OT: Crazy, stupid fun in a car: 2003 M3

[djg]

Originally Posted by Kirk007

So my son, on a sign of maturity I think, decided he would be better off with $$ in the bank for an eventual house purchase than a sports car heavily modified for the track.

Being supportive I volunteered to drive it north from Bend, through the little traveled, twisty canyons of the high desert of Oregon, eventually making our way to Seattle, where it might be easier to sell.

That might have been a mistake; what a fun, fun car (other than needing ear plugs the whole way). Between railing curves and running through the gear box to get up to speed on freeway on ramps, it was a very temptatious experience. Very tempted to put a muffler back on an keep it. Maybe I need to put an add in the classifieds before I get too attached....
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I had an '06 ragtop until about a year ago. I miss that car.

[mtechnica]

Those are good cars. If you are seriously considering keeping it you should just do it. They will go up in value some day because clean ones are getting harder to find. They are pretty reliable AFAIK.

[grateful]

Vanos has been mentioned. Also, check the shock mounts. I can't recall if it was an issue on the E36 or the E46 (or both) but check the rear shock mounts.
There are reinforcement plates that I strongly recommend. Considering that the car has been tracked I would assume that it has been done previously.

[skiezo]

We had a 96 euro spec m3 that we bought as a wreck for the scaa track. That car as a blast on and off the track. About 370 hp/350# of torque. Won a bunch of races with it and many top 3s. Once the Powertrain got to tired from years bouncing the rev limiter to go.E36/46 are great cars and pull hard and the handling is tops.
I say keep it

[YesNdeed]

Still my favorite M3. I say keep it in the family.

[mtechnica]

Originally Posted by grateful

Vanos has been mentioned. Also, check the shock mounts. I can't recall if it was an issue on the E36 or the E46 (or both) but check the rear shock mounts.
There are reinforcement plates that I strongly recommend. Considering that the car has been tracked I would assume that it has been done previously.

The front shock mounts are more of an E36 thing but the later ones have reinforcements. I added a contoured strut tower mount to sandwich mine. Also the rear shock mounts are an issue on the e36 because they fail over time but you can also reinforce them and get better ones easily. I think the E46 chassis is more sturdy but the motor requires more care especially the bottom end.

[Latestart]

For e-46, it's the rear-sub-frame. See here:

http://speed.academy/bmw-e46-cracked-subframe-fix/

[philhan89]

never got to drive an e46M (looks the business btw) but the e36, and e30 for that matter, are a car's car. some of my best driving memories and experiences have been behind the wheels of those bimmers. and yes, oh yes, they do pull...HARD.

on a darkly ironic note, as life would have it, my hit and run last year while on my bicycle was by a drunk driver on Mt. Tamalpais...behind the wheel of an e36 M coupe :/

[Ken Robb]

The cost of shop labor must be BIG! Some of the reason that these problems occur is that few Germans keep their cars more than a few years. They have to pass a very strict TUV inspection frequently (annually perhaps) and the cars have to be perfect to pass so the Germans tend to replace their cars at 3 year intervals and the used ones often get shipped to Eastern Europe, Turkey, etc. Any modifications have to be done with TUV approved parts and it costs the makers of those parts a lot to get that approval. Not too many drivers there modify their cars in Germany because of the expense for the short time they plan to keep their cars.

In the mid 1980s BMWs were very long-lived though they required more routine maintenance than a typical USA car. But increased concern with MPG led to extreme weight-saving with thinner steel, plastic parts instead of metal, "lifetime" fill transmissions, etc.

I put THOUSANDS of track miles on my 1985 535i, 1992 325i, 1998 M3, and 2004 330i ZHP which was essentially a 4 door M3 without the M engine. It had a warmed up 3 liter with 235 HP. The only weak spot in the 535i was brake life at track events. The 325i was almost bullet-proof except for cooling system failures due to plastic parts. Mine had no problem with suspension mounting points. The M3 needed nothing but the usual cooling system replacements. The ZHP needed new suspension bushings every 30,000 miles. If you decide to keep the M3 find a good independent shop because few dealers have mechanics skilled in the ways of what they consider near-antiques and it's the indy guys like the shop posted above who have continued to develop parts and techniques that the factory guys never cared about.

[IJWS]

is this sold yet? Asking for a friend...

[R3awak3n]

these are already going up in price. I have always loved these but I love that eras M5 even more. New bmws don't really do it for me, I think these were the last ones I really like. I mean I would take a new m2 but nothing like the 2000s stuff

[RobJ]

I had the ‘02 M3 convertible in Imola Red that I ordered new with the SMG transmission. That thing was one solid fun car. Those things still hold their own among the cars today. Find one in the Leguna Seca color....


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[philhan89]

laguna seca is cool but its no dakar yellow.

[FriarQuade]

I mean, the answer is always Miata, but if it can't be, M3 can also be an acceptable answer.

Which way did you head back to Seattle? 97 all the way to The Dalles has some great sections of clean low traffic pavement. If you've got more time the painted hills area is also great for many reasons.

[Kirk007]

Originally Posted by FriarQuade

I mean, the answer is always Miata, but if it can't be, M3 can also be an acceptable answer.

Which way did you head back to Seattle? 97 all the way to The Dalles has some great sections of clean low traffic pavement. If you've got more time the painted hills area is also great for many reasons.

Bend to the Dalles, through the gorge and up the freeway. The s curves on 197 were so, so fun.