Adziu

Well once again I'm still doing my research before the day comes. So to begin with this thread, has anyone here that currently or has owned an ISF had thought of the E9X M3 before getting their F? What stopped you from getting an M3? Was it the reliability? Or was it other reasons? Also this question now goes out to those who have owned the E9X M3 who currently own an F. What made you get rid of the M and get the F? Trying to get as much information as possible to narrow it down which one it should be and why. Both are great cars but can't own 2 since i'm not rich lol. Thanks

gergg

Reliability was one of the main reasons I chose the F, I also liked the F's rarity, looks, and engine/exhaust sound. A friend of mine is a big M lover, they just don't do it for me, maybe if I was a track guy it would be different, doubt it though

Schumi

I echo the sentiments from the above post, reliability, or lack thereof, of the E9x generation M3 is what kept me from going down the M route. I had a sample size of one, which was my buddy's 2008 E90 M3. During the four years he owned the M3, it seemed his car was at the shop for unscheduled maintenance almost every other month. Given that I use my F as a daily driver, there was no way I would be able to deal with the constant shop visits. The most common issues I saw with the M3 were the throttle actuators (each side replaced twice) and flywheel. Additionally, my F sees a ton of highway mileage and the F's highway fuel economy is significantly better than the M3.

Personally, the M3 feels and sounds more special than the F, however just not special enough to ignore its shortcomings.

MileHIFcar

Same here I test drove an E90 M3 before buying the F and was contemplating that car until I really dug into the maintenance issues that some of them are prone to and that was enough for me to steer clear and go for the ISF...... I still like and respect the E90 series M3's as performance vehicles with amazing technology and looks though

aznpg

close friend had a e92 m3 and he said it was the worse car he ever had. always had issues. always made weird clunking noises. performance was nice tho. but unreliable. i had a e46 330i and a f80 m3 both manuals and both with many issues. the e46 always had some kind of oil leak(probably a drip a day) and clunk from the rear diff area and a cel that would turn on/off depending on the gas i have in it. the f80 since it was newer didn't have that many problems but it it loves to be revved up quite high before you can release the clutch or it will just bite and jerk. can't do the typical rev to 1200-1500 and slowly release the clutch. sucker wants to be revved up to 2k. sold the e46 and traded the f80 into carmax and got my isf from them. nice to be in a reliable car with the cel blinking all the time.

mr2dave

I have had both and what was said above pretty much sums it up. You want true performance and a manual transmission, M3. Want reliability with very good performance, F.

If this vehicle is going to be your daily driver, steer towards the F for good luck finding an M that has not been used and driven the way it was intended. I think you stand a better chance of finding F's sitting in garages as second or weekend cars that have yet to be physically or mechanically molested compared to M's.

Happy hunting.

Adziu

Thanks for the inputs. Sucks to see that the former M3 owners on here or the ones that said they know M3 owners had issues. I do miss driving manual but I don't want to have a car that breaks down often. Especially its a daily driver. Still trying to get input from M3post forums on their cars but I don't think many of them will want to admit the problems they have..

Isfast

iTrader: (13)

I have 4 M3s currently. I have had 9 total. My track car is an e36 with a 180k on the original engine. Only replaced standard wear and tear items. I have had an e92 M3 for two years. No issues. I currently have an 11 e90 M3. Only issue was the airflow sensor had to be cleaned out. So I have had extremely good luck (so have my friends who track M3s). I think lexus is more reliable but the M3s are not bad at all. A lot of issues happen as they are driven hard and put away wet. The M3s are phenomenal machines....and this is coming from a guy with multiple ISFs

veee8

I actually came from a 2007 6MT M6. Before that I had two 04' E46 M3's which were flawless. The M6 was a love/hate relationship. Within the first two months I had to replace the ABS module, then after a few months my throttle body actuator went out ( thankfully I was capable of replacing this myself, dealer quoted $1300 for just labor), following that my CCC unit failed. So all these things were really pissing me off and I didn't want to deal with the maintenance any longer. Don't get me wrong though, I enjoyed revving to 8500rpm, tuned and muffler delete ( sounded like heaven ). The car was an absolute blast to drive and pulled like crazy 80+. However, a buddy told me to look into the IS-F, I did and I couldn't be happier .

Quadrphnia

My story is much simpler but applicable to your question.

I was raised and always into American muscle cars. Hated the Japanese car movement of the mid-late 90s. Could care less about bimmers as well, even after I watched Ronin.

