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

Another update.

BMW can't meet at £6500 :(

So option 2 is now in motion. Admiral are liaising with my guy and sorting collection of the car tomorrow morning. It's a shame BMW could not drop a few hundred quid more for the business but it is what it is. It is good that Admiral are sorting everything out too. They will use genuine parts but the paint they use has a harder wearing lacquer than what BMW use, should mean extra protection from many more years of ownership and most important of all, stone chip protection. I've noted a full respray to be factored into this too, at least everything is well and truly sorted that way and the paint thickness and quality the same on all panels.

I know that this option carries the "what if" risk, but I'm pretty confident he knows what I expect having worked on my cars in the past and will do a fine job.

Needless to say, the updates will continue.
 
I just hope this doesn't come back to bite you later on, the fact a mate is doing it cheap. Brilliant if he does a top job, but if there are things you aren't happy with, it may cause friction if you want him to fix it again
 
It's either this or a Cat D settlement. I know which I'd rather have since a Cat D plus buyback leads to it going to him anyway, or if I bin it and buy another one, it just won't be the same feeling.

Touch wood and all that!
 
Hard to say without being in your position, however as I do like cash in the bank I think I would go down with option 3 now.

If you genuinely think you will keep the car for foreseeable future the work is being done by the same guy, the money you pocket can get you some nice bits done to the car...or a few holidays abroad!
 
That is true but I'd like to keep that option as the last resort. If this estimate is too high and they still say no it's uneconomical, then so be it.
 
I've already covered why I don't want to get a new one really. While that example looks nice in the photos, there are a few issues for my liking!

1: No interior pics.
2: Lepsoms refurb.
3: Not a manual.
4: Description states black leather and grey interior (worst combo ever).
5: Too high mileage.

I don't believe there is another example like mine in a reasonable price band that I'd be looking for. I'm better off keeping mine and repairing it via 3rd party insurer or via Cat D and pocket the change.
 
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I think you need to look at the bigger picture here. There is a reason your car is uneconomical to repair. I think you need to accept this rather than potentially opening yourself to a sub standard repair. I presume this body shop isn't approved by the insurance company? What come back do you have with the insurance company?

Even at approved body shops it's not uncommon to go back 2/3 times for sub standard repairs. It's clear you are proud of your car, this should tell you that you won't be happy unless everything is 100% spot on.
 
mrk said:
Ballpark around 4k. He gets the parts significantly lower than BMW's prices though hence the price. Exhaust is over £660 with BMW, with him it's £440.
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Nobody can beat BMW for parts prices when they are doing insurance work and trying to win he job - after all, where does he get his parts from? If genuine BMW then... from BMW.

The labour is where the difference will be.
 
mrk said:
I've already covered why I don't want to get a new one really. While that example looks nice in the photos, there are a few issues for my liking!

1: No interior pics.
2: Lepsoms refurb.
3: Not a manual.
4: Description states black leather and grey interior (worst combo ever).
5: Too high mileage.

I don't believe there is another example like mine in a reasonable price band that I'd be looking for. I'm better off keeping mine and repairing it via 3rd party insurer or via Cat D and pocket the change.
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that was just a random example.

the problem is that you will have a MASSIVE headache repairing the current car :) even basic repairs often end up a mess with garages.

chances of it going smooth as butter are low IMO.
 
grudas said:
that was just a random example.

the problem is that you will have a MASSIVE headache repairing the current car :) even basic repairs often end up a mess with garages.

chances of it going smooth as butter are low IMO.
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To be fair the chances of buying an old E46 that isn't a rotter are also fairly low as well. Neither situation is great, if I was in his position I'd take the risk on the repair rather than buying another one. These are very old cars now with an increasing succession of less than careful owners. It's very hard and takes a very long time to find one that isn't just crap.
 
I already know the paintwork on my car is not 100% to my liking even after a detail back in January. New swirls, stone chips here and there etc - Standard fair for 10yrs old I guess but that's just my preference kicking in. Most people would consider it in good or very good condition for the age. No rust or anything of that sort of course.

It's a big dice roll I know, but it's the best option between that and hunting out another car and hoping a new one doesn't throw up unexpected bills. Hell even mine threw up £190 in the first few months with DSC pressure sensors 1 and 2 failing. Although to be fair these are common failures anyway.

This whole effort is to not have to spend much of my own money since the accident was non fault. I just want my car repaired to the same state or better than what it was before it was rear ended.
 
Can you get a stamped quote from your friend and show this to BMW? I doubt they'll refuse a £6.5k ~ £7k job.

It's weird - I've looked through this thread. I've seen the effort you've put into the restoration of what is essentially a 10 year old, 2 generation prior 3 series BMW. But because of this meticulous effort that you've put in I'm rooting for option 1. I'd hate to see the car in the hands of anyone but BMW trained technicians who, in theory, should know the car better than anyone else.
 
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[TW]Fox;28970223 said:
Given staff turnover realistically how likely is it there are loads of techs who know the E46 well still?
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That's why I said it's in theory. :)

Even if there isn't a technician who knows the E46 as well as his mum, they have the whole of the BMW database/resources to rely on (that's what my naive self thinks - "oh there's something I don't know - let me call Hans Luftwaffe at the Dresden office").

All joking aside - BMW repair is guaranteed - it should be.
 
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