M3 Buying Advice

[FJ_OPA80]

Hi Chaps,

Been lurking on the forum a while & only just signed up recently, looking to join the F80 club later on this year. I have a few queries and wonder if you might be able to advise.

1. Options wise, on my essential list is Reversing camera, DCT, HK stereo and Sun Pro Glass (Not sure if this is std). What else might I be missing?

2. My budget (~30-35k) means I'm looking at 2015-2017 cars depending on mileage (planning to get via BMW AUC). Now as I understand it the N55/S55 both had reports of crank hub issues upto 2016 year models. How much of this is an issue? What can be done to detect/mitigate/resolve it? As I understand it affected cars have the problem occur when downshifting suddenly in auto?

3. I'm fairly convinced within the first year of ownership I'll look to have the full MPE fit. Is this recommended and/or do people have other exhausts they would recommend? From YT research the Valvetronic exhaust seems to sound 'best' to my ears but thats not the best source of info for sure, particularly as they appear to be fairly new to the scene compared with the bigger names.

4. I'll be looking at AUC to take advantage of having a warranty on the car, and likely be looking to pay for the vast majority of the cost upfront and finance what is left. What is your experience of doing this with dealers, what APR should I gun for or should I finance privately? There is also a very very strong possibility I would be able to suddenly pay off the balance within 5-10 months of taking the finance out due to bonuses and such. Equally, is there typically room for movement with AUC or not?

Broadly speaking any other advice is welcome - I'm coming from a 530e but previously drove a 420d so the interior kit I'm fairly familiar with.

Thanks & I hope to share photos of the car I (eventually) end up with later in the year. Fair to say I'm one for doing my research.

[chedixon]

Hi mate,

You'll be really happy with one im sure, they are great cars.

HUD is considered an essential option by many, surround view is a nice option if you are wanting a reversing camera. Speed limit display is another great option along with LED adaptive lights and auto dipping.

Crank hub issues are blown way out of proportion, it only really occurs on mapped cars when it does happen and isnt MY specific, i really wouldn't be worried about that at all unless you're going to tune, in which case don't bother with AUC as your warranty would be worthless. If tuning there are crank hub upgrades available, factor in £1.5k - 2k parts and labour but its only happened to a small number of tuned cars, as said, blown wildly out of proportion on the internet, people pushing it often are the ones who have an interest in selling the 'apparent' fixes. In most cases where a crank hub slip has occurred there was no engine damage other than new hub, friction washer and re-time (£2k ish job).

If you are staying stock then AUC or private purchase with BMW extended warranty is a good way to buy, the later even better as it will save you the dealer markup. If you are stock and warrantied and unlucky enough to be one of the 0.01% the crank issue happened to you'd be covered so a good way to be imho.

The standard exhaust is valve controlled so can be easily modded by companies such as PCW exhausts (£300), BMW MPE exhausts sound good (they still use the standard valves on a different backbox) although they are prone to cracking, particularly version 1 MPE exhausts, these have no supports on the side of the rear pipes, V2 MPE's have supports added.
I still think the standard exhaust is plenty loud in Sport+ (valves open) to be honest so see how you get on, especially if you have neighbours! lol.
The latest thing is the aftermarket 'equal length' exhaust options which are said to be an improvement but I am yet to hear one.

Personal loans are always cheaper unless theres 0% or very low apr deals on at the dealers. Id buy private, with extended warranty if you can on a personal loan (3% apr deals are around).

factor in £800 per year to keep the bmw warranty going (based upon a £250 excess). its around £1k with a £100 excess and nearer £1300 with 0 excess.

Servicing is either £450ish or £1000ish (alternates), front pads and discs £600ish.

Turbos have been reported as going before people expect and can be expensive from bmw, £6k+ for both fitted. Reconditioned probably under £2k although theres cars on 70k + with original turbos so again, i think its the tuning aspect that isnt good for them.

Ive had mine 3.5 years now and its been brilliant, warranty proved worthwhile last year though when the rocker cover sprang a leak!

Warranty sounds expensive but as reliable as they are (and they are very good) they can get expensive quickly.

100% recommend one though, seriously quick car that are actually very comfy and a nice place to spend time. If you can get an enthusiast owned one with warranty the condition can often be better than AUC (seen some dogs on a bmw forecourt before!)

Che

[FJ_OPA80]

Firstly, what a phenomenal reply. Thank you for the advice.

HUD to be fair I think I hadn't really considered, but as I understand it there is an M mode on the hud which includes rev indicator which might help for spirited driving in manual mode. Good shout - will take that into consideration.

Speed Limit display I can manage without, but would be nice to have. The adaptive/ICON headlights are also desirable but I could happily live with the standard xenons.

