All E46 models ever made suffer from subframe cracking so you'll have to face that problem sooner of later if you stick around long enough in this platform. Expect to pay at least $1,000 USD for labor to reinforce it. The coolant leak should not be too hard to DIY. If I was in your shoes I would fix the coolant issue & sell it so you can put that money into your new car, however, 10k for a 120k mil non-M E46 is too much. I would recommend getting a non ZHP 330i/330ci, sure it's 10 hp less, you don't get the cooler front bumper & seats but you can probably get a 70-80k mil one for under 10k. The ZHP label ranks up the price too much in my opinion.

 

Convertibles and touring don’t seem to.

 

I would repair the old one, but it depends on how "slight" the subframe is torn.

Hard coolant lines is tough but can be DIYed, suspension refresh is going to be necessary anyway as a car ages.

 

Hmmm... I probably will take a go at the DIY for the hard coolant line. As you guys said it is tough, however, it is far from impossible. I assume it will just take a few hours. Any general advice, especially as it relates to intake removal??

 

I would give at least a weekend to take care of it.

 

^ I would add sending out the injectors for cleaning while you have the intake off

 

This is the shop trusted by techs:

Fuel Injector Cleaning - Page -1

www.rcfuelinjection.com

.

 

Use only Rein or OEM heater pipes under the intake... the cheap aftermarket pipes often leak and this is a job you don't want to do twice. It will take a weekend to replace the pipes..particularly if you have not removed an intake before.

 

I still very much enjoy driving my car (i.e. 325ci 5 speed manual) after 14 years of ownership. I'd DIY the majority of the work except the subframe and the alignment after doing the suspension work. If I were on the fence in terms of my enjoyment with the car, I would be looking at a 330 instead of the ZHP. As summerlastnite stated, I don't believe ZHP is worth the premium folks are applying to it. Good luck with your decision. Be safe.

 

You're also buying into a small appreciating asset when buying a ZHP. ZHP and Mtech1 won't ever be valued the same for that reason. Yes, they seem valued a lot higher but that is why, you're buying the name ZHP as an asset. It's not as strong of an asset of an 'M3' but it's still one.

 

OP, IMO only the subframe is tricky so I'm with people who say do the easy coolant system fixes, think about selling... if you decide to keep it, do the rest.

$9500 is prolly too much for 2006 120,000 mi-- you would make the seller very happy. For <$8k you could get a 2006 330Ci with 80,000 mi. For the same $, you could get a next gen e90 with 100k miles. Outside of "fanatics", the ZHP is just not worth a premium IMO.

 

I agree, at that price range of that ZHP you can jump into an e9x car or something else which is more worth the money

 

Part out the current car and buy the ZHP. You'll never regret it.

I had a 2000 E46 with sub-frame tear-out. Fixed that. Then replaced the clutch and a few other things. May as well flush money down the toilet.

Yes, all E46 chassis have experienced tear-out, but certain years/platforms are far less susceptible. Again, buy the ZHP. One of these guys telling you to fix your current car, let them buy it and fix it. We'll see how many buyers you get. Your repair bill exceeds the value of the car.

Harsh words, but I wish I'd just ditched my first E46 when it had SF TO.

 

Part out the current car and buy the ZHP. You'll never regret it.

I had a 2000 E46 with sub-frame tear-out. Fixed that. Then replaced the clutch and a few other things. May as well flush money down the toilet.

Yes, all E46 chassis have experienced tear-out, but certain years/platforms are far less susceptible. Again, buy the ZHP. One of these guys telling you to fix your current car, let them buy it and fix it. We'll see how many buyers you get. Your repair bill exceeds the value of the car.

Harsh words, but I wish I'd just ditched my first E46 when it had SF TO.

100% agree. I don’t always cotton to the “repair bill exceeds value” because that means that essentially every non-zhp/non-M on the market should likely be crushed.

You should bear in mind that every “well-maintained” e46 likely needs $3,500 in parts. Mostly because “well-maintained” for 100k usually means oil changes, filters and plugs, and well-maintained after 100k means “Refresh everything that is rubber, replace every sensor, replace entire suspension, replace all steering hoses, replace cooling system and replace all drivetrain wear parts”

$9k is probably too high, unless a meaningful amount of what I listed has been done.

 

I'd advise against paying a large premium A. for a ZHP B. for a twenty year old car with 120k miles. That's a lot of money for a high mileage 330 with sport bumpers and nice wheels. They're sweet, but when you get down to it, it's mostly a cosmetic upgrade. And any car with the mileage needs a lot of maintenance. You said it was fully sorted, but I'd take that with a grain of salt. There is so much to be done at this age and that mileage, and by that I mean practically everything.

If you must have a ZHP though, they have the same faults as a 330, because it's the same car. And this is a manual right? If it's an automatic then run for sure, for that much then you know the seller is looking to beat somebody. I just don't see the value of a ZHP at that price, for a few grand more, you can go buy an e36 M3(maybe not anymore?), which would actually appreciate, unlike a high-mileage ZHP.

A normal e46 or e90 would be a better value. I see tons of e90s under ten grand online, and you could score a really mint normal e46 for that money instead of a beat up old one.

 

Maybe I spoke too soon. Looking at Bringatrailer it appears the ZHP has appreciated a bit with the M3-there's actually a 120k mile example live right now that might be worth following.

In my opinion they're still not worth more than a few grand over a normal e46 though. You can replicate the best parts for less than the premium.

