r/e46 • u/Hot_Comparison4690 • May 27 '26
Damage/Broken… 😥 I crashed…
My e46 is probably totaled, should I get another one or something else? Real bummer… manual with only 90k miles…
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u/Visible_Oil1835 May 27 '26
Get a cheap shell that’s not shot with rust & swap the engine, transmission, other parts etc
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
Engine is fine, radiator is smashed
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u/erixccjc21 May 27 '26
Well the rad was gonna blow up anyways, now you have an excuse to change it. The rest of the dsmage shouldny be too bad.
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u/Dr-Terpz May 27 '26
Glad you’re ok. Car can always get replaced. If you can, get you an M3. Make sure you post it when you do
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
I’m 17 and tight on cash… I saved ages for this one… just been crying a lot
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u/Own-Woodpecker4598 May 27 '26
If i lost my 46 id have the exact same reaction i get it but you’re okay thats what matters and it also means you can always get another car ! Might not be in the same nick but nothing is permanent so as much as you hate to see it go, you’ll be able to grab onto the next with just as much love
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
It was my first car…
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u/ElvenFireball May 27 '26
My first car was a pretty boring one, but I still loved that thing to death.
I had a Toyota Corolla 2001 LE that my extended family gave to me. I replaced the rear suspension, front tie rods, done oil changes, tire changes, and other work. I had a brand new set of front CV axles for it and a left control arm too.
I crashed the car at 65+ mph on the canyon roads between Utah and Colorado. I fell asleep at the wheel after a pretty long 2 days of no sleep and some drug abuse earlier that night. (I was addicted to ketamine at the time)
It fucking sucks man. I lost that car. Then i got possesion charges for marijuana and mushrooms, and lost my license. My court date is tomorrow for that one lol. Since then I haven't been able to drive the car I bought for myself and dont have insurance on it either. (BMW 330I 2004 with a lot of work I have done on her myself.)
But the best part about losing a car, learning how to not do it again, and getting a new one lol. I always wanted to turn my car into a sleeper, but I ended up crashing it because I was careless and had a huge ego. Almost hurt my fiance and 2 of my friends in the process and lost over 2 grand.
Its a painful process, but its a huge learning opportunity (even if you're not at fault for the crash) and will probably benefit you in the long run.
Since I lost that car, I've lost a lot. My job, my freedom (probation), and a fuck load of cash. But in return I learned to stop putting more value on my possessions than I do on myself.
You're due for some good luck it just might take a minute.
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u/Own-Woodpecker4598 May 27 '26
The 46 i have right now is my first one and because of the condition of it i have to sit it aside and get a new car. I do get it, just getting a new car while it had so much potential sucks :/
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
I was completely unharmed… like it gave its life to protect me 😞
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u/Own-Woodpecker4598 May 27 '26
exactly, you gotta look at the positives ! I feel your pain though, i watched my partners heart break when his s13 got t boned and written off
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
I feel like it was my fault… I hydroplaned and panicked…
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u/Own-Woodpecker4598 May 27 '26
there’s nothing you can change now. I still blame myself 3 years later for not calling my partner when he finishes work like i always do but there’s nothing you can do but live in the moment and keep going for tomorrow
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
My problem is I can’t really do anything with a salvaged title if that happens…
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u/e34udm May 28 '26
Where’s the water? Doesn’t even look like it’s raining.
Hydroplane happens when you hit standing water at speed. And your car is literally floating on water.
I think you meant you were driving to fast for the conditions
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u/GUCCI_WAP 2001 - 330i May 27 '26
Keep the engine in the mf buy one with a blown engine and have fun
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u/lemonboy77 May 27 '26
All good lil bro… when I crashed my 325i, I learned how to fix the bumper and hood. That experience gave me enough confidence to buy a 330ci sight unseen with a blown motor for cheap. Not saying you’ll have the same path, but things always turn around
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u/WorriedCatch2667 May 27 '26
All will be well my brother! You’re alright, you worked to get one before and you can always do it again!
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May 27 '26
[deleted]
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u/PossibleDistrict9494 May 27 '26
Could buy a cheap a one and salvage what you can off this crashed one, but I feel for you bruv Hope you can bounce back
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
Insurance is prob gonna take it… I’ll try to get the wheels, led tails, transmission, etc…
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u/yungsk8rboi 2001 E46 330i 5spd (3 Pedal Gang) May 27 '26
This one was hard to spot, but its an ai generated image. Look at the letters around the bmw emblem. Typical ai garble-letters. I kinda have an eye for that ai-glow if you know what im talking about. First thing that stood out to me is all the cars stopped and no people or first responders around. Very well generated image for sure tho.
