[ktrainman]

Two very different ownership experiences.
You have to look at what you want in terms of classic vs modern, time vs money. The community for each is obviously very different too.

[stefan]

Originally Posted by M3 Adjuster

Lol about the EPS and turbos. The 1M only has turbos and I feel the same way about the M2 and M2 competition so far ... I don't want to go to both.

Spot on about the E46 M3 vert performing closer to a 330 hard top... the lack of a roof really makes the chassis floppy. I had both in the garage at the same time and the only reason to take the E46 M3 was the roof down.

The S54 was weak around town for daily driving and of course a convertible as a track car compare to a hardtop is not a comparison. Owning both, I always felt like the S54 in the 1M and the N54 in the E46 M3 convertible would have been the best motor to vehicle combos.

They also changed something in 2004. All 2004-2006 cars are noticeably stiffer. I and my mechanic have found this in all cases. Didn't find any documentation on this but it certainly feels like all 04+ chassis are just more solid.

[Obioban]

Originally Posted by stefan

They also changed something in 2004. All 2004-2006 cars are noticeably stiffer. I and my mechanic have found this in all cases. Didn't find any documentation on this but it certainly feels like all 04+ chassis are just more solid.

Probably because of the change to softer/higher springs for 04-06.

No changes to chassis stiffness other than the strut tower brace in mid MY2002 (and the CF roof for the CSL, but that doesn’t apply to the normal car).