@@MegaDj550 not really a friend owns owns and they are fairly reliable. Of course it is 25 years old so he has to fix things more often but she runs great
Merc all day. I want to like BMW, and I do like driving them, but as a total package, Mercs look better, feel nicer inside, and carry a higher class vibe. This Merc looks fantastic when compared to the M3.
Right? The USDM E36 M3's are somewhat disappointing. The cosmetic issues aren't too big a deal, but when the car has less power and a 5-speed instead of a 6-speed, I just feel so ripped off.
Most won't agree with me, but I think that the AMG is better looking. So much more muscular and those rims are awesome. The m3 is a better car, but that AMG looks 2 GUD
You cannot compare the interior on a 20 year old convertible vs a 20 year old sedan. Any 20 year old sedan is going to win that category just based purely from the overall differences in exposure to the elements.
Billy Huddleston ? What do you mean elements. He also said this was not an isolated case, that most taken car of mercs have better interior quality than most taken car of bmw's.
You can on an e36. They fall apart. Having owned both, and being regarded as a BMW guy, trust me when I say BMWs outperform but Mercedes is a true luxury car and built to much higher standards both in quality of materials and over fit, finish, engineering and craftsmanship as soon as you ignore the handling and raw performance of the cars the benz is ahead by a landslide. But the m3 is a much truer sports car experience which is what peoplle want used. Used luxury is an oxymoron. Used performance is hotrodding culture 101.
As a previous owner of an almost problem free BMW 528 from 2009 I really wanted the BMW to win my vote but the interior told a big story! I would now go for the AMG
I can see the M vs AMG argument but that seems less significant since AMG is just part of Mercedes now. If it was like an Alpina VS AMG when AMG was an independent company I would he a little more in agreement. I was looking at it as factory sports model vs factory sports model.
You are right indeed sir. First battle was the first gen M3 vs 190e Cosworth. AMG was not yet fully backed by Mercedes though was their biggest non-official tuner. Love these 2nd gen head to head comparisons.
thats what makes the cosworth so amazing being made by the inhouse tuner company amg in secret with the brands money, making an amazing car, and meanwhile on the other hand bmw made a car just to compete against the amg with the full support of the brand, and while having the knowledge of how the amg was built its not that hard to build a "better" car when u know what to upgrade and where.....
Tried to serch but couldn't even find a c36 for sale at the moment, maybe they rusted away like all 90s MBs Or the electrical system has melted away like the one I fixed, a friend had a m3 286hp at the same time and my the c36 felt booring in comparsion. More comparable to a other friends m5 e34 3.6, just smaller.
Monte Stu my dad had such a C-class before it got crashed twice in a month and he had to give it away. Was a C 280 and every extra option in it possible except for the stupid phone. It looked so damn gorgeous with it’s "emerald black" metallic and the late AMG sport suspension.
Maybe your GL has leather interieur, while the W202 had the so called MB-Tex. MB-Tex is a fake leather used by mercedes, since it is more durble and probably alot cheaper.
Owner of a 328i-swapped 318iS E36 here. Yes, the interiors really are horrible in build quality, but when you've sorted all the issues with them using second hand bits that somehow have managed to stand the test of time, it's actually an incredibly nice place to be. I still need to fix the glovebox door sag and the panel over the drivers footwell(screw placement on that is just silly, 2 screws in 2 corners opposite eachother, meaning the other 2 corners are always hanging down), but I put a low mileage set of seats and doorcards and an 18-button OBC out of a super high mileage car that somehow didn't have pixel damage and everything feels solid now. Barely any creaking or funny noises from the interior.
@@Mercedes_Benz_Bros. yes the last inline 6 by mercedes before thy move to V6 in the w202,too. my C280 1995 have 193 HP ;) will never sell. great engine !!!
