RAPID

For tracking the E46 smg is not the best option (very costly in brakes pad and rotors, and gear box especially 4th gear will fail), 993 is the deal. For daily driving it is quite a fine drive and very fast, plus you can put your shopping in the trunk...!

NC TRACKRAT

I'm back with a few more comments. As alluded to by others, the e46M3 is heavy. I really don't think it's a good kid-hauler either. Hard to get into the back seats. My wife really didn't care for the SMG. As for BMW stepping up to the plate with the 100K warranty on the engines, I, personally, was involved in this matter and was in discussions at a very high level of BMW NA and can tell you that they "Stonewalled" our efforts to get this matter rectified for many months, claiming that the engines were over-revved, etc. Only after the very real threat of a class action suit did they get "religion", issue the bearing service action and extended the engine warranty.
If I were looking for a BMW daily driver that your wife could drive and haul 2 kids, I'd look for a 330i 4-door Performance Package and teach your wife to drive a 6-speed. Much more reliable, less expensive, more utilitarian, still good-looking.

vjd3

Avoid the convertible ... I had an 03 with 27k miles and it was full of rattles. Head service tech "explained" to me that the car had "high mileage for a convertible and of course these rattles are normal."

I'd avoid the SMG, too ... it's balky in the automatic mode and a bit violent on the shifts using the paddles. Not wife-friendly.

Overall, I was disappointed in the car. It was fast, but felt disconnected. And I couldn't abide the rattles in a 2-year old car with low miles. Tried all the standard tricks, clean, lube the seals, etc., no go.

Speedyellow993

SMG = poor long term reliability. Google it! There is a tonne of bitchin on the BMW forums.

E46=a new altenator every 2 years...$900 OE part installed at DLR. Google it!

6 spd is the only way to go for the E46 M3... Super fun car and perfect for DD

PS. Don't over rev it or you can kiss the engine Goodbye. The Onboard Computer remembers all over revs and will void your warrenty before you can say huh?

Lectra

Ask your BMW dealer if the car (you're interested in) received all the recalls.
They can find out with the last 7 digits of the VIN/chassis number.
Especially those before May '02
Great engine (S54)
Good luck with your search

Stuttgart951

+1. BMW will have all information in their system for each VIN.

I think, at this point, it's safe to say that any S54 with more than 50,000 miles is fine and will continue to be fine.

They are much like the old 2.7L H6's that way - if the motor was going to present a problem, it would have already done so and would have already been remedied.

Personally, I would love to have another in the future. Can't imagine a better combo than an E46 M3 and a 993. Bang for the buck, right now, they are hard to beat.

pewter82

I owned a 02 SMG M3, drove it every day. Great car, very balanced, very fun to paddle shift and plenty of power.
SMG issues ? NONE ever, don't believe what is on the forums. The forums are only a tiny % of owners. Rear Subframe issues ? None ever, once again its not every car out there.

My one and only complaint was the average age of E46 M3 owners out there was getting into the early 20's and the E46 is getting into the "ricer car" image. Lots of raspy pipes, and tacky body kits are out there.
It has the classic looks of a BMW like the 993 has for Porsche, and it has a following that knows the car and its potential. 100 HP per liter is increadible !

I'd say get one , enjoy the SMG (it adds the option of cruising in auto, or paddle shifting or shifting with the center, and 6 settings !)

Honest answer from a recent owner.

jason

993Brendan

^^^Yeah, you probably don't want to spend much time on the forums. Lots of "is my car faster than an 02 WRX"?

wisky

Haha, this is so true.

matt777

Yep. Mine quit charging before it was 2 years old.

PorscheDoc

I think the 993 and the M3 are really classified in different categories. I think the M3 is more of a GT/touring car where as the 993 is still all sports car. Quite honestly, I think you can compare the M3 and the 928 more effectively. (and if anyone wants to see a picture of a 928 next to an M3, I can snap one in the garage quick to show the size comparisons, lol).

