M3sRsick

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TheBeast

That ladies and Gentlemen is the M3 that started this whole threat. Its a beutiful car, and the owner understands the power of the AMG's. Ill post pics of my baby when i get hewr cleaned up. If anyone has any great ideas on making the C36 faster drop a reply


AMG power

M3sRsick

thank u kindly, although the m3 doesn't pose a threat, just the willingness for a lil friendly competition =)
AMG Motorsport .... lol
::Platinum Squad::
-Fil-

blackmercedes

Have you invesitaged supercharging the C36?

FrankW

that is an awesome ride M3sRsick.

how you do that widebody rear mod? looks tight.

M3sRsick

its all custom made, out of original bmw body panels from the junk yard =) there is a lil bit of fiber glass on the bumper to have it match the flares but that is all, i have a few pics of the whole process ill probably post it later on tonight.

FrankW

cool...post away... a couple of my friends has the 98 4door M3 in silver.

Denlasoul

Hey all:

A few weeks ago, I went to a GTG of AMG's and M's. Alot of nice cars there and the people were great. I got the chance to look at a bunch of cars, E36M3's, E46M3's a CL55AMG, and another C43 like mine.

Anyway, on the way home I raced one of the guys (4 door E36 M3) while we were cruising at 70mph. It was clear and he pulled next to me and we both nodded. He downshifted and took off on me, maybe half a car or so. I just accelerated and pulled pretty good on him at about 90+. Anyway, I totally respect the M's power and the other guy totally respected AMG.

I think either way, the cars are great. It is hard to compare the two b/c there are so many differences. For one, an AMG is a combination of power and luxury. M's are pretty much race ready!

For me though, I like the MB. Just a preference. When I see other cars, be it a M3 or M5 or Ferrari or whatever, I know that my car can hang. Dont get me wrong, I know my place with many cars, but I like to have fun and show people that AMG is not an automatic slouch.

Regardless, I like the friendly competition. You'll never catch me bashing a M, unless it's whack.

Here's a link about what I am talking about. Read page two, look for what Veno said.
Click me

FrankW

i definitely agrees with you Denlasoul. IMO true car enthusist will appreciate any car doesn't matter if it's a BMW or a MB or a Audi. People that constantly try to put down the M or whatever because they probably feel that they made the wrong purchase and say stupid things about the other to justify their purchase to make themselves feel better.

Eurosport

now THAT is so true
lots of morons out there

J Irwan

I agree....

frankly I am tired people trying to compare them as which is best... and trying to put down the other brand
in my opinion whatever car you ended buying is just a matter of opinion (let that be M3, C32 or S4)

I have drive them all (not the new S4 B6 thought ) and I know each car has its own characteristic ( compare to other)....

M3's and c32 AMG are fast.....
if you like stick that you can't go wrong with M3, and if you like auto you can go wrong with C32 and if you must to have AWD car then go for S4....just that simple..


It just that a lot of people that are so narrow minded and so insecure about their cars, that's why they like to brag about their car and put down others...

just my $0.02

Regardz,


J Irwan

Supersparker

I have owned both cars: A 2000 C43, and a 1995 E36 M3 coupe. I would run away and hide from a C43 in the M3 on anything other than a VERY straight road. A good driver will flat-out SPANK any W202 in an M3. (these make awesome SCCA/ITA cars) Not trying to be a hater as I've owned 3 C's, (My current CLK430 has the W202 C-class steering and suspension) but the suspension and most importaintly the steering is just not there. On the other hand, the M3 had that loose junky feel where the c43 felt like you could punch through a brick wall with it. Possibly looking at a white '04 E55 in the near future.

e320newbie

man i cant see that ****ing m3 wtf is wrong with this ****ing site!

c55m8o

2000 C43... nice ... rare.

I would have assumed that against the E46; surprised related to the E36.

Then of course you can do this to your C, CLK or older E... The creator of that suspension was embarrasing race prepped M3s and Elises over the summer on the track with his C43 (of course, he's a pro racer so knows how to drive too!)

