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      02-21-2021, 02:53 PM   #1
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Who misses their E46?

It was a '99 328i that I got with 140K miles and took to 386,321 miles when I sold it back to bmw because it didn't have replacement airbags in stock.

I was taking care of my 96 year old dad at the time--couldn't afford metal shards going through my head.

Got this 2016 340i xDrive 6 speed. I will keep it stock, but I miss my e46 a lot. This feels so much bigger to me still, after a year of covid-light driving.

It is superior to the e46 in every way, except the 'feeling' part. Turns that I'd be apart of before--this car goes 'meh...give me more.'

Any of you miss your old one? Have an old one and enjoy driving it more than your 'better' one?
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      02-21-2021, 03:24 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dmaxdmax View Post
It was a '99 328i that I got with 140K miles and took to 386,321 miles when I sold it back to bmw because it didn't have replacement airbags in stock.

I was taking care of my 96 year old dad at the time--couldn't afford metal shards going through my head.

Got this 2016 340i xDrive 6 speed. I will keep it stock, but I miss my e46 a lot. This feels so much bigger to me still, after a year of covid-light driving.

It is superior to the e46 in every way, except the 'feeling' part. Turns that I'd be apart of before--this car goes 'meh...give me more.'

Any of you miss your old one? Have an old one and enjoy driving it more than your 'better' one?
I do miss my 2004 Steel Blue Metallic 325I. Bought it new in 2004 and sold it in 2019 with 195k miles. If I had the space I would have kept it as a project car.
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      02-21-2021, 04:45 PM   #3
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Your F30 is about the size of a comparable E39 back in the day. It feels bigger, because it is. If you wanted an e46 feel you would have been better off with a F22 2 series coupe or sedan, or better still an X drive F44 2 gran coupe. Unfortunately you can't get the gran coupe with a manual
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      02-21-2021, 05:34 PM   #4
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Yup I really miss my 2002 330i. Bought it new, passed it to my daughter for a couple years, then sold around 2014 with about 120k.

I didn’t think I missed it initially, but then after about 6 months exclusively driving my new 2014 335i, I needed to drive the old E46 somewhere.

My first impression after 6 months: “Wow this interior feels old”
My 2nd impression: “WTF is the power steering broken?”
My 3rd impression after 5 minutes on the road: “OMG I love this car!”

The E46 is slower, louder, older, etc. All of those things. But something about the steering, suspension, exhaust, and engine combine to make a package that’s easy to fall in love with. My 335i is a fantastic appliance, but I really don’t feel the same attachment.
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      02-21-2021, 07:03 PM   #5
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I miss my 2000 328i 5spd. I bought it in 2006 with 75k miles and sold it 12 years later with over 200k. I practically rebuilt that car from ground up with all the maintenance items I had to address over those years. I think I did the FCAB 3-4x, replaced all regulators, VANOS, crank case vent valve, valve cover gasket, radiator, expansion tank 2x, two batteries, tons of rubber parts, etc. etc.

My F30 has been much more reliable and is superior in almost every way, but I miss the size and steering in the e46. In some ways, I miss the quirks of the car too. I also would say that while the F30 engine is as smooth as butter, there was something about that naturally aspirated m52tu that was incredible. Perhaps part of it is nostalgia...who’s to say?
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      02-21-2021, 07:05 PM   #6
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I'd sooner go back to one of my 300,000 mile VW diesels than drive an e36 or 46 over my F30.

The 335d is the only E90 that would just hardly be close.
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      02-21-2021, 08:40 PM   #7
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      02-21-2021, 09:06 PM   #8
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Never owned anything older than an F chassis, but even so I can still guarantee you're 100% right. The car is numb, having driven a lot of G series those feel even worse.

Unfortunately this is happening with every brand, they're trying to have a corporate identity and a universal chassis design.
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      02-21-2021, 09:42 PM   #9
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The E46 is grossly overrated. I couldn't wait to get rid of mine. F3X RWD M-Sport with Adaptive M Suspension solves the handling concern, and the 8 speed automatic transmission just pulls like crazy.

The E46 romanticism is tired.

What options do you have on your F30? M-Sport? Sport? Did you get the Adaptive suspension? Because the X-Drive suspension without one of those options is the worst of the bunch.
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      02-21-2021, 10:29 PM   #10
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I don't, because I still have it: my 2002 330i, along with my 2015 335i
Why I still have it? because its a great car, its in excellent condition and drives great!
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      02-21-2021, 11:35 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by toddwalton View Post
The E46 is grossly overrated. I couldn't wait to get rid of mine. F3X RWD M-Sport with Adaptive M Suspension solves the handling concern, and the 8 speed automatic transmission just pulls like crazy.

