I’m selling my dream E46 M3! Am I making the right decision? What should I buy next?? Let me know below 👇🏻

Good choice 👍🏼 I’ve had 2 b7 rs4’s. Regrettably had to sell mine last year due to unemployment. I miss it so much everyday. I’ve driven e46 M3’s. They’re not even in the same league. The b7 is just that old German race car engineering by men who loved Motorsport.

Another great video Laurence…

Interesting how people appreciate cars for different reasons.
I respect your take and I don't hate your opinion; the RS4 really is a very good car and last Audis bastion of manual analog cars.

However, some things you stated for dismissing the M3 E46 is just not objective and can be considered you talking yourself out of that car and forcing yourself to believe the RS4 is that much better.
I will be harsh here, but it is in good faith.

You had E46 for only a year. You can invest at least little amount of time to check the facts - 8000RPM redline with hard fuel cut at 8200RPM. RS4 has 8250.

Explicitly stating that it has upcoming maintenance and getting rid of it before this comes up is the exact reason why I advise people should never buy any enthusiast car from a non-serious owner without maintenance evidence.

Did the M3 had fresh suspension or is it 230k km old? And what mileage has the RS4's suspension? I suspect the culprit why RS4 just rides that much better, plus RS4 is softer even when comparing both cars with fresh suspension.

E46 has an excellent ESP system, far away from rudimentary. You might have had some malfunction: your wheel speed sensors started misbehaving, air in the ESP system, not correctly bled brakes...

I doubt having problems in the snow around Berlin is linked with the M3 E46 as a car. It is more a factor for you not used to snowy winters, bad tires and loose suspension. RS4 is certainly more capable in the snowy conditions, but it should never be a considerable factor in the continental Europe to completely dismiss the E46. I am driving an E46 as a daily also through the winter and it's all but not competent in the snow.
Electric rear windows are standard for E46 coupes, nothing makes them really that special.
You mention the complete original condition but the engine cover and nuts are painted red, strut brace is not original.
"Wrong brakes" don't exist for an E46. They are either original or upgraded, not wrong.


RS4 will eat your money without a sweat if you start using it as a daily, especially over winter.
RS4 parts are significantly more expensive compared with equivalent M3 parts.
RS4 is significantly heavier compared with M3, 150kg+, depending on your options probably more (sunroof).

Complaints about BMW gearbox are in all cases I have witnessed (and repaired) linked with well (ab)used shifter linkage. This is a known maintenance item. Paired with the more raw nature of this gearbox compared to a "softer" gearbox, even from the BMW themselves, leads to misconceptions. It should feel raw and notchy. At least for me, the whole point is to feel mechanical interaction.

By you stating this over the course of 5 minutes it seems that you are looking more for a grand tourer than for a sports car, hence it makes sense you prefer RS4.
I consider even the M3 in the original form as a sporty grand tourer, it is that soft. But it can still be transformed into something much sportier with a few readily available tweaks.

Hope you drive the hell out of that RS4. If anything breaks, repair. Rinse and repeat. Keep these gems on the road.

The Frenchy does not deserve to be mentioned beside these two, sorry. :D

Cheers!

Nice to see more of your collection Laurence. Makes sense to sell the BMW, shouldn't be too hard to sell if it's such a rare configuration!

I can relate to this video since I also have an audi (modified b8.5 s5) and an e46m. The audi is definitely tighter and more planted with the torsen quattro system. The audi engine is also way more powerful especially the torque with my stage 2 build. To be fair, the m3 is very light and turns in much better and the feel is much better. They each have their strengths and weaknesses.

Wat is de vraagprijs van de m3?

Why not keep both? You will definitely miss the M3 :)