E30 Zone

as the title says

the engine in them is absolutely superb - much much smoother an sweeter than a 2.5

fairly easily modded to around 145bhp odd - 2,.tb,one chip and exhaust

my old man had one from new and got well over 30mpg ish from it on a run so harldy bad mpg.



im a performance nut and as such the 2.5 is more my style (tho id much prefer more power in that too) but not everyone wants or can afford that.

Just wondered y the 2.0 gets slated so much really

Have you seen this one mate?

http://www.e30zone.co.uk/modules.php?na ... hlight=320

My latest E30 was a 320i before I made way for the 2.8i and I drove it several times, not once did I think "this is crap". I actually thought round town driving was a bit better in the 320i, I mean you can plod along at 25-30 mph no worries, where as my 2.5i is very unhappy to potter about, it needs to be accelerating all the time to keep it smooth.

My first E30 was a 318i (M40) what an indestructable bag of sh*t that was.
Give me the 320i over the 318i all day long.

Andy

i think its cause its kinda stuck in the middle ground of the range offering the benefits of neither the top end nor the bottom end...

2.5 economy with 4 pot performance

not saying they dont sound nice etc just they are the 2.5's little brother

If its an E30 i don't care what engine is in it . they are all great.
A lot of M3 , sports and 2.5 snobs on here with no time for any of us lesser mortals. Most of them still live with there mums so can afford to throw all there wages at cars. Don't get me wrong though there are some tops lads on here as well. If it wasn't for the advice i've got off the Zone my car would be in heaven by now. Sorry about winging , its sunday morning and my daughters got me watching Winnie the pooh. great!!

johnl320 wrote:If its an E30 i don't care what engine is in it . they are all great.
A lot of M3 , sports and 2.5 snobs on here with no time for any of us lesser mortals. Most of them still live with there mums so can afford to throw all there wages at cars. Don't get me wrong though there are some tops lads on here as well. If it wasn't for the advice i've got off the Zone my car would be in heaven by now. Sorry about winging , its sunday morning and my daughters got me watching Winnie the pooh. great!!

thats a bit harsh mate about the m3, sports and 2.5 "snobs" dont you think?? everyone on here is here for the same reason you are.

Here we go again! Anyone for a bit of fishing?

Too hot for fishing

I've had 2 2-litre E30's now... both convertibles (well 3 if you include the 320iS - but that doesn't count!) and I think they're great. Sound lovely, but could do with a little more grunt. A chip, 2.5 throttle body and you're away...

They're more reliable than the 325's too... anyone heard of a 320i with a cracked head...? Not me...

Giles.

320i Unloved or not look at this http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 64874&rd=1 Those seats look interesting and the steering wheel too!

6potWil6pot wrote:Those seats look interesting !

recaros ?

Given the fact that it has the single ///M badge on the back rather than the 320i badge, an Alpina steering wheel and a woodgrain gearknob, it must be fast! lol.

johnl320 wrote:If its an E30 i don't care what engine is in it . they are all great.
A lot of M3 , sports and 2.5 snobs on here with no time for any of us lesser mortals. Most of them still live with there mums so can afford to throw all there wages at cars. Don't get me wrong though there are some tops lads on here as well. If it wasn't for the advice i've got off the Zone my car would be in heaven by now. Sorry about winging , its sunday morning and my daughters got me watching Winnie the pooh. great!!

I'm gonna bite at this,

What aload of shite mate, these are the very people who help u out. They are the people who have had 316/318/320 and worked and saved their way up to sports, M3's. I have and i take offence to that. Yeah i live at home, have u seen house prices? Need 2 good incomes and a good deposit to get going and spunking a bit of money on your E30 isn't going to be that detrimental to saving for a house?!

As i see it when i buy my house my E30 will be in top condition so i can just run it and enjoy it when things get tight as they do at the start

i think the "snobs" always help the "lesser mortals" in the tech section because they have been there when they owned these cars before

Drag your arse to a meet and and then u can see the snobs for real. And then after that slag them off

I don't comment on 320's anymore!

I agree.

There's very few guys on here that come straight into 325i Sport ownership... many have started with 316's and the like. Okay, so my first car was a 320 convertible and THEN a Sport, but that was when I WAS living at my parents house!

But now I've had 7 or so E30's I try and help people out where ever I can, as do most, if not all, of the 325 owners on here.

My last car before the Sport I just moved on was another 320i convertible, and there was NOTHING wrong with that at all. It's up for sale again if you want it... CLICK HERE!

320's are a great car, but 325's are just faster. That's about it.

Simon13 wrote:

johnl320 wrote:If its an E30 i don't care what engine is in it . they are all great.
A lot of M3 , sports and 2.5 snobs on here with no time for any of us lesser mortals. Most of them still live with there mums so can afford to throw all there wages at cars. Don't get me wrong though there are some tops lads on here as well. If it wasn't for the advice i've got off the Zone my car would be in heaven by now. Sorry about winging , its sunday morning and my daughters got me watching Winnie the pooh. great!!

