I need the M3 owner perspective... 2 cars, vs. 1?

[dibxna]

ps i also have more than one car... a 56 ford truck and a 66 chevy corvette... those are the ones that are weekend cars, the m is the daily.

[Jelmac]

My e90 M3 arrived at the dealership today (Mon) and I pick it up Wed. I have an e90 335XI and will keep it. I have a long commute and winters can be harsh here. I put 60k on the 335 in 3.5 years. At some point I'll trade in the 335 for an x3 or a lexus but until then I'll use it to keep miles down on the M3. The 335 is a great car too.....

[8_is_enough]

i had an S2000+TSX, then Z4M+TSX. sold both to get my E90M, which is my daily -- no regrets i also have a hoopty '92 accord that comes in handy whenever i need to park in the hood.

[gemini330zhp]

Another ex S2000 owner miss that car!!!! I have 2 vehicles. I have a Jeep Cherokee Sport as my beater to get me through tough winters when the M3 can't make it. If you live in a area with no snow than a M3 is great for the whole year. If you live in a area where it snows I would have a beater on stand by. Besides a beater is great when you don't want to drive your car in the city like NYC where people play bumper cars for parking.

[Mahzari]

As a car enthusiast, you want to daily drive an M3. Trust me. The only drawbacks I see are parking it in a bad neighborhood, having to deal with door dings, rocks chipping your windshield on the freeway, etc. If you love your car, these things will suck but pushing the M button on the way home will make every day better.

People also try and use the argument of gas mileage, but I get 14.7mpg in my M3. It's not good but if you bought a beater car it would cost you a good amount of money. Let's say $5,000. How long will it take to spend $5,000 in gas on your M3? And the beater still uses gas so it's not free to operate.

[Edjay]

We have 6 cars. But theres 2 cars my wife and I us dd. She drives the m3 e90 and i drive the suburban. On weekend or track days we take the M3. Just 3 weeks ago we went to the track as a family. Imagine 3 kids 11-7-5 jump out the back picnic stuff in the trunk, then We took turn driving around the track. At the end of the day we all packed up and drove home. Last weekend we visited her parents, I was getting bored so i took my 2 son on a sprited mountain drive, then had dinner witn inlaws. Believe me my suburban is driven only because I need to drive a car when shes using it and or long roadtrips with parents or inlaws.
The other cars are toys that never got driven, but i like collectig cars.

[mjames]

The M3 is not an exotic. The beauty of the M3 is it can be whatever you want it to be: thrilling sports car on twists, GT cruiser, or grocery-getter. The fact that it does everything well is its genius. I suggest getting the M3 as a daily driver.

[Mr. ///M3 RD]

Depends on your situation. I have 2 cars primarily to give my wife the freedom to have her own. However, in the winter time I drive her's unless the roads are free of snow and dry. Then I drive my M3 with winter wheels of course (I have a separate winter set of wheels for the M3).

In my case I just drive the M3 as much as I can. Mind you in the back of my head there is the desire for another toy, if I find her it will be a 2 seater sports car convertible of course

[Mr. ///M3 RD]

Originally Posted by mjames

The M3 is not an exotic. The beauty of the M3 is it can be whatever you want it to be: thrilling sports car on twists, GT cruiser, or grocery-getter. The fact that it does everything well is its genius. I suggest getting the M3 as a daily driver.

+1 so very true

[Erhan]

M3 is a comprimise, and that didn't work for me. Without using any power of the engine, no redline no WOT, you get 15mpg.. That's really not good for a DD. And when you take it to track, it is fast and all, but big, heavy and soft... Track days are not race, so I could care less about how fast I can go (just as long as I am not giving 15 point bys a lap).

So I sold my M3, bought a Mini Cooper S as a daily... massive fun while getting 30mpg.. As a track/weekend car, I am thinking of an Exige/S or C2S or GT3..

