Looking at an E30 316i - what to pay?

[Con2K]

Hi All,

Long time no speak!
I sold my 4dr 325 a good while back and now through a friend I've heard about a local 2dr 316i is about to be advertised for sale. They let me have a look before advertising to see if i'm interested. They don't know an awful lot about cars but have a BMW specialist who has done all the work and estimated a sale value for them so that's what they are going with. £3k is what they were told it's worth. But I know it needs at least paint down both sides and rust prevention on the arches which I can get done along with some other small fixes within a £500 budget.

316i (non Lux) manual 2Dr local car.
Alpine White II
106k, History only since their ownership (2011) unfortunately. 4 keepers but basically an elderly person and then into this family.
12months MOT. Mechanically v.sound
Clean interior with full took kit
Sunroof (unused in recent yrs, manual)
Lux 14" BBS alloys with caps
Daily drive but sub 3k miles a year but used all year.
Fair bit of preventative work done for bodywork over the years but scabby arch lips are back and paint cracking above arches. Couple small dents I'd likely not repair (would need a wing and bonnet and I'm not keen on a full respray for the small dents as they don't detract from it).
Drivers door painted wrong shade - this leads into the requirement for paint down both sides.


















-Looking online, prices are all over the place. £1200 to £10k! But I appreciate this is a 2Dr and yrs since I sold my 325. I think someone would pay £3k if I don't, but I know I want to spend a further £500 sorting things out.
-Will I get my money back should I ahve to sell quickly? (THings up in the air with work and anything could happen). I'm not looking to turn this around and make money. But as it's just another thing to mess about with for summer I don't want it costing me too much overall. I'm sure if I kept it over 12months and looked after it I'll be ok with what it owes me.
-Does changing the bumpers to colour coded (lux spec looks) devalue a base model?
-I'm really not looking for another project. I have enough of those

Thoughts welcomed.

[Foe]

Difficult one, this one. You've got to go with your guts. I too have delved back into the E30 zone and recently purchased a 1991 316i lux.
My mate worked on it for 3 years, on and off, so I knew what I was getting myself into, however, I'm.still having to sort things out, like replacing thermostat, fixing the non working fog lights, electric mirrors and dash. But I feel it's worth it!
You need to decide what to do, and weight up if viable or not.
I'd rather drive this, then my wife's new Kia Ceed!

[Con2K]

Thanks for the input Foe.

If it was a 2dr lux (regardless of engine) I'd have jumped at it.
My fave is a glacier blue 318i Lux. I saw one on ebay last week converted from auto to manual and it was lovely. but tbh this isn't a purchase I'm making as project, just a bit of fun, so I couldn't justify the higher asking price of that blue lux just because it's what i really wanted. This compromise works better for me in the long run I think.