Karter16

Hey guys, I've recently started a build journal on a US site (m3forum.net). I thought I might as well replicate it here as well. Some of the content is written for a US audience (miles vs km, LHD vs RHD, etc) so feel free to ignore those bits. I'll update here as I update on m3forum. So having owned my M3 for a year last week, and given I'm embarking on some significant work over the next month, I though it was about time I started a build thread. I got the car in December 2015. I first seriously looked at buying an M3 in 2008, I decided (wisely) to pay off my student loan, etc. first. I then ended up getting married in 2012, and spending some time & money on travel with my wife. In 2015 I was finally ready to start thinking about an M3 again. For a number of weeks in August and September I had my eye half-seriously on a 2005 Silver Grey SMG model for sale in my home city (living in New Zealand there's not a huge number of E46 M3's on sale (between 5 and 8 at any one time). I still wasn't really sure if I was ready to buy one or not. Then one day it was sold, and I realised then how much I actually wanted it... I thought that was it and prepared myself to wait until the next one that met my requirements came along. Then, a few weeks later the same car was back on the market. It had actually just been traded between dealers. In the mean time the second dealer had done some work on it (to make it more attractive for sale presumably). New wing mirror glass on both sides to replace the damaged ones on it. All trim parts on the centre console replaced - looked like new. New OE brake rotors fitted on the front. That weekend I went to have a look at it. It was in much better shape that I was expecting. The exterior wasn't perfect, which I was expecting from what others who had looked at it had said. But the interior was in really great condition. More importantly the mechanics of the car seemed to be solid. The car had had the subframe strengthened by BMW NZ, had been serviced at a reputable BMW dealer, and had had things like the RTAB's done a few years previously, which was an indication that the previous owner/s had been taking at least some care of the car. To make a short story even shorter, I ended up making an offer on the car, and I took it home 3 days before Christmas. It ticked pretty much all the boxes for me. I was looking for: A later manufacturing year (2005/2006). SMG (yep I know, but I'm an engineer, SMG is cool, its a differentiator, and I really wanted it). Silvergrey or LSB Sunroof 19in Style 67s I bought it knowing that quite possibly it would need the VANOS done (which indeed it did), but that didn't really bother me. My intent in buying this car was to work on it, maintain it, and make it better than the day I bought it. I plan on keeping this car for a long time, and its an opportunity to learn and develop my mechanics skills as I go. I'm lucky in that regard in that I have my dad to help me. When he was about my age he owned and restored a Daimler SP250, so I'm not exactly on my own on this. A couple of months after I bought the car I ordered the parts to do the Beisan VANOS rebuild, did the full rebuild, new exhaust disc (existing hub tabs are 100% good), timing chain tensioner, cam bolts, etc. It was a great first project, we spread the work over two days, took our time, and the end result was perfect. All the rattle was gone, and the engine sounded smooth. Over the New Zealand winter I didn't get any major work done. did new belts, pulleys and tensioners, and replaced the crank case ventilation separator, but not much else. Which leads into the present day The summer project is a full suspension & bushings rebuild, cleaning up the underside of the car, cleaning, painting, etc. The aim is that the underside of the car will be as close to "like new" as is realistically possible. For me that means: Replace parts that wear Clean everything else up Seal and paint where appropriate to protect In New Zealand we don't salt our roads in winter (mostly cause it doesn't get cold enough) so the car is in pretty reasonable condition (more dirt and grime than rush), but if you're under there you might as well do it right hey! A couple of weeks ago I ordered Koni yellows to replace the stock shocks, as well as about 60 different part numbers for pretty much anything on the underside of the car that looked like it would wear out. Today Dad and I spent the afternoon getting the car up to working height on jacks (oh for a lift). Over the next few weeks we'll be dismantling, replacing/restoring and rebuilding. I'll be updating here as we go along. Hopefully in a few weeks time the car will be back on the ground and good to go for another 150,000 km :-) For now I'll end with a pic of the car up on jacks.

Welcome Ian! Would love to see some pics of your car - Mystic Blue is a great colour! What maintenance items do you have planned? Matt

Thought I'd check in almost a year on and update where things are at :-) Rebuilt the VANOS in February (knew it needed to be done) with the Beisan kit. Timing Chain tensioner was kaput as well, so did it at the same time. Rattle completely gone now. Replaced the CCV in July - just, because, really.... Big project for the new year is a complete refresh of suspension, bushings, guibo's, fuel filter, brake calliper rebuild, etc. etc. (pretty much everything on the underside of the car)... I plan on keeping this car for a long time, and this is going to set things up well for the future. Everything will be OE, except shocks which are being replaced with Koni yellows. Have put about 3.5K on the car this year, so will be doing an oil service in the new year - will send it off to Goughs for oil analysis to get a baseline to measure against. Once the new year's project is complete I'll be able to start on cosmetic stuff. I've been stockpiling items like replacement wing mirror glass, windshield trim, gas struts, etc. but the cosmetic stuff is of secondary importance to me at this point :-) Karter16

Replaced the idler and tensioner pulleys yesterday with Dad. Parts on the way to refresh the crankcase ventilation system. Need to get an o-ring for the coolant temp sensor, and the lower power-steering hose is weeping slightly - so going to need to keep an eye on that. With needed maintenance on the engine nearing completion I'll be moving on to suspension and brakes refresh next.