The E46 romanticism is tired.

What options do you have on your F30? M-Sport? Sport? Did you get the Adaptive suspension? Because the X-Drive suspension without one of those options is the worst of the bunch.
I love my 8 speed sport automatic transmission. Also, I think LCI steering in sport mode is really well weighted. It seems as though they fixed the issues regarding light steering
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      02-21-2021, 11:45 PM   #12
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Originally Posted by schnellwagen View Post
I love my 8 speed sport automatic transmission. Also, I think LCI steering in sport mode is really well weighted. It seems as though they fixed the issues regarding light steering
Agree completely.

My LCI F36 and my LCI F33 are just a pleasure to drive. Tight and sporty when I want it, comfortable and moderate when I don't. With the right suspension setup, it's among the best driving and handling cars BMW has ever made. I test drove a G20 rather aggressively and I felt the F3X was better, actually.
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      02-22-2021, 12:07 AM   #13
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I have an E36 M3, E46 M3, and F31 M sport. The F3x creature comforts are nice, the styling is fantastic, and I REALLY enjoy not having to stay on top of the aging BMW game as the other two are constantly needing something. And they are low mile cars. It's a great daily but it just does not feel special and the size difference is definitely noticeable.

I had toyed with the idea of getting rid of the E46 but i'm glad I didn't. E46 is peak classic BMW. The F31 has potential though, and to be fair it's still on runflats and the base 4x4 suspension (non-adaptive unfortunately). Hopefully rectifying those things will really close the gap, but xDrive steering feel needs a lot of help before i'll be happy. Really wish I could have gotten the b58 as well... so be glad you have that.

Overall I think there's a cost/benefit with either platform. The older cars are more analog for sure, but they get less charming the more you have to fix things. And you can dial alot of feel back IN to the newer car fairly easily. Frustrating that BMW didn't get that right from the get-go though.
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      02-22-2021, 08:16 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by toddwalton View Post
The E46 is grossly overrated. I couldn't wait to get rid of mine. F3X RWD M-Sport with Adaptive M Suspension solves the handling concern, and the 8 speed automatic transmission just pulls like crazy.

The E46 romanticism is tired.

What options do you have on your F30? M-Sport? Sport? Did you get the Adaptive suspension? Because the X-Drive suspension without one of those options is the worst of the bunch.
Oh no you d'int!

I have no handling concerns with my 340 xD, M-sport, 6-spd...I drive the car I have fine. No adaptive suspension per se; but I drive for the conditions I have and if I don't know the conditions, I drive until I know.

The f30 is amazing--too amazing.

I drive mostly 'boring' on highway, or 'most I can' in and around suburban NJ. With the E46 and its light front end, nice gearing in the 5-spd, I could work the engine though its range. I could stay in 2nd all the way to 69 mph and the engine sung. The f30 in 2nd sort of screams...and she tells me she wants 6th. 6th? Already?

It's too comfortable--I feel secure, got tunes, power, handling, heated seats, hud...even automatic revmatching. I am riding, not driving.

E36's nimbleness? Every day was an adventure to see if I'd take my hands off the wheel and bump into a tree while trying to light a cigarette and shift at the same time. Death was around every turn. Driving was fun, exciting, engaged. Me and the car were one.

Me and this f30? We're not one yet. The jury is still out.
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      02-22-2021, 08:20 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jvit27 View Post

I had toyed with the idea of getting rid of the E46 but i'm glad I didn't. E46 is peak classic BMW. The F31 has potential though, and to be fair it's still on runflats and the base 4x4 suspension (non-adaptive unfortunately).
Yeah, that's it in a nutshell. As a public service to others:

As the F3X transitions to preowned buyers, some of whom don't do their homework before making a purchase and are trying to save money, it needs to be stated that each suspension is uniquely different than another and for the lifespan of the F3X generation, the X-Drive is generally thought to be the least sporty and least nimble by enthusiasts. This is the pecking order:

RWD Adaptive-M
RWD Sport
RWD Luxury
AWD Adaptive-M
AWD All Other Trims

Just a head's up to those considering an F3X. If you want the type of ride closest to the old days, you must find an example that is an LCI, RWD, with the Adaptive-M Suspension option. Any X-Drive version, even with the M-Sport package, will not provide the type of handling you seek as that doesn't have an M-Sport suspension or a Sport suspension, it has the X-Drive Suspension.

