M3 Shelf Life

[ozone]

How long can you realistically make your M3 last? I have a 2001 with 141k on the clock. In the past 3-4 years I have spent a small fortune on it's upkeep -- VANOS, subframe, brakes/tires, coilovers, a ton of underbody and some panel replacement parts due to rust, full repaint and a lot more stuff. Consequently, the car feels strong as ever and looks great and I am hoping it can last a lot longer. I have an attachment to my car as I've owned it for 18+ years but looking back at it, I could have easily gotten a newer one. Although I would want a replica (LSB/Black manual) and newer model year/low mileage and not sure how much that would cost or even if readily available?

I love the M3 but it is quite expensive to upkeep and a lot more costly than higher end cars that I have or owned in the past. Not sure if it's exacerbated by being the first build year. Obviously, much of the work was needed simply due to aging but it has always been a bit of a money pit.

[Obioban]

I have no reason to think it won't outlast the usefulness of gas cars.

The one time perma lockdowns are done (vanos and subframe), and the wear items are all free from FCP (and free labor, since I DIY). At this point, my cars basically cost gas and tires to run. 160,000 on the M3 coupe (though ~20,000 of those are track miles, which conventional wisdom says counts 10x), 205,000 on the M3 wagon, 190,000 on the M5. All of them are maintained to the point that I'd be comfortable hopping in any of them and driving across the country.

I do put effort in every ~100,000 miles (bushings/bearings/ball joints/cooling system/belts/tensioners/idlers/sensors). But, a weekend of work every 100,000 miles is hardly arduous, and parts are free, so... I can live with that.

[Sharocks]

The M stands for Money.

Not Motorsport.

[jet_dogg]

The M stands for Money.

Not Motorsport.

Hahaa ain't that the truth.

I would have been better off copping a gt3.

[yhp2009]

Perhaps your perception of "money pit" may be skewed from all the recent spendings. But you probably didnt spend that kind of money all 18years of ownership. And it sounds like the big cost centers are taken care of from the recent refresh. Should be good to go for another 100,000 miles. Enjoy it for what it is, an old restored classic

[cobra]

I think it will last a long time. The cars take some more maintenance than others, but I also think we expect more from these cars so we do more frequent maintenance to keep them feeling tight.

Either way, it's all worth it for the driving pleasure it brings

[oceansize]

full repaint

You can't really hold the full repaint, which had to of cost thousands, against the M3. What car at 120k miles or greater wouldn't need that if you are wanting it to look perfect?

[jet_dogg]

I don't necessarily think a repaint is unavoidable on a high mileage car just depends on how it was cared for and driven.

I have thought about this topic extensively since I made the decision to restore my car. There will be some parts hoarding without a doubt and I don't see why the car couldn't do 2-300k easily with proper maintenance.

Just make sure it's not your daily

[Sharocks]

Hahaa ain't that the truth.

I would have been better off copping a gt3.

I go back and forth with selling a lot of my cars for one normal probably electric daily driver and a 997 GT3 but the amount of miles I would rack up on the GT3 would make it worthless so fast lol

[jet_dogg]

I go back and forth with selling a lot of my cars for one normal probably electric daily driver and a 997 GT3 but the amount of miles I would rack up on the GT3 would make it worthless so fast lol

I know man, I have one homie who texted me last night if I was going to sell the fleet for a gt4 and I laughed. He has no idea how much I'm spending on this thing nor would I tell him.

Probably going to hang onto this for the long haul and get a 992 in a couple of years.

[sapote]

I don't know about the M3, but my daily 1967 Porsche 912 (first owner bought it on Dec 24 1966 in Beverly Hill, CA) -- 54 years old -- costed me total less than $200 in 13 years 150K miles (new clutch disk and TOB). Just add gas + tires + brake pads. It is so light the the second set of tires still have good treads. The wheels when I bought the car still had the tubes inside the tires.

[Obioban]

I don't know about the M3, but my daily 1967 Porsche 912 (first owner bought it on Dec 24 1966 in Beverly Hill, CA) -- 54 years old -- costed me total less than $200 in 13 years 150K miles (new clutch disk and TOB). Just add gas + tires + brake pads. It is so light the the second set of tires still have good treads. The wheels when I bought the car still had the tubes inside the tires.

!

For years, the appeal of air cooled Porsches to me has laid in using them as a DD. As in, piling miles on. They're so simple that it just feels like they're perfect for it. Never before have I ever seen anyone that felt the same.

[ozone]

It's nice to hear that these cars can last a long time. My paint was pretty mint for a long time but I started using it as a winter car and it lead to rust issues. I also had a couple minor cosmetic accidents and the areas of respray lead to peeling -- so in the end, to make it look great again, the only option was to invest in repainting.

My M maintenance has been always costly -- I don't think it's outside the norm for an M from what I read on the forums; maybe, it's a bit exacerbated by being an 01 build.

[Arith2]

We pulled this out of a 993 turbo a couple days ago. The turbo was "replaced" on one side by a child. ....since we were on the topic of air cooled Porsches

[R717]

I don't know about the M3, but my daily 1967 Porsche 912 (first owner bought it on Dec 24 1966 in Beverly Hill, CA) -- 54 years old -- costed me total less than $200 in 13 years 150K miles (new clutch disk and TOB). Just add gas + tires + brake pads. It is so light the the second set of tires still have good treads. The wheels when I bought the car still had the tubes inside the tires.

Awesome - great car!! I took a slightly different path toward the same goal, around 2007 I had been waiting for either a great deal on an SC or my funds to support a late 80s carrera when I found 930s going for about the same as said carreras. After several potentials, I found an 86 turbo with a few blems but otherwise in great shape to start DD. Very reliable as long as you kept spare fuses, fuel pump relay, CD box, and jumper for the overboost relay in the frunk. Go forward 9 years and I can't park it without someone sticking a torn envelope under the wiper or walking up to give me a "cash now" low-low-ball offer. That and the emergent need to mount young kiddo seats led me to compromise with an E46 325i until I could swing an M3. If you can live with some of the idiosyncrasies and take care of a few items, the air-cooled p-cars can be very reliable and enjoyable.