04 BMW e46 M3 vs. 06 Subaru Impreza STI

P

pmanliu

iS VIP
iS VIP
Location
NYC
Car
2017 WRX
sup guys,

so the time has come and im most likely going to be parting with the fx either after this winter and before summer of next year :frown: It's not going to be sold, but rather one of my siblings is taking it over. Im looking for opinions about possible replacements and advice also

i was looking for a car to replace the FX and really wanted a manual transmission. Two cars that caught my interest are the e46 m3 and 06 STi.

First, demographics
- College student, a lot of drivers here cant park to save their lives so im expecting my front & rear bumpers to be messed up which is why i'm buying used and also glad that the still new fx wont have to suffer
- Located in Ithaca, New York which is all hills and lots of snow in the winter
- Budget is around $20-25k

Here are my pros/cons on the two cars

Sti
Pros
- AWD
- Good for snow
- Maintainence shouldnt be too bad
- Storage room

Cons
- "teenager" car
- worried that after college, i wouldnt want to be driving clients aroudn in this (pursuing a degree in finance/HR so image is pretty important)

M3
Pros
- Beast of a car
- Definately has the class/prestige that i want
- Girlfriend approves

Cons
- RWD (Snow tires?)
- maintainence problems?
- trunk space

so now im stuck between what i want. Its practicalty v. enjoyment, japanese import v. luxury, etc. I was wondering if anyone can steer me towards/away these cars and also if they had other recommendations.

I've also considered the is250awd, but after driving one its boring as heck. Plus my whole family has toyota tatooed onto them so i would like to continue moving away from toyota/lexus .

Keeping the fx is a really good choice imo. But my parents dont want me to bring a new car to Ithaca. When i got the fx i was still going to college in Virginia (ended up transferring out), with nice weather great roads and better conditions so they didnt mind me bringing it there. TO those who are wondering, my older brother is taking the fx. We're most likely selling his old land cruiser (lx450) that he used during the past 4 years of college also in Ithaca. Great car, got him through anything the weather presented but its gots to go.


thanks in advance
pat
 
Last edited:
I had an 07 WRX wagon, easy to make fast but the interior is plasticy and cheap feeling.

Here are some interior upgrades I did ///193&page=3
 
ouch about the FX situation. the M3 got my vote (it's on my used car list to own - someday).

good luck pat.
 
M3 would be very nice...but I would personally go for more cargo space. Have you priced out A4 Avants?
 
aiya said:
M3 would be very nice...but I would personally go for more cargo space. Have you priced out A4 Avants?
Click to expand...

yeah im thinking about the a4 but not the avant... they depreciate pretty fast so i can snag a good deal plus awd + 4 doors... however they dont have the sporty vibe that the sti and m3 give off and the s4 is out of my budget :(. Its definately one of my top considerations though :biggrin::tup:
 
I just sold my '05 M3 months ago. The car was a beast, definitely worth the hype and the prestige it's garnered over the years. Unfortunately my experience with it wasn't the best. I had my navigation replaced twice, I had an accidental airbag deployment, an alternator that took a dump at 22k miles and coilpacks that took a dump at 29k miles. What I will definitely say is that the less electronics, the better. The bmw navigation system sucks, don't bother limiting yourself to only navi equipped m3's. With that said it does make the interior look a lot better, how much thats worth to you. The M3 gets a lot of attention, and it's a lot classier than the sti; you can pull up at a red light and get the attention of the 'teenage boy racers' and you will also get the attention of older gents who appreciate the marvelous engine.

The M3 is definitely my pick, but do your due-diligence when searching for one. M3forum.net is definitely your best resource to learn about these cars. If you can, buy it certified pre-owned but expect to pay a premium at the dealer. Try buying privately, cpo warranties are transferable to other owners as well. Actually, my suggestion to you would be to wait a few months, until around November - December. Dealers in the north east will be hard-pressed to sell a sports car for it's value in the winter time, you may be able to negotiate a much better deal. If not, buy privately. There are a lot of forum members (m3forum.net) selling their e46's that are trying to get into the new e92 m3. You can search through their statistics, look through all their posts and see what issues they have had, you'll get a much better, more accurate vehicle history on that vehicle as opposed to simply looking at a carfax, looking at some receipts, or looking through a vehicle history report.

