supark

great stuff guys - thanks. Pretty much agree with most everything posted. Ugh, I just wish there was a way to tell which engines are more likely to have the much feared "d-chunk" cylinder liner failure. I can deal with the IMS and the RMS, but searching on "intermix" on this forum gives me the heebee jeebees. Nothing new to me though - I went through this thought process last year when I was shopping for a 996 then, and I think I've screwed my courage to the sticking place enough to dive into the porsche world now. Honestly, I can think of few things more enjoyable than car shopping

powerslam

I had a stunning BMW e46 m3 is laguna seca blue convertible, with laguna leather interior and loads of extras, very nice car loved every single drive.

but... The 996 is years ahead of it, the m3 has MASSIVE power loss.

I have always had porsches, I bought the boxster in 1999 brand new and still have it but rearly use it, but the 996 I bought is out of this world, highly modded I know.

I would not get another M3 as although at the time is was fantastic I have learnt so much now and the 343 bhp is lucky to really do 290bhp.having said that, us a bmw m3 a bad car, NO WAY, is it a car that is very quick, YES.. those are just my views comparing that to the 996, I love and have driven both so I rekon I am fair balanced.

Pac996

Don't sell the bmw if you want a taxi. Other than that I see a 917 porsche as a better daily driver in all aspects except battering ramming other cars. I don't understand figuring as you say "a car that's not quite as practical". As you might understand from others input, a harsh ride doesn't mean the bmw handles better.

Just sell the bmw and get the 911 and be happy.

LJpete

It depends on what your looking for. Do you intend on modding it? Do you intend on tracking or autocross or just commuting with an occasional jaunt on some backroads. I didn't have an E46 M3 but drove a highly modded E36 323is. With that being said, I got to enjoy the E36 M3 and E46 M3's (2 of them) that I co drove for a few seasons autocrossing.

Dynamics wise, the cars are very different. Stock to Stock, the M3 (E46) is a pretty nice car. Nice power and good balance as the F/R layout is very forgiving (prone to understeer but nothing a little throttle coudn't cure). Also you can get away with a lot of mistakes and the car will allow you to get away with. Overall, it's a very easy car to drive and approach the limits with. The car's downside is it's size and weight. Because it comes in at around 3400 it's a hefty car. This mutes it's reactions and you really feel the weight transitions at the limit. My 996 is around 2900 but has 296HP for comparison sake.

In contrast the 996 with it's R/R layout has very different handling characteristics. The car is also prone to understeer (Stock) but that can easily be cured with alignment and tire pressure adjustments. The contrast between the different layouts and how they effect the handling characteristics of the two cars is just night and day. As mentioned before, the M3 is very forgiving, understeer can easily be cured by a slight lift or going neutral and waiting for the front end to come back in line. In the 996, the lift can generate (Depending on tire pressures) trailing throttle oversteer, which is just a hoot when you get used to it. Also in contrast, the 996 is just so much more stable under throttle and corner exit due to it's rear engine, you can get on throttle quite quicker which generates higher corner exit speeds than the M3 can generate as you can get oversteer on corner exit with too much throttle or understeer depending on where in the corner you get on throttle. The 996 is quite a bit more sensitive and requires gentler inputs and really responds to smoothness and is not very forgiving of abrupt inputs. The M3 can mask these kinds of bad behaviors due to it's forgiving nature.

Suspension set up for the 2 cars is quite different. For whatever reason, BMW feels that their shocks need to have very high compression valving comparatively for their low spring rate and rebound valving. The net result is a fairly harsh riding car. My 323is with PSS9 coil-overs rode better than my friends E46 M3 when it was stock and after it was modded with H&R springs and the PSS9's had a significantly higher spring rate. I digress, the 996 stock suspension rides quite a bit better and still handle's better by comparison.

For me personally, I opted for the 996 for the driving dynamics and enjoyment the car provides. There is nothing wrong with the M3 but it's a GT car and it's a different experience. That being said, the 996 is not my daily car as I have a SUV that I drive to work. I do take the 996 to work on nice days like today but I tend to drive my Grand Cherokee more.

Hope this helps,

Topaz330ci

As a new C4S owner, and a previous 2002 330ci owner. I can say the BMW is more comfortable but the P car is superior by far! as for a E46 M3, It's nice, but they are everywhere. I really wanted to get out of the BMW scene because and kid can afford one now...

My opinion is this; get a Porsche and enjoy it. It really is a great machine!

Pat

The 330 has different suspension than the M3. Not a direct comparison.

Topaz330ci

You are right! Porsche all the way though!

AudiOn19s

LJpete makes a good point, you really haven't stated the intended use of the car unless I missed it burried in here somewhere?

I had my 996 Aero and M3 at the same time. Life forced us to choose between the two and I kept the M3 for several reasons.

In looking back...from a drivers perspective I kept the wrong car, for every other reason I kept the right car.

I will own another Porsche hopefully sooner than later, but for now the M3 puts a smile on my face every time I drive it.

And for the record, it's only 1-1.5 seconds per lap slower at Mid Ohio than the 996. Not as fun or rewarding of an experience as the 996...but not horrible either.

ROK

Why go from bad to worse?

ROK

330Ci to M3 is as big a leap if not bigger as going from an E46 M3 to 996 Carrera.

supark

So... I just test drove a black 964 carrera 4, and it was a bit of a religious experience as I've never driven an air cooled 911. It was pretty freakin sweet - plus aside from some troublesome oil leaks here and there, they're pretty bulletproof cars from my research. As an added huge bonus - mileage is super low at 70k and it's had recent overhaul on all the usual oil leak trouble areas. I think I have made my decision - my garage may be getting crowded very soon..

BiteEmNBeatEm

does a e60 count? lol its still our family car 07 535i

gota911

I came in one once.... does that count?

supark

Hi-yoooo

supark

well, following up on this. I decided against the 996 and ended up getting a beautifully maintained 91 964 C4 for a great price. Black on black. The chrome wheels on there are going on ebay quickly and will be replaced with some MY02 five spoke carrera wheels.