I had an E36 M3 for four years before selling it to get my 993 back in 2003. I loved that car and ran the **** out of it at the track and autocross course without so much as a single upgrade. A couple of years ago I picked up an E46 M3 to serve as my daily driver. I took it to the track once and came in after one session. Compared to the E36 it is a big fat big that is more of a GT car and less of a track car. That said, it makes a great daily driver, but lacks that "soul" that the E36 had.

 

I agree... they lost their soul with the e46. Too fat.

 

You know it when you see it. It'd be easier to tell you what a true sports car has not, rather than what it has.

Suffice to say that a car with cup holders, nav, heated seats and pushing 4,000 lbs. etc., has things in mind that have nothing to do with delivering a sports car experience. Sporty, perhaps, but not a true sports car.

Sports cars are more single minded of purpose. Most have everything to do with performance, and a lack of interest in extraneous doodads that have nothing to do with it.

Go back and look at Porsche used to make. Those were sports cars. The 997 and current M3 are not.

 

I was considering picking up an E46 M3 for a daily driver. Are they that bad compared to the E36?

 

Don't listen to the haters. My best friend has a 2010 E46 M3 convertible and it is a great car.

Big hammer of an engine, great noise, comfortable drive and lots of room (though the trunk disappears when the hardtop is retracted.

If I had kids older than 10, I would buy the 4 door E46 M3.

 

Uh, E46 M3 production ended in 2006 - and there was no four door. I've got an E46 M3 daily driver. If I'm honest, I don't like it much, it's kinda like a German Camero. Great in a straight line, great grip and thus handling numbers, but it's too heavy, the seats are slippery, and the steering lacks feel. Great family car though.

On the other hand, I've driven several US spec E36 M3s and dislike them even more than the E46. Like the E46 they are also heavy and lacking steering feel. To the E46's negatives, E36 adds the following: it's ugly, slow, has poor interior detailing, has a dumbed down **** poor US engine, and truly horrifyingly bad "sport" seats. I've rather have an E30 325is over an E36 M3 any day.

Maybe I'm just prejudgiced because BMW replaced the beloved E30 with the crappy E36.

Just my .02.

 

My family had an E46 for a while....considered it a great car and a performance bargain. I wouldn't have tracked/auto-crossed it, but Im spoiled with other cars that are much better on the track.

 

While I agree, a true track car shouldn't have a radio a great sports car can still have a stereo.
Ahh, the days of the Road Runner's and Lotus 7's... simple.
Can you even buy a "sports car" without a radio still? Even Lotus's, Morgan's, Pagani's and GT3 RS's have stereos and I consider all of those sports cars. Maybe an Ariel Atom but I consider that a "track car."

 

The new Cayman R comes without a radio or air conditioning. Though you can add them if you want. Car comes in at around 2900 lb. I think.

 

I owned an E36 M3 and an E46 M3, I know all about them. I've also spent considerable time as a passenger and driver in an E92 M3 coupe. While the assembly isn't bad, there is plastic literally everywhere, which flexes and creaks in various weather conditions. The dash to door gaps are pretty big, and the god forbid you get that aluminum trim.

Nah, but every generation gets a bit softer. The E46 is heavier and not as well balanced, but its faster and has a higher performance envelope. Its sure not as much fun to drive as a 36 though.


Good thing you have me on ignore, because you're not gonna like my response.

First, its a Camaro, with an a. Secondly, to call an M3 a german camaro is pretty asinine. I can barely respond to that, especially since the 46 is not even that fast in a straight line and has a certain lack of torque. yeah, the rock hard ride is great for a family car.

Now, the E36:

Heavy huh? e36 M3 coupe weighs 3200lbs. Thats a whopping 100lbs more than a 993, and its a bigger car with much more room. More nonsense from you.

Lack steering feel? Its a sports coupe, not a lotus. There is enough feel there, but then again, thats pretty subjective anyway. A stock 993 doesn't give you all that much steering feel either.

Ugly? Um, personal taste is one thing, but this is not an ugly car:





Poor interior detailing? I don't even know what that means? What it doesn't have saphire buttons?

If you thing Vaders are bad seats, you are just plain retarded...period.

Dumbed down **** poor engine? Its a rock solid reliable, sweet sounding, butter smooth 3.2L making 240/240. No, its not as fast as the euro model, but the engines are fantastic.

Why the **** someone would call the s50/s52 a dumbed down POS and then suggest that they'd prefer a 40hp weaker M50, makes little sense to me, but thats no surprise.

the E30 was a great car...but it had a buzzy, maintenance heavy 4 banger, rode like a dump truck, and looked dated as hell by 92. I'd take an E36 M3 all day every day over an E30.

You can say a ton of **** about whatever, but when you start talking **** about the E36 M3, I will not take that crap.

 

I had a pristine '95 e36 M3 that I bought in '03 with about 20,000 miles on it. It was a great car, and with a few mods was great at the track. Ultimately, though, I sold it because the Vader seats were so damn uncomfortable. I just couldn't get comfortable in that car. And without a track anywhere near my new hometown, it didn't make sense to hold onto. I felt that while the interior fit and quality seemed really good, the interior materials seemed extraordinarily cheap.

 

Test drive both... the e46 is heavier by a few hundred pounds... felt slower compared to my mod'd e36 even before I SC'd it. One of my 1st e36 mods was the Turner Motorsport / Conforti Euro HFM/Schrick Camshaft Upgrade Kit: http://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-40...grade-kit.aspx

That gets you close to 300hp NA(240+57) on the e36 vs. 333hp on the heavier e46 so you'll have close to the same hp but a much nimber/lighter car. I had my e36 for 10 yrs... great DD. Obviously handles different than the p-cars... but IMHO the e36 handling is closer to the p-cars than the e46 especially if you unneuter it with some relatively inexpensive mods.

 

I own a 993 C4S but also DD an E46 M3. I've had the good fortune to also own an E30 325 as well as an E36 M3. The E46 makes a decent daily driver. It provides a little more of the cush you'd probably appreciate if you're in 3 hrs of traffic a day like I am. But, it's definitely less tossable than the E36 and the E30 (never mind compared to the 993).

I find the E46 power to be deceptive. It's very flat on the torque curve. I also have 4.10 gears which makes it much more lively. But, out of all four cars, the steering feel is probably the least communicative (though I find it to be worlds away better than the E90's and E92's).

I loved the steering feel on the E36 M3. I thought it had the right amount of feedback and it was quicker than the E30's. There's a reason why people swap in E36 steering racks into E30's.

Size-wise, I loved the E30. It's the perfect size and the bubble-car visability is great for driving. But, the chassis wasn't quite as compliant and livable for the long distances (and SF driving) I drive every day.

All four of the cars have their merits. It really depends on your personal preferences and the type of driving you do. Right tool for the right job, imo.

 

I highly recommend it as a daily driver- just not a great autocross or track car without some serious weight removal.

 

Oooooh. Just checked out the Cayman R... Very very cool.
Maybe I shouldn't have let my Excellence subscription expire.