Hi. One week you're pulling 170 down the straight at Spa, the next your pulling 1,70 out of your po...
Hi. One week you're pulling 170 down the straight at Spa, the next your pulling 1,70 out of your pocket in Spar - for ibuprofen!
Funny how one letter can make so much difference! Ha! Life has its ups and downs!!!
Member since:17.11.2004
Reviews:5
Warning -this is a bit of a racers review. But it makes sense on this car.............................. E36 M3. So, why would anyone choose one of these cars?
Answer:- a/ You're a bit of a chav-type poser b/ You're a serious trackday-type driver.
You decide?????????
It's cheap to buy, reasonable to run (Specialists abound) expensive to insure and a serious risk to the owner's NCB!
When I first enquired about insuring an M3 to teach on-road advanced driving techniques you could hear the laughter even holding the telephone at arm's length! They are one of the highest "no other vehicle involved" claim vehicle, apparently. With around 300BHP (3 litre or 3.2 in real-world measurements), RWD and lifeless steering it could be a very easy car to introduce the car to the scenery. However, I persevered, found an insurer that liked what I did, and here I am with one of the best performance cars on the road - and I get to drive a whole raft of cars that have serious performance. I now use it to teach kids who think they can drive to respect the road, the car and the environment they drive in. Oh, and would-be race drivers.
What's poor about it? There are some real sad cars about, owned by people who can't afford to own them -beware! It looks a bit old-fashioned now, and awful with some of those lexus-type light clusters fitted. It can drink petrol (12 mpg on track), it lacks steering feel so you can't instantly tell how much grip you have and the interior feels a bit, well..... dated. What's good about it? It makes a superb track car. They're cheap and plentiful, so you can pick and choose the best. There is a whole load of kit out there to make them go, stop and handle. They have real credibility to those in the know. My M3. It's an E36 3.0. That means it's the single VANOS engine rather than twin as in the 3.2. This means it's much more reliable. (the vanos is a bit of clever cam timing wizadry that retards the cam timing at low revs to make it run OK slowly. It costs £1200 to fix). There is virtually no power difference between the engines though the 3.2 has a 6 speed box (not as strong as the 5). Most track guys go searching for the single vanos motor. You can dump the vanos, put schrick cams in the car and a carbon box, make a real 330-350 BHP and have £3.5K less in your bank, just don't tell your other half! The dampers get soft with age - stick some Bilsteins in their place. The catalytic converter can fail - £250 from catman. The suspension bushes can wear though they are cheap as chips from the specialists. Standard brakes are rubbish though a pad change to endurance pads and race fluid works wonders for about £200.
The car is so much easier to drive than the M Coupe, as it has a longer throttle pedal travel, making it easier to feed in the power progressively and avoid spinning it in the wet, and is less "clunky" in the drivetrain, It also doesn't turn in as fast, which can be beneficial.
In standard form it is quick enough. We ran it at Mallory very recently and it was quick enough to pass most of the 360s on track, with a bit of commitment(!)
To and from events I can get 35mpg, on track it does 12-13. It works its tyres very well and isn't too hard on brakes, though the standard pads are rubbish, and you need race brake fluid in it.
The M3GT is the desirable one though you have to contend with Left Hand Drive and they command a premium price-wise. They do have a few good bits on them that make a difference though.
Only better M3? The CSL.
Oh, and you tend to spend money on the car to make it perform. Typically about the same amount as it cost you to buy :-)
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BMW 3 Series - Saloon - Rear (RWD) - 6 Speed Manual, 6 Speed Automatic - 1995 cc - Max Speed: 137 mph - 150, 170 bhp - Petrol - Available Trims: ES, SE, Sport, M Sport
BMW 3 Series - Saloon - Rear (RWD) - 6 Speed Manual, 6 Speed Automatic - 1995 cc - Max Speed: 140, 143 mph - 163, 177 bhp - Diesel - Available Trims: ES, SE, Sport, M Sport
BMW 3 Series - Saloon - Rear (RWD) - 6 Speed Manual, 6 Speed Automatic - 1995 cc - Max Speed: 130 mph - 143 bhp - Petrol - Available Trims: M Sport, Sport, SE, ES
Advantages: Fast, reliable, good handeling, comfortable, looks evil, solid build, smile factor Disadvantages: expensive to maintain and run, steering wheel is a bit big, long gear throw
reidtastic 11.07.2008 (07.07.2008)
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Review of BMW M3
Jul 19th, 2007
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