E30 Zone

...do you ever wish there was slightly less things wrong with it?

Mine has problems with it's electrics and currently the door locks aswell. It's still very reliable but it is a pain in the backside at times.

Nothing that can't be fixed with a spare hour or two, well apart from the electrics which is baffling me a bit.

Just wondered if anyone else is currently living with some annoying car quirks?

mine is my only car, the top of the lsit for things it needs is


also locks playing up
slight knock
lowering
rest of breyton kit putting on
tints

these are just the little things

being petty about the car, i would have it in for a full blow over the paint



but i loves it all the same

mines a daily driver, could do with a leather refurb, fuel gauge is very tempremental, fuel pump needs an odd bang to get it going, top mounts need doing,central locking isnt working, apart from these minor issues it still starts on the button everytime (touch wood) and puts a smile on my face.

mine was a daily driver for the last year and if you spend a little time on it when those niggles first develop then they are very reliable, if you leavbe them until the knocking is very bad or the C/L packs in completely then of course you will have more difficulty fixing them.

I personally allow myself a budget, i consider the car is 20 years old but the car i want to drive, thus i think what would a newer car cost in terms of financing, general running, depreciation, (and they still break down!) etc then try to allow myself a pool of money to build up, then when somthing does go bad you can choose to fix yourself or send to a garage.

and from reading above in all posts can be fixed in the odd spare hour, the topic of Cenral locking has been posted by brianmooore more times then i care to remember (search red +_ black wires), fuel pump is a five minute fix (and can be done with the tools found in the tool kit - or am 8mm spanner and a screwdriver). fuel gauge requires the 8mm nut tightening on back of cluster, top mounts on the rear can be done at home with little specialist knowledge, and any other knocks are just bushings or ball joints - at home is difficult for beginner but save up and have them done before they fail the MOT

My E30 is my daily (almost) and has less faults than my wife's daily E39. Although that's possibly because I put more effort into maintaining the 30

Just be grateful that E30s are (usually) cheap and easy to fix.

My touring is my daily,currently awaiting the postie bringing me a lock repair kit from CotswoldBMW,locking it from the tailgate at the moment!
I did spend 3 hours last Saturday morning stripping and rebuilding the door lock,and went through my small stock of lock-related parts before admitting defeat and ordering a new bit,though!

Lol - everyone seems to have lock issues !
My central locking only works from the boot - I can deadlock it from the drivers door, but when you go to unlock it again the key only unlocks the drivers door - passenger door and boot stay locked.

I've lived with it for 2 years and still not got round to fixing it

Only thing wrong with mine is the fuel gauge, which I will be sorting this weekend.

Always starts up, I have had far newer cars that didnt.. its great.

Current E30 is not a daily but a garage whore. My old Sport use to be a daily and i could live with it ok when complete, infact it was great apart from when it needed some rust removing/repairing i still had to drive it around albeit with half its bits missing. That part was not all too fun especially when you could see the rear wheels through the inner arches

I think i'm quite lucky with mine so far, I have only had it from October but other than that there isn't much wrong with it... Rear demister isn't working which I can't figure out... Trying to install fog lights but no too important.

The engine is running a bit lumpy, but she goes like the stink for me still so i'm gratefull... At the moment, the mrs has took her to work as my mate is using my mrs car until he finds another so I think thats my biggest problem... someone else driving it...

My touring is my daily and all fine so far just love the looks you get from everyone young and old (325 tec II)

My last two 318i's have been daily's, and they've been amongst the most reliable cars i've ever owned. The first one needed a new battery, and my current one looks like it'll need one too before long.

That's been it as far as starting issues are concerned

There's been the inevitable C/L issues, but now it's fixed properly i'm expecting another 20 years of good service. What other car is more reliable than that?

Mines my daily and has no faults as such but could do with some bushes being replaced, all the electrics work even has working remote central locking

Save your locks, go remote

My daily (E34 touring) has some locking issues, it locks itself of its own accord when the ignition is on or driving, when the engine is turned off it always locks, as there is a window close function its actually quite handy when you turn off as the windows shut all on their own, I can also lock the car by a slight touch of the drivers door handle which is a lot quicker than putting the key in the lock so its not all bad

I use mine daily - the only problem I have is the fuel consumption

I don't have problems with my locks...... I just leave it open all the time!!!

