E46 M3 or 07/08 335i - both 6spd

[STCman]

So im looking to get into one of these cars, but cant decide what i want.

Both in similar price range. Which would you choose?

I like the power band of the M3, but also love the luxury refinement of a 335. Is there a big difference in the drive for both cars?

[KevC]

Haven driven either but,

e46 m3 will be more raw/track-oriented. suspension/chassis might be stiffer. LSD :D motor takes 10w50/10w60, so I wouldn't drive it through winter.

e90/91/92 335i's n54 has so much potential for power. 400whp is so easily attainable it's scary. you'll be buying tires often :D. would probably drive a lot heavier, more of a cruiser. open diff sucks.

I'd probably take the M3 but the 335i is likely more livable/practical.

[booblehead]

Juice up that E90/92/93 + a bit of supsension upgrade, you can easily crush the E46 M3.

Besides, lots of E90/92/93 are now up for grab inexpensively.

Check out the www.e90post.com for Canada and 'Canadian Classified'

[chickenbones]

Yes, add replacement of HPFP every 20K kms to the list as well :D


Juice up that E90/92/93 + a bit of supsension upgrade, you can easily crush the E46 M3.

Besides, lots of E90/92/93 are now up for grab inexpensively.

Check out the www.e90post.com for Canada and 'Canadian Classified'

[aleks]

The M3 does feel more planted, has better brakes, handles better. The major difference though will be in power. 335i is more powerful. I bought a CPO one a few months ago and have put a Dinan tune on it. I have a friend with an ISF and an E90 M3. 335i is much more powerful than both and outacelerates them easily.

But their transmissions, brakes and suspensions are way better. So it's up to you which is more important to you.

[js321]

Yes, add replacement of HPFP every 20K kms to the list as well :D

and fixing E46 M3's cracking subframe...

[booblehead]

If choosing the E46/M3, stick with the manual. All kinds of problem with SMG

[STCman]

Yes, add replacement of HPFP every 20K kms to the list as well :D

I thought with the revised HPFP there are no more problems



If choosing the E46/M3, stick with the manual. All kinds of problem with SMG
yep, thats why i put 6spd at the top

and thanks il check out e90 post too

[GSpeed]

Depends what your using it for, an m3 on the street is a waste of money..335i is a much better choice.. + better gas mileage, but the downside.. is carbon build up that you cannot stop.. just clean up every 20k.. with a $800+ head service from bmw

[chickenbones]

1. It was never fixed.
2. You are buying the 07/08 so they are not revised anyway.


I thought with the revised HPFP there are no more problems



yep, thats why i put 6spd at the top

and thanks il check out e90 post too

[Dina_E]

m3....

[iHop]

E9x 335i all day everyday. The E46 m3 is a great car but you will pay for that in maintenance and repairs. Even better than these 2 are is the 135i.

[purebluejapan]

1. It was never fixed.
2. You are buying the 07/08 so they are not revised anyway.

They are revised... You can bring the car in to the dealership to have it recalled as long as the VIN classifies under the correct build date.
The 335i has loads of potential. Even single turbo upgrade.
http://www.procedetuning.com/BMW/n54/styled-15/index.html

Anyways. E46 M3 is too old, list of stuff to fix.
Subframe, vanos fix. I would stay away from an E46 M3 close to 100,000km.

The 335i, even up to 100,000km it runs strong as long as the fuel pump has been recalled.
The turbos can be found online for less than $5000.00 if there's an issue with them.

You also can get a LSD for the 335i.

A set of coilovers, LSD, tune for the 335i will eat the e46 m3 on the track.
I have PSS9's on my car, no complains so far.

[STCman]

what do you think about a 07 335 with 124xxx km, and has service records
all the recalls were done, and has warranty till sept 2013


is the mileage too high or okay?

[MP3_SKY]

I was actually thinking of getting the E46 M3 as well before I bought out the MS3 last year, but I concern about the reliability and cost of repairs and replacements. Used performance German....I m not sure if i have enough spare funds for it.

