e46 forum differences???

Being a newer e46 owner and a former automotive technician, I've found TONS of useful info on various e46 forums. I've also noticed that not many members are involved in both forums, it seems to be either one or the other. I'm not trying to incite a thread full of crap being talked about other forums, I just wanted to know if you had noticed any differences between the forums, and your opinions based on your past experiences.

In my experience in various forums, BMW and non BMW, this forum is VERY active. I've yet to find a more active car forum.
That being said, theres a lot of drama queens and baby's here. A lot of crap talk that isn't typical in other forums.
People here seem to be very close minded and set on one thing and only that. This is very prominent on this forum and not so much others.

There's a lot of good and some bad, but the traffic and quick responses are what make this forum greatly unique.

Don't listen to him - he doesn't know what hes talking about there is no drama here and we aren't closed minded


(post was supposed to be a bit dramatic&closed minded for sake of humor)

Prominently displayed on e46 related google searches so a lot of people find this forum and stick around.

This **** be off topic and **** man learn your **** before posting

This forum sure isn't what it used to be...

It's very easy here most times to separate the wheat from the chaff here--the wheat helps our cars run longer and the chaff entertains us while we're learning.

I came here for help 6 years ago and I got it...and now I spend what time I can learning more and paying it forward. In return, I have gotten the biggest laughs and made some good alleged Internet friends. I could drive across the country and if anything happened to my car along the way, I'd lay decent odds that I could find help from one of these total strangers here.

I've only been to bf and have to say that the few times I was there, I felt like a fish out of water. Personally, I think this forum matches bf on having obnoxious members, but rises above it in the help it provides. Oh sure, some leave here crying, but every day here cars get fixed, often for pennies on the dollar, and the diys here cover everything and most of them have semi-clad women or dogs helping out in the vids--rarely both for some reason I don't understand.

I find this forum to be the best in therms of knowledge and DIY help.
How ever, if there is specific diesel questions, it seems like other forums has a bit more information to share.

I searched in a couple of german forums as well, but it seems like they are more scared of DIY. If your car is broken - "drive to the BMW stealer". For me this is the last option, I prefer to do it my self or share the DIY with others. Ok the germans made some awesome styling mods, but seems like only a few guys will ever change the gear box in a DIY thread or video. If they add pic, some add them in a size of a post stamp, so you cant see a #¤%#"%¤#% thing.

I follow a UK E46 forum, but to be so far im not impressed. They speak about swirl flaps that should be removed, that it would scare you to ever purchase a diesel. Sounds like 20% of all diesels have their engines damaged. (which is not the case)
I tried to read a few lines about chip tuning diesels. This is just rubbish, owners say, they get 30% more BHP and Torque and improve their fuel consuptions by 10%. I have experienced 10% worse fuel consumpsions (dont use the cars computer as it displays faulty results) and got about 20% more BHP.

This forum is really awesome but ok, a few issue where I am a bit surpriced. I have seen guys out there who just buy some cheap R134a gas for the aircon and refill it them self. Wow thats something we cant do in europe. The price for the gas alone is 150 USD (700 ml) so we would have the aircon checked for leakage and never just refill.

I have done my cars for ages my self, but still there is a great help in here to find out how to disassemble things and get some tricks. The BMW TIS is sometimes much too complicated and poor in its descriptions.
Best is if users posts a DIY including a video, thats a great help but also a pic guide is helpfull.

Originally Posted by dmax

It's very easy here most times to separate the wheat from the chaff here--the wheat helps our cars run longer and the chaff entertains us while we're learning.

ooh good metaphor

OP, this forum is a lot, how should I say it, "rougher" than others. You will find a lot of bitter and jaded people here who will make biting comments. It used to be different, though. It used to be a place where every time someone posted a picture, you would get a ton of " siiiiiick ride bro" comments. Not any more. I think it's better this way.

I no longer drive an E46 (it's my wife's car now), but I stay here because the mustang forums are all still on the "sick ride bro" phase of existence, and it's really boring. Plus I get infractions for telling people their stanced mustangs look like sh!t.

If you can weed through the immaturity this can be a very useful tool and save you a lot of money. And it's always good for a laugh every now and then.

Originally Posted by lsteg

If you can weed through the immaturity this can be a very useful tool and save you a lot of money. And it's always good for a laugh every now and then.

+1 to this. Entertainment and you learn a lot.

Defintely alot of idiots here that think they know everything

I love the info and the comedy here other forums do not provide.

Originally Posted by 330ciandr6

Defintely alot of idiots here that think they know everything

It is 2 words "A LOT" not "alot"

I found a lot of useful info in this forum and havent had the need to go looking anywhere else...plus i just dont have the time or desire to be joining and monitoring several forums.

This forum the best and my first forum car, so ill probably never leave the forum until i turn 40 years old. lol

Amazing website, so much value information here that if your engine push 600k miles go for it.

The drama is only people trying to get there point across

I've been involved in quite a few forums. This one, is like none of them.
My advice: If you can ignore the idiots, then you can get quite a bit out of this place. If you are the type of person who feels like you need to engage everyone who makes a nasty comment, you probably aren't going to be happy here.

I've only been here a few months, but so far, here is my favorite "argument".

A non-M e46 guy wants to put some M stuff on his car, he immediately gets a lot of crap from the M guys. "Dude, you don't have an M, don't bother, and stop trying to fool people."
Yet you look at another thread, and these same M people put CSL stuff on their cars and want to be applauded for it. It cracks me up every time I see it.

The second most favorite... "I want to make my car faster". General reply, "there's nothing you can do". Uh, yea. So there's dozens of performance companies out there spending millions in R&D to make products for BMW, and none of those products work? I don't think so. These guys act like there's something so different about a BMW motor. Last time I looked, it had pistons, valves, cams and an intake and exhaust mainfold.... JUST LIKE EVERY OTHER MOTOR IN THE WORLD.

Final word. Check the thickness of your skin before posting. As Clarkson says, M3 - driven exclusively by c.o.c.k.s.

I'd stick with this forum personally unless you can't find what you're looking for, which would surprise me. Use the "search" feature and you should be able to find everything you want to know without having to start a new thread. It's been covered before, trust me. I've looked and followed some DIY projects from elsewhere but for the most part I was linked to it from this site.

This forum is a wealth of information and although you do have to weed through a lot of BS sometimes it is the only forum I've been on where you can post a comment in a 5 year old thread and have six responses in literally no time at all.

This forum has a lot of information if you search, and has a lot of crap too. And people are willing to help from their experience, but you will also get smart ass comments.

You got to be a Roman to stay in Rome. Thats all I can say about this forum.

A Ton of info, a ton of entertainment and a ton sarcasm. But this forum is very active with inputs from different people, not like other car forums where there is one person(usually the mod) answering in all the threads.

All I can say is I rely more on the information here and DIY(as much as possible) rather than a mechanic or a stealer.

This forum keeps me entertained during my downtime at work.