Bought an old BMW M3, filled with regret...

BananaDunka · 18 Feb 2019 at 10:23

MrKnifey said:
I did ask in the BMW thread, but got stupid response on why an E46 was £10k. So maybe better luck in here,

Im considering buying an E46 M3 for me to use up until September, by which time I plan to sell it on.

One has come up for sale local to me, I plan on looking, but any advice on it? Spec list is below and its up for £10k.

2002 manual coupe in carbon Schwartz black.
124K FSH , most bmw dealer and specialists.
4 owners
Sunroof
HK
Red leather
Power mirrors
Carbon fibre CSL style air box , and mapped ecu
Just had a full vanos overhaul not even 25 miles ago
Bottom end bearings done (by BMW at 44k)
Clutch and flywheels 2k ago
Oil and filter change 500 ago
New chain guides
Head gasket replaced.
Original 19” wheels ( need refurbish )
And a set of 18” with ad08s (just refurbished)
Stud and nut conversion
10m hubcentric spacers
Subframe reinforced

How come you're wanting to only keep it until then? That's a short space of time to have one, and you are likely to lose potentially a lot of money when you try to sell it on due to some of the things I mention below.

The bearing shells were done at 44k, the car is now at 124k. The shells should be changed at around 80k miles, so that time has now come around. That's a ~£1500 job.

It's also got a CSL style carbon intake, likely GSR, and since the spec doesn't mention it, it's gonna be running the ALpha-N map which is sloppy when driving around town.

The rest of the items seen to seem pretty good though assuming all OEM fluids and parts were used. stud and nut conversion and spacers though.... Bit too scene for my liking, and potentially any future enthusiast who wants a well maintained one without those kind of mods.

Any pictures of it?

MrKnifey · 18 Feb 2019 at 14:10

I may need to release the funds when we come to move house, but not a given. The theory is to buy something I wont lose any money on, or not a great deal at least.

Bearings, once he had replied saying they had been done at 44k, I kind of assumed would need doing again. I can do this myself, just not something I really want to do.

Will take note on the map.

Stud and Nut conversion is a weird one for me too, drifters use it a lot and im concerned about it. Only one general picture I have doesnt show anything. I was just planning on viewing it but feeling unsure.

Ive had a look around and £12 is about the average price a good condition one will go for around the 100k mile marker.. but half of them have no receipts or proof of Shells, Floor Cracking, Vanos issues being done.

BananaDunka · 18 Feb 2019 at 14:42

Just be wary of the shells. When they go, there's no warning. You will hear tapping noises one drive, and by that point it is likely too late unless you are driving very slowly and stop immediately.

Other things I'd be wanting to check, tyres used, wear patterns to check to see if alignments have been done properly and regularly etc, as well as how often oil changes have been done. Should be every 5k miles or once a year for an oil change on these regardless of what the service level indicator is at.

Also I'd want to know if valve clearances have been checked each inspection 1 and 2. Usually a specialist will provide a clearance report sheet and what shims were added etc.

MrKnifey · 18 Feb 2019 at 14:46

Thank you mate!

Gaygle · 25 Feb 2019 at 14:33

@mrk I seem to remember that you had PFC Z-rated brake pads on yours for a while but I think you took them off. What were your thoughts on them and why did you remove them before they were worn?

BananaDunka · 25 Feb 2019 at 15:00

I still have PFC Z-rated on. I had the Mintex ones that people raved about for a bit but the squealing noise was too much so went back t PFC Z rated.

The PFC pads are excellent all round really, can't fault them and minimal brake dust on the alloys.

Gaygle · 25 Feb 2019 at 15:08

Good stuff, thanks.

Did you get them all round or just at the front?

BananaDunka · 25 Feb 2019 at 15:30

All round. Fronts been replaced once already since having the car. I got them all on PFCs since having the car pretty much, so 55k miles on the rears and about half that on the fronts. Give or take of course.

BananaDunka · 12 Mar 2019 at 16:50

So recently my ABS, DSC, flat tyre monitor and handbrake lights cam on whilst driving. Goes away when the car is restarted but comes back on again.

