it felt torquey.

S54 is all about mid and high end power


VQ lots low and mid, but really lacks the high. I felt pointless revving after 4700-5000rpm till redline.