[MP3_SKY]

The turbos can be found online for less than $5000.00 if there's an issue with them.



Which is a lot!! 5k...

[DJ_Peanuts22]

E46 M3 ftw.

That I6 is one of the sweetest sounding engines ever made.

[booblehead]

http://ontario.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-cars-trucks-2002-BMW-M3-Coupe-W0QQAdIdZ394537090

Here is a nice one - 6sp manual.

[STCman]

http://ontario.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-cars-trucks-2002-BMW-M3-Coupe-W0QQAdIdZ394537090

Here is a nice one - 6sp manual.

checked it out already, its pretty crap

Paint peeling on the hood beside the grill, bumper fading at the bottom (Looks like repaint), drivers door needs to be shut hard to close, 2 rust spots on the quarter panel.

It comes with winter tires and rims -- that says more then enough...-_-

[booblehead]

sorry !

Any thought of bring one in fromt the States ?

[STCman]

sorry !

Any thought of bring one in fromt the States ?

seems like a lot of work, but if i find any il consider it

[overboost]

seems like a lot of work, but if i find any il consider it

Buying from the states is very easy. You just need to prepare your paperwork in advance, and possibly fly down to view the potential car. But the paperwork and getting it through the border is easy peasy. There's a big thread in the forum on importing that you can read up on. I've done it before and it's nothing to be worried about. Benefit of buying a car from the US...the pool of available cars for sale is much greater than in Canada.

[flyinggonzo]

Depends on what you want to use it for. For puttering around town the 335 will be the better car but the M3 will be more fun to drive aggressive. For most people the 335 would be the better choice.

[SuperVeloce]

Any kind of maintence on a M car will be probably around triple the cost of a non-M performance car.

That being said, i would rather the M3. If you're thinking of any spirited driving then go with the M3.

[mmretlol]

335i definitely. Much more livable as a car, and with a few suspension bits probably just as good around a track.

[rileywai]

335i with JB chip.... just GG

[purebluejapan]

Just letting you know now, there isn't really "MINT" "Good" E46 M3's around anymore.
Most have been poorly driven, tracked the crap out of, or crashed cause of noob drivers.


335i with JB chip.... just GG

JB sucks, go Vishnu. Any chipped 335i is pretty much GG, enough power to smoke most family sedans on the road.
But that being said, power is nothing without control. Wide staggered tires would be best to put down so much power.
OEM suspension sucks, op out for a coilover or something. Also do the sway bars, the OEM ones are puny.


what do you think about a 07 335 with 124xxx km, and has service records
all the recalls were done, and has warranty till sept 2013


is the mileage too high or okay?

Mileage too high IMO. Look for something that has 60,000 on it, that way you can keep it for awhile without any headaches.
The dealership has some good deals now since the F30 is out...

[STCman]

^ trying to stay within a budget, dont wanna go over 25k

Im more interested in this because it was an ex CPO car and it has warranty left.

I seen some 335 with 80000k, but have no warranty...

tough situation im in.. lol



But forsure, i plan on doing coils (KW v2 or v3) first, and then the rest will come in

[GSpeed]

once again.. be prepared to spend at least $800 + to have your intake valves cleaned....
besides the point is there a reason why you want either of these cars?

[booblehead]

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=696345&highlight=ivo

cheaper here.

[GSpeed]

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=696345&highlight=ivo

cheaper here.

much better price... mind you anyone that has a blaster can do it with some fine wallnut shells and a vacuum

[STCman]

once again.. be prepared to spend at least $800 + to have your intake valves cleaned....
besides the point is there a reason why you want either of these cars?

just feel like stepping up to a nice car, want something in the 300hp range, with some class.
I wouldnt mind a sti or evo even though they lack in lux, but they dont have any in my budget, nor do i want the sti hatchbacks.

any reason i should not want these cars?




