Finally found the one - '11 E90 M3
01-16-2015, 03:25 AM
#151
True dealerships are always a great place to have maintenance done. I still take my car to the dealership, just because of how weird Nissan may or may not be, so I understand how you feel. But I'm sure as long as you are using the recommended oil and such, you should be fine. Just have them document on the ticket what they used.
01-16-2015, 05:49 AM
#152
^^^ One of the reasons why I moved on this car so fast was due to it's color combo and third pedal. Is this combo a big deal in the M3 world like it is here for the S?
No plans to mod as this car came with an extended warranty (MaxCare) that is good till 100k miles or March 2019. I'm thinking of just doing some of the OEM mods... carbon pieces on exterior and interior, M performance steering wheel, black GTS wheels, and that's probably it. Maybe even the M performance exhaust ($$$$, ugh), or do the OEM exhaust mod. I'm just too nervous about putting springs on or something, and having warranty work denied for no reason.
Right now I'm torn with what to do about the service the car has coming up... I have a quote from the dealer to do plugs, oil, diff. This is what the key told the SA. It's quite expensive, but thankfully the seller knocked the price down before I bought the car. But, I talked to my local Indy shop, and to have them do the above PLUS trans oil, PS fluid, coolant, it comes out to the same price. HUGE savings. But I'm skeptical because receipts from a dealer are always better proof of documented work. Thoughts?
No plans to mod as this car came with an extended warranty (MaxCare) that is good till 100k miles or March 2019. I'm thinking of just doing some of the OEM mods... carbon pieces on exterior and interior, M performance steering wheel, black GTS wheels, and that's probably it. Maybe even the M performance exhaust ($$$$, ugh), or do the OEM exhaust mod. I'm just too nervous about putting springs on or something, and having warranty work denied for no reason.
Right now I'm torn with what to do about the service the car has coming up... I have a quote from the dealer to do plugs, oil, diff. This is what the key told the SA. It's quite expensive, but thankfully the seller knocked the price down before I bought the car. But, I talked to my local Indy shop, and to have them do the above PLUS trans oil, PS fluid, coolant, it comes out to the same price. HUGE savings. But I'm skeptical because receipts from a dealer are always better proof of documented work. Thoughts?
01-16-2015, 07:51 AM
#153
Ditto just keep receipts for everything and date/mileage.
01-16-2015, 12:21 PM
#155
Registered User
FISH22:
You really have the rarest of the M3's because:
E90 is high demand
White of course is high demand
Red Interior is a hot combo on white exterior
6-speed is hot and saves weight over the silly DCT
I don't know how your car is optioned out but the general rule the less the better. Heavily optioned cars are not great for purists.
In the m3 community, you will see tons of e92/e93 m3's for sale with the white/red combo so that in itself is not rare at all, in fact way too common. But very few sedans. The only car more rare would be the e90 M3 Dakar Yellow m3. Only one exists but sadly it's a DCT.
You really have the rarest of the M3's because:
E90 is high demand
White of course is high demand
Red Interior is a hot combo on white exterior
6-speed is hot and saves weight over the silly DCT
I don't know how your car is optioned out but the general rule the less the better. Heavily optioned cars are not great for purists.
In the m3 community, you will see tons of e92/e93 m3's for sale with the white/red combo so that in itself is not rare at all, in fact way too common. But very few sedans. The only car more rare would be the e90 M3 Dakar Yellow m3. Only one exists but sadly it's a DCT.
01-16-2015, 12:29 PM
#156
FISH22:
You really have the rarest of the M3's because:
E90 is high demand
White of course is high demand
Red Interior is a hot combo on white exterior
6-speed is hot and saves weight over the silly DCT
I don't know how your car is optioned out but the general rule the less the better. Heavily optioned cars are not great for purists.
In the m3 community, you will see tons of e92/e93 m3's for sale with the white/red combo so that in itself is not rare at all, in fact way too common. But very few sedans. The only car more rare would be the e90 M3 Dakar Yellow m3. Only one exists but sadly it's a DCT.
You really have the rarest of the M3's because:
E90 is high demand
White of course is high demand
Red Interior is a hot combo on white exterior
6-speed is hot and saves weight over the silly DCT
I don't know how your car is optioned out but the general rule the less the better. Heavily optioned cars are not great for purists.
In the m3 community, you will see tons of e92/e93 m3's for sale with the white/red combo so that in itself is not rare at all, in fact way too common. But very few sedans. The only car more rare would be the e90 M3 Dakar Yellow m3. Only one exists but sadly it's a DCT.
01-16-2015, 03:20 PM
#157
Registered User
Thread Starter
FISH22:
You really have the rarest of the M3's because:
E90 is high demand
White of course is high demand
Red Interior is a hot combo on white exterior
6-speed is hot and saves weight over the silly DCT
I don't know how your car is optioned out but the general rule the less the better. Heavily optioned cars are not great for purists.
