msm
Well-known member
Meet the Black-on-Black (aka BoB) E46 with an identity crises. She's a 2003 330i Individual in Black Sapphire Metallic finish.
Yes, she’s an old lady now, being a 2003 model, but still young at heart. So I guess calling her an older classic might be part of the identity crises, as my opinion is that a E46 is still a modern design - but maybe that has more to do with my age than the car… Either way, BoB is able to draw significantly more attention than much younger models, but still has a mature air of grace around her.
So why else does she have an identify crises? It’s because she’s an “in-betweener” - not a proper M car, but also not a plain Jane regular E46 model. According to her VIN, she is a proper Individual, but later M Sport models blurred the lines in SA, so “proper” E46 Individuals didn’t end up becoming too special or rare.
She’s also not an ultra low mileage collectors item "I know what I have" garage queen - with almost 150k on the clock but still in standard form. Everything that I can see (except for service related parts) seems to be original, down to the exhaust tips. She’s not perfect - some bonnet stone chips and odd scratches, but most paint seems to be original. So again she’s in between - clean and a relatively stock car, but not quite rare enough special edition/collectors item or ///M car.
I was also on the fence Ito getting something special versus something cheaper to run-around in - and again, she’s in-between. Keeping this old lady on the road is not as cheap as a Corolla. But well maintained M54’s do seem to be going strong and part prices are not as crazy as newer BMW’s, nor does this have ///M tax on it. There does seem to be a good selection of decent aftermarket parts nowadays too. So whilst I don’t usually cheap out on maintenance, hopefully things won’t be so crazy. Hence, (relatively) cheap and cheerful enough to drive whenever/wherever I want, but still feels just that much more special than a bland 4 cylinder run-around.
And here’s the other key in-between - a manual gearbox with a NA six is truly epic nowadays - but this is an auto, which in Gauteng traffic suits my needs just fine… for now. Perhaps this lady get’s a stick (shift) conversion later in life. Lives up to her more masculine name of being called BoB - It’s like going to Thailand and enjoying the views, but not quite sure if there’s a stick hiding under the skirt. But for now, I’m content with the auto box, as the smooth M54 more than makes up for it.
A decade ago, I would have slapped on a set of 19’s (OEM’s only, of course) - but I really love the standard 17’s on this car. I think it’s period perfect and aged well - subjectively better than the 18’s that came in the later E46 years. And the bonus is that she does ride amazingly well. In-between again - not quite sports car ride quality - not quite Lexus sedan comfort - good balance instead. Believe it or not, she is still riding on her original set of 23 year old shocks, so I need to plan a suspension refresh at some point. LCA’s and bushes seem to be newish though, which is why I guess that she still rides well.
As for her voice - from the outside, she sounds like a E46 330i that is almost new - probably down to the stock exhaust and I plan to keep it that way. As for the inside, her HK system and every speaker still appears to be singing along nicely.
For now, that’s it - will add more pics in the coming weeks/months as I get some time. But again, nothing crazy special here about a fairly bog-standard E46...
Yes, she’s an old lady now, being a 2003 model, but still young at heart. So I guess calling her an older classic might be part of the identity crises, as my opinion is that a E46 is still a modern design - but maybe that has more to do with my age than the car… Either way, BoB is able to draw significantly more attention than much younger models, but still has a mature air of grace around her.
So why else does she have an identify crises? It’s because she’s an “in-betweener” - not a proper M car, but also not a plain Jane regular E46 model. According to her VIN, she is a proper Individual, but later M Sport models blurred the lines in SA, so “proper” E46 Individuals didn’t end up becoming too special or rare.
She’s also not an ultra low mileage collectors item "I know what I have" garage queen - with almost 150k on the clock but still in standard form. Everything that I can see (except for service related parts) seems to be original, down to the exhaust tips. She’s not perfect - some bonnet stone chips and odd scratches, but most paint seems to be original. So again she’s in between - clean and a relatively stock car, but not quite rare enough special edition/collectors item or ///M car.
I was also on the fence Ito getting something special versus something cheaper to run-around in - and again, she’s in-between. Keeping this old lady on the road is not as cheap as a Corolla. But well maintained M54’s do seem to be going strong and part prices are not as crazy as newer BMW’s, nor does this have ///M tax on it. There does seem to be a good selection of decent aftermarket parts nowadays too. So whilst I don’t usually cheap out on maintenance, hopefully things won’t be so crazy. Hence, (relatively) cheap and cheerful enough to drive whenever/wherever I want, but still feels just that much more special than a bland 4 cylinder run-around.
And here’s the other key in-between - a manual gearbox with a NA six is truly epic nowadays - but this is an auto, which in Gauteng traffic suits my needs just fine… for now. Perhaps this lady get’s a stick (shift) conversion later in life. Lives up to her more masculine name of being called BoB - It’s like going to Thailand and enjoying the views, but not quite sure if there’s a stick hiding under the skirt. But for now, I’m content with the auto box, as the smooth M54 more than makes up for it.
A decade ago, I would have slapped on a set of 19’s (OEM’s only, of course) - but I really love the standard 17’s on this car. I think it’s period perfect and aged well - subjectively better than the 18’s that came in the later E46 years. And the bonus is that she does ride amazingly well. In-between again - not quite sports car ride quality - not quite Lexus sedan comfort - good balance instead. Believe it or not, she is still riding on her original set of 23 year old shocks, so I need to plan a suspension refresh at some point. LCA’s and bushes seem to be newish though, which is why I guess that she still rides well.
As for her voice - from the outside, she sounds like a E46 330i that is almost new - probably down to the stock exhaust and I plan to keep it that way. As for the inside, her HK system and every speaker still appears to be singing along nicely.
For now, that’s it - will add more pics in the coming weeks/months as I get some time. But again, nothing crazy special here about a fairly bog-standard E46...
