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Tell me about E30 BMW's
I am still hunting for a fun DD that isn't going to cost an arm and a leg to keep running. I posted a MKIV Golf 2.slow a few months ago; that one turned out to be in terrible shape. No knowledge on timing belt change, slipping clutch, driver's side window didn't work, sunroof was leaking, AC was broken, and the interior was missing trim pieces, and he STILL wanted $3500 firm for it.
I found a 1989 BMW 325IS in 5 speed for sale. It looks great; however, is there anything to look for in a car this old? Bushings? I know the timing belt will need to be changed and such. |
11-02-2009, 08:10 PM
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#1
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![[H]ard|On's Avatar](http://web01.genmay.com/userav/avatars/av_3317.gif)
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In any car that old, yes bushings, shocks... things of that nature. You might want to start browsing e30 sections of any popular BMW forum for ideas of what goes wrong. I never owned one though. Guy i knew well for a while had an e39 m5 and a mint e30, he loved it like another son and used it for a daily majority of the time.
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~ I follow yo momma on twitter. |
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11-03-2009, 02:59 AM
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#2
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So you want a cost effective daily driver, and you can't think of anything more suitable than a 20 year old BMW project car? What should you look for? Everything.
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11-03-2009, 10:46 AM
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#3
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It differs case by case. If the owner has been good about maintenance and keeping up parts then you might need next to nothing. If not... every single rubber part will pretty much need replacing in addition to the standard wear items.
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B[M]W Club - 1987 E30 325 |
11-03-2009, 11:29 AM
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#4
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check for rust!
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11-03-2009, 12:34 PM
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#5
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just sold mine lastnight to make room for the e38. r3vlimited.com, bimmerforums.com (I am on there) socale30.com, dtm-power.com...
for the most part E30's are tanks. Mine had 297k on a non-rebuilt motor, and it was tits
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Clarkson’s trade is the kind of insults school students dream about making. What’s interesting about Top Gear is that everyone thinks it’s about cars. It isn’t. It’s about men and their relationships. - BBC’s W. Garvie. |
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11-03-2009, 01:50 PM
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#6
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The only place you can get milk in a bag.
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325iS's are hella fun, make sure it has an LSD in it and make sure tie rods are good (no play in steering) - temperature readouts on the on-board computer of -22dgF are common, it's a $20 fix. Power steering lines and pumps commonly leak, I just deleted mine since at 2600lbs it's not exactly necessary. Check for rust, most (if not all) e30's in my area under $3000 have lots of rust. Make sure the transmission is nice and stiff, no play in the gear selector - 99% of e30's have a nice stiff solid feel to the shifter, very precise - if it doesn't, I'd personally avoid as there is a good chance it was hooned about in.
Oil Service, SRS, brake lining, and inspection are all reset-able lights that you shouldn't worry about - CEL's are not. Very simple to fix, these e30's - parts are cheap and plentiful. I, like you, just wanted something that I could drive and have it not break something every weekend (like my old RX8) and have been very pleased with my e30's reliability, and with basic mods like exhaust+chip, it's a hell of a lot more fun than the underpowered rx8
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Yup, still from Boston SexiOne's pool boy |
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11-08-2009, 11:45 AM
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#7
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