I'm gonna bite at this,

What aload of sh*t mate, these are the very people who help u out. They are the people who have had 316/318/320 and worked and saved their way up to sports, M3's. I have and i take offence to that. Yeah i live at home, have u seen house prices? Need 2 good incomes and a good deposit to get going and spunking a bit of money on your E30 isn't going to be that detrimental to saving for a house?!

As i see it when i buy my house my E30 will be in top condition so i can just run it and enjoy it when things get tight as they do at the start

i think the "snobs" always help the "lesser mortals" in the tech section because they have been there when they owned these cars before

Drag your arse to a meet and and then u can see the snobs for real. And then after that slag them off

I don't comment on 320's anymore!

Another one here, I too think I'm the only E30 M3 owner that's a regular on here too? I will always try and help other zoners, and have quite often gone out of my way to look at something/take pictures of something, or taken time to write about something.
I don't live with my parents either, got my own house, and most of my wages go on that.
I too started of with a 316i, and I loved that car, (actually if I saw it today I would buy it back!)

As for the 320i/325i debate, here's some facts

325i is faster
325i has better fuel consumption ( be it a very small difference, but it's a big difference when put into persepective, engine size and performance advantage)

320i are cheaper to buy
320i more reliable when it comes to the cracked head syndrome


So it's really down to the buyer and what best suits them.

BTW, I drive a 320i daily, and it's great for what I need it for, sounds nice, and pulls well down low. (I'm still going to put a 2.5 in sometime though )

As mentioned above, there is nothing wrong with them at all. The cons are that they cost as much to run as a 2.5, but don't have the pull.

If you cane it, they are not slow, but being beaten by 1.4 Saxos was beginning to get annoying when mine was 2.0.

Still a decent engine, mine was reliable as anything!



I started off with a Sport, but only cos I was (and am again now) living at home.

Own my second 320i now, a couple of points i wish to make. I think sticking a cheeky scorpion exhaust on and chucking it on the floor makes it just as appealing as a 2.5. I think they rev harder, only coz you have to give it more to get some out of it, but the noise that they make is fantastic especially when you let off the throttle and it just burbles its way back towards idle. FANTASTIC i love em. And they are cheap as chips to run. What more could you want.

My first 320i -



My current minter -




I love em.

Simon wrote:I too think I'm the only E30 M3 owner that's a regular on here too?

theres a few M3 boys regular on here arent there?
of the top of my head as well as you theres M3Rags, C76Jon tho you are probs the most regular Simon, and im sure no one can fault the way you help ppl

There's nothing wrong with 320's they're a good fun car, enjoyed my last one so much I broke it

No snobbery from this 325 owner (on bottletops)

Chaos wrote:

Simon wrote:I too think I'm the only E30 M3 owner that's a regular on here too?

theres a few M3 boys regular on here arent there?
of the top of my head as well as you theres M3Rags, C76Jon tho you are probs the most regular Simon, and im sure no one can fault the way you help ppl

Perhaps I should have said married to the zone then!
There's a few more than that too, Aaron, Martin (M3pilot) with his evo sport, KarlP also has an M3.

hi peeps im new to this board and thought i would ad my opinion ....ive always liked e30s but until now never owned one ...yesterday i got my first one a 320i cab (infact kam320i cabs one) and i like it.. i did a deal with kam on my 90 saphire cosworth with nearly 300bhp it was in exelent condition and was sad to see her go but i wanted a e30cab
any 320 and 325 aint fast imo...but i belive people buy them for the sound a straight 6 makes and the style its a clasic shape and i love it
i cant belive that any one can be a snob over owning a 325i in any shape or style ...the only beople that have any more braging rites over any e30 is the m3 owner but dont belive they would be snobs either ...ive come from passion ford and rs owners club forums and find that no one on passion ford is a snob ...but rsoc every one with an escos or a rs500 look down on lesser cosies but they have the same engine ..
any i bought mine for the style not for the power been there done that now i just wanna cruise along and not worry about engine rebuilds

Sorry lads ,i didn't mean to offend anyone . I unfortunatly have gone the other way in e30 ownership working my way down to a 320 . mainly because of house prices . just jealous i suppose . I would love to come to a meet but work takes priority. You have got to admit though the 320 does get loads of stick and the facts and figures do support it.
Again I am sorry to all the people i annoyed ,but it was good to see someone else biting apart from 320 owners
regards
john

COSSIESPEN wrote:hi peeps im new to this board and thought i would ad my opinion ....ive always liked e30s but until now never owned one ...yesterday i got my first one a 320i cab (infact kam320i cabs one) and i like it.. i did a deal with kam on my 90 saphire cosworth with nearly 300bhp it was in exelent condition and was sad to see her go but i wanted a e30cab
any 320 and 325 aint fast imo...but i belive people buy them for the sound a straight 6 makes and the style its a clasic shape and i love it
i cant belive that any one can be a snob over owning a 325i in any shape or style ...the only beople that have any more braging rites over any e30 is the m3 owner but dont belive they would be snobs either ...ive come from passion ford and rs owners club forums and find that no one on passion ford is a snob ...but rsoc every one with an escos or a rs500 look down on lesser cosies but they have the same engine ..
any i bought mine for the style not for the power been there done that now i just wanna cruise along and not worry about engine rebuilds

no one is 325i snobs - its all a bit of fun! Otherwise they'd be ripping the 316i owners

Its not so much slating the 320i, its just friendly banter (I hope )

Ok, my first E30 was my 325i sport, I always wanted one and I was lucky enough that I could afford to buy one. But my first E30 drive was in my brothers 320i touring and that was what convinced me to buy my E30.

