6spd_flo's Imola Red Ownership/Build Thread

[6spd_flo]

Hey everyone,

Starting an ownership thread to document my new to me 2003 Imola Red M3 Coupe. Purchased the vehicle on 4/30/2025 on a solid deal. Not a perfect car, but it will be a great driver. The car was resprayed at some point and the paint match is definitely not the best. The biggest selling point for me was the big three being completed. Rod bearings were replaced and VANOS bulletproofing procedure with valve adjustment was completed by Kaiv.

Options when purchased:

• Status Gruppe catless headers
• Aftermarket section 3 exhaust
• BC coilovers
• Poly diff bushings
• Seibon CSL-style carbon fiber trunk lid
• Angel eyes
• Suede headliner, A, and C pillars
• ZHP shift knob
• Wheel studs

Noted issues when purchased:

• Parking brake only goes up 2 clicks
• Central locking does not work consistently
• Beeping when the key is not in the ignition and the driver's door is open
• Crack in the HK speaker cover (drivers side)
• Missing license plate bulbs and housings in the rep CSL trunk lid
• Key fob is dead
• Sunglasses holder trim as a crack
• Brake pad sensor light is on
• Small dent in hood next to the driver's side kidney grill
• Paint blemish on drivers side rear quarter panel
• Side mirrors wobble at highway speed
• Loose steering wheel handling
• Torn driver side tie rod boot

[6spd_flo]

After purchasing the E46, the first order of business was getting the car registered to CA's DMV. This it needed a passing smog certificate. I purchased the car from the owner agreeing to take the smog risk with the catless headers. I used ECUWorx to hard code the catalysts to always be in a Ready state and did a drive cycle to get the other monitors ready. Took the car to two different smog shops and failed the visual inspection both times! I did not want to deal with the catless header smog saga every two years so I found a deal for OEM headers from FB marketplace and installed those. I've never been more happy to pass smog lol.

While I was in there I also did the following:

• Cleaned up the engine
• Oil change with Liqui Moly BMW 10W60
• Added Liqui Moly MoS2 ant friction engine treatment
• Replaced the steering coupling assembly to fix the loose steering wheel handling
• Replaced the constant pressure valve since it is a known leak location on the S54

As of today my exhaust components are stock headers, section 1 with two 200 cell high flow cats, stock section 2, aftermarket section 3 muffler. That leaves me with 4 catalysts haha. I'm undecided if I should either go stock section 1, two resonator section 1, or straight pipe section 1.

[dog2bert]

How many miles are on it? Did replacing the steering coupling assembly do anything?

[6spd_flo]

How many miles are on it? Did replacing the steering coupling assembly do anything?

140k miles. Yes replacing the steering coupling did make a difference. My buddy who has a well sorted M3 noticed that the car didn't respond to small steering inputs on a test drive and suggested replacing this part. Now the car responds to these tiny inputs.

[dog2bert]

How hard is the steering coupler to replace?

[6spd_flo]

How hard is the steering coupler to replace?

It's easy to replace. I already had my reinforcement plate off so it probably took 10-15 minutes to swap out.

https://youtu.be/VJI3XrwQ1Y0?si=SmT4U_Uugw5QQKeS

[Nate047]

Nice, I would do a dual resonated section 1 and maybe pick up a resonated section 2 while you’re at it. Those two things help improve the rasp without eliminating it, IMO it keeps the character of the exhaust and just makes it nicer. But you’ll notice that there are a billion possible exhaust setups and no one agrees on what sounds best.

[6spd_flo]

Nice, I would do a dual resonated section 1 and maybe pick up a resonated section 2 while you’re at it. Those two things help improve the rasp without eliminating it, IMO it keeps the character of the exhaust and just makes it nicer. But you’ll notice that there are a billion possible exhaust setups and no one agrees on what sounds best.

Thanks for the input. I'll probably go back to a stock section 1 for now to see how it sounds with my aftermarket section 3 then go from there.

[MTiz]

Congrats dude, this car was local to me. Glad it went to a forum member

[6spd_flo]

Congrats dude, this car was local to me. Glad it went to a forum member

Right on man, very excited to have this car. Hope to see you around some of the Sac meets/events.