Supersparker

No, I am speaking of a stock E36 M3 against a stock C43

Eurosport

heh who brought this thread back up to life after 3 years? !!!

c55m8o

dates are right in the posts ... Steve S. ... me, I just don't get why people care about that sh*t.

96M3Power

So not to bring up this "Dead" thread again... but I just raced a C43. All I could tell was he had an exhaust system... I don't know if he had anything else. We did one of those "I'm not sure if he'll race" starts at a redlight... which is basically a rolling start. First gear we were head to head (5-35mph). Second gear head to head (35-65). Third gear (65-95 in my car) I started pulling on him. 4th gear I kept the distance, but had to stop because of a supercharged MR2 infront of me... which is a good performer... for those who can't afford what we have.

I have a 96 M3, which is the 3.2L OBD2. I have an intake, which is a piece of **** but still..., the m50 manifold (it is the manifold from the 95 M5s which has wider runners, allowing about 100 cfm more in each runner), a catback (which seems to just add sound), and a mis-matched chip. What I mean by mismatched is it is programed for no modifications, when my car has a few things done.

I'd just like to clarify a few things. The M3 holds up very well... though I have some rattles... I probably shouldn't have gutted the thing and put it back together again (half assed lol). I've got 156k miles on the car at the moment. It was beat to death before I got it at 90k, and I know that the 70k I put on it I've run it hard enough to make people wonder why it hasn't blown up. But the engines and the ZF transmissions are great, just like the mercades.

I've raced a C36 on the highway from about 80 mph to 130 mph. It did not stand a chance. But it was fun. The C43 surely shocked me with how damn close everything was. I'm interested in the C43 so much that I HAD to get on the forum. I'm wondering what can be done to the car, what kind of power gains are available for bolt on things, how expensive is it. How quick can you get it without going FI or Cams? How much with all that jazz. And if anyone has any questions about the M3 or just want to shoot the **** I'll be checking in every so often.

C43silver

damn this thread is old. Anyway the results you say dont suprise me in the least till you say you started to pull on the c43 at highway speeds over 80mph. I have had a few raced a few bpu E36 M3s and we were nearly dead even mebe him ahead a bit off the light but as soon as 70-80 mph I was pulling on him.

c55m8o

Just click the linx in my sig for a couple of great modz in power and handling...

Member coolcarlskic43 here did the motor swap before me and is the one that hooked me up with his mecanic. He's got a bunch of cars, one a E36 he swapped a M3 motor into. He's a real smart car guy and is the most educated IMO to speak about comparing and contrasting the two. I'll PM him to check in.

Regarding 4.3L, Jeff Short (speedybenz) was getting just about 300hp to the wheels from all his external modz to intake, exhaust, whatever; just before he slid it off a ravine. He's a power mod'ing powerhouse in the 202 scene.
He still has a desire to build a 4.3L internally to produce 400hp crank; and I trust that out of anyone, he could achieve that. ...Though now that he's probably moving to a 5.4L... Follow this thread for a readers digest version of what he's done to his car.

http://www.club202.com/forums/showth...&threadid=8650

When you hear about "camber arms" on this board, he's the guy that makes them for everyone.

knvs

I've never really raced a M3 (bc its illegal to do so on public roads ) but I've driven them quite a bit. I must say that I my C43 will walk all over stock M3s. its quicker off the line, it pulls harder, etc. But then again i did swap in a 5.4l into my C43. So its not completely stock. I haven't been in anything thats felt faster. Even my brothers STi doesn't feel as fast. I haven't driven anything that felt as fast as my car. And at highway speeds nothing has kept up with me. That being said. I love M3s and feel like right out of the box they handle extemely well. But I feel like if I go from my C43 to a M3, I'm downgrading and its a slow lump of steel. They just don't feel that fast to me (not saying they're not fast tho).

