Evo, E39 M5, E46 M3 or FD2?

NickXX said:
Those are pretty much bang on the reasons I chose my M3 over the competition. You really need to get a test drive/ride in one as I think it will suit your needs down to the ground. You also have the budget to take your pick of the crop.

Another bonus is that there are so many e46 M3s sitting on the market that you can draw up a spec list and wait for your one to come along (took 2 weeks for mine to pop up).
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Have you had any problems with yours? How much are tyres and which do you go for? I have Falken FK452' on my Teg and they are meant to be great on the E46 chassis. How much is servicing costing you and at what sort of intervals? Do you have problems getting insurance quotes?

Which options to go for? I'd definitely want the uprate stereo.
 
MilanoChris said:
Driven a 330bhp Evo 8, 300bhp Evo V and an FD2. Not driven either BMW. It's somewhat difficult for me to get a test drive in either Beemer as I'm 27 and look 20.
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I may be wrong as I've driven none of the cars in question, but I'd expect the BMWs to be very different to the turbo nutter Evo and VTEC y0 Civic.

I wouldnt worry about being able to get test drives - you're as valid a customer as the next, if a dealer wants to lose your business because they think you look too young, they can ask for ID or you could go elsewhere...
 
[TW]Fox;16357910 said:
There is no 335i Sport - it is only available as a 335i SE or 335i M Sport. Only the 1 Series still has a Sport trim level, IIRC.

Also, the M Sport trim level was not released until mid way through 2007 and virtually none of them have yet depreciated below £20,000. This is why every car you see for £20k and less is a 335i SE not an M Sport.

What you tend to notice is that there are plenty of pretty awsome spec 2006/56, 2007/56 and 2007/07 plate 335i SE's. Then the M Sport came out, and most people switched to selecting those instead, so properly nice SE's newer than 57 plate are rarer.
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Yeah, that's what I meant, just wanted to seperate it from the SE. I should remember to be more specific when discussing BMWs with Fox! :p

Food for thought on the E92 though, not too confident in the robustness of the 335i engine or my ability to pay the possible bills out of warranty.
 
In fact, I've only ever driven 3 BMW's. A 118i which was dire, a 2001 (ish) 320i which was great and a 2005 (ish) 523i which was woefully underpowered and felt heavy.
 
Burned_Alive said:
Food for thought on the E92 though, not too confident in the robustness of the 335i engine or my ability to pay the possible bills out of warranty.
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Exactly why I am waiting until sensible mileage M Sport's are under £20k, and then simply renewing the warranty every year :)
 
[TW]Fox;16357962 said:
Exactly why I am waiting until sensible mileage M Sport's are under £20k, and then simply renewing the warranty every year :)
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How I wish I had my car purchases road mapped like that! I still need to get rid of this blooming shed!
 
NickXX said:
£18k buys a superb late (2005/2006) e46 M3 or even an M3 CS. I average 25mpg over a similar distance commute (26 miles) in my M3. Comfy over long distances and can be devastatingly quick on the twisties - I've had mine nearly a year and still cannot get over how much fun it is to drive.

Additionally (and quite importantly for me) you get the option of an SMG gearbox in the M3.

I've not found the 2 doors to be a problem at all (previous two cars were 4/5 doors). What you do get is nice big coupe frameless windows which are a nice touch.

It also looks like this :):

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Yours is stunning Nick.

M3 for me as well.
 
MilanoChris said:
Have you had any problems with yours? How much are tyres and which do you go for? I have Falken FK452' on my Teg and they are meant to be great on the E46 chassis. How much is servicing costing you and at what sort of intervals? Do you have problems getting insurance quotes?

Which options to go for? I'd definitely want the uprate stereo.
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I currently have Vredestein Ultrac Sessantas which the last owner fitted (one month before I bought the car). I am actually very impressed with them and they were apparently about £500 for all four (19" wheels). I will probably try Michelin PS2/3s next time I need to replace all four, but would happily fit Vredesteins again.

