"TFen" (tfen)
05/24/2018 at 21:23 • Filed to: None
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"TFen" (tfen)
05/24/2018 at 21:23 • Filed to: None | 1
| 29 |
Every once in a while I check out what people are offering to trade for Harley-Davidson’s. This week something special caught my eye:
!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!
I’ve always been a big fan of E46's, especially the M3 variant. I had a 2002 325i a few years back that I loved. I still miss it whenever I think of it, especially when I pass a clean one in traffic.
While I became intimately knowledgable on the E46's during my ownership, I didn’t really delve into the M3 specific stuff. I know about the Vanos issue and the rear subframe but other than that, I’m lost. I also know that the SMG can be troublesome but this one is a 6-speed.
Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Pic of the bike I might be trading:
dogisbadob
> TFen
05/24/2018 at 21:43 |
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BMW really fucked up by not offering a 4-door E46 M3
E92M3
> TFen
05/24/2018 at 21:43 |
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I had one for 5 years, was a great car. I still miss that driving experience, though my E92 is a better daily. The E46 is the right size, and provides better feedback. You already know about the 3 common problems to watch out for. The only problems I had were leaking power steering hoses (common issue), and the o-ring on the coolant temp sensor had to be replaced.
E90M3
> TFen
05/24/2018 at 21:51 |
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I’ve heard mumblings about rod bearings. I know that has effected some other M cars besides the E9X and the E60.
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TFen
> dogisbadob
05/24/2018 at 21:56 |
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I agree. I’d do bad things for one.
I’d do straight up terrible things for an E46 M3 touring, though.
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TFen
> E92M3
05/24/2018 at 21:57 |
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Thanks, man.
How many miles did you have on yours?
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E92M3
> TFen
05/24/2018 at 22:34 |
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Just 54k miles. Should of kept that car.
RPM esq.
> TFen
05/25/2018 at 01:45 |
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I loved mine, owned it for about 5 years, and still miss it. The SMG isn’t any more troublesome than the manual in reliability terms, it’s just different and takes some getting used to to drive and enjoy. A lot of people who’ve never driven them hate them on principle, a few people who’ve driven them once don’t like them, and a lot of people who have owned them like them fine. Modern DCTs are certainly smoother—the SMG is sequential, essentially just a manual with a hydraulically actuated clutch. But I found mine very fun to drive and SMG gets better the closer you get to the limit. It’s also kind of nice to be able to let it shift itself if it’s your daily driver and you commute in traffic—really just a personal preference. The VANOS bolts are a real problem but a very fixable one if caught in time, and the subframe issue is worse on the early cars (pre-2003) and more of an issue on higher mileage, rust belt, and tracked examples...the ones you should be looking at more carefully anyway.
Ideally I would buy a later one, 2003-2006, that already had a VANOS kit installed and had no history of subframe issues. If I was commuting in it I’d consider SMG again, but if it was just a weekend car I’d go manual—but again that’s just a matter of preference. During my ownership I had to do the VANOS kit, differential seals, a thermostat, and a DSC computer that shorted out in a freak incident (it’s located in a wheel well and somehow got splashed with too much water in a deep puddle or something), and I think that’s it.
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RPM esq.
> E90M3
05/25/2018 at 01:46 |
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Not the E46.
Texas Longhorn
> TFen
05/25/2018 at 04:19 |
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Had my 05 M3 since 2007, and still in love with it. You mentioned all the major items, but S54 engines are prone to oil leaks somewhere (VANOS, CPV o-ring, etc). I have 160k miles on mine and counting (purchased with 10k miles). Outside of usual wear and tear items (brakes, hoses, and any part with a bearing after 100k), it’s pretty low maintenance, with the exception of the valve shim adjustment at every 30k miles, which isn’t difficult but requires patience or risk dropping a shim in the engine. Parts are easy to come by, at least in the USA, for a car that’s 13 years old. There are several forums online that can practically help you solve any problem you may encounter (at least I have). Good luck!
Built BMW Tough
> E90M3
05/25/2018 at 06:25 |
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BMW suffered a class action lawsuit over the rod bearings and replaced a lot of engines as a result.
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E90M3
> Built BMW Tough
05/25/2018 at 06:29 |
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My uncle bought an E46 M3 when they came out and I believe he had the engine in his replaced, something about the oil ports being undersized. I never really got serious about E46 M3 ownership, so I never really looked into it.
Eury - AFRICA TWIN!!!!!!!
> TFen
05/25/2018 at 07:08 |
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Same. Horrible, unspeakable things.
