Having purchased a 318 in January last year I was definitely bitten by the bug, the beamer bug. I've owed a number of cars over the years, all have been hatchback econo-boxes. Nothing wrong with that, just a bit boring. After childhood dreams of Ferraris and Lamborginis, I settled down to boy-racer dreams of Ferraris and Lamborginins. Mmm… However, the thought of an Aston or a big Jag was appealing (old before my time maybe).

Any way, I digress. Because of the hatchback/sensible family cars I became bored, bored of cars, bored of dreaming about cars, just bored. Yes I know a 318 especially an E46 318 isn't going to set the world on fire, but it's funny, with me it did!

I was reborn, cars were once again interesting, fun to drive not just a conveyance to get you from A to B. I only owned that 318 for 13 months but it was enough, enough to tell me I was missing something.

I test drove a nearly new 320 in December 2002 and was hooked, the noise, the smoothness. I wanted a 6. In February this year I found the 323, all the noise an smoothness I liked, with a bit of power. Now before you say "well it's hardly an M3", I know. You have to understand I'm new to this, I was used to hatchbacks with no more than 90bhp and front wheel drive. Now I have 170bhp and rear wheel drive. It will go sideways, it will spin (ahem!) and recently I've found it will go round corners reasonably quickly - in the wet!

Would I change it? Yes, for another E46 with more grunt. Maybe a 325 or 330 or maybe a 330d. I have been so impressed by a couple of 330d E46's recently, who knows. The car still makes me grin 10 months on, so it can't be too bad. Perhaps my standards are lower than some, I can only compare to the vehicles I have driven and owned in the past, but I love it.