Thinking of Buying a M3 evolution Convertible(E36)
Discussion
Buy a coupe! Convertible is too wobbly.
Buy with BMW Warranty, do not even consider one without. Make sure at 60k the rear bushes have been replaced. Clutch will be nearing the end if driven hard. Make sure Vanos bolts have been replaced!!!!
If you buy without a BMW warranty the Vanos will cost you £1600. Check the usual discs, wheel condition, interior, front tyre wear (uneven) points to tracking probs which need to be fully aligned at BMW. Full service history by a main dealer if possible. This is required to keep the warranty running. This can be expensive if Insp 2 comes up. Barons of Farnborough quoted £950.
Check out groups.yahoo.com/E36MPOWER for all you need to know. If there has been a problem with a car it has been discussed at some point on the forum.
SMG option takes about two weeks to get used to but after that you will enjoy, even if it is shadowed by SMG 2 and purist opinions.
Post 97 models had updated front grill (larger kidneys).
If you really feel the need for toupee troubling motoring try and get one with a hardtop.
0-60 5.4 secs
0-100 12.8 secs
155mph
32.5mpg (combined)
Check out
www.independent-mc.co.uk
www.jamespaul.co.uk
www.riverbourne.co.uk
www.carlians.co.uk
Buy with BMW Warranty, do not even consider one without. Make sure at 60k the rear bushes have been replaced. Clutch will be nearing the end if driven hard. Make sure Vanos bolts have been replaced!!!!
If you buy without a BMW warranty the Vanos will cost you £1600. Check the usual discs, wheel condition, interior, front tyre wear (uneven) points to tracking probs which need to be fully aligned at BMW. Full service history by a main dealer if possible. This is required to keep the warranty running. This can be expensive if Insp 2 comes up. Barons of Farnborough quoted £950.
Check out groups.yahoo.com/E36MPOWER for all you need to know. If there has been a problem with a car it has been discussed at some point on the forum.
SMG option takes about two weeks to get used to but after that you will enjoy, even if it is shadowed by SMG 2 and purist opinions.
Post 97 models had updated front grill (larger kidneys).
If you really feel the need for toupee troubling motoring try and get one with a hardtop.
0-60 5.4 secs
0-100 12.8 secs
155mph
32.5mpg (combined)
Check out
www.independent-mc.co.uk
www.jamespaul.co.uk
www.riverbourne.co.uk
www.carlians.co.uk
have to back up previous quotes,,,car enthusiast mate had the same idea of roof down with 1/2 a Mclaren under the hood,,,,sold it within weeks due to scuttle shake,,,,quotes it as the worst car he has ever owned.
If you want to pose around slowly with some big tunes playing then it's probably hard to beat.
If you want to pose around slowly with some big tunes playing then it's probably hard to beat.
Totally agree a coupe is the way to go 
- I used to have a E36 Evo and it was brill. Never driven a M3 Evo convertible but was genuinely shocked first time I drove a mate's E36 328i drop-top - it handled like a rubber dinghy. Quite frankly, wouldn't want to experience 321bhp strapped into that chassis! 
Why not get a coupe with a sunroof?!
Chris
- I used to have a E36 Evo and it was brill. Never driven a M3 Evo convertible but was genuinely shocked first time I drove a mate's E36 328i drop-top - it handled like a rubber dinghy. Quite frankly, wouldn't want to experience 321bhp strapped into that chassis! Why not get a coupe with a sunroof?!
Chris
Hi guy's,
I have just purchased an E36 M3 Evo Convertable.
I have driven both the coupe and convertible before and I have to say that unless you intend on taking the car for track days and seriously testing the cars handling you wont see that much of a difference between the two cars. I have to admit that the scuttle shake can get on your nerves a bit if you are driving on poor road surfaces that are full of potholes (which are increasingly common these days ((cheers labour)))!
But there is not a soft top 4 seater car produced that doesn’t suffer from this problem!!!
P.S.
I have a hard top with mine and it douse give the car allot more rigidity and reduces the scuttle shake dramatically so I would advise getting one with a hard top!!! (Plus they look allot better than with the soft top up).
Anyway enough of my ranting! I'd just like to say Hi to you all as this is my first time on the BM forum and I’m shore you’ll be hearing more from me and I'll try to get some pics of my car on asap!