Robin
> TFen
05/25/2018 at 08:50 |
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My 03 325i (164K mi.) has been in shop for 2+ days to replace A/C blower & resistor...Haven’t picked up yet but hopefully it can handle 110+ temperature here in AZ!
OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
> E92M3
05/25/2018 at 09:21 |
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Sub-frame too?
marcva
> TFen
05/25/2018 at 10:25 |
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Go to bimmerforums.com their model specific forums and general maintenance forum after great. There are others, but I’ve maintained my E36m using that as one of my resources.
There can be some rod bearing issues, all BMWs if this vintage have disposable coming systems. Plan on a radiator and water pump every 80k miles or so. They’re pretty cheap to put in.
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marcva
> dogisbadob
05/25/2018 at 10:26 |
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Now I’m pissed they don’t build a 4 door M2
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marcva
> TFen
05/25/2018 at 10:27 |
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There’s one for sale on BAT. Someone converted an e46 wagon with all the bits. Very clean job. Hurry. It may be gone...
Kchase731
> TFen
05/25/2018 at 10:44 |
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The e46 m3 is the best m3 to own. It’s not the fastest, but the best. Unlike the e30s you can really use the e46. The build of everything is timeless. The interior and exterior design have completely stood the test of time. All the intiror trim and leather in an e46m3 is superior to the newer models. Everything after the e46 became cheaper. While there is nothing wrong with the e92/e90 m3 interiors these is almost nothing that makes it feel special.
Yes, the e46m3s have their issues. 3 major and potentially catastrophic ones. Vanos failures, subframe failures and rod bearings are all seriously expensive issues to resolve, and they do fail. But they don’t fail on every car.
The key to shopping an e46m3 is knowledge like everything else. You want a manual coupe. You probably don’t want it as a daily driver at this point unless you live in a year round warm climate (however I did drive one the last few years in the snow). Low miles are nice, but maintenance history is better. I see them all the time in the forums with 200k+ miles still being enjoyed daily. Some are over 300k.
There are basically 2 classes of e46 m3s. Collector cars, and drivers. Low mileal, manual coupe,all original examples are already commanding a serious premium.
But average mile manual coupes in common colors can be had around $20k usd in really nice shape. These are the cars to buy. They have nowhere to go but up in price. They can be enjoyed, driven and they are highly desirable. They are the last of an era with very limited computerization, manual transmission, full nappa leather interiors, classic looking, sound great, handle amazing, hydrolic not electric steering, naturally aspirated, reasonable to purchase and maintain...not quite a super car but an amazing car which we are never going to see again.
S buy an e46m3 if you love cars the car will put a smiley on your face every time you use it, and it’s not yet a wallet killer, but is almost certainly going to go up in price as quality manual coupes are harder and harder to find.
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itranthelasttimeiparkedit
> marcva
05/25/2018 at 11:40 |
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where? I cannot find it...
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dogisbadob
> marcva
05/25/2018 at 11:41 |
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I’m pissed we don’t get the 1-series 4-door hatch at all :(
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marcva
> itranthelasttimeiparkedit
05/25/2018 at 12:42 |
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marcva
> marcva
05/25/2018 at 12:46 |
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Car didn’t make reserve @ $44k. You may be able to track down the seller.
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marcva
> TFen
05/25/2018 at 12:53 |
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Unholy would require a GTR Touring. I guess you could do that with an S65.
See my comments about the BAT auction if you’re serious. Tried uploading a picture...
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marcva
> marcva
05/25/2018 at 12:59 |
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My bad...It ***IS*** an S65 touring....mit huffenpuffen...625 hp
What kind of unholy things are we talking about? is this going to be like the Black Mirror opening episode? If you buy it, I want a ride...
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AStokley
> TFen
05/25/2018 at 14:20 |
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Imma I’m a BMW Master Tech and I can list every single thing that you need to look out for on an E46. I do pre-purchase inspections and I charge $109 for it but since I’m feeling generous I’m going to give you a list. Always do a pre-purchase inspection on a used car especially one like an M3.
Have an independent shop have an independent shop take a look at it and have the technician check these things:
The the one major deal-breaker with this car is the subframe problem. It has a tendency to tear the rear subframe out of the car. It starts off with small cracks around the mounting points. The first one that starts to tears the front passenger side mount right where bolts into the body of the car. You will have to look closely unless it’s already destroyed characterized by loud clunk in the rear end under changes in acceleration. I recommend as one of the maintenance items after purchasing the car you have the rear end reinforced it should run you around $2,500 but if you plan on keeping the car then definitely do it remember this is not a budget car m stands for maintenance.