The connecting rod bearing issue was with all 02's IIRC due to a supplier quality issue of that part. The recall was done, and the engines were warrantied for 100k miles or a certain amount of years, I can't remember exactly how many years it was. When I was looking, that was a requirement for having been replaced. Wheel bearings are a none issue as it happens to ALL the porsches as well with the newer sealed wheel bearings. I have replaced bearings in 993's,boxsters,996 etc at 30k miles. For some reason the BMW guys say to stay away from the O1's as they had more of the issues here in there in regards to general maintenance stuff. I never really found a specific answer as to why.

I did a lot of searching to avoid an SMG when i bought the M. I didn't want that hassle in the future. Luckily the answer popped up right in front of me with a customer's car.

Vanos bolt issues seem to be pretty limited to the later cars, 04 and up. Though it is on my list to check.

Alternators.....lol they cost about $175 and any monkey can put one in in about 30 minutes, the cars are very easy to work on. Check out what replacement costs on a 993, lol.

The M3 is a fat pig and does weigh about 3400 with a driver and a full tank of gas. That is pretty heavy in my book, but look at what the Porsches are weighing these days. Hell a mustang is 4k lbs now.

Next to a buddy's 997TT. This picture says it all in regards to size, lol.


The rear subframes do need to be reinforced if you are going to track the car and use sticky tires. Turner motorsports sells a complete kit for about $300 for the entire car, then you have cost of install. Basically it involves dropping the subframe and welding reinformance places to the mounting areas. It is a nice kit. Again, it's one of those low risk issues, but if it does fail, you are in trouble, especially at speed. BMW guys seem to argue about that issue and it's percentage of failure about as much as the boxster/996 guys argue about the IMS issue. IIRC BMW will also inspect those points and repair the body on their dime if they are cracked, though technically they will only repair the driver's side due to whatever tsb they have, but a lot of guys i have talked to said their dealer took care of them on both sides.

Coilpacks were also an issue. Again, super easy to replace, and should be done as preventative maintenance with spark plugs. The newer Porsches have coil packs that fail as well. VW is the same issue.

I decided to go M3 over the 993 because quite honestly, there was a huge difference in price. Those were the top 2 cars for my 951 replacement. I paid 16.9 for my M with 70k miles on it (though i did get a buddy deal), and felt I couldn't get into a 993 with that mileage without being in the 28k range. The M had full records back to new, I know the previous owner who is extremely **** about his cars, I have maintained the car, and it has a couple grand in mods already done on it. I have a hard time spending 30k on a car that is used as a track car/3rd vehicle and isn't driven as often.

Impressions:
Being in the business, I have driven pretty much all Porsches out there on a pretty regular basis. Unfortunately I come from a highly modified 951, so from my standpoint the M's performance is definitely lacking as is the handling. My 951 comes in at about 2700lbs and puts down about 300 to the wheels, so it has no problems walking away from m3's, 993,6,7's. Cornering is the same story. The difference is that the M is a hell of a lot more comfortable and fun to drive around town, just will take some time getting use to (same with the 993). I think it is pretty comparable to a 993 in straight line power, but obviously there are handling differences between the 993 and the M. The Porsche is going to win in that aspect hands down. The M can corner, but it will take some suspension work. The M3 definitely feels more disconnected than a Porsche, but I think that can be remedied. Of course, the mods will start here soon enough muhahaha. I'll find more power.

TRINITONY

Buy an E55!

TheOtherEric

A coworker has an '02 SMG e46 and he has to sell it because he's too afraid of getting stranded again with his kids. Apparently there's a temp sensor or something in the SMG fluid pump that commonly goes bad, necessitating a $3000 fix (and might happen again!). It shuts down the car. He seems to think it's a common issue.

NC TRACKRAT

As I was saying, it's not my imagination. If you must, then buy a 335i with STEPTRONIC. More reliable than SMG. If you want to read about all the problems, go to the e46M3 Forum on ROADFLY and search the archives. Be prepared for a long session!

Stuttgart951

Whole new can of worms, there. E46 M3 > E90/92 335.