I've had it since July last year. It's covered nearly 8,000 miles since then. No problems with it whatsoever. The wheels needed refurbishing when I bought it and it needed a new fog light (both taken into account in my purchase price) - both issues I have rectified.

They are strong cars and generally don't have many issues. I think the most common recurring issues is snapping rear coil spring which are around £200 for a new pair.

I think servicing intervals are approximately 15,000 miles (they are variable based on how you drive). They follow a pattern of Oil-Insp1-Oil-Insp2. Oil services are around £150, Insp1 around £550, Insp2 around £800. £800 sounds hugely expensive, but do remember that it will only need to be done every 60,000 miles.

No problems getting insurance quotes, but I did pay around £950 last year (might get that down to £900 this year). Mid 20s, 3yrs ncb, no claims, no points.

My list was:

Must have/be:
Black or Silver Grey paint
16:9 Navigation
SMG gearbox
Red/Orange/Lime green/Cream leather interior
Harmon Kardon

Should have/be:
Sunroof if coupe
Facelift (LED rear lights)
19" alloys
Under £14,000
Under 60,000 miles

Can be:
Coupe
Cabrio


In the end I got mine for £14,950, but it came with a few bonuses including 9 months of BMW warranty, 4 new tyres and a recent service. SMG was a must for me, but is a much disputed topic.
 
FD2 - Just a slightly better version of what you have, surely you'd get bored quicker.
EVO 9 FQ 360 (Not MR) - Without doubt the fastest car from point A to B, but servicing cost, fuel with be big impact on wallet.
E46 M3 CS - Lovely car, amazing to drive and good to cruise in, would be at top of my list.
E39 M5 - V8 ***, good straight line performance, weakest handling wise though out of them and possibly highest running cost, you'd need a warranty for sure.

Can you not get say an EVO X FQ-300 for 18k now? Could be an alternative and then throw 2k-3k at it 6-12 months down the line taking it too 400+ BHP. ;)
 
Not being able to give any kind of useful objective opinion due to no personal experience, and basing my opinions and feelings about those cars purely on what I've read, and running costs not being an issue, I think I'd go for an M3 over an M5, but only just.
 
NickXX said:
I currently have Vredestein Ultrac Sessantas which the last owner fitted (one month before I bought the car). I am actually very impressed with them and they were apparently about £500 for all four (19" wheels). I will probably try Michelin PS2/3s next time I need to replace all four, but would happily fit Vredesteins again.

I've had it since July last year. It's covered nearly 8,000 miles since then. No problems with it whatsoever. The wheels needed refurbishing when I bought it and it needed a new fog light (both taken into account in my purchase price) - both issues I have rectified.

They are strong cars and generally don't have many issues. I think the most common recurring issues is snapping rear coil spring which are around £200 for a new pair.

I think servicing intervals are approximately 15,000 miles (they are variable based on how you drive). They follow a pattern of Oil-Insp1-Oil-Insp2. Oil services are around £150, Insp1 around £550, Insp2 around £800. £800 sounds hugely expensive, but do remember that it will only need to be done every 60,000 miles.

No problems getting insurance quotes, but I did pay around £950 last year (might get that down to £900 this year). Mid 20s, 3yrs ncb, no claims, no points.

My list was:

Must have/be:
Black or Silver Grey paint
16:9 Navigation
SMG gearbox
Red/Orange/Lime green/Cream leather interior
Harmon Kardon

Should have/be:
Sunroof if coupe
Facelift (LED rear lights)
19" alloys
Under £14,000
Under 60,000 miles

Can be:
Coupe
Cabrio


In the end I got mine for £14,950, but it came with a few bonuses including 9 months of BMW warranty, 4 new tyres and a recent service. SMG was a must for me, but is a much disputed topic.
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Cheers for the info. If I went for one, it'd have to be black, silver or blue with black interior. Coupe, no sunroof, 18's if poss and manual. When did the facelift start and what were the major changes?
 
How much does nav cost on a 335i?
I seem to see lots without it, seems a bit silly to spend that much on a car and not spec Nav?
 
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