e30 daily driver?

[sheehan879]

I have been thinking (dangerous I know), I am not content just driving my e30 cab in the summer. On the other hand I dont want to spoil all my hard work driving around in the winter. A e30 coupe for a daily run around is sounding like a good idea.

I am currently driving around in a 51 plate nissan primera, very comfortable, spacious and reliable but very very boring.

From thouse that do it, what is an e30 like to live with every day compared with a modern car.

Cheers

[e30bmlover]

i wouldn't know mate... iv only ever owned one car and thats the e30... i have no issues with reliability... cracked heads... but i do have a little rust... but dont we all?? handling is sublime(rails i shit you not) and enough power for the traffic light gp's when i can be bothered.. i say go for it bud

[zaust]

I used to do a 50 mile round trip evrey day in my sport for 3 year's. Always arrived feeling fresh and had a smile on my face. Easy to maintain and service. Good on fuel for the m25 unless you have a hdi to compare it to. Go for it, It won't be much different from your cab just less wind noise.

[mrLEE30]

I am same, my cab is for weekend/nice weather use and the Sport i just bought is actually my company car and my daily driver.

brings a smile to my face every morning. compared to modern car really depends on what you compare it to. A sport with a nice interior is a much better place to be than most modern cars, but you have to accept certain things after all its a 20 year old car (like built in Sat nav/steering wheel controls etc etc) on the plus side spend a bit on a decent ICE set up and you will have a comfortable daily driver.

Fuel economy will always be worse compared to a modern car due to the engine design, but i guarentee you will not get many admiring glances in a Primera, a nice E30 Sport will turn many a head!

mrlee

[sheehan879]

sounds good,

I should get about 1100 - 1200 for the primera, what could I be looking at for in this price range. Would aircon be realistic?

[jbh]

a few years back i used my old 318is as a daily driver rather than the passat tdi i had sitting at the time.. why cause i much preferred driving my e30 and as previously said i felt fresh and happy after driving it to my work rather than the passat.

[Felix79]

I use to have a 318i as a daily runner and it was a champion of a car. Use to get reasonable mpg and it was a brilliant motorway cruiser ( doing Bedford to Liverpool and Mancheter all the time ). I just find an e30 a nice place to be when you got to drive.

[daimlerman]

We are running two E30's as daily drivers,no problems,no hassle. Just routine services and other maintainance as required.

[StuBeeDoo]

I've run mine as a daily for 5 years. It gets used 365 days a year and averages nearly 13k miles a year. It's only let me down twice in that time -
1) when the CPS packed-up 100 miles from home on a Sunday afternoon
2) when the head gasket ran-up the white flag.
I blame myself for the head gasket because when I changed it not long after buying the car I made the mistake of using the cheap ECP one (which only lasted 3yrs/37k miles) rather than waiting the extra day for a genuine BMW one.

I'd rather have an E30 as a daily than a modern mass-market car.

[hubble]

We are running two E30's as daily drivers,no problems,no hassle. Just routine services and other maintainance as required.

+1

With the added bonus of it being a 6 pot too just so smooth and effortless.

[pnd]

E30'S ARE VERY RELIABLE as long as you get a decent one in the first place i have used them as daily drivers for over 10 years. you will need to keep on top of maintenance due to age its not like a new car where you don't even have to look under the bonnet. I wouldn't use an e30 every day if i was going to be in and out of a city or sit in traffic jams a lot but if your on motorways or open roads they still make an enjoyable and utterly dependable means of travel.

[Pete-M]

My E30 has been used as my daily driver since June last year. Other than needing the waterpump replacing it has been fine, and even when the pump was on the way out it still behaved impeccably.

I'd have no problems using it for another year but I'm off out of the country soon, and it's very difficult to register RHD stuff where I'm going.

Oh, AC isn't an issue, mine's got it.

[leeparkes]

used my 320i as a daily driver for 5 years and never had any issues with 220K,
look after your E30 and it will look after you

[stonesie]

As above really, mine has been a reliable workhorse.

It has needed a few bits of routine maintenance but nothing out of the way for a 20 year old car and if I am honest, 2/3 of what I have done was not really necessary but it got done anyway

[GrindCulture]

My mum ran my car for 3-4 years as her daily, I've done the same for the 18 months or so that it's been mine (appart from the few months when I was driving the iS). Only had 1 issue with a water pump seizing since I've known the car. Keeping on top of routine maintenance seems to be keeping her alive.
Let's see how the M42 holds up, as I have little or no information about it's history prior to me getting it.

[Oggy]

I'm using mine as a daily driver, just rebuilt the head, done the head gasket, water pump etc, so i'll drive that until the M20 gives up, at which point, if funds allow, i'll be looking M50 I think!


I used my E30 Cosworth as a daily driver up until I had to commute from South Manchester to Leeds and back every day, which is when she had to go

[Brianmoooore]

Two E30s used here as daily drivers. Almost 100% reliable, and neither has completely stranded me.
I also have access/experience of modern stuff, and the E30s beat all of them easily for reliability! Ever hear of a clutch lever breaking in half on an E30?! (At eighteen months old!)