Bearings are bad....
Exhaust is blowing....
R/P/S door lock is temperamental....
I swear a shock is gone....
And I could go on....
Generally, not a very healthy car

Thank god for Jersey and no MOTs so I can run the thing into the ground.

Ummm slow puncture onn the front left which means I have to pump it up every morning oh and I swear someone has showed it a pic of an Aston Martin because now it apsires to drink petrol like one!

Felix79 wrote:Ummm slow puncture onn the front left which means I have to pump it up every morning oh and I swear someone has showed it a pic of an Aston Martin because now it apsires to drink petrol like one!

Shouldn't let your car get bullied into peer presure by the rich boys.

He's over 20 years old, and hardened through life experiences. He should know different.

Just the daily battle of wits between my tourings rear wiper and myself. Getting it to park in the right place requires you letting go of the wash/wipe switch at anyone of 5 different positions on the screen depending on where it stopped last!

Nay wrote:

Felix79 wrote:Ummm slow puncture onn the front left which means I have to pump it up every morning oh and I swear someone has showed it a pic of an Aston Martin because now it apsires to drink petrol like one!

Shouldn't let your car get bullied into peer presure by the rich boys.

He's over 20 years old, and hardened through life experiences. He should know different.

Always thought cars were female,
temprmentale
ilogical
good to look at
great fun when 'in the right mood'.....

daimlerman wrote:

Nay wrote:

Felix79 wrote:Ummm slow puncture onn the front left which means I have to pump it up every morning oh and I swear someone has showed it a pic of an Aston Martin because now it apsires to drink petrol like one!

Shouldn't let your car get bullied into peer presure by the rich boys.

He's over 20 years old, and hardened through life experiences. He should know different.

Always thought cars were female,
temprmentale
ilogical
good to look at
great fun when 'in the right mood'.....

Bleeds ( oil ) for days but never dies? Shit thats going to get me in trouble.

only a few things wrong with mine at the mo but luckily dont have to use it daily anymore

tempermental dash lights sometime i lose the speed and mpg - ignorance is bliss!
door lock again neeeds some encouragement to open
warped front right disk causes some noise and vibration under heavy braking- most dangerous by far

other than that all good

Dan has a pretty butch looking female there then.

I'd class my E30 as a male.

Mean
solid (bar the odd battle wound)
Doesn't 'complain', just dies when pushed to the very end
Not tempremental, but fails when malnurished...(which is probably quite often )
Mine isn't dressed up in poncy skirts
Drinks too much
Suffers from Leprosy (pink disease)
But can almost always rely on him

The alfa 156 on the other hand, is a spoilt, pampered, little bitch.
Just complains all the time
Has monthly problems
eats all our money for no reward
BUT
She is a nice car to look at and drive, on the odd occasion.

Depends on the car me thinks.

mine is my daily driver my central locvkin is eventually working now ......and ave got a knock on the rear busjes and a slight knock on the front end but gonna put the 325 running gear on it

I cant wait till I get a nice E30.

mine isn't a DD ...yet

I've an issue with my locks also! In the summer the central locking/locks worked fine.

It was only until the big freeze in December i noticed a bit of stiffness and the central locking didn't work. The key locked/unlocked the driver door fine.

Now its at a stage where the deadlock unlocks..but i can't unlock it any more. I've bent my flippin key . Had to unlock the passenger side and get in..and opened the driver door from the inside. Also noticed a very flimsy/inside door handle/lever too. It is very stiff and i fear a few pulls on it and it would snap! Its not as smooth as it was in the summer

Noticed my dash/speedo had condensation in it too. I've gotta identify/diagnose and fix those leaks!

mines been solid since ive owned it, been rock solid through the winter, everything works as it should, only thing thats gone is the oil pressure switch by oil filter...i sh!t myself when my mate said youve got an oil leak somewhere, £7 fixed that, and the light on the right side of the clocks/rev counter has gone, i have the buld but not got round to doing it yet, but it sometimes works ive noticed ?

polsta wrote:mines been solid since ive owned it, been rock solid through the winter, everything works as it should, only thing thats gone is the oil pressure switch by oil filter...i sh!t myself when my mate said youve got an oil leak somewhere, £7 fixed that, and the light on the right side of the clocks/rev counter has gone, i have the buld but not got round to doing it yet, but it sometimes works ive noticed ?

