Originally Posted by 94jedi
Ok, so here we are about 2 months in to e46/e90 ownership...
I pretty much drive the e46 at least 3-4 days a week, the e90 gets driven once a week and when I go out w/ the Family, we usually take the Prius lol. Both M's are garage kept, which I really think helps preserve things and keep wear down (captain obvious, I know). I only drive the e90 if the weather is decent and I'm not going to a huge parking lot; i.e. a restaurant, walmart etc. Both cars get around 19-21 mpg mixed; but the e46 can get up to 25-28 on the highway if I really try. The two door thing is a bit of a pain in the e46 when dropping my daughter off at school but we make it work... Not a huge deal. It's only been 2 months w/ the e46 and about 4.5 months w/ the M3 but, knock on wood, no issues to report. No squeaks, sounds, rattles or anything out of the ordinary. Both very solid, well kept cars.
My thoughts about each one...
I simply love the e90. The lines, the engine, the sound, all of it. It's more comfortable, it's more "dual purpose", and it's so much more modern than the e46. It still does retain some of that raw, direct involvement, of the e46, but not quite as much and in return, you get a more comfortable refined experience. It truly is the best of both worlds and for around $25-30k, you can't find a better value out there. It does everything I need it to do and does it all very well.
I like the e46 a lot. I'm 40 years old so for me, this is what "an M3 is". This is what started it all. I was never a huge fan of the e36 and really didn't get into BMW's until the e46 platform (my first was a 2003 ZHP). With that said, it's just a bit too old for my taste, a little too unrefined, maybe even a bit too "spastic" for lack of a better term. You simply can't drive it like a normal human being; You have to put on your white helmet and piloti's and be the stig. To be quite honest, the e46 m3 is likely the better track car. It feels more nimble, more athletic (albeit slower) and more "rewarding" at it's limits, although I have to be honest, I haven't pushed either car too hard other than some spirited driving on back roads so I can't really speak too much about "limits". Still, this is the feeling I get after having owned both for a few months now. The e46 just feels too archaic for me at this stage of my life. It's not a bad DD and if there was the promise of something better down the line, say an F80 M3 or F10 M5, I'd drive the e46 for a few years, maintain it, maybe even mod it a bit, and be perfectly happy.
Overall, I feel a little "bad" that the e90 sits in the garage most of the time. I do drive it, get it up to temp and let her stretch her legs a bit, but It's almost stressful to take her out and park her in public. Even if you park far a way by yourself, some jerk will inevitably park right next to you thinking they're funny.
So in closing, not sure what I'm going to do at this point. The E90 is near mint. With 73k on the clock, a perfect blackstone report at 71k (and a history of clean bills of health from blackstone) it's one of those cars that doesn't come along very often. It's a notch or two, at most, below an EAG car, and it's almost full bolt on, save for headers. It's pretty darn fast.
The e46 has been a daily driver for 140k miles and it shows. It's been exceptionally well maintained and always garaged, however it just feels that much older than the e90. Of course, the e90 still smells like a new car inside (that's one of the first comments when people get in).
There's a part of me that wants to really make the e46 perfect and drive/enjoy it, but I know the e90 is one of those rare specimens and from what I can tell, slicktop, manual, e90's aren't a dime a dozen. I paid a premium for the e90 but I don't think It'll lose too much value over time, based on what it is and it's condition.
I will say this - every time I drive e90, I feel like the choice is clear....then it goes in the garage and for the next few weekdays, I'm perfectly happy driving the e46...
One of them is going to have to go soon as I really don't want to be doing maintenance on two M's for a prolonged period of time.
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