msm
Well-known member
Sorry for the sh!t quality cell phone pic, but just got it this afternoon and was a hectic day: It's a 2004 SMG model with 142K KM - stock standard, as far as I can tell - even has the original exhaust with cats in place.
Car will need a bit of work to get in what I term immaculate condition, but actually looking forward to the next few weeks when I can start with it. I did not expect perfection in a 9 year old M car, but I'm happy with my purchase.
Factory extras on the car (besides what's standard):
Harmon Kardon
Electric rear blind
Bluetooth
Cosmetics:
I'd rate the body work as 8/10. Front bumper was resprayed (badly). The rest of the bodywork looks intact with no accident damage.
Paintwork is probably a 6/10. Lots of deep scratches and looks very dull in places. Would need to put in some effort there.
Interior trim is badly scratched on the door cards and needs to be sorted - will leave this until I decide on a nice OEM interior theme. Black leather is in good condition, considering the age - I'd rate it a 7/10.
Issues I've picked up:
Radio pixels are dying - will probably replace the entire unit with a nav version - 10 year old advancements in technology just can't be matched by what you can get new nowadays. However, will go plug and play HU to keep the HK system intact and OEM look.
Car throws out all it's windscreen washer fluid - probably the washer pump, which is a common issue (and I've done this before on my other cars)
Interior headliner trim is peeling from piller - need to figure out how to stick it back neatly.
The good stuff:
Engine is super strong, from idle to red line. Took a drive from Midrand to Lanseria to pick up my parents. Speed was between 120-140 most of the way and I averaged 8.3l/100km.
Unknown Issues:
Water temp gauge dropped to about 10-11 o clock position when I hit the highway (running cooler) - not sure if this normal for the car, as I know these usually stay dead centre. Might just be the thermostat and will get this checked out.
Amber exhaust emission light came on once - need to figure this out by getting the codes read - might just be the O2 sensors.
Overall I'm super happy with the purchase and certainly look forward to working on the car in the coming weeks. Will also do a decent detail (but not in the next 2 weeks) and put up some better pics. Probably going to put my E92 19s on too, simply because I know the tyres are decent - however, I don't think they go well wit the E46 and will eventually want something "CSL" styles.
No planned cosmetic or performance mods yet until she looks close to immaculate. However, Rolf has plans to tune some other E46 M's up here, so I'm curious to see the results, in order to hep me decide what to do.
Car will need a bit of work to get in what I term immaculate condition, but actually looking forward to the next few weeks when I can start with it. I did not expect perfection in a 9 year old M car, but I'm happy with my purchase.
Factory extras on the car (besides what's standard):
Harmon Kardon
Electric rear blind
Bluetooth
Cosmetics:
I'd rate the body work as 8/10. Front bumper was resprayed (badly). The rest of the bodywork looks intact with no accident damage.
Paintwork is probably a 6/10. Lots of deep scratches and looks very dull in places. Would need to put in some effort there.
Interior trim is badly scratched on the door cards and needs to be sorted - will leave this until I decide on a nice OEM interior theme. Black leather is in good condition, considering the age - I'd rate it a 7/10.
Issues I've picked up:
Radio pixels are dying - will probably replace the entire unit with a nav version - 10 year old advancements in technology just can't be matched by what you can get new nowadays. However, will go plug and play HU to keep the HK system intact and OEM look.
Car throws out all it's windscreen washer fluid - probably the washer pump, which is a common issue (and I've done this before on my other cars)
Interior headliner trim is peeling from piller - need to figure out how to stick it back neatly.
The good stuff:
Engine is super strong, from idle to red line. Took a drive from Midrand to Lanseria to pick up my parents. Speed was between 120-140 most of the way and I averaged 8.3l/100km.
Unknown Issues:
Water temp gauge dropped to about 10-11 o clock position when I hit the highway (running cooler) - not sure if this normal for the car, as I know these usually stay dead centre. Might just be the thermostat and will get this checked out.
Amber exhaust emission light came on once - need to figure this out by getting the codes read - might just be the O2 sensors.
Overall I'm super happy with the purchase and certainly look forward to working on the car in the coming weeks. Will also do a decent detail (but not in the next 2 weeks) and put up some better pics. Probably going to put my E92 19s on too, simply because I know the tyres are decent - however, I don't think they go well wit the E46 and will eventually want something "CSL" styles.
No planned cosmetic or performance mods yet until she looks close to immaculate. However, Rolf has plans to tune some other E46 M's up here, so I'm curious to see the results, in order to hep me decide what to do.