If if the subframe is torn out chances are the bushings in the rear differential are Warren and have play which caused the shock. SMGs are inherently hard on the drive chain because of the rough shifts they make. It’s not that they’re unreliable you just hear horror stories when people do have to make repairs because all the components are very expensive. Don’t expect to get more than 60,000 miles out of an SMG pump and if you do buy an SMG check the condition of the fluid in the reservoir which is located on the intake manifold. It has a black cap in the fluid should be clear green.
Rod rod bearings are an issue on this car because of the high revs. After the first year production due to the high replacement rate of engines under warranty the dealer requested all customers to bring in their M3 for an emissions reprogramming in which case they lowered the redline. The centrifugal force of the crank spinning at that high of a speed causes the oil to be flung out, reducing lubrication to rod bearings. A good way to find out about the internal wear of the motor is to have an oil sample sent to Blackstone Laboratories. We’re in less than a week you’ll find out what Trace Amounts of metal and the types are in the oil.
Always always open the oil cap and look at the valve train to see if it’s clean and doesn’t have any carbon buildup on the camshaft which is indicative of long intervals in between oil changes, have the vehicle scan with Factory software to pull up all diagnostic trouble codes and if you want you can post them on here for interpretation by me.
And and then there’s just a regular maintenance items front control arm bushings, brakes belts cooling system tires etc etc. If it’s a convertible definitely check for any signs of water intrusion and if you turn the key on to the Run position, and you don’t see a check engine light, it’s been disabled. If you see a small dot Next to the mileage in the instrument cluster it means the instrument cluster has been swapped and the mileage is not accurate, it’s known as a manipulation. Good luck
Anthony- Stokley Performance Engineering
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Motorsport
> TFen
05/25/2018 at 14:53 |
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I bought my e46 M3 brand new in 2006 and just passed 100k. I can’t imagine life without it. Sure the ride is a bit bumpy, I could buy a newer softer ride. But let’s face it, it’s a driver’s car. SMG? Sure, stuck in a traffic jam sucks with a 6spd but admit it, we don’t live in a traffic jam.
I’ve driven a lot of cars but my e46 M3 hits all the high points, is dependable and looks great.
PS: Mine is a convertible.
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TFen
> AStokley
05/25/2018 at 22:54 |
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Wow!
Thanks very much for this. I really appreciate the info.
I didn’t know about the rod bearing issue at higher RPM. I went and looked at it today, he told me that he can rev up to 9k due to the Dinan programmer it has. I’m starting to think this might not be the one I want.
Battery Tender Unnecessary
> AStokley
05/26/2018 at 00:03 |
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I guess I was lucky that I got 97k miles out of the SMG pump then :D
Did their story change about the bearings? I was one of the first owners to get an engine replacement (mine went into a BMW dealer for a new tire after I picked up a nail at 8800 miles the first year in 2003 and when I picked it up the SMG was in its most aggressive setting, when I usuaully used level 2 or 3, and there was a loud tick where the tech had taken it out for some “spirited driving”). The original story was that one of the three machines that fabricated the crank bearings was out of spec, which is why they just went ahead and had all the bearings replaced with a TSB since they had no way of knowing which cars got the out of spec bearings. We even had a registry of engine failures back in the day.
I sold the E46 back in 2009, right before I hit 100k miles. Now I’ve got an ‘03 M5 and trying to get it up to speed on preventative maintenance. It’s pretty much perfect mechanically except I think the synchro in 2nd gear is fubar, shifting to 2nd cold literally kicks the stick out of my hand sometimes. Since I don’t think anyone services the transmissions I’m proabbly going to have to hunt down a decent one soon.
davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
> AStokley
05/29/2018 at 11:26 |
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Great, helpful reply! What are your thoughts on keeping an E9x M3 for the long-term? My ‘08 E90 that I bought 6 years ago now has about 120k miles on it. It’s currently my daily and I drive 15k miles per year (and track occasionally). Still on original clutch, rod bearings & throttle actuators [knocks wood]. I’ve had to replace the AC evaporator, some sensors, and the fuel pump. I really enjoy the car, and nothing else with 4 doors has me interested enough to let go of it, but I’m concerned that I might be in for big repair bill after big repair bill if I keep driving it as I have been for the next few years. Thanks in advance.
Also, in your best understanding of the issue, what is the root cause of the rod bearing failures in these cars?