i dont know if it's me but the outside of car shots look better than usual, audio is on point for once too good job Hoovie! I'd take the merc over beemer just for rarity if nothing else, ive never seen one in person
rrr330 it’s not that simple unfortunately. The US spec “M3” has basically a larger displacement version of the same engine as the smaller 6 pot models with a further handful of upgrades called the “S52” The euro spec cars have a completely different bespoke engine with ITB’s that share little in common with the other 6’s in the range called the “S50”
Same, my 99 M3 is about to hit 200k in a few hundred miles, been in the family since rebuilt from a wreck at 20k in 2001. The black vader seats have held up better than any I've seen online with regular leather treatments, just normal wear creases and cracks mostly on the driver's bolsters, but nothing major like you see. So has the vinyl. What did wear out was the leather on the shift knob facing the driver, which was replaced, and now the top-left of the steering wheel is going next. Somehow all my pixels are ok too, but i had to change the mid-high hk speakers out with bavauto units cause they blew, replace the capacitor that goes bad in the climate control unit as well as the FSU, and now the driver's seat won't move back and forward :/, oh yeah and the dome light developed a loose connection in the light itself. Engine is good, second valve cover gasket, vanos could probably use a rebuild, clutch and trans detent pins at 175k. Garaged in the PNW they're good with regular maintenance till around 160k then you have to start going through the suspension and driveline as the rubber, joints, and bearings start going, worse if it lives outside, but I consider those normal wear items..
The European E36's have held up quite well. The North American market E36 M3 had a lighter-duty rear axles and differential, leading to more reliability problems, which would be expensive to fix. The North American E36 M3's also had less reliable engines too. They had completely different engines too. The European versions got stronger camshafts, and a stronger oil pump and sump, but the North American E36 M3's had to make do with a slightly modified M50 engine, and later, a slightly modified M52 engine. And as these engines weren't designed for lots of hard driving, the Euro E36 M3 is a more reliable car for performance driving. Also, the North American cars got cheap plastic headlight lenses which fogged up, instead of glass lenses. And while the euro cars got floating brake rotors, the North American cars didn't, which means reduced cooling, which increases the chances of them warping
The U.S. Models got two slightly different motors depending on year/body style. When the E36 came out it had a 3.0 I-6 with 240hp and 225ftlbs, then they got bumped to 3.2 liters and torque rose from 225 to 236ftlbs but hp remained at 240hp. Now Europe also had two variations depending on year, when the E36 came out in Europe it had 286hp and was later raised to 321hp.
Insure the entire Hooptie Fleet (minus grandma's SL) with Hagerty, (collector value replacement cost added), park them in a barn and set the building ablaze.
As a child I was obsessed with the 300ZX... that commercial where the 300ZX was driving around a house with toys... classic - have you ever picked one of these up over the years?
I have the exact same BMW, color and all and I love it! Mine is a manual though. I also agree with you on the quality issues you addressed! Great video by the way!👌
Owned them both, a 99' US spec M3 coupe and a 99' C43 ... I'll take the C43 any day. Interior with the Designo black/white is far superior, and although it should have a 6 speed manual you can feel the difference in power regardless of the published performance figures. And my C43 has 140K on it but the only noticeable wear is one the driver side seat. The rest literally looks brand new. Amazing build quality.
I am a bmw fan and have owned several including my newest a 2009 328 coupe. I recently purchased a 2000 Mercedes CLK430 and to my surprise I like the clk better. For all the reasons Tyler has explained. The car seems to be made of the same stuff as “Thor’s“ hammer. It really is tough and way more powerful and reliable than the bmw and I bought for only 3100 dollars.
DAVID COLLINS you adsolutely right, Mercedes benz is way better in quality, I personally own a 2011 E 350 and the car still looks new inside and outside.
I'm driving my buddies 2000 Merc CLK430 and am REALLY impressed by how solid it still seems. How many miles? This one is 150k. Any HUGE gotchas that I need to worry about...oh I forgot to mention he is thinking of selling it to me.
I own a C36 and it’s built to last! This car WAS built in the era when Mercedes built immortal cars. It’s also a great sleeper if they don’t see the AMG badge on the back.
Great video!! Very informative and entertaining...... do you have a good source for a market values for 1998 C43 AMG? After watching your videos I I am looking at one to buy now.
The E36 M3 coupe was heralded as "The best handling car at any price" at the time by Car & Driver. We're talking better than the F355, Acura NSX, and Viper, 911 etc. There's actually a sweet poster of a silver E36 M3 coupe lined up next to the aforementioned "supercars" of that era with that tagline. The BMW is a driving instrument, the Merc looks like a Chrysler K car.
Thank you. Mercs are ugly, especially this era. They never have looked as good as BMWs aesthetically to me. Plus merc owners tend to be country club type snobs.
BMW's are for twinks who can't drive properly lol..there's a reason why Mercedes outsold bmw by over 250000 units. BMW's of this generation are considered the worst looking since 2005 because all of them look bland and uninspired...Whereas Mercedes keeps winning awards.
