5 things you like and 5 things you dislike about your m3

[maw1124]

Likes: Everything except Dislikes.

Dislikes: Lack of lower rpm torque; quality of interior materials.

maw

I should say that I've owned the car for over 12 years and at no time have I thought to get rid of it. I fully intend to be driving it when these on the road will be like E9 on the road today. That said, it's not perfect. It's close -- "Everything" vs two.

maw

[Tbonem3]

Then do catless headers/tune or get 3.85/3.91s.

[Wernd]

That's the whole point. Sell the car and get a 335i.

Had one of those, too tall and too heavy and drove like a BB

And yes I do have something that has torque so no need to sell anything. I'm simply saying the car could use a bit more torque

[Tbonem3]

Dislikes:

Haters & insecure stoplight racers

[repoman89]

1. The sound (8200RPM + CSL intake)
2. Looks
3. Steering
4. Simple timeless interior
5. Small yet usable size

1. Increasing cost and decreasing availability of parts
2. annoying to properly insure
3. values increasing == usability and fun decreasing
4. Stock seats are terrible
5. It’s not a sedan

Buying parts and working on my new to me NA Miata over the past few weeks made me realize how unreasonably expensive and complex these BMWs really are .. everything on the NA is trivially easy and satisfying in comparison. The parts diagrams suck compared to realoem though.

[Speed Monkey]

Things I like:
1. Wanted one ever since it came out, and I still like it very much.
2. It's getting on to be 20 years old so I don't trip over stuff that's not perfect.
3. Manual gearbox! 2 pedal driving is great on long distances and in full-on traffic but 3 pedals are just more fun.
4. The car's age has led to insurance coverage dropping drastically. $500,000.00 per + aggregate liability, comp w/$100 deductible, uninsured motorist, etc... $1200 a year with AAA.
5. It's an M3!

What I don't like:
1. I'm not near KAIV any more, so repairs are more expensive now...
2. Good tires are still expensive
3. Getting beat by a new Camry off the line because I don't want to abuse the orig clutch in my ride (200K miles!)
4. Speed bumps and steep driveways
5. Getting followed around by the f@#$%&# Menlo Park & Palo Alto PD plus the CHP randomly just because I'm lowered. I've never done a 360 donut in my entire life...

[Sharocks]

I will say the same thing I said before:

Good idea, we can learn from this.

Things I liked

1. Autosolutions SSK
2. Going to a square setup
3. Zero toe all around
4. Recaro SPG XLs
5. Buying VCSL parts when you could

Things I didn't like

1. Installing the Autosolutions SSK
2. Rotating wheels on the square setup
3. Tramlining due to zero toe and a lot of neg camber
4. Getting in and out of the Recaro SPG XLs
5. Paying a premium for VCSL parts that still didn't fit that well

Wow that feels good to let out. We should do this more.

[SQ13]

I’m approaching ten years with the silver car and four years with the blue car. Some annoying issues here and there, but I’ve yet to get tired of driving them. I do take them up to 8200 RPM..if I didn’t, that would be a waste. Having the right mods matters, too.

[Sharocks]

Extended leather was not an option on the m3 as far as I know. Also, I think it was only an individual option on the normal car. Maybe the m3 too, but either way, it hardly exists. Show me someone in the US with a factory extended leather m3. I don't think you can.

It's an individual option, there are a few US cars with extended leather.

It's rare but not impossible.

My cinnamon shift boot and ebrake boot and armrest are all from an extended cinnamon car out of Nashville.

[maw1124]

That's the whole point. Sell the car and get a 335i.

Buy something that jumps immediately when you put your foot into it. Small displacement turbos don't actually do that for me, but a C63 or S55k will jump right up from under your arse if you're not ready for it. Makes driving this a rather calming experience all the way up to the redline.

maw

[Tbonem3]

Same exact thing happened/happening with the E9x M3.

[01SG]

I personally say that because I feel like I have to do way too much with the go pedal to make anything meaningful happen

If you feel that way in sport mode, your car is broken.

I think a lot of people who complain about the torque drive convertibles. It is not the torque that is problematic, it is the 400 extra pounds. The others seem to have a problem taking an 8k RPM motor up high. Like the s2000 complaints, people buy a car that is designed to live at high RPM, and then they choose not to drive it that way.

[Tbonem3]

I personally say that because I feel like I have to do way too much with the go pedal to make anything meaningful happen

That's the whole point. Sell the car and get a 335i.

[01SG]

You're joking right?

There was an Extended Leather option, similar to the E39M Heritage. Most colors are NLA but ECS tuning still has some in stock. Of course, it's the same leather QUALITY as the rest of the interior, which at those prices doesn't make a whole lot of sense. But it's available. Some here have done it.


My '04 Audi Allroad sits outside year round (this is garage kept under a factory cover), and the Audi has worn better.

maw

Extended leather was not an option on the m3 as far as I know. Also, I think it was only an individual option on the normal car. Maybe the m3 too, but either way, it hardly exists. Show me someone in the US with a factory extended leather m3. I don't think you can.

[Wernd]

Idk why everyone is saying "lack of tourque". For what it is, and especially the fact it's an undersquare motor, it has a great amount of torque.

Besides, it's a 3.2L i6; what do you expect? You're not going to have he same torque as a turbocharged or larger displacement motor!

I personally say that because I feel like I have to do way too much with the go pedal to make anything meaningful happen