s54 Swapped Touring on BaT

[usdmej]

for whatever version of car they were made to be

- coupe
- macho coupe
- chopped coupe
- 2+ person convertible
- wagon


the E46 was styled exceptionally well

[stephen]

Coupe is the third worst body style e46 IMO (after verts and compacts).

Agreed but I actually sorta like the compacts. They would look great with the normal E46 front end.

[puma1824]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

[maw1124]

Unfortunately for your argument the market drives what models bmw decides to produce…

Or their projection of the market… which in this case I’m saying they probably got wrong. The same way they got the E36M market wrong, thinking people wouldn’t pay in the US for the Euro drivetrain. No need to defend them though. Carmakers get this shtuff wrong all the time, like “lifetime fluids”. It happens. And so people are out here making their own E46M wagons.

maw

[Obioban]

Same, I want smaller not bigger.

Smallest to largest:
compact
sedan/wagon
coupe/vert

So you should like the compact most/ followed by the sedan/wagon, with the coupe and vert last

[Obioban]

Coupe is the third worst body style e46 IMO (after verts and compacts).

[jet_dogg]

Unfortunately for your argument the market drives what models bmw decides to produce hence coupe >>> wagon numbers.

[maw1124]

The market demonstrates which is superior.

The “market” just demonstrates consensus. And consensus tells a lot of fairy tales.

For wagons and Clownshoe cars, you’re either a fan or you’re not. Same for GWagens and Rovers. My vote has always been for performance wagons, simply because they give virtually the same utility (if you have the right one) AND you can drive them closer to the way you drive your M, AMG, whatever else you love to drive.

As stout as these drivetrains are, I personally think BMW missed an opportunity to have the E46M be available in ALL formats, which would have been really sweet. People would have one of each, or at least 2 of them. For me, that would be a convertible and a wagon. MB has the sedan category sewn up for me.

My $.02, which is worth about what you paid for it (deeply discounted for car forums).

maw

[puma1824]

Guys no need to get your panties in a bunch. I said uglier not ugly. Yes the coupe looks better and the comments you get don't matter because it's the rarity causing people to comment. The market demonstrates which is superior.

The reason the wagon looks great in your eyes is because it's 95% e46, the rest, well, is what provoked the comment 😎

lol I'm picking them out of the crack now lol

[jet_dogg]

Guys no need to get your panties in a bunch. I said uglier not ugly. Yes the coupe looks better and the comments you get don't matter because it's the rarity causing people to comment. The market demonstrates which is superior.

The reason the wagon looks great in your eyes is because it's 95% e46, the rest, well, is what provoked the comment 😎

[puma1824]

I am in the opinion the Touring looks great...again completely subjective and everyone has their own tastes. If we didn't the car world would be a boring place.

My favorite e46 "M3" Touring pic (from Racing_Bernd):

[Obioban]

Not to mention uglier.

You're certainly welcome to your opinions.

I will say that of all my cars (e46 M3 coupe, e46 M3 wagon, e39 M5, e60 M5, i3), the one that gets far and away the most comments, people rolling down the windows to talk to me, random thumbs up, etc-- is the wagon. And there's nothing that visually gives away that it is an M3-- so people are having those reactions thinking it's a 325i. So... I'm not sure yours is a majority opinion.

Personally, I think the wagon looks great.

[Rkymtnrider]

I'm interested how much it will be sold for. Owner paid $26K for the donor M3 + labor + the wagon. This is a tough way to make money.

I would think that making money isnt what drives wagon swaps, its the love of the wagon.

[jet_dogg]

I'm interested how much it will be sold for. Owner paid $26K for the donor M3 + labor + the wagon. This is a tough way to make money.

Some people get excited at making a few grand and it's worth it to them but like you imply I can think of quite a few easier ways.

[sapote]

I see Kaiv did the swap in that wagon. 👍🏻

I'm interested how much it will be sold for. Owner paid $28K for the donor M3 + labor + the wagon. This is a tough way to make money.