Be cautious of the fact that these cars are not cheap to maintain. Just because they're being sold for $24k, 25k doesn't mean that parts have depreciated comparatively. I tallied up all the warranty repairs that bmw did for my car under warranty in the one year that I owned it and the amount exceeded $13k! That's a lot of money to pay if you're out of warranty, especially if you have a car note that you're paying off. Not to say my car was the rule, it most certainly was the exception. There are tons of M3's owners who have had to do nothing but scheduled maintenances and are in the 100k + mile mark. Just do your research, get a PPI done, for sure, and enjoy that sucker. It's definitely worth it.

By the way, the M3 with snow tires (dunlop m3's) performed better in the snow than my old TL did with all-seasons ('04 TL). The car was phenomenal in the snow, the M3 was my daily driver and I drove it through every snow storm last season and I probably only broke traction once, and that was to come out of a parking spot in about a foot of snow, and it wasn't even an obstacle to get out. Don't rule out the car just because of the rwd in the snow, with proper tires this car will exceed your expectations. But, don't even consider all-seasons or summers in any climate below 40F. If you're going to do it, do it right.

Btw, to comparison shop. I sold my '05 m3 fully equipped, navi, cold-weather package, 19' rims, 37k miles for $25.8k. If you're patient enough you shouldn't have to pay more than $25k for an '04. No more than $29k for an '05 and no more than $32k for an '06.
 
I'll say the wrx.. Great performace for less. Great engine and cheap to maintain or fix. Plus space. Or heck if you don't want to take that fx.. Get a older model and that solve that problem!!! Lol
 
The M3 would be nice but expect it to have been heavily used. Especially one thats 5-6 years old. Its going to start having problems in electronics and suspension pieces. IE front A arm bushings and the various mounts. Also look for oil leaks and engine wear.

Most M3s were used hard and 5 years of hard use and bouncing around on the hard suspension takes its toll on a car...

If money is a factor and it sound like it will be because you are looking at tuition, I'd go for the STi for now and trade it for something else later. If money is not a concern, I'd get the BMW.
 
if you really do need to haul clients around in the very near future, i'd have to say the m3 or any other 2 door is not the choice. because if you end up like me, i typically need to haul 2 or more clients around and a nice 4 door is much better at it. also, my opinion, the sti isn't a good client hauler. i mean, it will haul clients well, but i'm in the camp that believes you need to haul clients around in a nice vehicle. the m3 is nice but doesn't haul multiple clients around very well. i did haul clients around in an audi avant for a number of years. it was nice and did the job well....

my vote for you is the avant if your profession is a heavy criteria. haha
 
STI- hands down. The AWD and performance is tops for snow (which sounds like what you need).

I know you said 'no' to the lexus, however did you test drive the IS350? Much more fun than the (wimpy) 250. No idea if they make it in AWD though.

What about a G35x/G37x? That way you can have your AWD, and performance...?
 
Not sure how much longer you have to go in college, but I say go for the STI now, have your fun with it, and then get something with a little more prestige once you are out of college.
 
A guy here I know has an M3 and he drives us around when we need a ride. I really like just riding in it, but haven't driven yet.
 
thanks for all the responses guys, i really appreciate them!

@ speedy - great point on the hauling clients around with a 2 door point, i was dumb enough to oversee that... So that might knock the m3 out of my choices but theres always the 3 series

@KNFX - i'm a first semester sophmore.. long way to go lol and no financial aid :frown:

I've been reading up on some bmw boards and phillip is right about the reliability. I wish i had a personal friend who was selling a m cause most likey they were probably driven hard. The same goes for the sti.

I think seriously considering an audi a4 would be a good bet... I have never driven one, only sat in them. The g35x/g37x doesnt really appeal to me

Now.. buying another fx... that would be great, but if i do that i might as well bug the crap out of my rents to just let me check my current fx.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top