Need advice

[Phil_D]

Well i just did a Big Fas, went into the dealer to book car in for a service and saw that they had 3 M3's in stock, went and had a look at one of them http://www.bmw.co.uk/apm/bmw_auc/car_details/right_nav/0,5233,,00.html?ch=WBSBL92000JR01860&ext=&hostDealer=16281&at=0&rank=0&d=16281&doln=1&max=3&dpostcode=&de= this one , its would cost me approx and extra £150 a month to upgrade.... How much better is it than an 330CI is it worth it ? i can hold to get a better colour thats not a problem , just wondering what peoples views are on the M3 is it worth it....


Cheers


Phil

[ANT MAN]

Does the £150 inc servicing and insurance? These are a lot more for the M3.
Ultimately, only you can decide if the extra performance/ looks of the M3 justify the £150. :)

[BigFas]

All I can say is take it for a test drive. An M3 and 330 are night and day, you have to drive an M3 hard to get the best out of it, but at the same time, it's an easy daily driver too. Servicing and insurance means you'll take it up the bumhole too!

£150 / month is a lot of money especially as you'll be needing to fill up with Optimax which from what I remember Teddy telling me is over £50 a pop and you will be going through petrol like water as the M3 has the ultimate happy pedal :)

Also, make sure you get a deal on the M3, the prices are in freefall with 30k milers going for around the £25k mark. Check out www.bm3w.co.uk as that's the best place to get people's opinions who live with the car every day.

[BeemerBoy888]

Thought about the same thing recently, but the money the dealers were offering for my 330 vert on part ex was a joke! :eek:

Likewise the insurance and servicing would bump figures up potentially aswell.

I decided to stick with my 330 vert, especially as the mods build up a little more and more! :D

[Faisal]

Well i just did a Big Fas, went into the dealer to book car in for a service and saw that they had 3 M3's in stock, went and had a look at one of them http://www.bmw.co.uk/apm/bmw_auc/car_details/right_nav/0,5233,,00.html?ch=WBSBL92000JR01860&ext=&hostDealer=16281&at=0&rank=0&d=16281&doln=1&max=3&dpostcode=&de= this one , its would cost me approx and extra £150 a month to upgrade.... How much better is it than an 330CI is it worth it ? i can hold to get a better colour thats not a problem , just wondering what peoples views are on the M3 is it worth it....


Cheers


Phil


First of all - those alloys are superb Phil.

M3 is a completely different experience to a 330. I seriously considered buying one before getting my 330, but insurance stopped me. Lowest quote was £2k, compared to £800 on the 330.

The sound, the speed, the SMG of the M3 are what won me over. But make sure to research service costs as well as insurance before you even consider buying one.

[Phil_D]

First of all - those alloys are superb Phil.

M3 is a completely different experience to a 330. I seriously considered buying one before getting my 330, but insurance stopped me. Lowest quote was £2k, compared to £800 on the 330.

The sound, the speed, the SMG of the M3 are what won me over. But make sure to research service costs as well as insurance before you even consider buying one.


Can anyone give me an idea of running costs on these things ? i went to look at a Cosmos Black one on saturday it drove really really well as a 03 with 28k on it, had all the toys fitted came in at just over 31k. The sales person said that the servicing costs would not be much more than my car at present even tho i am doing circa 15k a year , i take it this is bollocks.....

Any help greatly appreciated

[Faisal]

Can anyone give me an idea of running costs on these things ? i went to look at a Cosmos Black one on saturday it drove really really well as a 03 with 28k on it, had all the toys fitted came in at just over 31k. The sales person said that the servicing costs would not be much more than my car at present even tho i am doing circa 15k a year , i take it this is bollocks.....

Any help greatly appreciated

Insp 1 between 500 and 800.
Insp 2 between 800 and 1200.

Insurance - I was told group 19 - quote obviously depends on your circumstances. A lot of places said they wanted a tracker too.

[Mits]

Having owned nothing but M3's for the past seven years, I can say they are great cars. I've driven a new 330 sport, but its just too smooth and quite for me after an M3.
Try the smg out, you either like it or hate it. I had the manual conv, but after driving a coupe with smg, I found it a far superior drive.
Running costs arn't cheap, but your driving a car that can keep up...if not beat a 70k 911....and your friends can come too :D

I've got my car going in for an Insp 2, I expect to pay around the £600 mark...i'm taking my own oil and I always get a 10% discount. I just bought front and rear pads yesterday for £173 after a 10% discount. I'll fit these myself as BM will charge £150 labour.

I do about 10k a year and you can expect a service at every 10k, you never get the 15k shown to next service. I only use optimax, so expect to pay £300 per month on fuel and around £1k a year for ins with Liverpool & Victoria, over 30 and full no claims.
Tyres last around the 15k miles and are £250 each for the rear and £200 each for the fronts.

Keep the warranty renewed every year at £600. Sounds a lot, but bear in mind BM labour charges are £100 per hr. My M diff went on my conv, I didnt pay a penny...I was told that if I had to pay, it would have been around the £5k mark!

So a rough yearly cost...
Petrol £3600
Insurance £1000 (if your over 30 with full no claims)
Service Insp1 £500, Insp2 £700, Oil Change £150
Warranty £600
Tyres £900

Mon to Fri my car sits on the drive, its only for weekend fun...as a daily user it can start getting expensive, but its not a 330...its a proper sports car.
They may look similar to the untrained eye but they are very different machines.
The alternative is doing what Durgesh and Nick have done, very similar performance, if thats all your after.

Right now i'm off for a blast to justify my service costs for the next year :p