Steve, Jeff is definetly going 5.4l, but which one is a different story

FLYNAVY

When I was car hunting recently, I got the chance to drive the e36 M3 and C43 AMG back to back. I could go on forever about the differences that I noticed, but overall.....the M3 just felt quicker (as most people have been saying). It pulled really hard at every speed, and you can't beat its manual 5-spd. The engine was a little revvier than the C43, but once it hit 3k-ish the thing pulled like no other. Not that the C43 feels especially heavy, but the M3 coupe I drove also seemed a lot lighter to me. Cabin feel was a little bit more like a sports car (I fit into it like a glove) than the AMG (which still feels more like a sedan). No doubt in my mind that the e36 (w/ the proper driver) would have the C43 out of the hole. Didn't get to really take it about 80-ish (not really too into taking cars into illegal speeds on a test drive), but I would imagine that the gearing that made the car feel so good down low would probably start to hurt it in the triple digits.

As for the '43, my answer to the question is that I bought the AMG...and spent several grand more doing so. You just can't top that V8 torque and growl. The car will pull hard whenever you want it to.....even at low rpm. Its not quite as quick as the M3, but it is fast enough for me....and its got 4 doors, is more comfortable (IMHO) and has a nicer interior altogether. The auto trans is not entirely desireable, but with all that torque, you don't necissarily have to keep the engine at its "sweet spot" to get good performance. It would be nice to have in the twisties though, and I don't really feel like using the gated shifter too much from all of the stories I've heard about tranny problems. I will definitely be picking up an e36 M3 coupe in the future as a second car, but I am very happy w/ the '43. So my vote still goes for the C43

ProjectC55

The e36 m3 will get the C43 off the line but after 80mph on up it's all C43 from my experience.I love the TQ the 4.3L motor has.To me the M3,M332i unless modded like mine are, don't give that raw tq feel that the M113's(4.3L,5.0L,5.5L) deliver.Modded M3 is a different story though!LOL! I own both!

Unless something is wrng with the MAF in the C43,there should be a noticeable difference in topend power delivery between both cars.The MAF can either make or break the C43 if it's on it's way out.Steve and I can vouch for this.A good driver in a properly tuned C43 can run high 13's like in a stck well driven E36 M3.

PS No offense but the C36 to me seems like a pig,BUT it's the pioneer to my car.My friend(Ralston) ran consistent low 15's high 14's in his at E-town.

ProjectC55

First thing you can do is go F/I or swap in the 5.4L motor like Steve,Kev,and I have done.The 3 series cars and "M" 3 series handle like dreams but the structural build quality does'nt come anywhere close to the AMG C43's.There is a big issue with the sheet metal that supports the rear subframes in these cars,the same goes for the E46 cars.My shock twr in my 99 M3 38k miles ,totally collapsed and failed and the whole top portion had to be replaced and welded by a body shop. I thought that was crazee.Just poor,poor,poor strucural integrity with my beloved 3 series.Can't touch MB.

And NO Way is a C36 gonna run circles around an M3 and the M3 tears the C43 a new ***! Not happening! C43 > than both in terms of topend pwr.

96M3Power

I was surely impressed by what I raced. I did run a C36 a while ago on the highway, it was from 80's on... it was booking back to state college and usually the people with "race cars" that are booking will give it a little bit of a run hah. I didn't really think much of it cause I walked away pretty easy.

Now keep in mind I have the 3.2L with the runners from the 3.0L which are wider. I get a lot better top end with them, but lose low end and a little bit of mid-range... however in racing speeds you are always in the top end. 4500 rpms to redline at 7000 is just gold. I think the manifold is what made the difference when it came into the higher speeds racing the C43. With the right software I'll regain mid-range and gain more top end, however... I'm pondering a supercharger for it.

My rear shock tower failed, BMW didn't make the mounts well enough, they needed a little more buffering to spread the pounding across. I had it welded back in and got a new suspension... the stock suspension cause with the tower failure I couldn't afford the new suspension anymore hah.

So my question is for the C43... how much are power worthy upgrades? How reliable is the overall car? What are the faults? Thanks a ton guys