I’ve had my 03’ JCW R53 mini for going on 6 years now. It’s been a great daily driver that has never left me on the side of the road. It’s got around 150,000 miles on it………and I’ve pretty much done everything too it that I can without getting into some really silly money spending. It’s got all of the common handling and suspension parts that people usually upgrade…it’s blast to drive.


Long story short…I like tinkering with cars, and my Mini just doesn’t need any more tinkering…so I’m thinking about getting something new. I’ve had the big, rough, high HP muscle cars before, but I’ve grown to love great handling from a more “refined” sports car even more…..than being said, I sure would like to find something that’s fun to drive…AND has some more power.


I’ve been looking at the E46 (2001-2006) BMW M3’s. From what I’ve read online….they handle awesome, and have good power (stock is around 330hp)….and has lots of aftermarket support for performance parts, and tuning (unlike the MINI’s).


Do any of you guys have M3’s? If so…how do they compare to the R53 MINI’s? Am I crazy for wanting one?
Any info would be great!!

 

Had a 2002 M3 convertible with SMG transmission. Really not a fair comparison to the MINI and I have owned two Gen 2 JCWs now - R56 and R59 not R53. M3 being rear wheel drive really outperforms the front wheel drive MINI JCWs and with quite a bit more power. Don't get me wrong, I love the MINI but not fair to compare to an M3. Just my $.02. I really didn't have much in the way of performance mods in any of those cars so mainly stock vs. stock.

 

I had a 135i, different body then the E46 but the engine after I tweaked it had similar numbers. I am thinking the E46 had some issues with the rear end welds coming loose, pretty sure somebody will chime in.

IMO you cannot compare the two cars. The M3 will go fast on just about every road you may find for daily cruising. The Mini is made for tight twisties, and I would take my JCW over the 135i any day for twisties.

 

I had a 330i sport... Pretty close, just down on about 100 hp. I have, however, driven an e46 m3 and around town it felt fairly similar. Obviously a little quicker, but M3's power was up much higher.

I hated the e46. It felt so ridiculously numb to me compared to my e34 535. I couldn't stand it and I miss my e34 still. You'll have all the standard BMW issues, too. Cooling system, mushrooming strut towers, subframe being ripped out, control arm bushings, vanos, myriad leaks, CCV clogging, electrical gremlins, etc. My disdain aside, there's a whole helluva lot of people who LOVE it. There's a lot more than can and will go wrong, but if you like tinkering then you might love it. If you're planning on doing suspension to give quite a bit more feedback, you might love that too. To me, it's more of a GT car than a truly fun car. But it's a really good GT car.

 

I currently own a r56 MCS and a 1999 e36 m3. I have to say "no you arent crazy for wanting one"
Ive always wanted a m3 and Ive had my 1999 since 2010
https://www.instagram.com/bimerdude/

The two cars couldnt be more different but I love them both for different reasons. I daily my mini and the M3 is the garage queen. The mini is perfect for buzzing around town and the gas mileage is not bad either . The m3 on the otherhand although dated puts a silly grin on my face ever time i hear the vanos kick in at WOT. I find my self driving the m3 on weekends and the mini during the work week. Hope that helps

 

Nice e36! Where did you get the fender flares from? That looks sharp!

 

Thanks! no flares sir she was born that way

 

Is that a special model of e36 ? I've never seen one with the wide flared out fenders like that.....only e46's.