 

Yes, but it's not gonna have a valuable ZHP vin which might not be worth it to everyone. So yes I see your point, but you're investing in a depreciating liability as opposed to an appreciating asset

 

how many miles on your car?
automatic or manual?
is the 330-zhp automatic or manual? Imola red?

cost of that 330 with that package seems high. 330-zhp owners always over list their cars high, and hardly anyone is a sucker anymore to pay it.

2000 328i model had one of the highest rates of torn subframes.

depending on answers, I’m still unlikely to suggest buying that 330-zhp. much better off buying a clean 330i-ZSP.

 

Don't later sedans have improved rears?

 

There are 3 E46 platforms that are increasing in value currently (like it or not).

M3
ZHP (manual gearbox especially)
Touring (spec is important, but even low spec are steadily climbing if good condition)

All assume well maintained - well maintained meaning little to no delayed maintenance, not just service.

 

I would not buy a car as an investment, monetary value means nothing if you're going to keep the car for its whole life. I agree in that I would not shell out a huge premium for a ZHP when you can find a M3 that needs some love for the same price, ZHP is only appreciating in value because of diehard collectors and enthusiasts as more and more of them are getting wrecked and taken off the road. If you looked back maybe 5-10 years ago, the car was not nearly as special to people as it is now. Power difference is negligible and you can find replica body pieces and get them painted for that look and make your own ZHP saving a few grand in the process.

 

I wouldn't buy a car as an investment either (except maybe a Ferrari 250GTO which I could never afford). I wasn't trying to imply that. My point was people looking at pricing and thinking certain prices are out of wack, when in fact, certain E46 configurations are climbing in value. The ZHP is one of those. They are simply commanding higher prices despite what the cynical think. If you don't want a ZHP, don't buy one. Easy. If you're evaluating the price of a ZHP you have to be in touch with the current market. Value judgements are left to the buyer.

As for buying an E46 in need of a little love, I don't think I'd do that unless I was prepared to spend thousands to bring it up to snuff. An E46 with delayed maintenance is rarely a bargain.

 

An E46 with delayed maintenance is rarely a bargain.

Right On Geo.

Taking that a step further. I see used cars come through here all the time. Many were bought on a price point. Unless you're capable of tackling the work yourself (one of the chief reasons for the genesis of this forum) the cleaner more expensive/well cared for car is cheaper in the long run.

One of the biggest caveats of buying any under-maintained car is the poor condition of the oil in the engine over it's life.
The folks that defer maintenance usually could give a shit about regular oil changes. Often exceeding the egregiously long factory interval. With cheap quick oil change oil filters out of Korea, China or Taiwan. Those filters pushed beyond limits collapse and/or break up.
The later proved to be a complete cluster f&#k on a N62 V8. Requiring an almost complete disassembly of the engine to get all of the small pieces of broken up filter out of all of the oil galleys and passageways.

 

hard to give best advice when OP leaves thread and doesn’t provide answers to some questions.

 

I decided to go ahead with the repair so I can get my car back on the road and take your advice and wait for a better overall deal for another car. In the meantime I have to figure out how i'm going to get this stripped torx bolt out from underneath the DISA valve!!

 

Its totally stripped at the head and I tried to hammer a T-45 in to no avail. Do you think cutting it with a dremel and screwing it out would work?

 

You should be able to drill the head off. Then slide the disa and there will be enough shaft to use vice grips to remove.

 

Buy this one:

2002 BMW E46 M3 - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle automotive sale

BMW 2002 E46 M3 Convertible 141K Miles My wife and I have used this as a weekend car for the last 2.5 years and while we really love cruising the coast with the top down(and the heated seats on), we...

sfbay.craigslist.org

 

It's an automatic, does that mean it has the SMG transmission?

 

convertible
SMG
141,000
2002
in the M3 world these are major low selling points

 

That car also has heavy replica wheels, I guess he has the originals though; the exterior is nice, but the seller lists absolutely no mechanical maintenance. When was the last valve adjustment? What shape is the suspension in? RACP? Bearings? VANOS? All those things are eminently suspect at that mileage. A ZHP and an M3 are two very different propositions, and as mentioned earlier, a cheap one is not really cheap at all in the end.

 

I absolutely love my ZHP (4dr Imola 6MT) but if i was in the market for one i would not be a buyer at this time. The market for low-mileage and/or well maintained ZHP's has gone bonkers. The following is very strong, however, and as time continues to go by, low-mileage examples will be fewer and fewer so maybe they will continue to go up in price, i have no idea. Mine just crossed 66K last week.

 

I'd fix the little issues or part it out to get a later non M E46 from 2002-2005 with low miles and do the cooling system. Or get one that's been very well maintained its entire life. Mainly I'd part it out and move on because the early model 1998-2001 manual E46s are the main suspects for the subframe issues due to the left rear subframe ripping out from the floor not handling the clutch drops from the manual transmissions. And that involves a lot of labor like $1k and about $300 worth in parts to fix the subframe issue. My dads friend who works on bmws since the 80s had this happen to his white 2000 323i manual. Ripped out on the left rear subframe mount after 180k miles right when the lawsuit from bmw happened regarding the e46 subframe issues in 2009. He then bought a silver 2002 330i manual sport for $3k back then with 120k miles after he parted ways from it. That's my opinion. Hope this helps you.

 

I'd part it out and move on because the early model 1998-2001 manual E46s are the main suspects for the subframe issues due to the left rear subframe ripping out from the floor not handling the clutch drops from the manual transmissions.

the issue was with the automatics too.