I loved the sound of the 320i (nicer/smoother than the 325i), it was so nice to drive and just cruised along the road. I very nearly bought the touring off my brother, but it had too many doors

my first e30 is / was a 320, i just thought it needed a little more kick

Having now owned my 320i touring for close on 6 months, i can see why people say its not as good as the 325i

129bhp vs 171bhp. it doesnt take a genius to work out that 42bhp makes a hell of a difference in terms of performance

The fact it has smaller struts for the suspension. I'd say in stock form it doesnt feel quite as 'chuckable' as a 325i.

Drinks like Ollie Reid on a bender if you push it

but, on the upside i'd say,

easy to release more power relatively cheaply (325iTB and zone chip)

Gear ratios are actually damn close to a 325i sport box (oh ok, its cause the engine is weedier )

As Geeman said, the 731 head found on 320 and 323's has a lot more material in it, making it much less prone to cracking.

Relatively cheap insurance (ie Ԛ£300 cheaper for me than a 325i (enough to buy the car )

That sound, so sweet and raw.More of a rev happy monster than the 325i

feels a bit more torquy low down (probably due to the 'flathead' design of combustion chambers)

Still handles a lot better than most FWD cars that could be had for similar cash.

If driven carefully can get 36-38mpg out of it (Zayyan pulls 40mpg in his 316i and he is sh!t hot at getting economy)

Jhonno wrote: no one is 325i snobs - its all a bit of fun! Otherwise they'd be ripping the 316i owners

I love my 316i (Touring)!
Just back from the M.O.T. station, sailed through no problems whatsoever. Had it for 9 months now and still get that big smile every time I open the garage door.

got to say that a 320 doesnt appeal to me... contrary to what has been said about trading up... I never bothered with a 320, 318 etc, whats the point, I found that the 325i se cost bugger all more to run / insure than a 320, so whats the point?

same reason I bought a 328i sport e36, they cost about the same to buy as a 320, 323, 325 or 328, but so much more fun,

people probably slate 320's becuase BMW is synominous with performance, so 325i = good performance so people buy them.

Also if a 325i insurance is say Ԛ£300 a year more and you pay monthly its only Ԛ£25/month.

When I dropped in the 2.7 my insurance went up by Ԛ£27.

rowemeister wrote:Also if a 325i insurance is say Ԛ£300 a year more and you pay monthly its only Ԛ£25/month.

When I dropped in the 2.7 my insurance went up by Ԛ£27.

given that i pay Ԛ£62 at the moment- Ԛ£87 is way too much!!! thats more than 1/10th my earnings a month!!

Fair enough!! I pay Ԛ£82/month * 10 months

320Touring wrote:


As Geeman said, the 731 head found on 320 and 323's has a lot more material in it, making it much less prone to cracking.

That sound, so sweet and raw.More of a rev happy monster than the 325i

The heads crack if the coolant is not changed on time, and it's luck of the draw with them at this age.

a 320 is no more rev happy than a 2.5 thats rubbish. Good 2.7's rev like a 2.5 if done right too

ive seen loads of 320"s with cracked heads.

im driving a 318 touring at the moment. it will murder a 320 in any form on a twisty b road.

2 litres are soooo slow. there are so many e30"s for sale, many a 325 for cheap. it just seems to make the 320 redundant.

the best thing for a 2 litre is to bin the engine. on the flipside the 2.5 throttle mod is a good one by the sounds of it. but its still no 2.5.

Simon13 wrote:

320Touring wrote:


As Geeman said, the 731 head found on 320 and 323's has a lot more material in it, making it much less prone to cracking.

That sound, so sweet and raw.More of a rev happy monster than the 325i

The heads crack if the coolant is not changed on time, and it's luck of the draw with them at this age.

a 320 is no more rev happy than a 2.5 thats rubbish. Good 2.7's rev like a 2.5 if done right too

given that we're all caring owners here, I imagine the coolant is done regularly (mine is done every 12 months on every car i own)

and i do honestly feel that the 2.0 rev's better than the 2.5.basically the pistons are smaller and lighter so less effort required (relatively) to raise the piston.

I've driven several examples of both and have to say the 320 feels 'sharper' at the instant you jab the throttle. However the 2.5 obv has more power and torque. I'm not disputing the figures, just suggesting that the 2.0 is a slightly more responsive engine in standard tune.

as jonb says, 325 TB mod for me fairly shortly, all things considered.

320Touring wrote:325 TB mod for me fairly shortly, all things considered.

Me too! I've got the TB and a manifold to mod. I just need a weekend with 2 30 hour days in so that I can get 'round to doing it. :pff:
Then all I'll need will be one of Ant's chips and a sesh on some rollers.