Darren350 Posted April 29, 2014 Share Posted April 29, 2014 Hey guys, I'm going with a mate today to view a 52 plate E46 M3 Manual. (His money not mine!) Anybody got any pointers etc to look out for? I wanted one when looking for the zed but the zed won me over and was more within budget. I did look into them a bit to see what recalls it was subject to; Bearing recall and exploding boot floor etc. Has anybody had one so I can try to help my mate out? Thanks in advance! Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N4eay Posted April 29, 2014 Share Posted April 29, 2014 (edited) Hi, I owned a 05 M3 manual for a while. In summary, nice car, awesome engine, didn’t like the manual box throws were too long! and clutch was heavy. Obviously inspection 2 servicing is £££, at the time I had mine it was around the £900 mark. The older ones have the potential rear subframe issue, so one to watch out for and check. Also check for running in service and that the valve shims have been checked / replaced at the required intervals. A lot of car for the money but costs quite a bit more that a Z to run and maintain properly. Also worth getting one with the Harmon Kardon system as standard stereo is naff! Edited April 29, 2014 by N4eay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren350 Posted April 29, 2014 Author Share Posted April 29, 2014 Thanks for fast reply mate! That's useful info cheers. I've had a 330ci with the HK sound system and loved it. The car in question has hardly any optional extras apparently so I doubt it has HK. My mate doesn't care about that as he is fitting the system from his Subaru Impreza into it. His Impreza was tuned beyond belief and was boosted to around 350BHP but sadly went boom. I've got a kiddy on the way so no M3 for me, I'm selling the Zed soon and want to get a saloon 330i Sport with every option ever thrown at it. Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andywatson Posted April 29, 2014 Share Posted April 29, 2014 Fantastic car loved mine to bits, but it was an SMG, in my opinion the only manual to have! Mine was loaded with very available extra, worth looking at a few and the most common thing to watch out for is to check that the running in service was done on time, check for thorough service history, well maintained cars are the loved ones! Cause they ain't cheap to keep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren350 Posted April 29, 2014 Author Share Posted April 29, 2014 Cheers Andy. Viewed the car this afternoon. Running in service done. Recent service. Valve clearance check etc. Got it for £5900 which I think was a good price. Bodywork was excellent with one front arch being a bit rusty. Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dynamic Turtle Posted April 29, 2014 Share Posted April 29, 2014 Hi, I owned a 05 M3 manual for a while. In summary, nice car, awesome engine, didn’t like the manual box throws were too long! and clutch was heavy. Obviously inspection 2 servicing is £££, at the time I had mine it was around the £900 mark. The older ones have the potential rear subframe issue, so one to watch out for and check. Also check for running in service and that the valve shims have been checked / replaced at the required intervals. A lot of car for the money but costs quite a bit more that a Z to run and maintain properly. Also worth getting one with the Harmon Kardon system as standard stereo is naff! Fantastic car loved mine to bits, but it was an SMG, in my opinion the only manual to have! Mine was loaded with very available extra, worth looking at a few and the most common thing to watch out for is to check that the running in service was done on time, check for thorough service history, well maintained cars are the loved ones! Cause they ain't cheap to keep. And from personal experience finding a "well maintained" one is nigh on impossible it seems. They have literally all been ragged to within an inch of their lives. Ditto the Z3M sadly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dynamic Turtle Posted April 29, 2014 Share Posted April 29, 2014 Cheers Andy. Viewed the car this afternoon. Running in service done. Recent service. Valve clearance check etc. Got it for £5900 which I think was a good price. Bodywork was excellent with one front arch being a bit rusty. Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk Seems suspiciously cheap but hey ho you took the plunge! 3.0 or the Evo? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren350 Posted April 29, 2014 Author Share Posted April 29, 2014 It's an E46 3.2 mate, did they make an Evo of the E46? Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarnie Posted April 29, 2014 Share Posted April 29, 2014 I have one, great car for the money; 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonPG Posted April 29, 2014 Share Posted April 29, 2014 Had a 330ci and loved it, the running costs of an e46 m3 scare me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren350 Posted April 30, 2014 Author Share Posted April 30, 2014 Hey guys! He picked the car up today and took me out for a spin in it. It's quick I'll give it that hahaha Picture Below!!! Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren350 Posted April 30, 2014 Author Share Posted April 30, 2014 Not a single ding anywhere in sight. For £5900 I think it's a great bargain. FSH etc. Needs a good polish and wax tbh but nothing Megs and DJ couldn't sort. Cheers for the advice guys, he loves it! If I'm honest I actually prefer my Zed which shocked me a great deal. The M3 is faster and feels faster. But not by much. Maybe that's because I'm just a passenger? Looks wise I also prefer the zed. I was going to get an M3 myself but opted for the zed instead as I hoped it would be cheaper to run. Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarnie Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 Looks decent! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dynamic Turtle Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 It's an E46 3.2 mate, did they make an Evo of the E46? Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk Doh sorry, got E36 on the brain... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jp606 Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 (edited) I always find a car feels faster when I'm the passenger rather than the driver on paper there's little between them. Edited April 30, 2014 by Jp606 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RisingPower Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 Had an e46 52 plate m3 before the zed, thought i'd have less issues with the zed. The 53 plates had some changes, but by its age now I'm guessing most of them will be ironed out, like coil packs etc. Must say i'm surprised by how much value they still hold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren350 Posted May 1, 2014 Author Share Posted May 1, 2014 Must say i'm surprised by how much value they still hold. M3s do mate. Can't find a decent E36 Coupe 3.0 for much less than £4000. 3.2 Evo? Add another £1000! Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roscoe Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 Nice motors my mate has one with the smg box. Not a lot in it compared with my HR all depends who gets on the power first a lot of car for the money though Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonPG Posted May 2, 2014 Share Posted May 2, 2014 E46 M3 for 5900 sounds pretty cheap? Whats the spec on that one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren350 Posted May 2, 2014 Author Share Posted May 2, 2014 E46 M3 for 5900 sounds pretty cheap? Whats the spec on that one? Nothing. Haha, Literally a poverty spec Manual. It has 19" Wheels and leather but that's about it. Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Almeida1234 Posted May 3, 2014 Share Posted May 3, 2014 Decent price for m3 though. I was thinking of buying M3 or the Zed Bought the zed and no regrets over my purchase Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bugie Posted May 12, 2014 Share Posted May 12, 2014 This is the dilemma I'm currently facing Although having joined a zed forum and not an m3 one is telling me what I really want in my head £5900 is a good price though, I would be a little weary paying so little Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telf623 Posted May 26, 2014 Share Posted May 26, 2014 I just sold my M3 for a zed, I used at my motoway/long journey car it ate the mile and easy did 36mpg on a run. But always in the back of your mind if this goes wrong may have to re-morgage my house (lucky nothing did) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.