i been surfing around for a while.

i sold my car two weeks ago. it was a 2004 scion xB, looking to upgrade in hp and trying to get behind the wheel of a e46 m3.

Im finishing school in 3 weeks and im looking to buy the car about spring 07. so you might see me around here asking questions and such.

my previous car history:

1999 integra ls - when i was in college
1990 crx si (3 of them) - post college
2004 scion xB - med school

i really like the laguna seca blue. i drool everytime i see one. second color choice would be the alpine white.

those are both nice color choices though i had a hard time finding any LSB with the mileage i was looking for, most people seem to hang on to them or sell them once they have higher mileage but that was just here in dallas. Alpine white is an awesome color if you go with the blacked out gills/grill and some carbon fiber..hope all works out for you and soon you can enjoy the ///M life

I like LSB, carbon black, and imola.

Whichever color you choose, you'll still be getting the same car, so don't fret if you can't find exactly the color you're looking for with exactly the mileage and price you're looking for.

LSB is good but I think you'll do better on the resale with Alpine White. Also, white is the new rage for car colors so why not have the hot color?!

thanks guys for the welcome. what colors came with the red interior? was it only carbon black that comes with the red interior? in my family we have owned several black cars, i wanted to shy away from black but i love the red interior.

thanks guys for the welcome. what colors came with the red interior? was it only carbon black that comes with the red interior? in my family we have owned several black cars, i wanted to shy away from black but i love the red interior.

You'll find the red interior most often on white, white, and grey. Great color and was high on my list. However...I'm not at all dissapointed with my black interior.

he meant black, white, red, and silver (put white twice on accident i believe) but those are just the ones that were factory built with red interior..people have custom ordered from the factory carbon black with red...steal gray with red..etc but i was searching forever for a white on red interior and they rarely pop up...mostly see tit silv and black with the imola interior...dont see too many red/red even...but obviously they didnt make too many with the red interior...id be more apt to find the exterior color that i wanted instead of settling on a blue car when you want white for ex...i almost settled for a silv when i really wanted black and its something that will kinda bother you only a little but still when spending that much its best to wait for the one you want then to settle, they arent that rare of cars so just be patient and wait for a good deal

he meant black, white, red, and silver (put white twice on accident i believe) but those are just the ones that were factory built with red interior..people have custom ordered from the factory carbon black with red...steal gray with red..etc but i was searching forever for a white on red interior and they rarely pop up...mostly see tit silv and black with the imola interior...dont see too many red/red even...but obviously they didnt make too many with the red interior...id be more apt to find the exterior color that i wanted instead of settling on a blue car when you want white for ex...i almost settled for a silv when i really wanted black and its something that will kinda bother you only a little but still when spending that much its best to wait for the one you want then to settle, they arent that rare of cars so just be patient and wait for a good deal

yeh i was just browsin today of the hundreds of m3s, only one was alpine with the red interior. good thing is that i have time on my side. and i can use it to search for the exact car i want. i know purchasing pre-owned you have to compromise on certain things. Exterior color / interior color are both really important to me. I would rather have an alpine white with red interior than a laguna with black.

also what year or price range are you looking for? Make sure to test drive both the 6spd and SMG to get a hands on feel for which you like better, everyones different. You misewell go around to some dealerships and get a feel for the car too, doesnt matter if you're gonna buy it in a month or 6 months never too early to start researching...you want to make sure you love the e46m3(most people do) but when spending that much make sure its a car you feel good in/driving

yeh i think im going to take a test drive in a few weeks.

im not sure yet which way i want to go, i have been driving a manual transmission ever since i got my license practically.

i couldnt get used to the fact owning such a car as the m3 and not having a true stick shift. my friends have tried telling me how awsome the smg is, but im not sold yet.

maybe after i test drive one i might feel different. as it stands right now, i want the 6spd manual transmission.

as far as the price range goes, i just started a few days ago looking at what they go for. i believe a 2002-2003 with about 50k miles goes in the upper 30s to mid 40s. i also want to get a pretty good idea about what changed over the years of production. i have been reading around the forum and there are some warranty issues as well.

your prices are way too high...i got an 02 smg with 33k miles for 33,000, almost bought an 03 smg pwr seats/heated seats with 18k miles they wanted 37,900 but it was about 900 out of my price range and they were being shady...and cars sell pretty high in dallas so look for something around there...these cars sit on lots for months so get a good deal

edit: just adding that both the cars in question were at dealerships..so you can get cheaper ones from private party. also had an 03 manual that had 44k miles and it was 32,900 with 19's but no power seats...i just didnt like the blue color and i wanted a smg. What i did was 2 months before i wanted the car i started looking around..and when buy time came i looked for cars that had still been on the lot since then because they dropped in price dramatically and i knew the dealers were desperate to sell as they lose money on the cars by the day...dont let dealers fool you with claims of the cars being hot sellers and going to auctions...be firm and dont get caught up in an emotional buy

oh and about the warranty issues theres nothin to worry about really because most recalls have been performed as the mass public was aware of them, and if it wasnt it will still be done free of charge and the 01/02 that were effected are covered by a 6yr/100k engine warranty...but i would recommend getting an 03 or if your budget allows for a low 40k car get an 04...will have a good amount of the maintenance warranty left which will save you a lot and you can break her in fully...

thanks man, your posts have been pretty helpful. the prices i was looking at were from bmw cpo program. i figured they would be a bit higher.

i would like to be around 2003 model range. When did they have the led in the tail lamps?