Behind the Wheel BMW M3 E46

Waiting to hear a straight-six isn’t the worst thing. It was a rainy Sunday when we did this interview, but that didn’t stop us from searching for a nice spot to take some awesome footage. Ruud mentioned that he on purpose didn’t wash the car:  “it needs to be used, it’s not always clean and it has a form of romance in it.” 

So Ruud, kicking-off this very first interview: 

Of all cars you choose the M3 E46, a car built in the 2000s, probably needless to ask but tell us why?

I had always a weak spot for BMW dating from childhood, so when I gain the ability to buy a new car, going to BMW was a no-brainer. I wanted to buy a car which is not screaming, is relatively affordable(compared to nowadays cars) and offers a lot of driving fun. 

I had a test drive with the BMW M2 after reading all the reviews, but when I took the E46 for a drive, I was sold. The purity of this car attracted me the most, there are relatively little electronically parts “interfering” with the drive experience. Since it’s a high rev engine, one also needs to learn how to drive it to get the best out of it. You won’t hear me saying the M2 is a bad car, not at all, I was super impressed! But the simplicity and roughness of this car convinced me. A true icon. 

Do you drive the Beemer as a daily?

I do not, with a particular reason actually. If I now step in this car, I get excited because I don’t drive it daily. I am afraid that if I start using this car on a daily base, I will get used to it. The E46’s is in an immaculate condition, and I want to keep it that way. And apart from that, driving this car during the week doesn’t make any sense with all the traffic jams nowadays. 

Can you highlight some features of the exterior which you made to fell in love with this Muncher?

To start with, I like the exterior for its modest design. The E46 M3’s mission was to combine the day-to-day usability of the E36 with the driving capabilities of the E30. So in the end, it’s not a car with huge wings, extra-large rims or whatsoever. It’s modest. The Twin Dual exhausts, power dome, widened fenders, unused side grills and the Gurney flap at the rear are only exposing that this is not your regular 3 Series coupe(alright, that being said … this is valid for non-car-interested persons ;-)).Furthermore, I really do like the design line running from the hood, completely to the back. It’s a car with a balanced design.