Daily an E36 M3?

"Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy" (camshaft-chris) 09/24/2018 at 15:56 • Filed to: Ask Oppo, Chris' dumb ideas, BMW, E36, M3

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!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! just popped up for sale on my local CL. It’s a ‘95 in the ‘95 MY only Avus Blue, and it has ~170k on the clock. It’s a factory automatic , but was professionally converted to manual using the 5speed out of an ‘04 330i using all factory parts minus the salve cylinder and master cylinder. The original auto is included with the car though. Clean CarF ax. Typical seat wear for it’s age, but has new seat covers included. Asking price is $6800. I have a 28 mile round-trip commute, which is 90% highway. Would I be stupid to buy this and daily it?

Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 16:02

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“Would I be stupid to buy this and daily it?"

Yes. Do it.

E90M3 > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 16:06

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I heard the S50 s are pretty reliable. That said, M parts can be very pricey. 

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo 09/24/2018 at 16:06

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That’s the kind of argument I like.

benjrblant > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 16:07

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170k miles on a mind 90's BMW M-series with an aftermarket manual swap? And you want to put 28 miles/day DDing this?

I can think of fewer terrible automotive ideas. But I’m with Akio. Do it.

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > E90M3 09/24/2018 at 16:08

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It can’t be any worse than the parts for the 330ci I had. 

Arrivederci > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 16:11

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As long as you’re prepared to be nickel-and-dimed by an older German car, I say go for it.

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > benjrblant 09/24/2018 at 16:11

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I know it’s pretty obvious that it is a stupid idea. Especially c onsidering I’d be selling a boring/solid/typical commuter car to do it (2012 Ford Fusion YAWN). But I’ve wanted an E36 for so long. And d at Avus Blue tho...

WilliamsSW > Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo 09/24/2018 at 16:12

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I read this post and thought “Wow that’s a terrible and awesome idea.  It would be a huge mistake but he’s gotta do it!”

promoted by the color red > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 16:13

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Yes, but it ain’t a cheap game to play. But going broke having fun with a vintage BMW sure beats losing that money in stocks or gambling.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to put in an offer on that ratty Volvo station wagon. 

CompactLuxuryFan > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 16:14

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Seems overpriced, actually. M3s are decently plentiful in any condition so it really helps if you don’t have a set timeline. I would go for a later model year with a factory manual. 

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > promoted by the color red 09/24/2018 at 16:17

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Funny you mention Volvo wagons. The other car I’ve been lusting after lately (for a quite a few years if I’m being completely honest) is a V70R. But those are few and far between.

Tripper > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 16:18

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Do it! I drive past an estoril blue one that is just sitting at a garage all the time. I keep meaning to call and find out what the story is with it.

I DD’d my E46 for almost 7 years 3 of those years I could barely afford the payment! 

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > CompactLuxuryFan 09/24/2018 at 16:18

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This is the sensible advise I was looking for. But I will respond with my non-sensible argument : AVUS BLUE

Tapas > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 16:22

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That’s an awesome car! I’m DDing a 2000 E39 M5 that had 127k on it and my commute is 40 miles a day.

Is my commute much better than it would be in a normal car? Yes! Do I enjoy passing on the highway and downshifting in tunnels. Hell yes!

B ut I don’t know if I’m using the car like its supposed to be used. And quite naturally, my gas expense is through the roof.

Plus, I’m looking into getting the paint touched up due to tens of stone chips and researching on cleaning up nicks on the windshield.

If I didn’t care about my car so much, these things would not worry me. And I’ve only driven non-important ~$5k cars so far.

I have no complains with my car. It’s the best car I’ve ever had. But I though you might want to consider these things before pulling the trigger.

Textured Soy Protein > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 16:31

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Like Jeff Sessions in the Russia investigation, my own stupid blue BMW coupe means I must recuse myself.

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > Tapas 09/24/2018 at 16:38

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I appreciate the first-hand insight. The mpgs on the E36 should be a bit better than the E39, having two less cy linders and all. And from the CL, the paint is not mint, so I don’t have to worry too much about minor blemishes from daily driving. My main concern is reliability / cost of ownership. I don’t want to end up spending 1/3 of the purchase price of the car on maintenance for a year, you know?

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > Textured Soy Protein 09/24/2018 at 16:38

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But is it really that stupid?

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > E90M3 09/24/2018 at 17:26

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I drove (well, drifted) a 318Ti with a Euro-spec S50B32 two weekends ago and I think it may be my favorite engine I have driven. Stupid amounts of grunt and still buttery smooth. Very responsive and controllable too.

I also drifted a 318Ti with a M50B30US and while it had a lot of the same qualities as the S50 it was noticeably lacking in the grunt department, still quick but you noticed that you were down about 80 horses compared to the other car.

E90M3 > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 09/24/2018 at 17:39

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It's too bad we never got that engine here in the us, although I heard it's a lot more maintenance than the US-spec s52.

