Remember the Twilight Zone episode ("The Eye of the Beholder") where this woman is in the hospital awaiting plastic surgery to fix her heinous face? At one point in this episode the woman's mug is all bandaged up, and the surgeon is calming her, telling her he believes he has corrected her appearance to look normal -- like everyone else. But when the surgeon removes the bandages, he and the nurses recoil in horror -- the procedure is a total failure. She has retained her pre-operative appearance.
The camera then exposes her face -- she's a gorgeous blond! The camera pans over to the surgeon and the nurses -- they're hideous, porcine freaks.
To my mind, our long-term M3 is like the woman in this episode, except the other way around. When you take the bandages off, you see that it's really not all that special -- yet it's somehow the darling of our long-term fleet, the vehicle over which almost all of our staffers are effusive in their praise (JRiz isn't as enthused as the others).
For me, it's a good driving experience, but nothing to get excited about. Though it spins freely, the engine is not as powerful as its reputation would suggest, and the clutch feels a bit strange compared to the impressive clutches of the new BMW models. This M3's clutch pedal has a bit of dead travel, then a heavy stroke that suddenly falls away – not progressive at all. It's similar to the trigger pull on a double action revolver.
I know this car is old, but my outlook on this M3 also wasn't helped by all the interior creaking and the fact that it stinks. I don't mean the performance stunk, I mean olfactory-stink. Like someone left a cadaver in it.
I'll let the other porcine creatures gush over the E46 M3. This Twilight Zone viewer prefers the 135.
Albert Austria, Senior Vehicle Evaluation Engineer @ 56,665 mi
louiswei says:
11:28 AM, 06/ 4/08
Wow!! Albert, what do you drive? A Ferrari F430?
For "regular folks" like me (and I just happened to test drive an e46 M3 over the last weekend) I think the car's pretty special compares to the other 99% on the street...
It rides smoothly, handles corners and turns with great confidence and has 330 hp (and feels like it) at your disposal if not more. What more can you ask for as a daily driver?
Then again, after driven the IS F at the Lexus performance driving academy if I have to choose I'd go with the IS F (on the track at least).
SnakeDoctor says:
11:39 AM, 06/ 4/08
Louie -
My daily driver is a Humvee with twin .50's
Maybe I will give the E46 M3 another chance at a track day. But the clutch is crap.
Regards,
Snake Doc
levvy says:
11:41 AM, 06/ 4/08
It's just a car bro, relax. A great "car" as time goes on better cars are built with better technology. Look at it like this, you're going out to dinner with a super model after you park the "car" you get out and leave it. People act like you're insulting their mothers on here to draw any
criticism about their favorite cars.
joefrompa says:
11:44 AM, 06/ 4/08
I gotta say, I agree with certain points about this post (from my one test drive, years ago, of a 2002 M3).
The clutch take-up is a little wacky and the engine didn't feel all that special until you get up into the rev range. What is special to me is the fantastic overall experience.
That being said, alot of interior creaking and a cadaver smell will ruin even the best rides...
Joe
johnmarco says:
12:12 PM, 06/ 4/08
Now it all makes sense. The interior of the M3 smells like cadavers. The photo of the Ferrari next to the dumpster. See where I am headed with this?
What kind of operation are you guys really running down there in Santa Monica?
banhugh says:
12:33 PM, 06/ 4/08
Here is your solution http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/rodi_1997_21129910
stingray454 says:
12:33 PM, 06/ 4/08
"Then again, after driven the IS F at the Lexus performance driving academy if I have to choose I'd go with the IS F (on the track at least)."
You would pick an automatic Toyota over a manual BMW M3 on the track? I wouldn't. While the IS-F has a power advantage, that's about all it has.
louiswei says:
12:50 PM, 06/ 4/08
"You would pick an automatic Toyota over a manual BMW M3 on the track?"
Have you driven the IS F yet?
I recommend you to read R&T's last comparo, they just scored IS F's 8-speed "slush box" best out of the 4 with a perfect 20/20. (M3: 17.5/20, C63: 17.5/20 and RS4: 19.6/20).
Not convinced? According to C&D in their latest IS F vs. M3 comparison they ranked the 8-speed as high as the M3's 6-speed manual (both 9/10).
"On the racetrack, we worked the IS F’s manumatic transmission to keep the engine above 3800 rpm, which was satisfying and painless. Toggling the right-side aluminum steering-wheel paddle produces a kick-in-the-crotch shift that’s quicker than we could ever achieve with hand and foot. Downshifts are actuated via the left paddle, and the computer blips the throttle for a racy, seamless feel. The gear lever can be set to shift itself, and we rated this automatic on par with the M3’s manual unit, which is the first time we can remember heaping such praise on a slushbox. It’s that good."
That's pretty impressive if you ask me...
sadbuttrue says:
03:32 PM, 06/ 4/08
Let me un-hijack this thread and ask Herr Osterreich a question about his assertion that "the engine is not as powerful as its reputation would suggest."
At what rpm were you upshifting?
I ask because in my experience with that car, if you go full-throttle to redline in second gear, upshift to third and keep the throttle pinned...that's about as close to automotive nirvana as people who don't drive Porsches or Ferraris are likely to get.
-Sadlier
SnakeDoctor says:
03:36 PM, 06/ 4/08
sbtrue -
Ostrich?? It's Snake Doc!
I have no idea what the revs were - I was busy texting and blow drying my hair.
Regards,
Snake Doc
louiswei says:
03:37 PM, 06/ 4/08
"I was busy texting and blow drying my hair"
Awesome!! Like a true Californian...
SubyTrojan says:
03:38 PM, 06/ 4/08
Hahaha! And reading the newspaper, too?
slickersdrip says:
09:12 PM, 06/ 4/08
Mascara?
sgude says:
07:11 AM, 06/ 5/08
Wow -- we have really jumped the shark when someone says this car -- 333hp of Bavarian excitement -- just doesn't cut it.
When I test-drove an E46 M3 before I bought my E46 325i sport package, I thought it was the most thrilling car I've ever driven. The acceleration was stunning, the handling phenomenal and the ride was better than expected. I didn't notice any creaks because I was too busy concentrating on the fun I was having. Most of all, I enjoyed the way the car felt like it could perform any maneuver, no matter how ham-fisted my driving was.
But hey, everyone's entitled to their own opinion.
roadburner says:
08:04 AM, 06/ 5/08
The clutch take-up problem is easily fixed by removal of the much-despised clutch delay valve. .50 hrs of labor, max.
SubyTrojan says:
10:15 AM, 06/ 5/08
Good point, roadburner!
Perhaps the editors should purchase a modified clutch delay valve. Then, Al might think the E46 M3 is all that and a bag of chips, too.
http://zeckhausen.com/cdv.htm
SnakeDoctor says:
10:22 AM, 06/ 5/08
Suby -
The money would be better spent on de-smellification.
Regards,
Snake Doc
SubyTrojan says:
11:04 AM, 06/ 5/08
Well, the next time you have the choice, ask the Mikes for the STI instead of the E46 M3. :o)
lburstein says:
08:58 PM, 02/12/09
This from the guy who finishes last at the karting track?