I live in the northeast so i'm leaning towards the STi with the AWD compared to the rear wheel drive of a M3, we would be turboing or supercharging the M3. O yeah its for my dad BTW. He likes the new 3 seris and is waiting for the M3 e90 to come out that my not be till 2008.

 

STi

 

well it depends.. will he drive it in snowy harsh conditions? or will he have a bucket to drive in the winter? the Beemer has (of course) better top end plus with the addition of a turbo/super charger it will be even faster.. does he prefer luxury over performance? compromise? he needs to remember that the STi comes from the factory with TURBO & All Wheel Drive so reliability isnt a factor.. when comparing a bmw with mods to an STi..

There are lots of questions to be answered when picking one of the two..

Good Luck

 

STi for all weather / all terrain

M3 for freeway fun

I would pick the STi

 

m3 all day long (check my join date, didnt register just to post this as my post count might indicate)

 

STi. More fun. Bimmers are overrated.

But of course I live in Denver where it is currently 7 below 0. Go figure.

 

ouch, 7 below, that sucks.......70 here in LA.....lived in Boulder for 2 yrs so I know what its like.....40 degrees is like a summer heat wave.

+1 for the STi, but of course you're asking I club opinions.....
cheaper to mod, better selection of parts companies, awd for all weather conditions (northeast).

 

Turbocharching or supercharging an N/A car, especially a German one (built to high tolerances and therefore intolerant to tinkering) is a really pointless exercise. To void the warranty and destroy the resale value of a $50,000 car in the process makes even less sense. Why you are comparing two cars with a $20,000 price gap makes this an even stranger comparison.

 

true true, I don't know if he wants to get something too sporty though... i'll see how it plays out

 

Between the two, the m3 by far. It handles just as well and is way more comfortable to drive for every day use. Mods are expensive for them which is one downside but there pretty damn fast stock. Also, the m3 motor can handle alot of mods and will work fine with a supercharger. Although a basic supercharger is like 9k from aatuning.

 

The new M3 shouldn't be too far off. It should come out as an 07 but be offered late 06. I can't see BMW waiting too long after releasing the latest iteration of the 3 series. Usually, it's delayed by a year. Plus, the new M3 will be cranking out about 400 bhp if they drop the old M5 V8 in.

 

yeah I was reading, it looks sick too, I heard rumors that these pics were photoshopped though.. if they are someone did a awsome job. http://bmwheaven.bmwsport.net/content/view/28/3/

 

Both are great cars for enthusiast to enjoy it all depends on what you like, power for performance ill take the esteeye. If money is not an object for your dad have him buy an m3 and experiment with modding it. Have your Dad check out the new Bestmotroring dvd for a great Sti vs. euro comparo.

 

sounds like a good x-mas gift

 

If comfort is an issue, you could get an STI and then get a full custom interior and still have plenty of cash left over before you even get near a bone-stock M3. I've priced a full custom leather interior (including dash!) and it is a lot more reasonable than people think. I bet I could get a new STI, a custom graphite/grey paint job, a custom black leather interior, a Blaupunkt 10-speaker system and a dash navigation system for the price of a *used* 2004 M3 -- with enough cash for a TBE and reflash left over.

Pimp my ride, indeed!