Mk5 - Is it worth it??

[wantmygti]

Phone round a few dealers. There's loads of GTis and R32s about now.

[The Doc]

You will love it - Mk3 is nothing like a new GTI you will be blown away

[illyun]

Yup, I have had a Mk3 GTI in very good condition and compared to the Mk5 it was a pile of   

[viktor]

Wow, the MK5 is not a bigger enough improvement on the MK3. That guy should be sacked cz he obviously don't know what he's talking about.

If you have money to maintain a M3, then thats the one I would go for.

[lowdown]

Please explain the hot attributes of the M3?  They never catch me on the back roads...

I'd love one(really..honest..guv!), but I don't have that amount time to waste (at: petrol stations, BMW service counter, following up insurance claims due to scratching by keys, waiting at junctions, looking in the mirror admiring myself)

The M3 is an awesome ride, but it's a bit STRAIGHT LINE.

[apple_power]

BMW M3, are gorgeous and drive brilliantly.  However living in London I used to always worry about it getting keyed etc.  But they are not as much fun to drive as the Gti.  I love my Gti, I am gutted about having to sell it.  But so was I gutted when I sold my M3.  Cost of the M3 is silly, still I loved looking at my self in the mirror.

I now have a mini cooper S on order and a range rover sport on order.  As soon as they come, its bye bye to my Gti.  Go gor the DSG, 18" wheels,xenons as they make the car look the business and it is so much more  fun to drive.  Wife is currently driving our Gti, she is having second thoughts on selling it.

[mca01]

Having sold my 4 yr old M3 to buy a new GTI, I can honestly say the GTI is
- more fun to drive on public roads
- so far, much more reliable (although ages were different)
- significantly cheaper to own.

On a warm sunny day when the M3 was not in the local dealership being fixed, the car was simply awesome.  The same was true on track with the DSC switched off - the combination of M-diff, smg and 8k red-lining straight 6 was just amazing - the noise the engine makes is truely magical and it's the one thing I really miss with the GTI.   

Having said that, the GTI is more fun to drive on public roads.  The steering is so much better than my M3 and the spread of torque still gives the impression of rapid (if not ballistic) acceleration. 

The only downside to my GTI is build quality - it's not the same as a bmw and it's been back to the dealer 3 times to have rattles fixed. 

I bought my GTI because the M3, whilst amazing, was too much for normal driving conditions and far too expensive.  With the new model just around the corner, depreciation was frightening and this will only get worse.  Warranty costs shot up in Feb-06 to £1100 - 1800 depending on mileage (60k) and there's also a £250 xs on every claim.  You also have to make sure the 1st service is done on time too, otherwise you'll end up buying a car you can't sell and one that BMW won't honour if something goes wrong with the engine.   

To sum up, I had an M3 for 1 year and it was a mixed affair.  I've now had my GTI for 6 months and putting rattles to one side, it's great.