[fuzzy]

nothing wrong with an e30 as a daily driver as long as its a reliable and maintained example.

[AlexBaur325]

When it was on the road my baur was my everyday car. loved it, every journey was a pleasure.

[Gortour]

Mine's a daily driver. Had it two and a half years now, and it's my only car.
Gets used for everything, unless I use my pushbike for work - on the odd occasions I can be bothered...
No problems with daily use at all.

[fuzzy]

I used my E30 Cosworth as a daily driver up until I had to commute from South Manchester to Leeds and back every day, which is when she had to go

which one was this? do you still have any pics?

[LondonTom]

I use mine as a daily driver, including driving for work (I'm a monkey estate agent!) instead of having a company car

[Oggy]

I used my E30 Cosworth as a daily driver up until I had to commute from South Manchester to Leeds and back every day, which is when she had to go

which one was this? do you still have any pics?

I certainly do!









I sorely miss it

[GC318]

Use mine everyday, puts a smile on my face everytime I fire her up. The driving experience is far beyond anything I have owned before. The wife has the family bus, but it's an E30 for me all the way.

[blackcountrybimmerman]

I'm hoping to use mine as a daily driver. But just from sitting in it, it feels as comfortable as any modern car.

What we must remember is that in the 80's these cars were considered rich men's cars. Entry level luxury saloons.

They're bound to be comfortable.

[ChrisiS]

Use mine every day, and having previously been a landrover person its a breath of fresh air.

Mine is an H plate 318iS, and in the last 6 months I have done just under 10,000 miles in it, some of it loaded up to the hilt with kayaking/climbing stuff.

If you get one with sport seats, get a new cushion for the base and that makes it much better too!!!

Im probably going to look into a 325i touring (with the view to eventually slotting a 2.7 in money and time allowing) as my daily drive next year.....

[e30topless]

I have used an e30 as a daily for a long time now and have no complaints,

it can get a bit tiresome round town in traffic but I love the motorways

[Brianmoooore]

The wife has the family bus, but it's an E30 for me all the way.

It's also an E30 for me, and the wife INSISTS on an E30 (touring) as well.(Although I've given her an E34 to play with for a few months.)

[Simon13]

I miss having a daily E30 e36's are boring!

[capri_rob]

I haven't used an E30 as a daily for about 5 Years - however I have used previous E30's as daily drivers extensively in the past and wouldn't have a problem putting my 325i into daily use if I had to.

If you can afford the fuel I say go for it !

[jbh]

my other half also used her 318i cabby as a daily driver when she had it. and considering it was her second car after passing her test she loved it only reason we needed to part company with it was having a 2 year old it wasn't a practical car with the lack of boot space in the cabby and the rear seats weren't ideal for a car seat. also she couldn't get the roof down as much as she would have liked with having the wee one with her. she did say had it been a baur she had she wouldn't have parted with it cause it would have had the bigger boot and standard rear seats

[Nay]

I've got 2. A 320i auto saloon which is my comfy smooth simple car, and my project of a 325i. The 325i plays up soo much its untrue, but everytime i decide i'll take it out she starts and drives fine.... untill i take the piss and drive her till she overheats (which isn't long with a buggered cooling system).

Granted both of mine need work atm (320i is going in as that just needs a few little things, then the 325i is going for a massive over-haul) but both still run fine and are comfortable or fun (320i or 325i). Also when you turn up to work and see people in their chelsea tractors, people carriers, compacts etc... you just know your driving the better car!

[Nay]

Oh, and if you turn against the E30 as a daily, i've heard lots of people dont mind the E36 (**...ducks for cover...**) as they are slightyly more modern, almost as cheap and just as reliable (from what i've heard) as the E30s. TBH when I have my E30 325i project finished and have passed on my 320i i'll be probably be looking for an old/cheap E36 325i/M3 as a daily.

[Morat]

Mine is a daily driver. Fuel costs are a bit higher than a modern car but what price can you put on looking forward to the drive to work?

By the time you factor in depreciation you'll find that just about any modern car is more expensive to run than an E30 and maintenance on these old machines is very simple - thanks to the zone.

[Fushion_Julz]

I have used an E30 (325 4dr and 320 touring) as a daily drive for the past 5 years...

Only once had a complete breakdown (injector loom multiplug corrosion on the 325)...

Compared to the other cars I've had, it is fine..comfortable fast (enough) and fun with the right amount of space and creature comforts...
I've also used other older BMWs (E28 525, E34 530, 1802) as daily drivers and currently have an E34 525iX Touring...

The only thing the e30 lacks, really, is safety features such as airbags...Makes up for it with having a fantastic view from the cabin and better than average roadholding and braking.

EDIT: forgot to say that, nice as the E34 is, it is nowhere near as much fun as the E30