Pulleys and tensioners a arrived from Pelican Parts today. Will swap them in on the weekend! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

A PY E46 M3 Convertible on Greenhithe Rd about 4 minutes ago Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I usually steer clear of these sorts of threads as you're always going to get people on both sides of the argument (it's like the Manual/SMG discussion, you can't win) but I do feel I should weigh in here. I used JC when I owned my E46 318i and again now with my E46 M3. With both cars I felt well taken care of - although you do get made to feel extra special with an M car ;-) I am well aware that I'm paying a premium by going to a dealer for service, however having run the numbers it's not as much of a premium as you might think. I've had excellent service. The service manager has always gone the extra mile for me, and I've had alternatives presented to me when repairs have been needed. Yes I could have probably had things done cheaper elsewhere, but in the 10 odd years I've been going to JC I haven't once wished I opted for the cheaper alternative. That's just my opinion/preference. Not everyone will feel the same way. But for me the overall value has always been there. It does come down to what your approach is, maintaining service history, etc. which is why the perceived value will never be the same for everyone. Just wanted to give my perspective though, as dealers can often have a rough time on the forums :-) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Silver E46 M3 at Hobsonville Point ferry terminal tonight

A silver 320i wagon on Greenhithe bridge. Failed to indicate when moving onto the off ramp, and almost took out a cyclist by pulling out from a give way while a cyclist was passing in front. >< Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Very nice - I'm in the camp of thinking that they look awesome on your car - and I don't usually like mixing wheels and cars of different eras! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

A Yas Marina M4 coupe at Albany mall. Sadly by the time I found a park it had disappeared and I couldn't get a close look! >< Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hey, Sorry if this has already been asked somewhere, I've had a look around and couldn't find anything about it. Is there any particular reason that the forum search functionality doesn't appear to work for short strings? e.g. ("M3", "318i", "E46", "S54", etc.). I appreciate that in general forums tend to prevent too-short search strings so that the results aren't too generic, but I'd have thought that on a site where a lot of what is discussed relates to short model codes, etc. it might be useful to have such functionality enabled? Just a thought anyway :-) Matt

It's essentially a second car. I commute by ferry and we'll use my wife's car for running around, so will keep the M3 for intentional driving. Haven't decided yet exactly where I want to take it after that. I've done a lot of reading and research, but have a lot more to do :-) An update to the radio (to touchscreen nav etc) and an exterior tidy up (replace some of the plastic components, seals, etc.) are definitely on the list, but beyond that I haven't decided yet.

Thanks! Yeah I'm really pleased with it.

Yep absolutely - appropriate checks were done prior to purchase (I knew what I was buying). The last service wasn't done by someone who knows BMW's - hence the purpose of the Inspection II is to set a baseline starting point for moving forward. Perhaps my wording in my first post wasn't the best :-) Yes it's the one that was with Buy Right.

Hey guys, I possibly introduced myself previous (about 10 years ago when I bought a 318i), but here goes. Picked up a 2005 E46 M3 (Silver Grey, SMG) a few weeks ago. It's the car I've wanted since I bought my 318i in 2006 :-) First steps are ensuring that the car is solid - it's going for an Inspection II + nose to tail check next week. Anyway - hi :-) Cheers, Matt

Picked this car up a few weeks ago. Got it for a good price. The interior is in awesome condition, had a lot of the trim panels replaced by the dealer so no scratches. The exterior has a number of marks, but not as bad as it's made out above (plan on re-spraying it in the next couple of years anyway). The car has a partial service history with Jerry Clayton, has had the rear subframe strengthened under warranty and has had the rear trailing arms replaced recently as well. I'm sending it in for an Inspection II next week (joys of partial service history), but all looking good so far. Thanks everyone for your input to this thread, helped me make the call to get it - cheers! Matt

Hi all, My 2000 318 E46 sedan has just been in for a service and it is going to need new shocks all round at some point in the near future. The guys recommended to me that it was better to go with after-market shocks rather than the oem items as it would work out cheaper for superior performance. Just wondering whether anyone has some comments on different after-market shocks out there for E46 318's and what things I might need to know before choosing what I want (I haven't done this before). If anyone has any input it would be really appreciated cheers Matt

Yea, its an E46 - I had noticed it was a bit of a funny surface. Sounds like its a bit of a complex job Any recommendations for where to get them done? Cheers

Sooo, I have to repaint the interior trim panels in my car (The attachment shows what I mean). Whoever owned it previously must have worn a watch with spikes on it or something cause they are pretty bad. A couple of questions: 1: Whats the best way to prepare the surface? (I was thinking some real fine wet n dry sandpaper to get it back to a smooth finish, but I don't want the plastic to go furry on me ) 2: What's the best sort of paint to use? (It's currently a gunmetal grey satin finish, n I want something that will give a satin finish again. Is ordinary satin finish paint in a can okay? or do I need something special?) Cheers

When you say a "new 3" are we talking E90's or E46's? Cheers

lol I believe you :-) I think i'll limit my self to simpler stuff on my 318i. Then maybe in a couple of years when I'm 25 the insurance company will let me get a 330i or something Thanks all

Hey guys, Thanks for the comments :-) that answers what I was wondering :-) I just didn't know how much of the drivetrain was the same... from what you say not much Cheers

Thanks for you comment but not really what I was wanting to know... I wasn't actually wanting other people's opinions on what is and isn't a real car... I would however appreciate any comments on the the question I asked originally :-) Cheers

Hi all, I know that this is a pretty general question, but any comments are appreciated. I'm just wondering what is involved in swapping out an M43 (1.9L) and putting an M54 (2.2 or 2.5L) into an E46. What else would need to be changed apart from the engine? Will the transmission (auto) and suspension etc. hold up or are they different for the larger engined E46's? Cheers