Also, the car already got a carbon blast done to it. Its also a CPO car..

[aleks]

This is my 3rd E90 sedan. Love them. No issues so far. New fuel pumps have been sorted, they have a 10 yr warranty on them too. I myself bought a CPO RWD 335 sport pack car for $31k with 65k kms on it a few months ago at a BMW dealer. Added Dinan shortly afterwards. I average 11.6L/100kms in all city driving which is on par with what I did with my 2008 GTI which had 1/2 the power haha.

I've had a lot of cars and the 335 isn't necessarily the best at every single category but overall it's the best car in the segment. Nothing really drives like it, hard to describe until you drive it back to back with competition. Of course they do have issues but imo the benefits outweigh the cons as long as you find a low mileage CPO car that's been taken care of.

[purebluejapan]

just feel like stepping up to a nice car, want something in the 300hp range, with some class.
I wouldnt mind a sti or evo even though they lack in lux, but they dont have any in my budget, nor do i want the sti hatchbacks.

any reason i should not want these cars?

Also, the car already got a carbon blast done to it. Its also a CPO car..

$25,000 budget, is tough to find a low mileage 335i.
I would stay step it up to around $30,000. It's better getting a good second hand car rather than regretting and getting something high mileage and regretting.
However, that being said... I would say that these cars can do 300,000km easily on the engine. CPO doesn't really mean anything because CPO cars are just leased cars, dumped back on the lot for sale.
All they do is car wash them, and change the tires if they needed to be changed. They don't really "inspect" anything.
So know what you getting, before you commit to anything. CPO doesn't mean much, my car has been out of warranty for over 70,000km and it still runs absolutely fine.

Op is right, if you wanted performance I would go with a subaru with that kinda money, but to be honest Subaru lacks class and style.
I don't think I'll be ever able to drive a client/drive to a meeting in a modded subaru.
Modded BMW, yeah probably.

[STCman]

thanks for all your advice guys,

I ended up with this,

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-hhHn0qGvdZk/UBQX6AURo-I/AAAAAAAADU4/np8lchWuasg/s604/304767_10151292755638765_2113483295_n.jpg

car is ridiculously mint :) with red interior

[booblehead]

Congrats,

If you need any mod work done, check out Stance Factory in Ajax. They are pro in doing regular maint & any mod work.

http://www.stancefactory.com/contact

[DJ_Peanuts22]

You made the right choice.

Congrats on the M3.

[forthewinwin]

Congrats!

I wish I could buy one... :(

[STCman]

thanks!

[feidailo]

nice dude. now u just gotta throw sum D's on dat b**ch

[EP32k2]

Nice. Just watch out for the subframe tearing and the bushings if they haven't been done yet.

[purebluejapan]

thanks for all your advice guys,

I ended up with this,

car is ridiculously mint :) with red interior

Looks nice, was going to reply in this thread and say you can get upgraded RB turbos for $3600.
It's close to $5K after installation, but it's rated to do 480whp with a tune and 93 octane.
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=731075

But you've already got the E46 M3, congrats! It's a great car, but just don't say we didn't warn you about the vanos-fix, subframe and bushings. :)

[STCman]

just some pics i took on the weekend...oh and my friend bought a 335 at the same time, so we have a nice rivalry going on :)

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8039/7968627812_e6826cabf2_c.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8176/7968545542_668affee77_c.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8439/7968634866_fd2cf2db40_c.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8308/7968561498_b1f2011b36_c.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8172/7968568470_1570dbcc56_c.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Ddspz2_g9AI/UE7NU_ebK1I/AAAAAAAADYM/kt6d2HdYMgo/s853/DSC_0122.JPG

[lexani]

Mint M3! Good find!

Those E92's like your friends seem to be the 'Corolla' of the slightly upper middle class.

[Insider]

I think you made the better choice. ;)
nice car. keep it looking as stock as possible.