[Armagh Ace]

Some pics of the difference between the E90 325iSE and the E46 325iSE.

To be honest, still not sure which one I like the best.

New 215bhp engine is stunning - big improvement over what was still a great engine.

[txusa03]

You are in 2006. If you buy a brand new 2005 e46, you will get hit very hard the minute you closed on a deal. It depreciates very fast being that it was a 2005 model. That is why you get 2.9% or 0% finance because the dealer want to get rid of them.

[SoYank]

Kind of answered your own question: 20% of your photos were of the E46 and 80% the E90. My opinion (ignore the signature for a moment) is the E90 hands down.

[booyah]

Yep E90 looks better to me--a nice refresh of the 3 series

[findtom]

Originally Posted by txusa03

You are in 2006. If you buy a brand new 2005 e46, you will get hit very hard the minute you closed on a deal. It depreciates very fast being that it was a 2005 model. That is why you get 2.9% or 0% finance because the dealer want to get rid of them.

Plus a lower residual for leasing.

I don't know why anyone in their right mind would buy a car new that is already dated.

[findtom]

Cool pics. I never really liked the E46 sedans... they just look too plain to me. The E90 has much more character.

[txusa03]

Originally Posted by findtom

Plus a lower residual for leasing.

I don't know why anyone in their right mind would buy a car new that is already dated.

yeah, it is hard to understand why we do what we do, sometime i do silly thing myself. It good to ask for other opinion sometime and take it with a grain of salt and do what you think is best for your situtation.

[Brunotheboxer]

e90 all the way.

[Jay_328]

Originally Posted by Brunotheboxer

e90 all the way.

+ 1

[shimshimhada]

Do you want to sell me the clears on that E46? I like that red E90.

[Asiann]

I like the red too but it draws too much attention unless you like that sorta stuff.

[windnsea00]

Originally Posted by CrazyArmenian

i like the e46 back much better

I agree as I don't think red looks good on E90's. I like the dark colors such as black/black sapphire/monaco blue on the E90. BTW, is it me or does the driver side rear windows look smashed out on the 4th pic down?

[ksfrogman]

I have always liked the e46, and after 6 years of looking at it, certain features (non-driver centric dash, sculpted side lines, slanted headlights, tail lights) of the E90 took some getting used to.

Now, especially after having owned an E90 for a few months, I love the beautifully sculpted body of the E90. I'll take that hands down over the E46 Sedan that looks somewhat dated IMO. The E46 M3 is still a classy bad boy racer though.

When one gets used to something one likes, it takes awhile to accept any change.

[Carnage]

The M3 is the only way to go in terms of the E46. In terms of colors, after seeing many colors in both models I've come to this conclusion, lighter colors look better on the E46 models while darker colors look better on the E90.

[ksfrogman]

Originally Posted by matsarge

The M3 is the only way to go in terms of the E46. In terms of colors, after seeing many colors in both models I've come to this conclusion, lighter colors look better on the E46 models while darker colors look better on the E90.

I thought I was the only one who thought this.

[Carnage]

Originally Posted by ksfrogman

I thought I was the only one who thought this.

Great minds think alike.

[BMW320i]

i would say E90 for sure, i still like the E46 n think it looks great as well, but in 1 or 2 years u will c that the E46 looks soooo old, i c that with all cars, when they 1st arrive, u might like the old classy look, but when u get used to the new 1, u might say "ohhhhh that previous model looks old!!!"

i has a choice between E90 320i n a used 330ci, i paid about 3,000 $ more n took the E90

[ShinyRedCar]

We have a 2004 E46 325i and a 2006 E90 325i, both red like these. We love them both! I do agree with the replies that the E46 looks a bit dated...but not by much, not yet. IMO, the E46 is such an elegant and sporty car and I enjoy driving it as much as the E90. They both have their own character I guess. The red color really does attract a lot of attention and that's pretty cool!

[xeta]

Had to update the pics to make them a bit smaller so you can compare them next to each other. Hope you dont mind.

[findtom]

interior comparison shots would be cool to see....

[Armagh Ace]

Had to update the pics to make them a bit smaller so you can compare them next to each other. Hope you dont mind.- No problem at all...

When we brought the E90 home it really did take me a while to work out why we had spent so much cash for a car that was virtually identical, but at this stage I know the money is well spent.

Red is the colour for us - our other car is an Imola Red E46 coupe - and yes it does attract attention but is rated as the in colour at the moment, ahead of the more predictable silver and black, but I do fancy a new coupe in sparkling graphite if it becomes available....

Have a good weekend all....

[txusa03]

Originally Posted by Armagh Ace

When we brought the E90 home it really did take me a while to work out why we had spent so much cash for a car that was virtually identical, but at this stage I know the money is well spent.

I don't know about others but to say the e46 and e90 are identical is almost like insulting (to the designer as well). I do not see too many things between the two cars as identical. Different engine, transmission, shapes, electronics/gadgets...you don't have electronic water pumps in e46, you don't have a temp gauge in e90, manual transmission in e90 is much nicer too, Standard RFT on all e90, and the ever popular halos lights...

Identical, I don't think so...