# 2001 or 2003?



## Dober174 (Feb 25, 2004)

I am in the process of buying my M3 and I've taken my time and looked really hard. I have a choice of two really good cars... same general price/mile range on the 2... both in really good condition. One of the cars is a 2003 (late model) and the other is 2001. I don't know which of the two to pick. What is the difference between them? Which is better? HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## daihard (Feb 15, 2004)

Dober174 said:


> I am in the process of buying my M3 and I've taken my time and looked really hard. I have a choice of two really good cars... same general price/mile range on the 2... both in really good condition. One of the cars is a 2003 (late model) and the other is 2001. I don't know which of the two to pick. What is the difference between them? Which is better? HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Do they both have Xenon lights? If so, the 2001 car has single low-beam Xenons (i.e. high beams are the inner halogen lights) whereas the 2003 car has Bi-Xenon (the outer Xenon lights work as both low and high beams). Also, the DSC unit in the 2001 cars is located in the empty space on the passenger side under the hood but is buried underneath other components on the driver side on the 2002 and later cars. A BMW mechanic told me the relocation of the DSC unit simplified wiring under the hood and resulted in a lot fewer reports of DSC malfunctioning. The 2003 car should also have a front strut tower brace under the hood; the 2001 car doesn't have one.

If that's not enough, the 2003 car has both rain-sensing wipers and auto-dimming mirror as standard equipment. They were options for 2001.


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## flashinthepan (Jul 25, 2003)

Dober174 said:


> I am in the process of buying my M3 and I've taken my time and looked really hard. I have a choice of two really good cars... same general price/mile range on the 2... both in really good condition. One of the cars is a 2003 (late model) and the other is 2001. I don't know which of the two to pick. What is the difference between them? Which is better? HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Check on the 2001's...I thought I heard something about a loose steering issue, maybe nothing to worry about, but I thought guys had to have something corrected on that year only.

2003's there were a few engine failures on spring 03's, again I am only shooting from the hip here, but I had heard of several around March 03 production runs.

Good luck !!!


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## daihard (Feb 15, 2004)

flashinthepan said:


> Check on the 2001's...I thought I heard something about a loose steering issue, maybe nothing to worry about, but I thought guys had to have something corrected on that year only.


There was an issue of the power steering of the 2001 cars being too "light," but I don't think it affected the M3. If it did, there should be an SIB. The 2001 M3 you're looking at should've had it fixed, or if not, you can have it fixed for free.



flashinthepan said:


> 2003's there were a few engine failures on spring 03's, again I am only shooting from the hip here, but I had heard of several around March 03 production runs.


The SIB pertaining to that S54 engine failure states that vehicles manufactured between 10/1/2001 and 2/28/2002 are affected. In any case, all 2001-2003 cars are now covered by BMW's 6-year/100K-mile extended engine warranty.


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## mtbscott (Jul 16, 2003)

Obviously, if mileage is similar, the 2001 should be cheaper, that's just basic used car 101. The 2003 will likely have more factory warranty/service attached as well. As far as I know, nothing other than refinements have been added since the beginning of the series so if the price was right on the 2001 I wouldn't shy away from it. I just recently got a 7000 mile 2003 CPO for $47K.


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## daihard (Feb 15, 2004)

mtbscott said:


> Obviously, if mileage is similar, the 2001 should be cheaper, that's just basic used car 101. The 2003 will likely have more factory warranty/service attached as well. As far as I know, nothing other than refinements have been added since the beginning of the series so if the price was right on the 2001 I wouldn't shy away from it. I just recently got a 7000 mile 2003 CPO for $47K.


Wow, that's a very good deal. My sales guy at the local BMW dealership just told me he'd sold a 2003 M3 Coupe (CPO) for $52.7K...


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## Pinecone (Apr 3, 2002)

There are also some differences in the interior trim colors. I think the 01 had black???, the '02 had Titanium, and the '03 had options.

Very few '01s had engine problems, which considering many were demo cars at first, and not properly broken in, is surprising. Maybe BMW took extra care in building them. The problem engine buid time is about the time they started ramping production up.

Bottom line, pick the one YOU like best. If they are the same color and similar options, buy the newer one. BMW did learn as they built them.

Earlier cars many have diff problems (easy swap under warranty, if it hasn't been done), some cold start issues (easy fix by updating the software), but nothing that isn't know and fixable, without hassles.


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## ggs (Mar 3, 2004)

mtbscott said:


> Obviously, if mileage is similar, the 2001 should be cheaper, that's just basic used car 101. The 2003 will likely have more factory warranty/service attached as well. As far as I know, nothing other than refinements have been added since the beginning of the series so if the price was right on the 2001 I wouldn't shy away from it. I just recently got a 7000 mile 2003 CPO for $47K.


Wow that sounds like a good deal for that car. I just got a 2002 CPO with 27k miles for 43 k, with SMG. Yours sounds like a great deal.

Enjoy. I'm still trying to get the SMG shifts totally smooth.


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