A thump on the top of the dash will sort it! Karl if you need any help just call me buddy

Nay wrote:Dan has a pretty butch looking female there then.

I'd class my E30 as a male.

Mean
solid (bar the odd battle wound)
Doesn't 'complain', just dies when pushed to the very end
Not tempremental, but fails when malnurished...(which is probably quite often )
Mine isn't dressed up in poncy skirts
Drinks too much
Suffers from Leprosy (pink disease)
But can almost always rely on him

The alfa 156 on the other hand, is a spoilt, pampered, little bitch.
Just complains all the time
Has monthly problems
eats all our money for no reward
BUT
She is a nice car to look at and drive, on the odd occasion.

Depends on the car me thinks.

I've always referred to it as the 'Old Girl'. If it was not ran on a classic insurance Policy it ould be a pretty hefty amount of wedge for me to insure it. Also some bits are unbeliably overpriced when it comes to Alpina bits , the exhuast system is over £1300 new!

Mine was daily, and would most likely have been again in summer, but in the winter, although she starts and runs and gets me up the M1 n back if needed, I still don't trust her all the time due to dodgy central locking... Too much has gone wrong before for me to risk it n leave me stranded in the cold now also.

I take the boring, 06 plate, astra automatic for longer journeys these days.

Issues with her right now include intermittent central locking, filling up petrol (only cos I need a new boot barrel and key - lock is fine when central locking works), electric mirrors never worked, engine can be noisy at times, steering noisy and slightly heavy at times - bit of tinkering or fluid usually fixes it...

But, yeah, still use it daily to work and back, as it's only a 3 minute drive lol

Saves a 15 min walk in the rain/snow...

Oh yeah my fuel guage doesn't work either.

Mine will unlock OK from the drivers door but it wont lock from the outside. The passenger door will not open from the outside even if it is unlocked. To lock my car I have to open the passenger door from the inside, run round lock the drivers door from the inside, lock the passenger door and then close it. The boot seems to be doing it's own thing and has never worked with the central locking. I did have remote but it's connected to my clifford alarm which has also stopped working.

I have a new lock set somewhere but I have a horrible feeling it's in Wales (an hour's drive away) inside one of my other E30's.

Good to hear some of you going through similar.

My E30 is a daily driver, and has been fantastic for me. Runs great, all electrics work, comfortable, fun to drive etc.....

I would however on the subject like to upgrade some time to have a few luxuries, like central locking (maybe even remote) and electric windows would be a nice touch as well. Oh and I would like a stereo that works properly.

It's also very good at draining every single penny out of my wallet towards fuel.

Still it's been just as good a car as i'd hoped, and I love it to bits for that.

Oliie, when did u pass ur test la??

Ollie_bwoii wrote:My E30 is a daily driver, and has been fantastic for me. Runs great, all electrics work, comfortable, fun to drive etc.....

I would however on the subject like to upgrade some time to have a few luxuries, like central locking (maybe even remote) and electric windows would be a nice touch as well. Oh and I would like a stereo that works properly.

It's also very good at draining every single penny out of my wallet towards fuel.

Still it's been just as good a car as i'd hoped, and I love it to bits for that.

You done well mate with your car Ollie. I remember my first car was a D reg 318i and it was peasent spec too with he man steering but my god I loved it to bits and it was so reliable. I did over 24k that year and I even was putting 22 gallon barrels in the back hehehe

I passed my test on the 19th November, and it was my parents 25th wedding anniversary so may have been a good omen.

Dan, I think I did do well with my car tbh, and I love it too bits. At the end of this school year we have an awards show, and my chromie is in the running for 'best sixth formers car'.

Best of luck with that Ollie , lets hope they have some taste and it's not awarded to some Saxo shite.

I have to admit I am looking forward to seeing your chromie at the midlands meet as you have done some epic stuff on getting it nice.