Preferences?? Older M3 or newer 3 Series

[TNation]

My brother wants a decent gas mileage car/quick car/looks good/etc.. ... he's decided on BMW but he's looking at either a 99+ 3 Series coupe or a 95+ M3....
what would be a better buy for overall in everything... opinions?
for example he's looking at a 96 Coupe with 150xxx for $13k... or he can get a 99 328is for $15k...
you're thoughts? He's spending no more than 22k!

[dj_rice]

99 3 series, thats my choice..the front end looks nicer to me

[FiveFreshFish]

A '95 or '96 M3 is a US import because those two years were not offered in Canada.

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

I'd like m3 more because it's sporty, but i'd probably go 99+ route because, well, it's newer.

[Weapon_R]

I'd take the M3. Same body style but the m3 would be far nicer to drive. The 328is just doesn't doesn't compare.

[3G]

e36 FTW

[TNation]

he's thinking 3 series but he's not sure
do the M3's really that much faster/nicer handling?
he's test driven one but he's not sure about the huge difference

[Gondi Stylez]

m3

[max_boost]

Well if he can't tell the difference, he should not buy the M3. The M3 is better in everyway. Why pay the extra $$$ for something he can't appreciate.

[Kaos]

Originally posted by max_boost
Well if he can't tell the difference, he should not buy the M3. The M3 is better in everyway. Why pay the extra $$$ for something he can't appreciate.

Im with him...
The E46 has a nice round shape but hell, why go for something heavier?
E36 all the way.....

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

Tell him to buy it for me, and he can have my civic... I can sure as hell appreciate the difference :love:

[GTS Jeff]

Originally posted by max_boost
Well if he can't tell the difference, he should not buy the M3. The M3 is better in everyway. Why pay the extra $$$ for something he can't appreciate. :werd:

The M3 is a pure driver's car and should be reserved for true drivers that can appreciate it for what it is. It sounds like this guy is just after the bling, so he should just buy any old BMW and call it a day.

[cmodem]

I'm not going to lie to you having gone the route of a 328 over M3... the M3 is better in every way hands down.

Even to the interior... man those vader seats are the shat!!!

If he can afford the M3 get it over the 328 and then you won't have to worry about all the bs with all the rear subframe garbage.

Just remembering the first BMW i drove was a 98 M3 and makes me want to :drool: all over again.

[AllGoNoShow]

Originally posted by max_boost
Well if he can't tell the difference, he should not buy the M3. The M3 is better in everyway. Why pay the extra $$$ for something he can't appreciate.

:werd:

[TNation]

I think he notices there's a little difference but he's not sure if he wants to buy an older car (cause the M3 would be a 96...), but a newer BMW bodystyle would look nicer he figures (like a 99+). I guess M3's really don't differ depending on the year do they?

[Weapon_R]

Only an idiot couldn't tell the difference between an M3 and a 328is. It's like driving two different vehicles.

By the way, 1999 328is is an E36! There was no such thing as a 1999 328is in the E46 chassis.

[boarderfatty]

I had a 96 m3 and I looked forward to friving it every day, the handling was awsome( but I had lowering springs), dash looked kinda cheap if you go for the sport version with vaderseats, plasticy, unless you go for the luxury package which doesnot include the vaderseats. I liked the rest of the interior better though when compared to cheaper e46 cars. And the performace was crazy, i loved the 2nd and 3rd gear pull, endless torque on hand.

[boarderfatty]

originally posted by Weapon_RBy the way, 1999 328is is an E36! There was no such thing as a 1999 328is in the e46 chassis.

Actually I believe that the first year for the e46 was 1999, and the m3 was the only 3 series still using the e36 chassis that year, until 2001 when it started with the e46 chassis

[Weapon_R]

Originally posted by boarderfatty


Actually I believe that the first year for the e46 was 1999, and the m3 was the only 3 series still using the e36 chassis that year, until 2001 when it started with the e46 chassis

The E46 sedan was introduced in 1999, but the 328is was still an E36 coupe. There were no E46 coupes until 2000. BMW continued to produce E36 323is/328is/m3 coupes until the end of 1999. [in NA]

[Makariri]

M3 ftw

[Mikey_008]

I work at BMW.....go for the newer 3 series coupes. Defintely worth the money!

[Lo)2enz0]

ever since i was little, when i was walking to elementry i would walk past this really nice e30 m3 in scenic acres. wow that car was amazing. that would be my say... only bmw i would ever consider buying

http://www.ne.jp/asahi/kitaho2/bmw-m3smg/e30-mym3-0.jpg

[trieuth]

e30s are amazing

[FiveFreshFish]

Originally posted by Lo)2enz0
ever since i was little, when i was walking to elementry i would walk past this really nice e30 m3 in scenic acres. wow that car was amazing. that would be my say... only bmw i would ever consider buying

I had one for five years and it wasn't a good every day driver. You have to drive it hard to get the most out of it.

[A2VR6]

Originally posted by Weapon_R
Only an idiot couldn't tell the difference between an M3 and a 328is. It's like driving two different vehicles.

By the way, 1999 328is is an E36! There was no such thing as a 1999 328is in the E46 chassis.
:werd:

I dont know how anyone could not tell the difference between the two cars. I would go for the M3 in a heartbeat. Heck i'd even go as far as to say that the E36 M3 is more fun to drive (not faster tho) than a E46 M3 (i've driven both). The E36 just feels more raw.

[FiveFreshFish]

E36 M3 was also available as a sedan in '97 and '98.

[TNation]

he looked at the insurance and even though he has no tickets, suspensions, problems, etc. three insurance companies are quoting him $6000 + and up for an M3!!! A 328is is just over $5000+ with collison (both are with a $1000 deductable). Yikes!
without collision, an M3 is $2200 LOL but who would get an M3 without collision. a 328i is $1900 without collision...

is it worth not having collison? He thinks you need it definetely but he'll only be paying $8000 on top of his car he's trading in...
he's pretty sure he'll settle for the M3 though cause they're both around the same price and the 328i doesn't even compare!

[Kaos]

Originally posted by TNation
he looked at the insurance and even though he has no tickets, suspensions, problems, etc. three insurance companies are quoting him $6000 + and up for an M3!!! A 328is is just over $5000+ with collison (both are with a $1000 deductable). Yikes!
without collision, an M3 is $2200 LOL but who would get an M3 without collision. a 328i is $1900 without collision...

is it worth not having collison? He thinks you need it definetely but he'll only be paying $8000 on top of his car he's trading in...
he's pretty sure he'll settle for the M3 though cause they're both around the same price and the 328i doesn't even compare!

It's a German made car.
I would definately get full coverage, parts aren't cheap!

[rusich]

Well, he should just drive responsibly and he may not need a collision coverage afterall.

[AllGoNoShow]

I would get Collision if I were you. I have one small crease from a previous accident which I thought would be a simple pull or hammer out, aparantly not. $300 fix turned into $1200+ depending where you go.