P.P.S. I would also advise fitting strut braces to the convertible model as this gives the car allot more rigidity.
>> Edited by stejames on Wednesday 26th February 14:50
I have just purchased an E36 M3 Evo Convertable.
I have driven both the coupe and convertible before and I have to say that unless you intend on taking the car for track days and seriously testing the cars handling you wont see that much of a difference between the two cars. I have to admit that the scuttle shake can get on your nerves a bit if you are driving on poor road surfaces that are full of potholes (which are increasingly common these days ((cheers labour)))! But there is not a soft top 4 seater car produced that doesn’t suffer from this problem!!! P.S.
I have a hard top with mine and it douse give the car allot more rigidity and reduces the scuttle shake dramatically so I would advise getting one with a hard top!!! (Plus they look allot better than with the soft top up).
Anyway enough of my ranting! I'd just like to say Hi to you all as this is my first time on the BM forum and I’m shore you’ll be hearing more from me and I'll try to get some pics of my car on asap!
P.P.S. I would also advise fitting strut braces to the convertible model as this gives the car allot more rigidity.
>> Edited by stejames on Wednesday 26th February 14:50
Hi, Ive just come acros this write up on the topgear website and thaught it might be of some intrest:
"Following the theme of last month?s story, where our leader told the tale of driving the stunning Ferrari 456 along the A456, you could now be reading the riveting sequel ? how I drove the new BMW M3 on the M3. But you don?t want to hear about bad weather, roadworks and unmarked police cars. Let?s concentrate on the car.
As aficionados of high-speed hardware may already be aware, the M3?s muscular three-litre, six-cylinder motor punches out a wholesome 286bhp at 7,000rpm and 236lb ft of torque at 3,600rpm. BMW Motorsport could have toned down the existing M3 coupe?s impressive credentials to suit a less performance-orientated convertible buyer, but it hasn?t happened. The M3 Convertible gets the same 24-valve M-Technic engine, the same six-speed transmission, the same hugely powerful brakes and the same firm but supple suspension. There are a few differences under the skin, though. In common with other 3-Series convertibles, the electrically-operated hood conceals its complex mechanicals very tidily, and there?s a reinforced windscreen surround, plus two roll-over bars behind the rear seats, which spring violently into position should the car find itself approaching an upside-down situation. In addition, there?s some chassis stiffening which is deemed necessary when there?s no steel roof to act as a chassis brace.
All this gubbins adds 176lbs to the weight and takes a tiny toll on the convertible M3?s performance. BMW?s claimed performance figures are (coupe in brackets): 0-62mph in 6.2secs (6.0), 50-75mph in fourth gear in 6.9secs (6.4) and an electronically limited 155mph top speed for both. The M3, with or without a top, is real fast.
But so much for raw data. Actually driving the car is where the fun really begins. For a start you need to be psychologically well-adjusted because of the almost unprecedented amount of neck-straining admiration you?ll receive from just about anybody who?s got an eye for a car. People love its looks. Even the red-faced Mr Angry who yelled expletives at us while we were doing the cornering photos wanted to know its name.
The M3 hard-top is forgiving to drive, either in traffic or on the open road, and the new car is no different. The gears are easy to find and the clutch action surprisingly light. Although there are lots of ratios to choose from, this car isn?t particularly fussed about which gear it?s in. Just tread on the throttle, the M3 responds and you?re gone, simple as that.
The speed-sensitive power steering is beyond criticism and despite the vast amount of power driving through the rear wheels, M3s are by no means tail happy. The back end stays in line unless severely provoked and the 235/40x17 Michelin Pilots cling on for all they?re worth. The coupe may be slightly quicker around a racetrack than the convertible but, hey, who cares? The joys of open-top motoring, coupled with the extra clarity of the raspy straight-six motor afforded by the absence of a roof, more than make up for a tiny difference in performance, a little dashboard movement over rough roads or even some extra wind noise at motorway speeds. Lowering or raising the hood is simplicity itself. Lower the side windows (a one-button operation), twist a handle in the hood, then hold the button down until it?s complete. It isn?t the fastest procedure we?ve come across but only the very doziest will be dampened in a downpour.