In the m3 community, you will see tons of e92/e93 m3's for sale with the white/red combo so that in itself is not rare at all, in fact way too common. But very few sedans. The only car more rare would be the e90 M3 Dakar Yellow m3. Only one exists but sadly it's a DCT.
You really have the rarest of the M3's because:
E90 is high demand
White of course is high demand
Red Interior is a hot combo on white exterior
6-speed is hot and saves weight over the silly DCT
I don't know how your car is optioned out but the general rule the less the better. Heavily optioned cars are not great for purists.
In the m3 community, you will see tons of e92/e93 m3's for sale with the white/red combo so that in itself is not rare at all, in fact way too common. But very few sedans. The only car more rare would be the e90 M3 Dakar Yellow m3. Only one exists but sadly it's a DCT.
04-29-2017, 06:33 PM
#159
So I know this has been several years and I just wanted an update on how you like the car now? I am trying to decide between the three you had as well. Mainly just looking for a fun comfortable daily to haul my kids around town.
05-01-2017, 08:22 AM
#160
Pros:
-8,400rpm V8 - can't wait to get an exhaust for it.
-Great neutral, predictable handling and some actual steering feel. Vs. my E39 M5, which only weighed 300lbs more, it feels far more athletic, nimble, and light on its feet. I have now done autocrosses in both and it's night and day between the two. In my only autocross with the M3 I placed 9th/67 in a Corvette Club event. That probably says more about the caliber of Vette drivers than anything else, but it was fun to hang with some serious machinery in my four-door.
-Interior is pretty nice and has most of the modern amenities. iDrive isn't even so bad on '09+ models.
-Looks great IMO. The sedan has a sort of bulldog-like aggressive stance that the coupe doesn't quite pull off IMO.
-Good interior space for the car's size (it's only 8" longer than my G3 Integra coupe). I got this for future kid planning, but my best friend also got one and said child seats fit, although it is tight.
-Lots of option and color variations. This can be a pro and a con (I spent a year looking before finding one that really hit the spot for me), but you can have a leather/sunroof/nav/19"s car or a cloth-insert/slicktop/no-iDrive/18"s one and anything in between, with a multitude of interior color choices. Mine is a unique mix that I love - heated seats, nav, Competition Pkg, red leather, Individual Audio w/16 speakers and 825 watts... but no sunroof and manual seats (both save a chunk of weight).
-Ride is good with the EDC adjustable dampers. The "M" button is great for setting throttle response, EDC, stability control, and steering effort (and shift speed in DCT cars) to your preferences, so when the mood strikes it's a different car.
Cons:
-Gas mileage. Holy sh!t gas mileage. I have a 7-8 mile commute each way that is about half highway, half city, and average 15mpg. On solely freeway I get... 20-21mpg. And I normally drive rather gently. A new GMC Yukon XL Denali has the same EPA ratings. And the heavier, 0.9L bigger E39 M5 got a touch better mileage due to gearing and torque. We often take my wife's C350 on weekends (same size and still a 3.5L 302hp V6) because it gets 50% better mileage. And with a 16.6 gal tank, you're at the pump a lot.
-Parts cost. I haven't had to replace much of anything yet, but at some point, 19" tires, $1,300 sets of brake rotors, $300-400 felt underbody panels that get damaged by road debris, and $1000+ throttle body actuators (there are two and failure is inevitable) are coming.
-Reliability worries. Within 2 weeks of getting mine, both throttle actuators went and caused limp mode. I wasn't even past the 30-day waiting period for my aftermarket warranty. Lucky for me, the California 7/70k emissions warranty paid for the $3k expense. Also, it wouldn't start once because there is a fusebox cable that has a bad connection. They did a recall for all 3-series but NOT THE M3 which is completely baffling. All it took was a little nudge to the fuse box and it never happened again, but on a 2011 "luxury" car with 47k, that's annoying. Otherwise it's been completely fine, and IMO any used car will require a thing or two upfront, but stuff like rod bearings is always in the back of your mind - it's not a Honda. Get a warranty for peace of mind.
-MT shifter is just okay. Stock I'd rate it a 5/10, where it doesn't detract from the experience, but it's not that fun to shift either. Swapping a shorter, weighted knob upped this to maybe a 7/10, but it's still not a car that you downshift just for fun like an S2000. I might pursue further mods for this, like an actual short shift kit. Still no regrets vs. the DCT (which is also great if you like that sort of thing).
All in all, I can't think of a car I'd be happier with for the intended goal of a practical, comfortable car that has an exotic engine in it and sublime handling.
Last edited by white98ls; 05-01-2017 at 08:27 AM.