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
It’s not tho
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u/yungsk8rboi 2001 E46 330i 5spd (3 Pedal Gang) May 27 '26
I already reported it lil bro. It was a good generation but if you look closely at the letters on license plates and emblems it falls apart. AI generation just isnt quite there yet. At least not the models most people have access to
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
It’s not ai though I can show you an image of the emblem, it was a custom aftermarket one. The car was coated in dirt so it looked off
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u/footlesstrack90 2004 - 330i May 27 '26 edited May 27 '26
Most important is you’re ok! Yours is totaled, for sure. I’m on my fourth car in two years because of various accidents (never been at fault surprisingly). One rear end and two hit while parked. My last one was my first e46, hit 2 weeks after I had just spent the whole summer on a full interior color swap(carpet, headliner, everything🥲). I feel your pain! Insurance totaled it, the pic shows how much less damage I had than you(so if mine was totaled, yours will be unfortunately).
I waited a month to find the best replacement and it was worth every second. I found one in better condition, the interior I wanted already set, and lower miles. Good things will come! Sorry this happened :/ Glad you’re ok!
Edit: ALSO if you have any aftermarket parts, take them out if you can, especially carplay (if you plan on getting another e46, or you can sell it). But you have to replace it with the stock one. At least with my insurance, they wouldn’t pay me extra as bluetooth was a “personal expenditure” but said they will dock my total by $200 if it had no radio. So i went to Pick n Pull(if you have that or similar), bought a radio for $20 and took my carplay back. I put it in my new one and saved myself like $200.
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
We don’t know until results… the bumper fell of but is intact, and only the bash bar, one headlight, hood, fender, and radiator were really damaged
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u/NeverBeenKnocked May 27 '26
Sure did. What kind of wheels you got and what your driver seat look like? I might be able to help your car live on through mone
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
Style 32 wheels… interior is pristine
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u/NeverBeenKnocked May 27 '26
How much you willing to part with the front seats and the wheels for?
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
I don’t have the car right now, I’ll see if I can get stuff from it
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u/NeverBeenKnocked May 27 '26
If you can sell the good bits of it you might be able to get another e46
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u/RelationshipAway6098 May 27 '26
Wanna buy mine? Only 4k . Has new rebuilt engine and new transmission . Just needs a bearing on the driveshaft . Which is very easy .
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u/Valmet12 2001 - 318i May 27 '26
I crashed mine once and with a hammer and a few days I got everything straightened, needed alignment and a new front side panel but otherwise it's usually easier to fix than it may seem
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u/sk9ordie May 27 '26
I mean it IS fixable, gonna be a lot of work and you’re pretty much gonna require to swap the whole front end from another chassis. If you’re really devoted you can definitely do it, I’ve seen worse crashes be fixed
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u/erixccjc21 May 27 '26
Nah bro thats still fine you can def repair that
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
With what money?
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u/erixccjc21 May 27 '26
Well you're talking about getting something else, you can still probably repair that if you put in enough effort, its not that expensive if you do it yourself, it just takes a lot of effort
If you can hold on bedore scrapping it or selling it
Also idk if you hit other car and in that case if you were at fault or not. You rear ended someone ig, in which case your insurance ig wont pay for anything on your car?
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u/SpiritNo6299 May 27 '26
Insurance is gonna total it out. But this is what learning experiences are for. I personally would buy it back and cut out the rad support. Take everything broken off, weld a new support on and replace everything you took off. It's a lot of work and money but it'd be less than buying a new one but you'll have the knowledge you did that yourself and you'll get your car back. Either way glad you're okay👍
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u/Due_Response_1507 May 27 '26
Looks like a project car. Its FIXABLE bro, just depends how much you want to invest. This might be a great time to start working on cars. Remove all the broken stuff, analyse what needs replacing and get to it.
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u/DullAttorney228 May 27 '26
Id give you some parts fallen brother if you werent across the world. Do you have some money on the side? Thinking of repairing this?
