2002 BMW M3: Keeps On Tickin'

I wont mock ya, Joe - I feel the same way about my dear 03 Civic Si. owned since new, driven enthusiastically... and knock on wood, keeps on tickin very very well.

treated myself to the HFP spoiler last week (part went on clearance and figured I better sh*t or get off the pot). Somehow makes the car feel new again. At the very least feels fresh.

Josh, buy it already and go the horsepower freaks route ;)

My '05 Altima had 35k on the clock, and while it may have been babied, it hauled babies. Evidence of a car seat was apparent in the back seat, a groaning, overworked back door, and dings in the door frame belie the family moving duties under the car's former masters.

However, under my care, I haven't had much complaints. The c-pillar trim popped off, but that was fixed with another pop-rivet. The circulation fan clicks (which interferes with my FM modulator signal) and there's a squeak in the area of the passenger airbag (which goes away if I pound on the dashboard).

So far, nothing mechanically wrong. 57k strong. Used cars are good. Almost as good as your M3!

:waits for someone to ask about valve adjustment:

After amassing 112,900 hard miles on my 2004 WRX, it's been extremely reliable and dependable (still on stock clutch here, too). :o)

Suby - Impressive. Seriously.

Does your car have a banjo bolt filter pre-turbo?

In 79K miles my wife's X3 has only needed one set of brakes, and one set of tires. An SRS sensor was replaced under warranty.
My 1995 Club Sport has 115K on the clock and all I've done is replace the brakes, the thermostat, the serpentine belts and idler pulleys, the timing chain tensioner($44 and 30 minutes, as a precaution), and the brake light switch. Oh yeah, and I bought a bunch of tires...;)
The Mazdaspeed is on its good behavior ever since blowing a strut and a turbo at @25K. At 38K there are no problems to report.

I had a 2003 325 that was reliable until that 72,000 Miles point. I got a $3,000 Repair Bill.

Sold it and got an Audi.

I just had the 5,000 Mile Service, and got a $150.00 Repair Bill

@adavis2493, could you be more clear? What was wrong w/ your BMW?
And was the Audi new? Cuz if you had a new BMW, your maintenance would be free. And down the line, I'd expect you to see a $3000 repair bill for the Audi too!

@adavis2493, I thought the 5,000 mile service is complimentary on Audis?

Loads of used performance cars can last for 72 miles and can safely cross 100, 150 miles. I don't see what so impressive about a BMW achieving that.

Or is this the first BMW to last that long?

Yeah, I think we all know you love that black m3 Josh.

I remember reading some blog posts here that you guys spent a lot of money on this car.

^
The notable stuff that's gone wrong is (1) alternator, (2) rear control arm bushings, (3) power steering hose. Given the treatment I described in the post, I'd say that's pretty impressive.

@ace47,

"Loads of used performance cars can last for 72 miles and can safely cross 100, 150 miles."

Not after the Edmunds treatment, I bet. That's my point. When you drive the snot out of a used high-performance car on a daily basis for 20,000 miles and it basically just shrugs it off, that's praiseworthy.

Though SubyTrojan definitely takes the cake with his 113k-mile, frequently tracked WRX.

-JS

why would the M3 pull any less hard than it did when it was new? 72k miles is not a lot for a modern car, even a performance car. I dont understand praising a car that is designed to be driven hard for being able to withstand hard driving. I would think most M3 owners subject their cars to more abuse than the average Camry owning soccer mom.

^
I can't think of a performance car owner I've known who drives his/her car hard basically all the time. There'll be interludes of hard driving -- track days (see SubyTrojan), canyon runs, on-ramps, etc. -- but the rest of the time they'll try to "be nice" to their cars. Why? Because they don't want the engine/transmission/etc. to break. Yes, an engine like the S54 is designed to spin to 8,000-plus rpm, but I doubt many S54s have received the treatment described in the post for 22,000 straight miles.

For example, I know a highly skilled driver who grenaded a new base Elise engine after 29,000 miles because the engine just couldn't withstand his daily barrage of redline upshifts and whatnot. That engine's quite similar to the M3's: 8,000-rpm-ish redline, designed for hard driving. There are plenty of stories like this out there (think too of all the performance car classifieds you see with rebuilt engines, some with quite low miles on the chassis). Engines do tend to break if you whip 'em relentlessly, which is why our M3's stalwart performance impresses me.

"I will probably get mocked for this, but I feel the same way with my 2006 Civic SI."

I see no reason for mocking Joe as the Si and M3 are very similar in character even though they reside on the opposite ends of the performance spectrum.

In terms of reliability, the Integra GS-R block in my 95 Civic EX sedan has about 274K on it, it hasnt been touched. The head however has been replaced with another GSR head as the original head had some unexplained issues. A chance you take buying used engines/parts. An advantage for me was that I had another GS-R engine in the garage. =)

I completed the swap back in Dec 1999, the chassis had 123K and the GSR drivetrain had 125k. So the last 150K have been really hard miles. The only drawbacks are it uses a bit more oil, however given the nature its driven, its expected.

Ive replaced/upgraded virtually all the bushings on the cars suspension, swapped the power steering rack out for a non power unit (due to the fact that I purchased a Quaife quick ratio rack & pinion kit which required a manual rack), all the engine/tranny mounts have been upgraded. Ive also swapped out the GS-R transmission for a rare JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) 1996 Integra Type R transmission. The reason you ask, stronger casing/gear material was used, its equipped with an LSD and much shorter gear ratios.

The only minor issues Ive had out of the car was the replacement of a VTEC selenoid and the replacement of a parking brake/ABS sensor.

The consistent issues I have with the car is the clutch disc damper springs tend to partially remove themselves from their housings making it difficult to shift or making shifting impossible if they become fully dislodged. No its not my driving habits as I dont abuse the drivetrain. Ive not been able to find a solution other than resorting to the OEM disc as it seems to last twice as long as the aftermarket units. If anyone has any advice on this subject feel free to drop some lines.

Another odd yet small issue that after drastic changes in outside temperature (usually from summer to fall) I get a CEL due to a "faulty" O2 sensor. After a few days the CEL goes away. To my knowledge this is common with OBDI Hondas with engine swaps.

Impressive, but I would be more impressed if the M3 saw any track time. High speed road course driving is by far the hardest on a car overall. Auto-X can be tough, but there aren't any temperature issues like what is experienced on a road course running the car near 10/10ths for over 30 minutes at a time.

"In terms of reliability, the Integra GS-R block in my 95 Civic EX sedan has about 274K on it, it hasnt been touched. "

Could you please explain to me why you would put a superior engine from a superior car into an inferior car? An Integra GS-R > Civic EX. correct? So why not just drive an Integra GS-R? Yeah, I know an Integra would cost more than a Civic, but they're both old cars now, so the cost difference isn't all that much.

I see people doing engine swaps like you did into lowly Civics, and I just don't get it.

How are those Sumitomos doing? Can we get an update?