i am looking at a 2002-2004 m3 cab...for myself. i understand the early engines (2001) had some failures and things were corrected. any difference/preference between these years . which might be a better car, etc.... lower miles and a car that has not been beat would be the right choice. thanks

 

I think 2003.5 and on switched to LED taillight cluster. only quick change i can think of off the top of my head

 

You can get a lot of M3 answers at http://www.e46fanatics.com/ incase members here don't answer what you need.

 

The rod bearing failure (not engine failure) affected cars between 2001-2003 but BMW stepped up and extended the warranty to 100K miles. Other than that the differences between the 01's and 04's is minimal.

 

The early 2001 cars did not have the bearing problem. They switched vendors in mid-year the BMW sites list the problem cars by build date.

 

thanks.

 

My recommendation would be for a 2003.5 (I think April production on).

I say the 2003.5 because it has the updated look, the 100K engine warranty, and a decent price.

 

The 03.5's don't really look any different with the exception of the LED taillights and I don't believe all of the 03.5's got the 100K warranty but I could be wrong on that one.

 

All 2003's (including 03.5) have the 100k mile engine warranty.