E30 Zone

Hi all ...

Originally I was shopping for a nice SPORT , but SWMBO pulled the plug on that plan , something about 5K being too much money for a toy to accompany my '03 E39 Sport ( Gutted , as I was loving the thought of buying RETRO-MARC's car )

Anyway , I'm now in the market for a spankingly good TOURING , preferably a 325 , but a 320 would be fine too.

I'm looking for an example in TIP-TOP condition , which hasn't had any modifications , perhaps suspension. Appearance is paramount , therefore paintwork / bodywork / trim all must be as good as possible.

My budget for the Touring is 3k , so , can anyone point me to any clean examples ?

Also , if not too much to ask , could anyone on here with Touring's please let me know what checks and what questions to ask any seller's that I may encounter on my search.

Hopefully , I can find the exact car I'm after and buy it within the next 6 weeks.

Thanks in advance to all for any help in my mission to bag my first E30







Here's an example of the kind of car that has caught my eye recently :

http://www.jamespaul.co.uk/vehicle-deta ... f=&NotRef=

gIzzE had one for sale here not long ago - looked to be in cracking condition Worth having quick look in the classifieds, though he may have sold it now...

Peter

i paid £300 for my car thats a 320i touring not bad condition

PeterS wrote:gIzzE had one for sale here not long ago - looked to be in cracking condition Worth having quick look in the classifieds, though he may have sold it now...

Peter

Sorry.. picked that one up last night.. a cracking motor indeed!



Regards,

Ian

3k will net you a shiney touring indeed. I knew of a very clean alpine white touring for about 2k in Somerset, but I imagine it's sold now.

Is it WLN or Old Colonels that has spangley minty mint motors?

Rosc0PColtrane wrote:
Is it WLN or Old Colonels that has spangley minty mint motors?

Both. Quality motors but you pay for it

RE : The Old Colonel

I've noticed an ALPINE WHITE 320i TOURING on his website for £2k.

92k on the clock , full history. £900 spent on its last service inc cambelt and brakes

Do you guys think it would be a wise purchase ?


By that I mean , considering it has cloth interior and coke bottle alloys , would i be able to kit it out in Leather and nice shiny new alloy's , and perhaps pop in some air-con , and still just about make my £3k budget ?

i.e :

Car - £1995

Leather Interior - £ ???

17" Alpina Reps + Tyres - £500 ( Im guessing )

AirCon - £ ???


Can anyone fill in the gaps for me please ?

Personally i wouldn't bother with a 320i, all that is going for them is the noise.

Wait for the right 325i with a good spec and nice colour.

IMO 2k for a white 320i with poverty spec interior and wheels is ott.

Also just my opinion but alpina reps will only devalue a very tidy touring, however a set of genuine 16" pinas wheels will complement it.

2K for a 320? my 325 mtech touring had 80000 on the clock,leather with 4 head rests,lsd, and cost me £1200 from a dealer. search a bit harder. youll find a better deal than that.

I'm guessing the reason its at £2k is due to the £900 worth of work done at the last service , which for me is a bit of a clincher , as its £900 i wouldnt have to fork out over and above buying the car.

Do you think the 320i is really that bad ?

I'm 34 , and searching for a nice E30 touring for weekends and personal enjoyment , as opposed to diffing it round the nearest car-parks , so would a 320i not be sufficient ? Or are there still plenty of tidy 325's with full history and repair paperwork etc out there if I play the waiting game ?

There's a nice Laguna Green 325i Touring at www.jamespaul.co.uk , which only has leather and the Tech 2 steering wheel ( no rear head-rests ) over and above the oldcolonel's car , but its up for £2995 , and has 150,000 on the clock....

My head hurts

still silly money for that sort of mileage cars.if your willing to pay that much then you will find a low mileage , well under 100K , with history and very clean . just bide your time ....

Any ideas of where to look ? other than oldcolonel , pistonheads , autotrader , carandclassic ??

cheers

There will be the right 325i out there but you will have to be patient.

The 320i is imo is the worst of every world.

325i or nothing

The green one you linked to looks nice, but you could pick the same car up in a private sale for half that much easily.

I'm confident a grand will get you a half decent 325i touring. With your budget its not the end of the world if you have to shell out a few hundred quid on some minor repairs or paint the arches if they have started to bubble.

This one that I spotted for sale locally here is really nice with some good options and well worth spending a few quid on making it spot on. In fact I reckon you could maybe get this one looking 100% and not lose any money come resale time. You wont find many with a seats like that and the colour really suits it.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 0264702381

If you buy a 320i, in a month or two you will wish that you have bought a 325i

Another option is to buy a really clean 316 with all the toys and drop in a 2.5l. 316's dont live a hard life and usually have good bodywork. You can always pic up leather etc if your patient

The 316's and 318's also ran up to K and L reg IIRC. It's a good plan Cotty.

I've had my 320i touring for 6 years and never thought about putting a 2.5 in it.

