E46 BMW M3... anyone own this car?

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selling my 1992 R32 GTR and considering purchasing a 2004-2006 M3.  GTR got too much problems.  I love that car, had it for 5 years but the last year and a half, it practically lived in my garage or shop.  I wanted a more reliable performance car.  I'm guessing, the M3 should be more reliable.  
Anyone here own or drive this car?  recommend it? don't recommend it?  Or is there a pretty good M3 forum around?

thanks 
 
E46 M3's are nice. But everybody here in NoVa has them. I bought a E39 M5 over a E46 M3 and don't regret it at all. Where are you from?
 
that's like 90 percent of NT
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ive had two e46 m3s and now just got an e92 m3
both e46 are great
perfect balance of performance and luxury
hated my e46 with smg transmission...only because the 6 speed i feel like is more of a drivers option
great car and with the fall of the prices due to the e92. couldnt be a better buy right now
i would suggest getting the zcp package
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Originally Posted by MyJaysGetRocked

E46 M3's are nice. But everybody here in NoVa has them. I bought a E39 M5 over a E46 M3 and don't regret it at all. Where are you from?
My friend from our local car club got one.  He always kills us during our canyon runs 
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  I'm from the Philippines.   How's the reliability on your E39?  If i see one around, i might consider it.  
 
Originally Posted by rareair45

ive had two e46 m3s and now just got an e92 m3
both e46 are great
perfect balance of performance and luxury
hated my e46 with smg transmission...only because the 6 speed i feel like is more of a drivers option
great car and with the fall of the prices due to the e92. couldnt be a better buy right now
i would suggest getting the zcp package
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good info 
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       What's the ZCP package though?  
Also, is the stock suspension pretty good?  Do most M3 owners replace the suspension or leave this alone?  
 
Yes there are plenty if not majority of NT that used to whip the E46 and had models as jumpoffs, but now they are onto the E92.
 
Originally Posted by dako akong otin

Originally Posted by MyJaysGetRocked

E46 M3's are nice. But everybody here in NoVa has them. I bought a E39 M5 over a E46 M3 and don't regret it at all. Where are you from?
My friend from our local car club got one.  He always kills us during our canyon runs 
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  I'm from the Philippines.   How's the reliability on your E39?  If i see one around, i might consider it.  

Reliability is GREAT! I've only had 1 issue so far and it cost $100. I make sure to keep up on maintenance and replace cheap parts as a preventive measure. Only bad thing is that modding doesn't come cheap. I just put on an exhaust system on my car(sounds
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) but it cost like 4.5k. You honestly can't go wrong with a E46 though. Just make sure you get a full PPI before purchase. Good Luck!
 
Originally Posted by BgL2687

Yes there are plenty if not majority of NT that used to whip the E46 and had models as jumpoffs, but now they are onto the E92.

Exaaaactly
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The e92 is nuts though. Had it for a bit. Would like to drive an e46 & e36 for comparison's sake though
 
make sure the bearing recall was done if you find an earlier model 01-03.5, also check the subframe as that is an issue with that e46 m.
 
a r32 more reliable then a bimmer *cue mase gif.

not sure how they are in philippines but in the states theyre really expensive to maintain
 
i second the E39 M5 suggestion.  i know i'm gonna have one eventually. 
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I was interested in purchasing one when I was looking for a car this past summer. If you have the $$ to purchase one I'd suggest not settling for anything when it comes to the E46 M3. I could have purchased one but with my budget (17k-20k) I wasn't able to find one in the condition I wanted. I've been told they're reliable cars if routine maintanance is consistently done. If not you'll be taking a big hit in your wallet. You can find great info at www.e46fanatics.com as well. E46 M3
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E46 M3 is a classic car, too bad the R32 had problems. Was it the engine or other problems?
 
thanks for all the replies guys.  Gonna check out that e46 fanatics site now. 
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[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Finnns, just had various of problems from different parts of the car.  Overheating, axle, replaced the alternator twice, and the turbo breaking (replaced it twice) which just did it for me.  The turbo is major, but the other problems are kinda minor... but its just a bunch of minor problems 1 after the other. Aside from the turbo... the engine has been durable. got over 100,000 miles on it.  [/font]
 
A lot of people have this car and I dont find it cool in the top gear way. Most people simply dont know why the buy the m3, its a good car. drove it a few times, raced it, it can perform well. Fast and handles great.
 
@Dako: I'm also from the Philippines ,E46 M3 is the way to go man they are a real performance beast but still very expensive , average 2nd hand cost around P3M+. I have owned the 2005(?)CSL version and a 2004 MB CLK 55 here in Manila and love the M3 CSL more, more responsive and the grunt of the engine is really intoxicating, compared to the CLK55 which is more refined . But the only problem is the maintenance is very expensive although it is a once a year commitment but still it cost a lot. My average check up and maintenace service bill back when I still got it is around P30,000 , and aftermarket parts are really expensive also if you are planning to tune and modify some aesthetics, and considering I dont have the car for since 2008, imagine how much more they cost now. Now I'm looking at buying an Evo X MR or the 2011 Subaru STI sedan , and a R34 is also being considered but I'm not that good in buying 2nd hand vehicle I'm afraid that I would end up with mechanical problems, but definitely with gas prices and road conditions here in Manila right now I'd go with the Bnew Japanese choices I have rather than getting German cars because I could play with it more and not worry to much of how much my fun would cost me
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^jesus christ, that HPF M3's intake mani is bigger than the goddamn engine in my car. What's good with them exterior mounted turbos though...? Besides sounding ridiculously louder than interior mounted
 
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