Topic: There IS a god! (and this is my M3's 3rd year anniversary of ownership story)

[aquadorhj]

So, it's been a 3 year journey thru tears, wallet crunching disappointments, knuckle skinning torments and sweats, and relentlessly chasing the dream that is the perfectly stock, perfectly driving M3.

and I can finally say that I am where I was 3 years ago when I first picked it up..

How about a short pictorial journey?

this is the day I picked it up back in 2011 Sept.


approximately 11 months later on some random day when it hailed..  notice the stock rim now.



first DIY project replacing all ignition coils, plugs, oil temp sensors, vanos filters etc...


after the first year...  still looking magnificent.


but been suffering a steering wheel vibration for a long time..

first winter with Pirelli's.  (last year)



first major DIY...  Valve cover gasket.   I did this 5 times..   i'm sort of an expert now.   also did transmission oil, differential oil, whole bunch of stuff....  sept~Oct of 2013.


second winter with Pirellis'..  did buncha donuts in the parking lot..



earlier this year, I actually put this car up for sale.

I've had my share of issues and maintenances to deal with, and continued problem with steering wheel vibration drove me crazy everytime I drove the car. 

If you had driven it, half of you wouldn't even notice it.  but I am very sensitive about these sensations (like mmret is sensitive about interior rattles    ) and I tried many many things to remedy it.  checking and replacing components, getting it inspected by "Pros", balancing and road force balancing it again , adjusting pressures etc.

road force balancing and alignments and control arm replacements made it very very close to natural but it was still detectable..

I was just tired of subjecting myself to the agony of having to feel this in a machine that looks this good, drives fantastic otherwise..  I just found myself avoiding chances to drive it for anything longer than 30 minutes...



So I put it up for sale, and started test driving some cars....   I wrote up a lot of reviews on here during this time. 

i thought it was a pretty decent deal considering the amount of maintenance done but fate had other ideas.  one cold day i took it to work, and on my way home, i got hit by a gigantic boulder, cracking my windshield.    now my car looked ghetto special..

anyway..  one potential buyer had it inspected at crowfoot BMW in calgary. 
they said it needed full set of new brakes (which i knew and was gonna do  in the summer if i kept it), new windshield (which is obvious), control arm, control arm bushings(i didn't think this was needed but what do i know, right), oil pan leak fix(they didn't know it was oil pan seepage, they just said oil leak, diagnosis required), handbrake cable  for grand total of $4k.

and potential buyer wanted all 4k off my asking price.


i said no thanks.


maybe god didn't want me to sell it.

so i ordered control arm bushings, oil pan gasket, new brake parts. 
did the work.







As I suspected, the control arm bushings, both Front and back were perfectly fine.  ..replaced anyway, since i had to take it apart to inspect..

and also, as I suspected, the handbrake just needed adjustments as the shoes were like new and it wasn't properly adjusted to the rear brakes.

had the car aligned, balanced and drove around in relative happiness knowing that my car is in good shape and I was UNDER BUDGET for annual maintenance for once.  grand total I spent on all this, approximately $900  and 26 hours of my labor..  I know..  it's because it's a f-ing pain to work underside of a car without a lift..
If i still had access to my father's repair shop(where i used to work as part time mechanic in my younger years), I would have been done in 11 hrs or less.



Anyway..  since i took it down from "for sale", might as well improve it a bit.

fixed every paint chips on the hood and ...everywhere, basically.  took 2 weeks.


and since i was under budget, might splash on some new rims!!  debated between new rims and new exhaust.. rims won out.




unfortunately, the new rims accentuated the steering vibration problem..   tried balancing it 4 times, including roadforce, and it just wouldn't jibe..  turns out, my front tires are out of rounds..  one of them, anyway..

I had to fork over another 500 for new set of fronts.  (Michelin Pilot Sports AS3..  can you believe Canadian Tire is the cheapest source for these??)


but now, I am FINALLY vibration free..     sure, you can still feel the steering wheel movements, but it now absolutely corresponds with the road surface and what the tires are doing.


