E30 Zone

Hey,

So can any one tell what the E30 is like to drive?

Fun fun fun, And comfortable loads of feed back. And get's look's no matter what state it's in.

Slow steering, heavy pedals by modern standards. The first time you brake you'll probably wonder why the brakes don't work. The brakes will be wondering why your leg doesn't work Once you are used to them, you can get real response out of the controls and lots of feedback.
6 pots sound like you're doing mach2, but in reality you're not going that fast - but in the damp you're definitely going fast enough to spin on a surprise corner. No traction control to save you, and no side impact bars - these cars will bite if you're too aggressive for your skill level.
In the dry, they're really predictable. Don't be scared of them, just start out slow and learn the car, it rewards like nothing available new today and you don't have to be doing three figure speeds to feel a sense of achievement.

Morat wrote: In the dry, they're really predictable.

Not to nitpick but they're just as predictable in the wet or snow (provided you have decent winter tyres). When I say predictable I mean if you put your foot down on a wet roundabout your rear wheels predictably will lose grip. In this aspect they're not worse than any other powerful RWD car without traction control and other electronic gubbins.

I guess the point I'm trying to make is that they're not unpredictable, you simply have to know how to drive RWD in slippery conditions. If anything I think they're more predictable than many modern cars with bigger tyres, lower sidewalls and stiffer suspension.

Lovely to drive really.

Only problems with a standard one is the sloppy slow steering and gear-change but a better steering rack and short-shifter from a new car solves that

Sounds good, looking forward to owning one of these...

Also have a nice ride quality for the size of the car.

Can you weld?

A good E30 is a stunning car to own. Though we are bias/persuasive on here!

If you are a youngish driver (<25), never drove BMWs, RWD or anything like that then your driving ability will have to jump a notch or two to cope with these.

Firstly, they are massively unlike a modern car. Get used to it though and you'll start to see the bad points in modern cars (and the bonuses too). As above, heavy steering (if going for a 320i/3250i), bus spec turning, heavy pedals and so on.

But driving them progressivly faster over the same roads you start to learn the grip levels and find that they are (with some decent driver skill) very chuckable, fun cars. Whereas, your average saxo boy racer type tit (with a serious lack of driver talent) would'nt last a day or two in a 325i without stacking.

Thankfully, there are lots of simple mods for E30s to improve their handling even more so by just buying different genuine BMW parts from more modern cars. E36/E46/Z3 steering racks will give much tighter steering. Better bushes to use in the suspension from the M3 or E46 cabby etc, etc.

But these cars are addictive and if your even mildly interested in lowering cars, new wheels, little goodies here and there etc, you'll find them to be extremely expensive. Although BMW actually aren't bad when it comes to most replacement parts.

more fun than fwd wrongness

I agree with everyone here. They are really fun cars and a much better drive than most other cars of the same age. Start slow and you'll soon understand wet weather driving,

the first e30 i drove was my 325i sport last sunday and even with lowered suspention it was amazing to. Had to get used to the brakes as someone has said and the accelerator was a wee bit funny to start with too. The back end steps out nicely and is really easy to catch even in bad conditions but i have been used to driving a mk2 rev 1 mr2

Get one, the good times will roll...

The 6 pot E30's remind me of muscle car. Ruff and ready feel.

nowt wrong with a fizz pot 16v

mosh86 wrote:the first e30 i drove was my 325i sport last sunday and even with lowered suspention it was amazing to. Had to get used to the brakes as someone has said and the accelerator was a wee bit funny to start with too. The back end steps out nicely and is really easy to catch even in bad conditions but i have been used to driving a mk2 rev 1 mr2

Yes, the organ pedal style accelerator is a bit of a BMW trademark and caught me out on my first try. I don't notice it now when swapping between cars.

magpie wrote:nowt wrong with a fizz pot 16v

Yes there is mick its 2 pots short of a good engine

Yes, the organ pedal style accelerator is a bit of a BMW trademark and caught me out on my first try. I don't notice it now when swapping between cars

Funny thing was tho i drove a skoda the 280 mile journey down with out a hitch. jamp in the 30 and stalled twice.