The F3X gets a bad reputation because if configured in its cheapest iterations it rides and handles like a Camry. Not very many people got the Adaptive-M Suspension in the early days of the F3X. And while some positive changes were made for the LCI, it's still about the Adaptive-M Suspension.
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      02-22-2021, 09:30 AM   #16
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I miss the steering feel of my e46 330D Touring (compared to my F31 320D Touring)...but it's not too bad if I keep in Sport mode.
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      02-22-2021, 09:51 AM   #17
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I never understood the allure of the E46 chassis. My friend had a 2001 325i as his first car and it had everything fail on it right down to the automatic transmission that he ended up manual swapping. The thing was a POS. For most of my high school years and my first year of college, I hated BMW's but a college friend introduced me to his 135i and I wanted one so bad. I ended up getting my 435i 3 years later, which was last year hahaha. But, yeah, I still don't like the E46.
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      02-22-2021, 10:25 AM   #18
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      02-22-2021, 10:28 AM   #19
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I really miss mine. It's still the standard I use to judge everything else I own/drive. My RWD F32 with MSport and ECD is heavy, soggy, and numb in comparison. It might be faster with much higher handling limits, but it is no where even close as fun to drive...and to my eyes, as good looking. I liked the E36 and E46 much better inside and out.

Mine was a '99 Titanium Silver 323. It had a manual transmission and the only options on the car was the sport package and the moon roof.

The balance and the way the car handled was fantastic and it was so communicative it felt like you were wearing the car like an Ironman suit rather than simply getting inside a car like you do the F3X cars. No car I've owned since then, to include my F32, has been as enjoyable to drive. The E46 was in a completely different league. When I owned the car, I loved it, but now that I've owned other cars and driven many, many, more, I realize how special the car and the chassis really was.

I also enjoyed the interior look of the E46 much better than any BMW since. I didn't have the nav, so the entire dash area was one very simple, plain, yet attractive area. The ergonomics were nearly perfect and I really miss the window controls down by the shift lever.

My only complaint with the car was it felt under powered in the 323i trim (around 175hp). I probably would have been much happier with the 328/330, but I couldn't afford it at the time.

The car wasn't real reliable at first, but I managed to fix most of the problems before the warranty expired. By the time I sold it seven years later (due to an overseas move) with 130K on the odo, it was running smoother and got better gas mileage than when it was newer. It was also rattle free and as tight/fun to drive as it was brand new.

Wow...thinking about that car I really miss it now and regret selling it even more...
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      02-22-2021, 10:38 AM   #20
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Partially I think it's a case of human nature and wanting what you can't have.

Not directly related, but ever since I sold my GTI for my 440 (RWD, adaptive struts), I found myself sometimes wishing for the lighter, more tossable, "carefree" nature of my GTI. I will admit that it felt lighter on its feet and the steering had more feedback but truth was, it was showing its age by the time I sold it. Whilst there wasn't one single catastrophic thing wrong with it, there were several little things starting to break that was wearing on me.

I also think the human mind tends to glorify a lot of things from the past with the passage of time, and perhaps the E46 cult following is not much different.
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      02-22-2021, 11:53 AM   #21
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I did like my old 330 e46 from 2002. We bought it new and it ran like a champ until totaled in 2017 with nearly 150 K miles. It was in great shape and I would have kept it. I took good care of the car, but as pointed out it is hard to keep an old car running well and although I trusted it, for long trips it was not my first choice. My newer 2018 340 is just a newer car and thus one that I feel more comfortable taking on trips with kids in the car.
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      02-22-2021, 12:52 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dmaxdmax View Post
Oh no you d'int!
The problem with romanticizing the E46 in 2021 is that it's a 23 year old car, 15 if you got one from the last year of production. They're no longer safe as daily drivers, I don't see the upside of a slight increase in steering (if that, I don't think there is any) compared to the downside of old seat belts, old airbags, old traction control and all the other safety features compromised here compared to those found in modern BMW's.

The E46 is now an antique. It's a car you drive 10x a year on weekends, maybe take to a car meetup or a car show. It's not something that should be compared to an F3X or a G2X, its no longer in the same league as far as safety, reliability, and driving experience. Hell, the E9X too for that matter.
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