OK guys, make me want an E30

[SteSE]

^
E30 driver must have been Lewis Hamilton

[JohnnyBlazE]

He just knew the roads really well and had a car worth a lot lot less than a Type-R
I think Jase in the Type-R could keep up cos he knows the roads just as well, but he knows the limits of FWD too.

[tomtomtom]

mines an iS with 190,000 on the clock, theres always jobs that need to be done as you would expect for a car with these miles, but there's nothing major wrong with it at all, engine still sweet, suspension lovely, gearbox still feels tight etc. after a car starts to go a bit wrong i normally chop it in for something else but i absolutely love driving it and will probably have E30's for a long long time. they handle absolutely wicked, mines standard height (the iS does come 15mm lower though), with 15" bbs on and decent tyres and its just mint to drive. the steering wheels nice and small, the gearstick is close, the stroke on the linkage is nice and short, the seating position is ace and the seats themselves are well nice so all in all its just a mint car to drive. all i can say is if you spend your money wisely and get a tidy one you WILL NEVER regret it. i've driven 205's and they're a mint laugh, i love how you can go round roundabouts and tight bends super quick with hardly any lock on (if you set em up right) and before i put 15's and wideish tyres on my iS was surprisingly a very similar drive. now i've got wider tyres on its got loads more grip so isn't like that anymore but its not a bad thing, with so much grip they're just proper confidence inspiring. mine rarely oversteers no matter what i do or how wet it is but when it does its a piece of p1ss to catch and if it understeers (which again is very rare) you simply keep your foot down and keep applying lock! in that respect its like nothing i've ever driven or been in. definately a brilliantly thought out chassis.

i've never been in another E30 so cant comment on what engine to get but i reckon you'll be happy with either an iS or a 325sport.

the other thing worth mention is that i live round crappily maintained roads and most cars i've had, even mercs eat ball joints and rod ends and i've had the bimmer a while now and remember the mileage and there's absolutely no play or knocking from the suspension. proper car matey.

[gooner1]

Another good reason for getting either the 4or 6 pot, and is something you,ve already discovered, this place.
Got my 325i cab just under 2 years ago and with the help and knowledge of these informed and willingly able people i have not only learnt how to maintain my car without resorting to garage prices and "mechanics" who dont care or know a thing about E30,s. but also know if i do hit a snag there will be someone about to help.
Can honestly say i mechanically know this car of mine better than any car i,ve owned previously.
As for spares, cheaper and more readily available than most other car manufacturers, its almost as if BMW are as proud and caring about these cars as we are.

Good luck with your new E30, whatever variant you decide on.

[alex-e30]

all u got to do is test drive one, it as easy as 1,2,3

[fuzzy]

the obvious solution is to get an e30 then transplant a decent engine into it. mine has no shakes and rattles even for a 17 year old car. solid build quality and now the power it deserves.

[munky30]

E30's are slow (comparatively, modern 1.6's waste 325's), noisy (you dont like knocks, rattles and bangs so you want an e30?! Oh the irony!), it will break all the time, you'll be very lucky to find a good one and probably pay over the odds for it, even if you do get a good one in 5 years it will be a rustbucket.

But it will be worth it... for some reason thats not entirely clear to me yet.

convinced?

[Rosc0PColtrane]

Go six pot. The IS will be similar in distribution to your pug. It was a last minute job designed to compete with MK2 Golf GTi market. I son't think it'll offer anything over what you get from your pug.

The 6 pot will howl, makes great noise, power on tap. With a limited slip dif, is such an enjoyable place to be, smiles per miles. My Alpina needs to be off the road for a restore, but I cannot help but find and excuse to drive it!

Spend as much as you can on a well specced base car and go from there. If you're handy with a spanner, then most jobs are well within grasp of a competent DIY'er. If you don't know, the Zone will. Plus the zone can hook you up with cheaper parts, skilled painters and modifyers, automotive engineers and talented tuners, as well as cloth capped, driving gloved, pipe and slippered traditionalists.

Any old car can give you both mechanical and financial grief, the zone is an insurance policy to minimise that, leaving you the freedom to enjoy one of the last remaining vehicles to actually engage the driver in the driving experience.

Get behind the wheel and get addicted.

[Bob_S]

I have driven and owned many e30's from 316 carbs to M3's
I had the most fun in a 318is..
but for out and out fun and all rounder I would pick a 2dr with a 2.7 eta in it.

[Cotty]

E30's are slow (comparatively, modern 1.6's waste 325's), noisy (you dont like knocks, rattles and bangs so you want an e30?! Oh the irony!), it will break all the time, you'll be very lucky to find a good one and probably pay over the odds for it, even if you do get a good one in 5 years it will be a rustbucket.

But it will be worth it... for some reason thats not entirely clear to me yet.

convinced?

Why will it be a rustbucket in 5 years. I have had mine for 5 years and it hasn't turned into a rust bucket. You do come out with some funny comments sometimes.

[Hakkera]

haha, somoenes a little paranoid they're gonna wake up and find their silver beauty is now turd brown by the sounds of it

[daimlerman]

My two E30's are a 316i touring and a modified 320ise 4 door.Both will give around 400 miles to a tankfull. I paid £950 for the touring 3 years ago,it has run 25000 miles with us. The first year it had new brakes all round. Second year nothing. This last year it has cost around £800 in parts and a little labour. The other one I bought off ebay two years back for £185,it came with the usual 6 cylinder problem of failing to keep it's oil and water in seperate compartments.I had two goes at building it a 2.7,the second was very succesful...178bhp at 5250rpm and a flat toeque curve at 185ft.lb from 2000rpm to 5000rpm... this car over two years including purchase has cost me around £2000 and a lot of free fun. I was playing with a '57'plate 530d on the A17 last night,he could not understand how I could leave him off the roundabouts....in short,these cars are reasonable to run,most jobs are DIY and this zone will help with snags.If I can do it,so can you.Buy,and have fun..look forward to meeting you.

[munky30]

haha, somoenes a little paranoid they're gonna wake up and find their silver beauty is now turd brown by the sounds of it

you havent seen my car have you

Why will it be a rustbucket in 5 years. I have had mine for 5 years and it hasn't turned into a rust bucket. You do come out with some funny comments sometimes.

And you do seem to have had a humour transplant recently.

I was being silly. Hence the 'for some reason thats not entirely clear to me' comment.