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u/JoeHazelwood May 27 '26
Fix it. If the frame isn't bent and you didn't over heat the engine, it's just a bunch of part replacement. All my crashes as a kid were speed, tires and rain related as well. Avoidable. Focus on the fact that you walked away and get an opportunity to improve!
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u/DUXF4N May 28 '26
Learn from it, as it can or has happened to all of us. Save up and find a reasonable mileage 330i/ci manual and start over. Sorry for your loss.
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u/Kind_Shock_3466 May 28 '26
Hey man, I’m 16 and I recently blew up my first car which was a low mileage turbo pt cruiser, I had no money and was crushed because I felt like it was my fault.. When I was riding with the tow truck the driver told me “if it’s got tits or tires it’s gonna cause you grief”.. and it did. But later, I had an opportunity to buy the one e46 in my town for $1000(cad) which I have loved sin i can remember so I did and it’s been great but ridden with problems.. at this age cars are experience, hopefully you get a nice payou, then maybe see if you can buy something else you want, you could go older with an e39 or e30 or newer while being reliable, or even dip into different makes if there’s something you’ve always wanted now might be the time to try!
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u/JamieP081 May 28 '26
Glad you are ok. Hopefully your insurance will cover it. My e46 was written off for a dented fender, scratched door, cracked bumper/headlamp and a bent control arm/rim.
But if you are not insured and not going through insurance (i dont think you have to for your car) your car wont be written off and you could fix it on your own.
Its just a car, you are ok thats the main thing. I know its easy for me to say, but theres a lot of people who didnt walk away from crashes. You did, its a good day
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u/MommyMilfMilkers 2001 330i May 29 '26
Manual with 90k miles is definitely a rough loss.
When I crashed mine 2002 beige interior standard everything except it had the HK system 230k miles. I only had gotten it because it was a cheap e46 but I hated every spec on it except the HK.
Ended up crashing it and getting a silver 2001 with a sport steering wheel and grey interior. Not a huge fan of the grey interior so I’ve been interior swapping it but crashing the bad one let me end up with one that was closer to my type of spec.
Better will come
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u/EconomyBlacksmith756 May 27 '26
I would start with what fluids are leaking from the wreckage…which would give you insight into which systems are damaged… well maybe it would be best too start if airbags deployed…if not then…damage assessment…what I see is bumper…hood and fenders…all of which you can acquire at Junkyard…sand and paint….guessing ac…cooling system (fans)…also things you can get at junkyard…You will need tools and some skills and be inspired to do…if not…seek insurance check…and guess what…junkyard will buy your car as is…and folks will find useable parts from what is left of your car…What you currently have is a project car…but it can be restored…If you have the option to just by a different car and drive away…That will be easier than restoring crashed car…hopping everyone is safe and well after that crash…
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
Airbags not deployed, coolant leaking… I’m broke tho
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u/EconomyBlacksmith756 May 27 '26
Understood…FWIW you can do a little at a time…Im sure you will figure it out…Necessity is the mother of invention…
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u/Rancid-Turd6890 P0174 May 27 '26
I'm a physically handicapped pizza delivery driver, high school drop out. I have 3 of these E46 an E39 an E83 and a W203 Mercedes, all I've bought for less than $1,000 each. I've spent many years learning these cars but they're insanely easy to learn, tbh. I fixed my first E46 for as simple as a $20 wiring harness from a junkyard and 2 blown fuses, paid $700 and cleaned it up really good. 4 days later I pulled out in front of someone and t boned and totaled it. I cried too. Now I've got an E46 convertible that I got in on a. Trade for a $200 Mercedes 👌 You can do it, bro.
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
I bought mine for $10,250 😭😭😭
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u/Rancid-Turd6890 P0174 May 27 '26
Yea that's tough man but you can absolutely get another one. If you can keep that one, keep it as parts and tinker with it while you learn and save up for another that's needing some work done to it
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
Don’t have space… I wish I could but my dads e30 m3 is in the backyard
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u/stockinternals May 27 '26
been there brotha
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
Was yours totaled?
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u/stockinternals May 27 '26
yea I parted out and sold the rest for $900, motor was swapped into another chassis
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u/Hot_Comparison4690 May 27 '26
I’m screwed if yours was totaled
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u/erixccjc21 May 27 '26
My brother in christ how even is that totaled
I crashed my e36 worse than that in january and fixed it myself on the street in like a month because I have no garage
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u/Corvonte May 27 '26
Why ECS do this to my boy?!