A 20 year BMW E46 birthday on a rainy day

[slo town]

Y'all:

On this cold and rainy day in California's Central Coast Wine Country - the E46 is aging nicely in its little spot. It's been sitting there in silence for about 3 weeks. I took delivery on Feb 20, 2003 - 20 years ago - after special ordering it from the factory. A January 17, 2003 build date. When I ordered it there were literally no 330Ci’s in the entire country with ZSP (sport package), manual trans, leather sets, and no sunroof or any other frills. Paint is Steel Gray Metallic. Everything considered this has been an outstanding machine, one of the best cars I've ever owned. The E46 may be the last example of BMW's Ultimate Driving Machine era when the cars were relatively simple. Our E90 is more complex and harder to work on in every possible way. After taking these pictures it struck me that the E46 is finally starting to take up a classic look. After all, it is 20 years old...

Scott

 

[jeepman3071]

Probably my favorite BMW. Definitely has a timeless style. E46 was the first BMW I drove that made me fall in love with the way they drive. It was my friend's 2005 330i ZHP 6 speed that he still owns. Congrats on 20 years!

 

[VolvoZ]

Simultaneously classic and modern. One of my favorites. You probably regularly lock the car, walk away, then sneak a peak back at the car and say “man, that looks good”,,,, i know I would!

 

[cpayne5]

I've enjoyed the pictures you've posted of this car over the years, Scott. Still a very, very nice car - much to your love and care.

The early-to-mid 2000s produced some great cars that are aging very well.

 

[KS-Ryan]

I would drive a 4dr version of that forever. Love that body style.

 

[SubieRubyRoo]

Thanks for pics, Scott. Definitely a timeless shape.

Your garage reminds me of when I bought my Impreza, I walked into the back room of the small, locally owned dealer, and the guy had a dark gray metallic RHD R32 Skyline (GODZILLA!!) that he had just imported from Japan as a classic car. It was unmolested and had only like 17k km…. That’s a body style I’d lust over. The Conquest/Starion body along with the early 90s Supras are more. A similar pic to the Skyline is below.

Love those wheels too!

 

[Soft Cars]

Beautiful car. I would've never guessed it was 20 years old.

 

[daves87rs]

Looks great!!!

 

[fantastic]

Aging well. These are good looking cars.

 

[slo town]

Simultaneously classic and modern. One of my favorites. You probably regularly lock the car, walk away, then sneak a peak back at the car and say “man, that looks good”,,,, i know I would!

Actually, what I marvel at is how small it is. I'm pretty certain it's 6 or 8 inches shorter than a new Honda Civic!

Scott

 

[2strokeNorthstar]

I agree, these are the pinnacle of BMW development. I daily drove an E36 until last year. The E46 was an improvement without losing the what made BMWs great. They became an oversized, overcomplex, boring version of themselves quickly.

 

[john_pifer]

What a great car!

Is this the 3 liter I6 with 225 HP?

 

[slo town]

What a great car!

Is this the 3 liter I6 with 225 HP?

Yes it is. The M54 engine.

Scott

 

[53' Stude]

Pool night and bingo!

 

[drtyler]

Yes it is. The M54 engine.

Scott

View attachment 142841View attachment 142845View attachment 142846

Such a great car.

Which strut brace is installed?

 

[slo town]

Such a great car.

Which strut brace is installed?

Thanks. That is a Mason Engineering strut brace. I also have their revised geometry clutch pedal. That might be the best mod I've made to the car. Clutch take up is SUPERIOR with that clutch pedal.

Scott

 

[drtyler]

Thanks. That is a Mason Engineering strut brace. I also have their revised geometry clutch pedal. That might be the best mod I've made to the car. Clutch take up is SUPERIOR with that clutch pedal.

Scott

Thanks! That is good to know about the clutch pedal. A company makes an improved geometry pedal for the E90, sounds like it might be worthwhile (mine is a stick).

You are right about working on E90 vs E46. I like E90 fine, and have thoroughly enjoyed it. BUT, it is a bit more time consuming doing things in the engine compartment than my old E46.

And the 2 door E92 will never look as good as the E46 two door. BMW got that one right.

 

[slo town]

Thanks! That is good to know about the clutch pedal. A company makes an improved geometry pedal for the E90, sounds like it might be worthwhile (mine is a stick).

You are right about working on E90 vs E46. I like E90 fine, and have thoroughly enjoyed it. BUT, it is a bit more time consuming doing things in the engine compartment than my old E46.

And the 2 door E92 will never look as good as the E46 two door. BMW got that one right.

And just to clarify about the clutch take up; with the stock clutch (which my E46 has) it takes half the pedal travel to fully engage the clutch. I don't like that. With the Mason Engineering pedal the engagement is much quicker and fully engages with far less pedal travel.

FWIW,

Scott