Make my decision for me. (First world problems)

[Dozyproductions]

Make it interesting and have e36 m3 with a n54 swap?

[ThatOneEuroE30]

that Miata would be a nice little sleeper. You can also use a turbo 400 if you wanted. Them are a good trans my neighbor had a built one behind his 1000hp drag car and that fucker hooked and booked had an air shifter and all that on it.

[CarsonE30]

Make it interesting and have e36 m3 with a n54 swap?

fully erect

[matthugie]

A V8 Miata sounds great in theory but the chassis really doesn't handle that kind of power well. The E36 on the other and is proven to handle 600+hp without issue. From what it sounds like your goals are the E36 seems like the better choice.

[e30austin]

I can't believe this is even an actual question. E36 > Miata any day of the year.

[markseven]

^ I am guessing you have never driven a Miata.

[E30 Wagen]

Still don't see the point in paying more for a M3 only to swap out the engine (unless you find one with a bad engine for cheap). If you're going to be tearing it apart and rebuilding the entire car anyway then I'd hunt for a cheaper model that somebody will sell for <$1000 instead of spending like ~$6000 for a M3. Put the "extra" cash toward things like suspension/paintwork.

The e36 I wish I could build is a tuned N52 swap, ideally a slicktop with CF panels (painted) and other weight reduction. The goal would be a relatively light-weight, nimble car that's quicker than a stock M3. I like my e36 but it feels so heavy compared to my old e30.