I thanked god, then myself for having perseverance to finally obtain what i deserved after all these years of having this car..   a Perfectly driving stock M3.




I like driving it, and i LOVE looking at it.  but it does get tiresome for someone so sensitive to every sensation in the car..

the car will make all kinds of noises..  the shifter clacks, the differential clunks, the body creaks over severe bumps, bit of rattles in the cabin, and engine makes different noises and feels a little different depending on outside temperature (or moon's phase, tidal settings or which way your d1ck is leaning when you wake up that morning etc.) on any given day...

and it's all NORMAL..    it's very very difficult for someone like me to get used to..   but I realized, pouring over hundreds of pages of M3 relates online posts on all kinds of topics that all of these are normal for this car..    and I am now kind of used to it.

still not comfortable though. 


it's still a magnificent car..  but i got smoked by a freakin RAV4 the other day, so it's not fast anymore.  let's call it 'quick on its feet for its weight and age'.


so, what do i do with it now..   that's the question i keep asking myself..

I don't need to sell it and i still like it quite a bit.  but if i do, i'll probably spend even more money on cars..  like leasing brand new MINI.

 or maybe downsize to a Miata or something...    I think i'll probably move away from FGCs for my next car, unless it had a warranty.  but i'm now used to certain level of amenities and power..  which kinda deters me from choosing otherwise excellent cars...

it's something i ponder about.


hmm..  not much of a story, but let's call this my 3 year ownership report. 

Oh and in 3 years, i've driven it 26000 km..
as it sits now.

[rrocket]

I'd put an exhaust on that thing immediately.  I liked my 996 911.  I LOVE it with an exhaust.  For me, the sound of the car adds so much to the experience.  IQ's IS300 with exhaust sounds similarly incredible.  Buy one. Now.

http://www.motoiq.com/MagazineArticles/ID/3404/Project-E46-M3-Part-7--Magnaflow-vs-Corsa-Cat-Back-Exhausts.aspx

M3 projects: http://www.motoiq.com/Projects/BMW/E46M3.aspx

[normancw]

Great story - thanks for sharing, beautiful car!

the car will make all kinds of noises..  the shifter clacks, the differential clunks, the body creaks over severe bumps, bit of rattles in the cabin, and engine makes different noises and feels a little different depending on outside temperature

Solution... turn off the audio, roll down the windows, and enjoy the sound of that straight 6 as you row up and down the gears!

[Great_Big_Abyss]

Great Story.  Loved hearing about the trials and tribulations and final success that you experienced with this car.

it's still a magnificent car..  but i got smoked by a freakin RAV4 the other day, so it's not fast anymore.  let's call it 'quick on its feet for its weight and age'.

Don't feel too bad.  Those Rav4's with the V6's are freaking quick (269hp).  0-60 in 6.3s. 

It may not be the fastest coupe on the road, but I think the e46 M3 is one of the all time best looking cars ever built.

[Firm]

Great story! I love that car, I am absolutely NOT a BMW guy, but that body style in that color is just excellent.

If I wrote the story on my ownership of the SLK it would read almost exactly the same, right down to the purchase date, wheel vibrations and diff clunk (both of which I've since resolved). I feel the same way about my car too - I really like it, but not really enough to motive my to get it out of the garage much....40,000km in the 3 years, but about 35,000 of those were in the first year (when I DD'd it)...1800km this year, lol

[aquadorhj]

it's still a magnificent car..  but i got smoked by a freakin RAV4 the other day, so it's not fast anymore.  let's call it 'quick on its feet for its weight and age'.

  That's just so sad... 


I'll take it, there's no Rav 4's around here so I'd be safe. 

LOL.




Thanks guys. 

Drove it into work, and i'm happy as a clam.      I did go over budget a bit due to the new front tires, but it seems to grip good.

Great story! I love that car, I am absolutely NOT a BMW guy, but that body style in that color is just excellent.

