E30 Zone

what kind of people owend e30s in there day? ie reps? well off people?,whats your views?

I believe it was the dream car for yuppie types,ie city boys.

A bmw is a car for the masses now,but in the 80's it was a car to show you had 'made it!'

When I was a teenager growing up in the '80s, a neighbour's wife had a 320i Cab - they were in the restaurant business. He had a very nice blue Jensen Intercepter III tucked away in his garage, but rarely used it.

A driving tester in the test centre opposite had a 320i 2-door saloon.

but is the bottom rung in a manufacturers range really the way to show you had made it? i was still in school until the late 80's so i wasnt noticing that sort of thing yet.

Tbh, I always thought that E30s and Merc 190Es looked a bit el-cheapo when they first came out, being alot smaller and less 'glam' than previous BMW & Merc models, but they grew on me.

my dad had a brand new one only a 316i ultra poverty spec non sunroof car, in alpine white, it was a company car but he left not long after he got the car and in the small print it said he could keep the car if he wished, SCORE free e30

i have pics of it somewhere in the rain and a pic of me and my mum next to it when i was weeks old

Yuppie mobile aint to bad! I think id rather like to shed the "image" the e30 has now, it seems like people presume i am a scab because i drive a C-reg 325i. Im ashamed to say i would rather take my Merc C200 to a job interview.

In the ninetys they were known for being "dealers" cars in my part of the world. SE London that is.

My mate had an '86 320i auto in '87 then picked up a brand new 325i Manual 2 door in Aug '88. He was a contracts manager for an air conditioning company.

is there anyway of getting in touch with the original owner of a car, i want to contat the original owner of my IS and see if he/she has any pics

My dad used to have company cars. An E30 would have been a step down compared to his usual cars. I tried to convince him that he could get an E30 touring with every extra available and I could buy it once the lease expired after three years. Turns out I would not have been able to afford it even after three years of depreciation, I can dream though

Alex wrote:is there anyway of getting in touch with the original owner of a car, i want to contat the original owner of my IS and see if he/she has any pics

For a small fee you can get coppies of old log books from the DVLA.

the lasses dad had two back in the day a 323 when they first came out and then a 325 . He was and still is a solicitor, lawyer thing.

Still likes his bimmers has a 330d now . Takes great interest in my e30 resto.

bss325i wrote:In the ninetys they were known for being "dealers" cars in my part of the world. SE London that is.

i think alot of londoners still like there e30 325s not for the dealer status tho,

bss325i wrote:

Alex wrote:is there anyway of getting in touch with the original owner of a car, i want to contat the original owner of my IS and see if he/she has any pics

For a small fee you can get coppies of old log books from the DVLA.

cool so they have all the old log books in files, dont suppose you know where to start then as i would like the copies

The guys who made it big in the city after the Big Bang in 1986 drove a Porche 911 Turbo. The guys who didn't quite make it that big drove a white E30. They all wore stripy shirts, braces and red plastic glasses

Morat wrote:The guys who made it big in the city after the Big Bang in 1986 drove a Porche 911 Turbo. The guys who didn't quite make it that big drove a white E30. They all wore stripy shirts, braces and red plastic glasses

sounds like a scene out of only fools and horses

the one with the green???? b reg 323i where he falls through the bar

Alex wrote:

Morat wrote:The guys who made it big in the city after the Big Bang in 1986 drove a Porche 911 Turbo. The guys who didn't quite make it that big drove a white E30. They all wore stripy shirts, braces and red plastic glasses

sounds like a scene out of only fools and horses

the one with the green???? b reg 323i where he falls through the bar

casandra drove a e30 in some episodes it had steelies on!was that it??

Alex wrote:

bss325i wrote:

Alex wrote:is there anyway of getting in touch with the original owner of a car, i want to contat the original owner of my IS and see if he/she has any pics

For a small fee you can get coppies of old log books from the DVLA.

cool so they have all the old log books in files, dont suppose you know where to start then as i would like the copies

I never knew that either!! Sounds like it could be fun.

Someone who lived next door but 1 to my Mum and Dad when I was a kid had a post facelift E30 316i. I used to walk past it every day and drool. I didn't know what the numbers meant back then but I just loved the way it looked. A guy up the road had a pretty nice blue E28 company car which I also quite liked. The E30 was THE car I always wanted when I were a nipper. Worked out quite well cos i'm not as keen on newer BM's and can't afford one either!!