Crank hub - good to hear that it's not something you consider worth worrying about. Means I don't need to immediately discount the '15 model cars. Currently there is a white AUC 15 model (65 plate) car which spec wise looks good and 17k miles on the clock for £32k if memory serves - seems good value but I note that looking up the reg shows it's been untaxed since October last year so wonder why it's been with the dealer so long.

Can BMW extended warranty be added to a privately purchased car after the fact or does the current owner have to have maintained warranty status since birth?

I didn't know about the MPE cracking so thanks for the heads up there. I did hear about a few solutions for making the valves always stay open so will dabble with these after purchase along with turning off ASD. Think it is possible to do this with bimmerlink and a dongle, based on what I think I read on here.

I did read quite a bit about milltek/valvetronic 'equal length' exhausts which apparently take out some of the rasp, but to be fair will reserve full judgement until I've got the keys in my hand and a few thousand miles under my belt in Sport and Sport+ when I'm brave enough.

Thanks for the added info so I can budget for warranty & services - helps to have that info to hand.

I don't suppose you have insight in terms of cost of MPS4S tyres, do you? And would you recommend separate sets of tyres for winter/summer? I have read some people don't like the MPS4S tyres at the front and prefer MPSS instead. Think I'm getting the abbreviations right. Currently on my 530e I pay about £250 a corner for the runflats, working on similar costs.

Honestly thanks for the input - very very useful!

[SteveChester]

Get one bought. That's my advice.

My crank hub span whilst it was stock and under AUC warranty so was fixed. It is a real issue but don't think it happens in large quantities.

[FJ_OPA80]

Originally Posted by SteveChester

Get one bought. That's my advice.

My crank hub span whilst it was stock and under AUC warranty so was fixed. It is a real issue but don't think it happens in large quantities.

Might I ask what the symptom is when this happens?

[chedixon]

Steve was really unlucky, I really wouldn't worry about it, particularly if you are looking at a warrantied car or buying a warranty.
There's been lots of polls and the numbers in comparison to how many S55 engines built are tiny. Mines a 2015 MY and at 38k without any crank issues, there was a big poll on m3cutters last year and only 3 reported failures, 2 tuned, 1 stock, that should put your mind at ease.

BMW warranty can be added to a private car that doesn't currently have it (or lapsed) although the 1st year will be near on double the prices I quoted I believe. There's also the risk that if the car had been previously tuned and returned to stock that the warranty could be void when you needed it. Dealers can plug a car in now and it will flag if the car has ever been tuned, if buying private without warranty I'd recommend a trip to the dealers as part of the purchase to get it checked, shouldn't cost much at all and if the seller has nothing to hide shouldn't be against it.

Standard tyre sizes for 19" wheels are 255/35/19 front and 275/35/19 rear, I dont have the comp 20's so cant say for certain the size/price but the 19's are £200 - £250 a pop.

MPSS all round is generally the standard fit tyre although many now (myself included) run MPSS front and MP4S rear. The tyre wall on MP4s is a little softer so you feel a bit more movement but the grip on MP4s is far superior in non optimal conditions which we get alot in the uk!

If you are doing a fair amount of winter mileage then winter wheels/tyres are a definite advantage as they work better at lower temperatures, you'd need to weigh up the cost versus benefit though, normal tyres are ok in anything but snow, note i say ok lol, rear traction in these cars isnt great if its not dry or 15 degrees plus on any tyre.
Ive ran normal tyres for 3 winters without issue but wouldnt go out in the snow.

A used set will set of winter wheels and tyres go for just over £1k normally, BMW were selling new sets recently for £1.1k but I think they are all sold out now.

There are a couple of valve controllers out there, I have the CG VSCII but I wouldn't recommend it, it stopped working after a year. OBDII ones are available and much more reliable.
Alternatively, you can manually set the valves to open and remove the plugs I think but you need to be careful to protect the connections on each end else they will soon corrode or break.

Adaptive lights are a worthy option, the way they keep main beam on at night but block out oncoming cars is awesome!
Best thing about the ?HUD for me is your speed displayed constantly in your eye line, really handy with all the cameras around, thats why I like the speed limit display also as its presented next to your current speed on the windscreen

Extended leather is standard on the M3/M4 and is a better quality leather than the standard bmw dakota stuff, full leather is an option that adds a nice touch by adding further leather to the tops of door cars, dash, glove box etc..

This is a fairly quiet forum to be honest, if your looking for more advice then I'd recommend the m3cutters site (https://forums.m3cutters.co.uk/), its much more active in the uk and has a good for sale section. A new forum has just been setup by an ex cutter also which although currently small has good knowledge and will likely grow over time (https://www.deutschespeed.com/)

Good luck with your search, sure you'll be smitten!

Che