so thats gone!..i really got my eyes on a e46 M3 SMG. Can anyone tell me what to look out for when i go down to have a look at a few!! 
BMW M3
Moderator: martauto
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god-father88
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Brought a 320D and got bored in 1 week! so thats gone!..i really got my eyes on a e46 M3 SMG. Can anyone tell me what to look out for when i go down to have a look at a few!!
so thats gone!..i really got my eyes on a e46 M3 SMG. Can anyone tell me what to look out for when i go down to have a look at a few!! 
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god-father88
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my brother in law had a smg and said they were wicked!! they also have launch control!! ..is there anything else i should look out for?!
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pacerpete
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The biggest hurdle when looking for an E46 M3 is the scum / lowlife that own them. If your hearts desire is a SMG convertible, give up now, some of the original owners might have been caked milfs from Hampstead but they are now a true vermin chariotgod-father88 wrote:my brother in law had a smg and said they were wicked!! they also have launch control!! ..is there anything else i should look out for?!
PS SMG is sad, especially when it goes expensively wrong !
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pony
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Manual is good though SMG is good too. I have driven both. SMG is real easy to get the hang off just takes a little time. If you have never driven it before it will take a little getting used to though you will love it.
test drive both to make up your mind. if you have never driven SMG i would go for that as it will be a good experience in itself that being said nothing wrong with a manual.
Good E46 M3s are getting hard to find.
Key things to look for:
ideally
go for a car with as few owners as possible especially if you plan to keep the car for a long time
do not but without 1200 mile service being done as could have invalidated BMW Warranty
Standard condition if you plan to keep the car for a long time
Ring up BMW to find out where it has been..
Ring up all the individual BMW dealers to find out what work has been done..
Ideally you want all the paperwork to back up the BMW services/maintenance/repair work
Ideally all MOTs / road tax discs
Make sure HPI clear
Get a professional inspection ideally from BMW
If you plan to keep the car long-term bear in mind the above.
If you plan to keep the car for a year the above does not really matter too much..
These cars may look not too disimilar to a E46 318Ci coupe but make no mistake the running costs / maintenance costs WILL be much more expensive
e.g. repair costs / fuel consumption / insurance..make sure you can afford all this before you buy!!
Both gearboxes are great end of the day.
Prefer coupe over convertible.
Hope this helps.
test drive both to make up your mind. if you have never driven SMG i would go for that as it will be a good experience in itself that being said nothing wrong with a manual.
Good E46 M3s are getting hard to find.
Key things to look for:
ideally
go for a car with as few owners as possible especially if you plan to keep the car for a long time
do not but without 1200 mile service being done as could have invalidated BMW Warranty
Standard condition if you plan to keep the car for a long time
Ring up BMW to find out where it has been..
Ring up all the individual BMW dealers to find out what work has been done..
Ideally you want all the paperwork to back up the BMW services/maintenance/repair work
Ideally all MOTs / road tax discs
Make sure HPI clear
Get a professional inspection ideally from BMW
If you plan to keep the car long-term bear in mind the above.
If you plan to keep the car for a year the above does not really matter too much..
These cars may look not too disimilar to a E46 318Ci coupe but make no mistake the running costs / maintenance costs WILL be much more expensive
e.g. repair costs / fuel consumption / insurance..make sure you can afford all this before you buy!!
Both gearboxes are great end of the day.
Prefer coupe over convertible.
Hope this helps.
both have the same gearbox, but the smg also has a £1000 hydraulic pump and a few bits and bobs to shift the cogs and work the clutch. smg is a sweet thing to use once you get used to not lifting on changes and use the correct settings for the conditions.
they are very reliable so if it has had an easy life it shouldn't be a money pit. Minimum owners (not the scum ones) is probably key but buy on condition as usual. check for recalls on early S54 engines. Running in service is an absolute must before 1500 miles, never mind the warranty. Some suspension mounts have failed in the boot floor and have been repaired by BMW but these are very rare. Rust? oh yes, check the scuttle under the covers, around the engine bay, rear trailing arm mounting, rear shock mount, rear axle mount points, rear arches and sill at the front wing, those big tyres are good at throwing boulders at the side of the car.
It's worth paying £100 at the dealers to get them to inspect it, they will probably print out it's history for you as well.
they are very reliable so if it has had an easy life it shouldn't be a money pit. Minimum owners (not the scum ones) is probably key but buy on condition as usual. check for recalls on early S54 engines. Running in service is an absolute must before 1500 miles, never mind the warranty. Some suspension mounts have failed in the boot floor and have been repaired by BMW but these are very rare. Rust? oh yes, check the scuttle under the covers, around the engine bay, rear trailing arm mounting, rear shock mount, rear axle mount points, rear arches and sill at the front wing, those big tyres are good at throwing boulders at the side of the car.
It's worth paying £100 at the dealers to get them to inspect it, they will probably print out it's history for you as well.
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325isporttech1
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Gotta agree with this one realy.pacerpete wrote:The biggest hurdle when looking for an E46 M3 is the scum / lowlife that own them. If your hearts desire is a SMG convertible, give up now, some of the original owners might have been caked milfs from Hampstead but they are now a true vermin chariotgod-father88 wrote:my brother in law had a smg and said they were wicked!! they also have launch control!! ..is there anything else i should look out for?!
PS SMG is sad, especially when it goes expensively wrong !
There has been alot cropping up round here with very dubious looking drivers, Its prob because they are falling into the hands of the small time wide boy bstard drug dealer rent boy scum
So if you want that look in your life yeah go for it mite aswell make it a nice yellow one aswell
And SMG is for girls.
Just get a manual e46 m3 coupe if you have that kind of money it makes more sense.