Btw, a new decently optioned Cooper S is less than 30k.. A used Exige S is around 40k.. A 996 GT3 is high 40s low 50s... So instead of a brand new M3, you can have a fun economical DD, and a much more capable track car...

[F82_SID]

I say go for them. Eliminate two car/insurance payments. Also, I think that having an M3 as a DD is just fine; especially for the reason being that you are going to be paying allot for this car. Why would you want to pay 70k+ for a car just to sit in your garage? I have a truck and a motorcycle that I also ride but even still, when I get up in the morning I dont want to drive my truck, I want to drive my M! I dont see the purpose of having two cars that, although different, still have the same limitations of being a car. If it was a truck and your M then yes, but in my opinion, I think the M will be able to satisfy all of your needs in one car. And it should for 70k+.

[Grail05]

I am a previous S2K owner SOLD it to get my dream car...

Do i regret it... NO, everything you want is in the M3.. (JUST NOT THE GAS GUZZLER PART) some people hates it i DO but i got the car of my dream....

i say if money is an issue dont worry just sell both your cars and get the M3... not sure if your getting used or new... if used make sure its a CPO... you will not regret...


BTW...

here is my old S2k....

[dizzyj]

if your only going to have 1 car, the e90m3 really is the best option out there.

great luxury, comfortable to drive the kids to school, and a monster at the track.

[quiksi]

lots of former s2000 owners here... I went from S2000 only to S2000 plus a truck, and now I have a E90 and a truck. At this point, I would have no problem having the M3 as a sole daily driver but do enjoy having the benefits of a full size pickup.

[Skiptomylou37]

I just picked up an Interlagos Blue e90 M3 and its amazing to say the least. I had a 335xi before and that car was fast, but the M3 is better in everyway. Sure you can drop a chip in it and spend a couple thousand in mods and beat an M3 in a straight line but nothing compares to the complete package that is the M3. This coming from a young guy who wanted the best possible car for the price, not just something to pick up chicks in that makes people think I have a lot money. I don't know where you live but the winter roads can get pretty nasty near Pittsburgh from December-February so I will be spending a few thousand bills to scoop up a cheap subaru or ford escape to drive in the snow and a couple days a week to keep the miles down on my M. If you don't get snow often or drive a ton of miles, the e9X M3 is more than capable of beign a daily driver. Also, don't let some of these guys talks of bad gas mileage get you down. Maybe it's cause I have the DCT and drive a decent amount of highway, but i have been averaging around 18mpg and up to 22-23 highway. As long as you don't floor it at every green light and or live in a downtown area, you should be fine. Any car that you mash the gas pedal in constantly isn't going to get good gas mileage.

[James T. Kirk]

M3 = all you need in one... er, three!

[Radiation Joe]

This is why I picked up an e90 in the first place. I had a very track worthy e46 M3 and an Audi RS6 that was about to come off warranty. I sold them both and picked up the e90 M3 to replace them. With a bone stock suspension the e90 was very track worthy once I put some real rubber on the front end.

[youngnastyman]

beater FTW!!! i ahve a 2000 toyota camry that i drive to and from work ( i commute ~ 100 miles a day - 5 days a week)

[Sean Alexander]

Get the E90 M3 sedan, sell the S2000 and TSX. You will not regret it. I've owned and flogged the piss out of an S2000 and spent a couple hundred miles behind the wheel of a TSX.

The M3 sedan is (much) faster than the S2000, sounds even better, has more balanced handling, can be steered with the throttle better, loves to rev like an S2000 but with way more torque and way more power, etc... You won't miss that S2000.

The M3 sedan is roomier than that TSX, sounds a million times better, steers better, handles much better and is so much faster in a straight line that it's pointless to compare.

The one drawback: Fuel Mileage in the high 14s - low 15s for an enthusiastic daily driver.

GET THE M3 SEDAN!!!

[midwest 340xi 6sp]

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OP -- let us know what you decide after you test drive an E9x M3.....