Symptoms before they come on are DSC constantly coming on with even light throttle. Disabling DSC solves the issue but the lights still come on not long after.

Classic symptom of reluctor ring failure. Water gets on the near side one commonly an d corrosion sets in causing failure. Reluctor ring is the pickup for the ABS/wheel speed sensor so this all makes sense.

BMW don't sell just the rings and will advise replacing the drive shaft

eBay sells aftermarket ring kits for £40 each... Guess the option I'm going for.

Useful info to share I guess :cool:

antijoke · 12 Mar 2019 at 17:59

Exact thing happened to my old E46.

A specialist said have to replace the drive shaft along with other parts related...ended up selling the car as he was saying it was very expensive for the car.

Swayed decision to sell as GF wanted a small car she could drive.

Cleisthenes · 12 Mar 2019 at 18:11

That car is being a right old headache for you at the moment, I'm amazed you've kept it this long!

BananaDunka · 12 Mar 2019 at 18:31

Cleisthenes said:
That car is being a right old headache for you at the moment, I'm amazed you've kept it this long!

The engine being a key reason!

But also I don't know what else could replace it really and still deliver the same enjoyment, practicality and comfort. Plus the looks, it just looks so right inside and out even in 2019. As an all round package it's excellent for what I want from a car I drive for leisure mostly, and if I want to I can sling some people in all the seats with boot space for bags or whatever else.

antijoke said:
Exact thing happened to my old E46.

A specialist said have to replace the drive shaft along with other parts related...ended up selling the car as he was saying it was very expensive for the car.

Swayed decision to sell as GF wanted a small car she could drive.

It's amazing how many garages/dealers will automatically give out the worst case option for stuff like this when there's really no need to replace the big components just because BMW doesn't sell the little part on them on their own!

Simon · 12 Mar 2019 at 20:45

Could just be the sensor ?

BananaDunka · 12 Mar 2019 at 21:03

The sensor will need replacing as it's been rubbing on the corroding reluctor ring.

This video shows the exact same issue bit for bit. Not an E46, but the issue affects all models over time if driven often year round.

Will Gill · 13 Mar 2019 at 19:59

I had it on mine, was an ABS sensor

Simon · 13 Mar 2019 at 20:08

Yeh same as mine. All those lights come on because the car has lost wheel speed so the systems shut down

-westy- · 15 Mar 2019 at 06:11

Mrk, when you reset the warnings, does the ABS work? If the reluctor ring was damaged then it wouldn’t work full stop. More likely to be a sensor

[TW]Fox · 15 Mar 2019 at 07:15

Surely this is just the wheel speed sensor, a very common failure. Why do you think it's the ring?

BananaDunka · 15 Mar 2019 at 07:40

Because I've heard the scraping noise weeks leading up to the lights coming on. The noise of the sensor surface rubbing against the reluctor ring. Ring corrosion is common as well and the symptoms are exactly that of the video above.

If I reset the error code and drive, within minutes the lights coke back on again. The nearside ring will collect the most water and is the first to corrode over time.

Gaygle · 15 Mar 2019 at 12:35

I had this on my E46 M3 - with the exact same symptoms.

It was the driver's side rear wheel speed sensor. It had some kind of scrape on the end of the sensor which had obviously damaged it - possibly as a result of something getting jammed in between it and the reluctor ring. I replaced it (with a used part actually!) and it was perfect. The whole job took about 30 minutes. The biggest pain (it took about 5 minutes) was removing the piece of plastic that goes under the rear of the sill in front of the rear wheel as this is where the the new sensor plugs in. Used Genuine ATE wheel speed sensors are an absolute bargain (same part number for every E46) compared to new and they are something which either work or don't work so no issues with going second hand.

Before storming in and spending a fortune on something you probably won't need, I'd recommend inspecting the wheel speed sensor first then going from there. When replacing the wheel speed sensor, it is a very good idea to also replace the allen head screw. These things are made of cheese and are normally rusted badly due to their position. My impact wrench got it out with ease, but if you are using hand tools, as we all know, it only takes one slip from not keeping it completely square and you're screwed.