I couldn't agree more with every single point you made! Mercedes age so well, are built like nothing else, and sound amazing. I have a 2006 C-Class, and even 12 years later I still get double takes and heads turning when I drive down the road. The interior looks the same as it did when it was on the dealer lot... 12 years later!! You'd never guess it's two entire generations behind the newest one. It still fits right in. People who ride in my car always ask "are you sure this isn't newer??". Same with your C36! It doesn't look 20 years old. That's insane. I don't know what it is, but Mercedes just seems to be a whole other animal when it comes to making cars bulletproof.
ughyoutookmyusername An UrS4 isn't even a valid comparison with either of these cars. For one, the UrS4 was based on the Audi 100, so it's a larger car than the C class or the 3 series. It's also down on power compared to both the M3 and the C36. I like the UrS cars, but they're not the best comparison here. An RS2 would be perfect, but they're more expensive than either of these cars and not legal for proper importation to the US yet.
inteli722 I wasn't thinking of it as a comparison on chassis size, but I was thinking as a relatively cheap and very fun car (hooptie). I don't think there are any German hoopties (under 10k) as capable as an urs4. For 6k you could get an urs4 like mine that's cleaner and better sorted than either the c36 or e36 that hoovie bought. With mtm stage 1 chips, it'll make similar power, and more torque than either of these two. That extra 50 crank hp is cheap too, I got a whole extra ecu with the chips already put in for $150. Plus there is the fact that urs' came mans-mission only in the US
You either haven't followed Doug long or haven't been paying attention. Doug is very transparent. He worked for Porsche after all and has shared a lot from it and shared his personal feelings and thoughts. For more, go to autotrader.com/oversteer
Yet he is dailying his c36 and giving the bmw to his girlfriend... don’t tell us what you think we want to hear, be honest! The Benz is the better car hands down.
Probably because the benz is not even close to as reliable as BMWs from that era and the girlfriend likely wouldn't appreciate being left stranded by it. Though, being that it's a slow as **** US version and on top of that a cabrio with an automatic transmission... it's likely as bad as the benz.
no, no, let's be fair, it would need to be a Cadillac or Lincoln of some sort. the Cadillac Cimarron was dead by 1990....maybe a Catera? but that was really a german opel so it's better than a true caddy would've held up.
Those Mercs are used as taxis in a lot of countries and I'll take Tenerife as an example... Taxi drivers use them almost exclusively. They had rough interiors, some of their electrics didn't work and they had about 250-350,000 miles on the clock normally. However, they drove smoothly and were still very comfortable. In such a dry, hot climate like in tenerife, they really do last very well.
IcemaN because the European M3 got variable valve timing and 320 horsepower with the evo edition M3, while the American versions only had 240 with no variable valve timing and they didn’t even come with an oil temp gauge
I'm a huge fan of the W202 C-Klass and have one myself. Over here in Germany the C36 is almost gone and a good example is quite expensive. Bad ones sell for over 5.000€ and many C36 got parted out and the Engine was put in a W201 or W124, because... well... its a great engine :D
EU E36 M3 > C36/ C43 AMG > US E36 M3 E46 M3 > C55 AMG E90 M3 = C63 AMG (both the best out of all in my opinion) F80 M3 < C40 AMG (because it’s a 4.0 not 6.2)
The F80 has won more comparative reviews than the C63. The F80 Competition is the better sport sedan, only the Giulia QF can give it a proper match. The W205 C63 is literally the worst handling car of its class
Well done! I like Mercedes a bit more than BMWs, although I have owned several of each, as well as Audis & many VWs. Thanks for your great history lesson.
I much prefer the m3 over the c36. All 3 series were better than c-classes until either the e90 or f30 (much debate) but needless to say Mercedes is killing BMW on every class of vehicle now and I'm totally fine with that because ever since bimmer did away with their NA I6s my love for them was lost. I'd take a c63 over an m3 or m4 any day now.
"Mercedes is killing BMW on every class of vehicle now" Merc beating BMW: C-class > 3-series (including C63 and M3&M4) S-class > 7-series BMW beating Merc: 5-series > E-class (including E63 and M5) X1, X3, X5 > GLA, GLC, GLE Germans have switched their personality recently. AMG is more track focused, M cars are more comfortable The best example for that is the new F90 M5 versus E63(S) AMG. Based on many reviews BMW has a softer suspension in comfort and is a better daily driver and feels lighter/sharper on the track... WITHOUT competition pack (coming soon) I love AMGs, but in last ~10 months the new E63S has been like a god in RU-vid comment section. Now BMW beat it with the new (base) M5 and it feels good
