The oil is as clean as the oil in my 60000 mile E30 325i and it hasn't used a drop since i did a oil service 3000 miles ago using a genuine filter and Castrol SLX 0W30.
The engine, gearbox and diff are bone dry and have no signs of ever leaking. No rattles, smoke whines etc from either of these components.
Its had a clutch just before i bought it (on 217000 miles) and an alternator.
The suspension is very worn on it and has Apex 40/50mm springs which have sagged and are now like 50/70mm!
all on standard BMW Sachs shocks which look like they could be the originals. They are being replaced with an Eibach pro kit (25/15mm) and Bilstein B4's next weekend.I've also replaced the normal E46 "wear and tear" items like the front control arm bushes, a front wheel bearing and a rear ABS sensor.
The car was peanuts to buy as it was a trade in at work but it has a decent spec of,
xenons
Electric memory seats
M sport body kit
18" style 32's
Individual Saffron Nappa leather (sadly comfort seats)
Anthracite headlining
I'm unsure of how far i'll go with it as the car is of little value but then it is also a blank canvas for an interesting project.
I have an interest in high mileage BMW's as they are a testament of how good they can be and it would be interesting to see how long/far this car with last.
This is my 3rd E46, the other 2 being a 330Ci convertible with 60k and an Alpina B3S convertible with 43k.
In my opinion the E46 is a better bet in terms of build quality than the current E9x series and is on par with E36's in terms of build quality with the only down side is more complex electronics which may hinder the DIY mechanic when diagnosing faults.
As many of you know i work for a BMW dealer as a technician so i see these (and all sorts of BMW's) day in day out so have good insight as to what goes wrong with these.
tour of Europe to see some old friends should help that along.
). The second year has been problem free so far. Its MOT time next month so hopefully this will continue!