[caribbeanbreeze]

Hi everyone. I've always liked the E46 M3. Recently, one popped up in my town and it appears to be in good condition. It's a convertible model with manual trans. The body and chassis are in great shape. The guy who owns it is a certified BMW mechanic and owns a BMW and European car repair shop. The car has 128k miles and looking for $16K. The car has been kept in turn and the timing chain was recently replaced. Is this a good buy?

[DanG]

In my area the M3 convertibles are running around $20,000 with 100K miles. Could be a good deal especially if he can give you some type of warranty.

[Morcheeba]

Hey man! The car looks super solid! I'm actually selling my 2005 M3 vert but down here in South FL with the sale pending.

I bought the car at 80K from another young guy, with basically zero maintenance records or paperwork. I just really wanted an M3 for once, and well, I just went through with it.

That was 2021 and car is sitting at 102,500 miles.

The car has been super solid, I'll say that. Mostly driven in South Florida, moved to California for 14 months and took it with me, Shipped from FL to CA and then roadtripped from CA to TN.

I haven't really done much maintenance to it. Just regular oil changes and what not. Filters, spark plugs, brakes, etc.

Here's where things aren't so pretty.

The convertible pump basically has lost all it's power and needs to be replaced. $500 if you ship your part out and get it upgraded and sent back from TopHydraulics.

With the M3, the most talking about point of repairs are the VANOS, Rod Bearings and Subframe Mounting points. It is a lot of jargon and I've never really been apart of that pendulum but-- it's always talked in forums that getting the rod bearings replaced around 80K-100K, is a good idea.

Regarding the VANOS, I literally don't know too much about it. I believe you get it checked out and maybe repaired? Not sure.

Lastly, the subframe on the E46's can crack over time due to stress, etc. Convertibles are apparently better reinforced from the factory but cracks can still occur.

Other things like, valve cover gasket, differential, all that stuff, and bushings... yeah, it can add up.

All this to say, ask about those things, see if there's paperwork/maintenance history.

Ultimately, we all learn from experience. Do I regret having bought my M3? Absolutely not. I always enjoyed the car more and more each time I drove it until the last day I sold it.

If by all means, you've been wanting an M3 and any surprise repairs or wear and tear are slightly ever so doable, then why not?!

I will say, the car looks pretty well kept judging from the photos. It looks like it's a Steel Grey which is also rather rare, and not as common as other colors.

I'm just a person on the internet, listen to your gut and do what you feel like doing best!