GUYMANDUDE > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 17:48

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An 04 330 would have a 6 speed. Combined with a 3.38 ratio diff from the m3 automatic makes for a fun car. More practical than the 5 speed since the ratios are the same but there is an overdrive (for highway). I would daily that, since I already daily a 325 e36 that i manual swapped ( very unprofessionaly). Update the entire cooling system and replace rear trailing arm bushings.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > E90M3 09/24/2018 at 17:57

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Can’t really speak to the reliability as both cars are drift cars owned by Team O’Neil which lead a pretty hard life but as far as I am aware they haven’t had any real issues with either car (Unlike the Nissan 350Zs ISC suspension provides for the school, all 3 Zs had clutches in various stages of completely fucked the day after the school, its worth noting that the Nissans appeared to take the majority of the abuse from the students who didn’t really know how to drive stick while the BMWs seemed to be given to the students who knew how to drive stick already)

nermal > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 18:03

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According to my math, you’re online driving 7k miles / year for your commute. You’d be much better served with a lease-special 3 series for that.

Once you have your leased 3-series for commuting purposes, you can get into the real fun stuff. Go buy a big diesel truck and car hauler trailer with living quarters. Aim for something at least 50' long for the trailer . Then buy this car , gut the interior, add a roll cage, and turn it into a track / race car.

Tapas > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 18:07

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Oh gotcha. I get 15-16 mpg, but the car needs at least 91 octane and gas isn’t cheap in Snow Mexico (~$5CAD/gal) .

In that case, make sure you purchase one that’s mechanically perfect - get a BMW mechanic to do a PPI and all. Also look up the common issues and how much they cost to fix.

I’ve set aside $1-2k because I have no clue how expensive BMW stuff is/can be and I need my DD  to work.

jalewis > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 19:32

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I daily a 98 M3 sedan. I bought it with ~ 161k miles and it’s got ~207k on it now. My commute is 24 miles a day, but I’m putting ~ 12500 on it a year. I average 21-22mpg with a fairly heavy foot and minimal highway driving. Most of my miles are on 45mph roads with occasional stop lights.

I’ve replaced a bunch of parts and done a fair amount of maintenance in the few years I’ve owned the car. Some of it was definitely ‘while you’re in there’ stuff, so can’t give you a 100% accurate yearly maintenance number, I’d budget $1000- $1500/year + tires assuming you’re doing the work yourself. Get a PPI.

Overall, I've really enjoyed the car and don't have any plans to replace it at the moment.

wbizarre - OEM fetishist > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 20:16

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Ooh, I do! I have a ‘98 Estoril sedan, drive it on a 40 mile city/ suburban commute, and I love it. For a city commute it’s great, since I get plenty of chances to rev it out. I’d say it’s good for a highway commute, but the 5-speed will be holding revs a bit higher - It’s too bad whoever did the conversion on that Avus didn’t drop in an E36 6-speed. That said, I drove it from MO to NJ over 2 days, and it was a good time, not tiring in the least. Your Avus doesn’t have the famous “Vader” seats, but that’s actually good comfort-wise. I heard the standard sport seats are much more comfortable, with better lumbar support. I don’t track MPG’s but I usually get 300 miles from full to quarter-full, with a “spirited” city commute. Many but not all of these come with folding rear seats, which are a big boost to practicality. Maintenance-wise, E36 M3's are regarded as reliable, and my 1.5 years with Estoril confirms that - the car has been faultless so far. I consider this the silver lining to the US-spec car: less-high-strung drivetrain , less finnicky maintenance, more reliability.

Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/24/2018 at 22:12

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Haha indeed. I mean, IRL driving a questionably reliable car is an adventure. If you enjoy that adventure or not depends on your time, skill, wallet, and ability to deal with the unexpected.

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > nermal 09/25/2018 at 15:20

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Yeah, that’s about right. My car is pretty much just for commuting to/from work. I’ve got three kids, so anytime we go anywhere, we take my wife’s Odyssey.

And I’m trying to avoid taking on a car payment here, lol. The Fusion is paid off, so I could sell it and buy the M3 and not have a payment to worry about.

The rest of that plan sounds awesome if I had the cash for it, hahaha. 

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > Tapas 09/25/2018 at 15:27

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Oooof, that’s gotta hurt to drive then. Not to rub salt in the wound or anything, but gas is only $2.45 here when I filled up the other day... Of course, you get free healthcare, so you come out ahead in the long run, lol.

If I do decide to move forward with this, I will definitely be doing a PPI. I don’t want it to end up being someone’s auto -> manual swap gone awry. Luckily there’s a local shop that specializes in BMWs, so I don’t have to worry about getting a bad inspection. 

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > jalewis 09/25/2018 at 15:29

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Thanks for the first-hand insight. I appreciate it man. Do you like the sedan over the coupe? Having kids, I like having the idea of an actual backseat in case of emergencies. As little as my kids ever ride in my current car (meaning I could get away with owning a coupe) , it’d still be good to have it.

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > wbizarre - OEM fetishist 09/25/2018 at 16:54

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Thanks for all the info man. I appreciate it. The transmission swap still worries me a bit, so I’m wondering if I might want to hold out for a factory manual car. Plus that would get me the 6 speed instead of the 5 .

Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy > Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo 09/25/2018 at 16:56

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Well my first car was a ‘95 Mitsubishi Eclipse with the Chrysler 420A motor so I’ve had my fair share of experience with questionably reliable cars (I had to replace that motor twice) , including many parking lot and side-of-the-road repairs, hahaha.

wbizarre - OEM fetishist > Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy 09/25/2018 at 19:30

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Factory manual E36 will still be a 5-speed. 6-speeds came on later Euro E36 M3's and worldwide from E46 generation. But still I would agree with you, to wait for a factory manual car, unless the swap was well-documented and done by a top-notch BMW specialist shop.