I sold the main muscle I had in 08 to pay off student loans and had since switched to owning a Japanese car. This switch was only after living/watching my folks get screwed over by the American garbage they bought in the mid-late 90s. Hindsight and the boastful GM "we've paid off our government debts" commercial I'm incapable of forgetting at that same 08 timeframe told me I'd never buy an American that wasn't a classic again.

I made a friend who drove a few year old e46 M3 in 09. Car was cool. I had learned to drive stick in a 3 series in 99 with another friend but the e46 M3 was when I was truly first impressed by BMW.
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E46 and I had a falling out a year later but reconnected in 2014. He then introduced me to his made-to-order Space Grey e92 M3. Said he nearly cried ($$$) when he signed the final order form, but watched his car online from assembly line to cargo dock.

I fell in love with the car immediately - every single thing about it. The looks, the speed, the sound. The car looks like a great white shark coming forward, and some sort of odd rally style late 60s racer from behind. It revs fantastic and drives the same. I think it's a glorious car. In discussion he'd always sweat the rod bearings, throttle actuators, diff bolts etc. but to me, the car was a quick legend.

I bought my F three weeks after the day I met his e92. I went for the F because I remembered a commercial I saw it in in 08 (thinking I'd never own it), I had been trusting of Japanese cars since I bought my Infiniti in 99, and because I didn't want my reentry into performance to be his same car.

I let him drive mine and he fell just as hard for the F. Completely true. Of course we had a second falling out and we don't speak anymore. Hope he's still got the car and didn't do anything stupid, like trade for an M2 or one of the new M3s...

Cwalk25

I just switched from a E92 M3 to an IS-F about a month ago. While it was fantastic to drive, the reliability issues are very real and will drain your bank account if you're unprepared for it. While I never had any issues with the rod bearings (what most people on M3post will freak out/complain about), I had to have two alternators replaced within a year, and the car would throw electrical faults like crazy. The throttle actuators were throwing codes right before I sold it, and I'd have other electrical gremlins pop up fairly regularly (O2 sensors faults, an irregular idle after fill-ups, etc.). The BMW tax on maintenance costs is also a problem. Oil changes are $120 in oil/filters alone (9 liters of 10W60), diff fluid is $150, and so on. Nothing is cheap on the car.

Reliability aside, the M3 was a wonderful car to own. I especially miss that engine to this day, it's an absolute gem. But I don't regret switching to the Lexus. The peace of mind that it won't explode if I look at it the wrong way and having 8/10ths of the performance are a solid trade off if you ask me.

jdmSW20

iTrader: (12)

I too switched from a 08 E92 M3 with DCT and tech package to my ISF. As stated above the car was a blast to drive, a real drivers car. But reliability was the issue, I had that car for 18 months and spent about 7k in maintenance. What's sad is I bought the car with 60k miles and it only had one owner so it was still by definition a new car, but was the most problematic car I had owned. But honestly reliability aside that car was far more fun to drive than even my ISF, it really was a drivers car and I understand why people say that about BMW.

The DCT was geared really close so it felt faster down low than my ISF to be honest(not to mention the 8300rpm redline was enjoyable), LSD, active suspension, launch control, adjustability if you have NAV unlike lexus where everything has to be at the dealership, shift lights/shift warnings, etc. Everything the ISF got late or didn't get at all, the car was a really fun one. But like most german cars you need to have money set aside for it just in case where as the ISF like most Toyota takes care of itself, its sturdy. I never got the rod bearing issue that most M3 owners make a big deal about but I know its out there and there is no rhythm or rhyme for when or model years, its just random.

I daily drove both so I had plenty of time in both, I would say for a track car the M3 all day. But for a daily and everything outside of the track and can still hold its own on the track/in a race... the ISF hands down

4TehNguyen

iTrader: (1)

E9X M3s had rod bearing issues, something to look out for

FFM

Got the F over the E92 because of my longer commute, and didn't want to rack up miles on a higher cost of ownership vehicle. Now that I am starting a new job, that's local, I am planning to give my wife the F and jump back into a M car.

If you have the ability to work on cars yourself, then most of the issues people have aren't a big deal at all. Only times I will ever get frustrated with a car is leaving me stranded, never happened with my 140k E46 M3, and overall if you do your research and preventative maintenance this should rarely happen with any car.

I still believe the S65 is a fairly reliable motor. Rod bearing issue aside, which I feel is predominantly owner induced, actuators seem to be the only real other issue. And again, if you have mechanical knowledge and tools you can do most of this stuff yourself for a fraction of the cost.

I'll be looking into either a blown E92 or opt for a M4 next year.

kolyan

F generation of BMWs is more reliable