I may want an AMG, but I haven't lost it, yet

"E90M3" (e90m3)
08/21/2018 at 12:12 • Filed to: unnecessary car shopping with E90M3

No, I’m not buying a C63 AMG with 126k miles on and !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , and considering it was still available in mid-August, I figured I should go look at it. So, that’s what I did.

Despite having almost tripe the miles than the M3, it didn’t appear to be in terrible shape. The interior was showing its age, but then these early W204 were notorious for poor interior quality . Likewise, in the face of the CEL, it seemed to drive fine. Head bolts also appeared to be new. It pulled just fine and sounded every bit as glorious . However, I don’t really have the extra cash to spend on something like this, so looks like an AMG isn’t in my future anytime soon.

DISCUSSION (25)

Chariotoflove > E90M3
08/21/2018 at 13:04

I would have zero interest in this car, even without the CEL. However, I suppose someone who was interested could take it to a shop, find out what the light is about, and then maybe offer whatever he could find between the couch cushions. Who knows what their bottom is, but the longer it sits, the more likely one would be to find it.

E90M3 > Chariotoflove
08/21/2018 at 13:26

Figured I might be able to get it for dirt cheap. Don’t know what the bottom dollar is, but I might be able to get it for stupid cheap if it sits long enough.

WilliamsSW > E90M3
08/21/2018 at 14:17

How did it actually drive? I thought these were basically burnout machines, not all that great for much else - but I’ve never driven one.

The head bolts are scary enough that I would demand receipts and proof if you end up seriously looking for one.

E90M3 > WilliamsSW
08/21/2018 at 15:33

It felt pretty good, although I didn’t really get to put it through any decent curves.

I’d at least get a PPI done and depending on what they say go from there.

WilliamsSW > E90M3
08/21/2018 at 15:45

If the head bolts were done, and done correctly, probably a pretty solid car.

For me personally, I think I’d rather have an E63 with the M157, but I may be a bit biased there...

AddictedToM3s - Drives a GC > E90M3
08/22/2018 at 01:21

Can you bring your own OBDII code reader and pull the codes during an extended test drive? It may be worth while to look into.

j.davism5 > E90M3
08/22/2018 at 06:24

I’m actually thinking that I will trade the ISF on a 13' F10 m5. W212 E63 is a possibility, but a big sister for my E39 M5 appeals...

E90M3 > AddictedToM3s - Drives a GC
08/22/2018 at 06:24

I don’t have one, but that would be a good idea.

E90M3 > j.davism5
08/22/2018 at 06:37

Not the worst choice to have to make.

Haven’t driven the W212 E63, but I was impressed with the F10 I drove. I didn’t realize that it retained hydraulic steering until I drove one and realized it felt too good to be electric. Looked into it, and sure enough it’s hydraulic.

gometz > WilliamsSW
08/22/2018 at 07:17

The headbolt issue is way overblown on the internet. Took a 2008 from 50k to almost 120k in about 5 years and never had an issue.

gometz > E90M3
08/22/2018 at 08:20

I sold mine with either 108 or 118k miles in December of 2015 for $20k (I wrote 118k earlier but actually think it was maybe 108k now). $17k with a CEL isn't a great deal to be honest unless it's something very simple.

Arrivederci > E90M3
08/22/2018 at 08:33

How can a dealership sell a car with an illuminated CEL? NC and SC are pretty similar with regards to inspections and that’s an immediate fail here in NC, and I thought dealers have to sell cars that pass inspection.

E90M3 > Arrivederci
08/22/2018 at 09:25

Inspection in SC? That's news to me.

WilliamsSW > gometz
08/22/2018 at 09:36

Maybe - but it’s easy enough to either confirm that they’ve been replaced, or buy it and get it done. Gi ven the consequences of failure, you’d be nuts to ignore it.

Denny > E90M3
08/22/2018 at 09:36

My amg s wonderful until I had the dealer do a recall on the fuel pump and more it hasn't ran for two years. I worked at BMW... I'm not sure what the head bolt problem was but they used to snap in BMWs with regular use.

gometz > WilliamsSW
08/22/2018 at 09:40

The thing about the headbolt issue is that they all failed around 20-40k miles, and I believe all 2008-2009 MY (maybe a few 2010 ?). Taking that into account, you can safely assume that any defective headbolts would have failed by now in the last 10 years (with enough data you could run a age and mileage analysis on the failures, I am sure any car today is well outside the bell curve).

gometz > gometz
08/22/2018 at 09:48

BTW: my information is admittedly mainly based on reading about it on forums. Pretty much since 2014 the primary reason it comes up is when people ask about how preva lent it is, very few reports of it having happened to their car (I couldn’t find any recent reports in a quick scan). In my opinion, if the car had an issue, it would have shown itself by now.

Arrivederci > E90M3
08/22/2018 at 10:38

Just Googled it - I’ll be damned, they don’t have them, so I suppose that’s why they can sell it like that. In NC, I don’t think that would fly .

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > j.davism5
08/22/2018 at 10:46

Wut ISF.

E90M3 > Arrivederci
08/22/2018 at 11:31

Yeah, there aren’t any here. The standard for cars is very very low. I see at least one car a day running around without a front bumper. Georgia has inspections, but it’s only in the 13 metro counties; GA has 159 counties.

If I was serious about this car, I would be demanding they either fix it or give me a significant price reduction. Plus I’d want to drive it for at least 50 miles to ensure that they didn’t just clear the code.

RPM esq. > WilliamsSW
08/22/2018 at 18:50

They’re not super precise but they handle pretty well considering how tail-happy and torquey (and burnout-machine-y) they are, and the traction control is telepathic.*

*Note my analysis can only reliably be applied to post-facelift cars with the track suspension.

j.davism5 > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
08/23/2018 at 04:38

Kinja'd!!!

This one. 09' with no torsen.

j.davism5 > E90M3
08/23/2018 at 05:33

Thanks for the heads up, i was a bit worried it might be a bit artificial. Ehat did you think of the performance?

E90M3 > j.davism5
08/23/2018 at 06:13

Didn’t get to really take it around any corners, but it made my M3 feel slow.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > j.davism5
08/23/2018 at 09:26

Ah I like. I spent the extra time and money and got a 2011. Very fun car. I did want Ultrasonic blue but they’re sooo rare.