If I wrote the story on my ownership of the SLK it would read almost exactly the same, right down to the purchase date, wheel vibrations and diff clunk (both of which I've since resolved). I feel the same way about my car too - I really like it, but not really enough to motive my to get it out of the garage much....40,000km in the 3 years, but about 35,000 of those were in the first year (when I DD'd it)...1800km this year, lol

Thanks, and I hear ya.  14000 of the 26k were put on the first year for me too..  since than, i've driven it maybe 3 k this year..   7k last.

the diff clunk, i looked into it, and it's known as the "m-clunk" and is normal for the car.. some don't have it(they claim) but most do.

Great Story.  Loved hearing about the trials and tribulations and final success that you experienced with this car.

Don't feel too bad.  Those Rav4's with the V6's are freaking quick (269hp).  0-60 in 6.3s. 

It may not be the fastest coupe on the road, but I think the e46 M3 is one of the all time best looking cars ever built.

Thanks.  I knew those RAV4's were quick, but didn't think they would take me that easily.    

[Arthur Dent]

Great story. I'm glad this one has turned out to be a happy story. That blue is the absolute best colour ever for that car.

[HeliDriver]

Nice report and even nicer car! And I applaud you for your dedication to keeping it stock - some cars should never be molested, and an E46 M3 is definitely one of them (although, a tasteful cat-back might be fun  )

[redman]

Great ....luv story 

I know what you mean in regards to those E46 M3 noises. I recall trying to sell one used and starting her up in the winter. She went through a quartet of octaves up and down until she warmed up. A classic mechanical beast with in one sense but finicky sensors, actuators etc on the other.

Thought you might find this article interesting

http://www.carthrottle.com/7-reasons-why-you-might-not-want-to-own-an-e46-m3-part-1/

[aquadorhj]

Great ....luv story 

I know what you mean in regards to those E46 M3 noises. I recall trying to sell one used and starting her up in the winter. She went through a quartet of octaves up and down until she warmed up. A classic mechanical beast with in one sense but finicky sensors, actuators etc on the other.

Thought you might find this article interesting

http://www.carthrottle.com/7-reasons-why-you-might-not-want-to-own-an-e46-m3-part-1/

thanks [sarcasm/].  don't give me scare like that!   yeah, i already read that a while back and i look out for common issues.

[mmret]

Great post. Its a labour of love, n'est pas?

Perhaps an IS-F is what you need, but that doesn't have the cool-factor.

Your adventure with the steering wheel vibration reminds me of the adventure I had getting the CLK aligned. I was going absolutely nuts and spending way too much time and $ on it, and for a while hated driving the thing because it was so awful. Went for a last ditch effort and drove to Millgrove Ontario (Can-Alignment) and 45 minutes later the thing was arrow-straight and I had a big ass grin on my face.

Yes, alignment is another one of my sensitivities.

[redman]

Great ....luv story 

I know what you mean in regards to those E46 M3 noises. I recall trying to sell one used and starting her up in the winter. She went through a quartet of octaves up and down until she warmed up. A classic mechanical beast with in one sense but finicky sensors, actuators etc on the other.

Thought you might find this article interesting

http://www.carthrottle.com/7-reasons-why-you-might-not-want-to-own-an-e46-m3-part-1/

thanks [sarcasm/].  don't give me scare like that!   yeah, i already read that a while back and i look out for common issues.

Ya didn't mean to end off that way. Guess I should have mentioned that it was to this day, one of the most enjoyable drives I ever had. The car was beautifully balanced with gobs of low end torque ramp that an inline brings to the table and easily toss-able. Fantastic in the manual but I hated the SMG. I enjoyed your write up.

[Firm]

Great post. Its a labour of love, n'est pas?

Perhaps an IS-F is what you need, but that doesn't have the cool-factor.

Your adventure with the steering wheel vibration reminds me of the adventure I had getting the CLK aligned. I was going absolutely nuts and spending way too much time and $ on it, and for a while hated driving the thing because it was so awful. Went for a last ditch effort and drove to Millgrove Ontario (Can-Alignment) and 45 minutes later the thing was arrow-straight and I had a big ass grin on my face.

Yes, alignment is another one of my sensitivities.

Can-Alignment had a helping hand in sorting out the alignment on my SLK as well. Guy has some skills