Definitely go for a 316 or 318 lux on a late plate (K or L or even rumoured to be the odd M about), on a private sale from an old codger who's finally realized that his driving days are over, and has had it stored in his heated garage for a couple of years.
A recent one I bought was immaculate, inside and out, totaly unmolested, rear seats looked like they'd never been sat on, load cover had never been discovered, British Legion appeal sticker in the back window, and golf tees and score cards in the door pockets.
Sewing machine motor out; a M50 or M52 in its place, and you'll have an E30 that is about as good as it gets!

^^^

you can't go wrong if your prepared to do an engine conversion

Check all the usual rust spots plus the tailgate. For some reason BMW build tailgates that rot underneath the rear window. Otherwise, its as any other E30, maybe with a bit more risk of dog hair The single biggest area that worries me on these cars is the fuel tank/rear brake lines/rear subrame bushes which are all a bit of a bastard to fix and once you're into one you may as well do the lot.

If I were you I'd buy a good shell and have all the servicing done yourself by a garage/mechanic that you trust. I don't really trust a car until its been ripped through by a decent mechanic who will tell you of all the potential problems and give you a priority list.

Expected costs involved with an engine change ??

Thats the killer! most people on here who talk about engine changes are doing it DIY. I'd say its going to start at £1500 for the labour alone, depending on the rates you're getting of course. The good news is that engines can be had for less.

A straight swap to a M20 2.5 engine wouldn't cost a lot in labour.
Engine complete, radiator, gearbox, prop, diff, front springs and exhaust required + cutting the rear valance to take a twin exhaust.

Sounds way to overboard for me I'm afraid

So , realistic options are :

1. Wait for the RIGHT 325i Touring to turn up

2. There really is no 2nd option from what you guys are saying


AAaaaaarrrggghhhhhh I hate waiting

E30Virgin wrote:Sounds way to overboard for me I'm afraid

So , realistic options are :

1. Wait for the RIGHT 325i Touring to turn up

2. There really is no 2nd option from what you guys are saying


AAaaaaarrrggghhhhhh I hate waiting

The 320 isn't THAT bad, it's just that they use the same fuel and cost the same to insure as a 325i. When you consider that the 325i has 40 odd BHP more, you can see where the guys are coming from with the statements above.

Personally, if I found a 320i (manual) with excellent bodywork, I'd snap it up quick style. They can always have the ECU's chipped very easily and cheaply to help with fuel economy / performance.

Good luck with the search..

you are right to be thinking of spending around 3 grand you may well get a nice touring for less but by the time everythings as you want it you will probably be close to that figure. Tourings with genuine low mileage are rare due to the sort of use they were put to when newer. So either be prepared to wait or by a 316/320/318 and get an m20 2.5 put in for under a grand including buying a good engine. Alternatively I have an excellent tech1 sport in my garage which might be available to the right person it needs a respray but is mechanically superb. pm me if interested.

who would have thought it would be so difficult

Now I'm starting to wonder if i can get an un-modified SPORT in good shape for £3 k - £3.5 k

Thanks for all the pointers so far guys .. Keep it coming

I am currently preparing for sale a really nice '91 325 touring. The car is malachite green with excellent 4 headrest sport black leather interior, factory aircon,cruise, 4 electric windows and sunroof, map reading mirror,dog guard rear blind,obc, working headlight washwipe ,stainless exhaust ,mint 15" BBS ,etc etc.
It is an auto with 120000 miles and total history. I am presently going through it mechanically including sump gasket/gearbox oil and filter/cambelt/waterpump /aircon service etc. The car is a switchable auto and drives as really nice one should. It will be about £2750 when done.

pacerpete wrote:I am currently preparing for sale a really nice '91 325 touring. The car is malachite green with excellent 4 headrest sport black leather interior, factory aircon,cruise, 4 electric windows and sunroof, map reading mirror,dog guard rear blind,obc, working headlight washwipe ,stainless exhaust ,mint 15" BBS ,etc etc.
It is an auto with 120000 miles and total history. I am presently going through it mechanically including sump gasket/gearbox oil and filter/cambelt/waterpump /aircon service etc. The car is a switchable auto and drives as really nice one should. It will be about £2750 when done.

Funny enough sounds exactly like what he is after..

Peter is a proper bloke, so this will be a lovely chariot!

OOOOOOoooooo .... Any current pictures of the car Peter ?

georgen wrote: Personally, if I found a 320i (manual) with excellent bodywork, I'd snap it up quick style.

So would I (and do!). 2.5 engine and AFM can be dropped straight into a 320 as a straight swap.
320's are all getting on a bit in age now, though.

That sounds like a dream spec!

That sounds like a dream spec!

Indeed it does



Just hope it has a tech 2 steering wheel as well

Morat wrote:Thats the killer! most people on here who talk about engine changes are doing it DIY. I'd say its going to start at £1500 for the labour alone, depending on the rates you're getting of course. The good news is that engines can be had for less.

If I remember correctly Spadge was offering very reasonable 325i conversions. A lot less that £1500. Might be worth a PM

Fitting a 325 engine in place of a 320 engine (keeping original gearbox, etc), in a touring is an easy days work, for anyone with a ramp, etc.