I actually also remember one of my Dads mates turning up with a brand new red E21. He took me for a spin in it and I remember asking him if it could go any faster???

Alex wrote:

bss325i wrote:

Alex wrote:is there anyway of getting in touch with the original owner of a car, i want to contat the original owner of my IS and see if he/she has any pics

For a small fee you can get coppies of old log books from the DVLA.

cool so they have all the old log books in files, dont suppose you know where to start then as i would like the copies

I'm not sure how you go about it but it can be done.

sweep wrote:

Alex wrote:

Morat wrote:The guys who made it big in the city after the Big Bang in 1986 drove a Porche 911 Turbo. The guys who didn't quite make it that big drove a white E30. They all wore stripy shirts, braces and red plastic glasses

sounds like a scene out of only fools and horses

the one with the green???? b reg 323i where he falls through the bar

casandra drove a e30 in some episodes it had steelies on!was that it??

yep it was a 323i there is one scene where you can see the 323i badge

Morat wrote:The guys who didn't quite make it that big drove a white E30. They all wore stripy shirts, braces and red plastic glasses

Could be Timmy Mallett or Chris Biggins !!!!!!!!

I remember a neighbour across the road had G plate 320 in black. Sounded the muts nuts and he thrashed it everywhere. I think it was a company car...but that car sounded so much better than all the cortinas and sierras and cavaliers that evryone else had

my mates older brother had one from new 325isport leather,air con,all the toys.
he used to leave it in his mams garage while away at work for months at a time.
he was a p.t.i instructor [army]...so needless to say we never even looked for the keys to it.

My Dad had a stunning black 325i se brand new back in '89' It had ox blood leather I think and I thought it was the best car ever....I remeber it being quick anyway. It still exists aswell (well it did about a year ago anyway)
I think the reg was something like F54 KVR.

Alex wrote:is there anyway of getting in touch with the original owner of a car, i want to contat the original owner of my IS and see if he/she has any pics

As stated ,you can get everything you need to know from DVLA(their website may help you?)
When i got the details on mine from them,i think i just sent a letter to "DVLA fee paying enquiery" with a cheque for £5 requesting the full history of my car. It took them a good while but they responded with names/address of previous owners and all the old logbooks (photocopys) and they also give you the details/paperwork for any cherished plates it has had and i also got some paperwork from the 1st application for a license etc.

Second owner of my old Sport was Des Barnes (Phil middlemiss) In his corrie days
The guy I bought it off said that Des Barnes car in Corrie was the very same Sport (He used his own car) Even some of the service history was by Granada studios.....I could never find any fottage of the car though.

I think this depends a lot on where you are from. In Australia they were considered pretty exclusive in the day - fully imported, not that many of them. Mine was leased by a doctor, for his wife - a pretty common scenerio (substitute lawyer, accountant, executive, etc)

e36boy wrote:Second owner of my old Sport was Des Barnes (Phil middlemiss) In his corrie days
The guy I bought it off said that Des Barnes car in Corrie was the very same Sport (He used his own car) Even some of the service history was by Granada studios.....I could never find any fottage of the car though.

I remember seeing him in it (think it was an episode where Des left only to come back) and I know Johnny Briggs (Mike Baldwin) used his own Merc at one time. (He lived close and I saw it around)

sweep wrote:what kind of people owend e30s in there day?

C0cks. How times change

Bewdley320T wrote:

e36boy wrote:Second owner of my old Sport was Des Barnes (Phil middlemiss) In his corrie days
The guy I bought it off said that Des Barnes car in Corrie was the very same Sport (He used his own car) Even some of the service history was by Granada studios.....I could never find any fottage of the car though.

I remember seeing him in it (think it was an episode where Des left only to come back) and I know Johnny Briggs (Mike Baldwin) used his own Merc at one time. (He lived close and I saw it around)

Id love to see that episode, I remember seeing johnny brigg once near manchester airport in an E320 coupe years ago.

My Pap, had before i was born a brand new 320 E21 in black with alpina's, he was going to swap it for a brand new 1983 323i when they were launched (He even got invited to the dealer launch) but opted for a Volvo 240 (I think) estate.