You also get Nappa leather seat trim as standard, which, should you be a bit tardy with the hood button, will be more water-resistant and will dry out faster than the cloth and Amaretta coverings of the coupe. Other differences between the M3s are minor. The convertible?s standard forged aluminium wheels have polished high spots and the front spoiler has been modified to match its slightly different aerodynamic profile.
Of the hundreds of cars which have passed through our hands over the past year, there have been a few which we?ve been truly sorry to see go and fewer which we?d love to keep forever. The M3 Convertible is one. But there?s a problem. At ?37,500 it?s cheaper than any remotely comparable car, but that sort of money is a bit of a barrier to us BBC employees. Pity."
Tom Stewart.
"Following the theme of last month?s story, where our leader told the tale of driving the stunning Ferrari 456 along the A456, you could now be reading the riveting sequel ? how I drove the new BMW M3 on the M3. But you don?t want to hear about bad weather, roadworks and unmarked police cars. Let?s concentrate on the car.
As aficionados of high-speed hardware may already be aware, the M3?s muscular three-litre, six-cylinder motor punches out a wholesome 286bhp at 7,000rpm and 236lb ft of torque at 3,600rpm. BMW Motorsport could have toned down the existing M3 coupe?s impressive credentials to suit a less performance-orientated convertible buyer, but it hasn?t happened. The M3 Convertible gets the same 24-valve M-Technic engine, the same six-speed transmission, the same hugely powerful brakes and the same firm but supple suspension. There are a few differences under the skin, though. In common with other 3-Series convertibles, the electrically-operated hood conceals its complex mechanicals very tidily, and there?s a reinforced windscreen surround, plus two roll-over bars behind the rear seats, which spring violently into position should the car find itself approaching an upside-down situation. In addition, there?s some chassis stiffening which is deemed necessary when there?s no steel roof to act as a chassis brace.
All this gubbins adds 176lbs to the weight and takes a tiny toll on the convertible M3?s performance. BMW?s claimed performance figures are (coupe in brackets): 0-62mph in 6.2secs (6.0), 50-75mph in fourth gear in 6.9secs (6.4) and an electronically limited 155mph top speed for both. The M3, with or without a top, is real fast.
But so much for raw data. Actually driving the car is where the fun really begins. For a start you need to be psychologically well-adjusted because of the almost unprecedented amount of neck-straining admiration you?ll receive from just about anybody who?s got an eye for a car. People love its looks. Even the red-faced Mr Angry who yelled expletives at us while we were doing the cornering photos wanted to know its name.
The M3 hard-top is forgiving to drive, either in traffic or on the open road, and the new car is no different. The gears are easy to find and the clutch action surprisingly light. Although there are lots of ratios to choose from, this car isn?t particularly fussed about which gear it?s in. Just tread on the throttle, the M3 responds and you?re gone, simple as that.
The speed-sensitive power steering is beyond criticism and despite the vast amount of power driving through the rear wheels, M3s are by no means tail happy. The back end stays in line unless severely provoked and the 235/40x17 Michelin Pilots cling on for all they?re worth. The coupe may be slightly quicker around a racetrack than the convertible but, hey, who cares? The joys of open-top motoring, coupled with the extra clarity of the raspy straight-six motor afforded by the absence of a roof, more than make up for a tiny difference in performance, a little dashboard movement over rough roads or even some extra wind noise at motorway speeds. Lowering or raising the hood is simplicity itself. Lower the side windows (a one-button operation), twist a handle in the hood, then hold the button down until it?s complete. It isn?t the fastest procedure we?ve come across but only the very doziest will be dampened in a downpour.
You also get Nappa leather seat trim as standard, which, should you be a bit tardy with the hood button, will be more water-resistant and will dry out faster than the cloth and Amaretta coverings of the coupe. Other differences between the M3s are minor. The convertible?s standard forged aluminium wheels have polished high spots and the front spoiler has been modified to match its slightly different aerodynamic profile.
Of the hundreds of cars which have passed through our hands over the past year, there have been a few which we?ve been truly sorry to see go and fewer which we?d love to keep forever. The M3 Convertible is one. But there?s a problem. At ?37,500 it?s cheaper than any remotely comparable car, but that sort of money is a bit of a barrier to us BBC employees. Pity."
Tom Stewart.
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