Why E30s?

[StefanReindl]

Just wondering why everyone here chose to buy an E30. I'm in the market for a car myself and I'm deeply attracted to BMWs in general, but what about all the other cars out there? What makes E30s so special?

[dsio]

Cheaper than the E36, faster and more reliable than the E21, better looking front on than an E36, worse looking tail on than most BMWs. Cheap, quickish, fun to drive, and most importantly, RWD.

I wanted RWD, and I wanted a smallish car, so an Alfa Romeo Alfetta, Austin Sprite, Lancia Beta Coupe and few others were on my list. The BMW was the most reliable and cheapest to run of the lot, hence I bought it.

[Hyperion]

I like the way they look, and handle,plus i grew up around one, so i have a soft spot for them

[RevBillyG]

For me, it's gotta be the front of the car. It's got such a good looking face to it. Any car with 4 headlights has got to be cool in my book

That's the first thing that swayed me toward E30s when I was a mere pup. The fact that they're so nice to drive added the cream to an already tasty pie

[Turbo-Brown]

How many other cars for the money have inline6 engines?

My criteria were that and RWD

[Templ8e30]

I bought mine for several reasons:

I love the design of the body,

The 6 cylinder engine sounds sublime,

It's easy (ish) to work on as I do my own servicing and mods,

But most importantly of all I love the way they handle, verycomfortable to drive with plenty of feedback from the road. I also find they are more enjoyable to drive quickly on everyday roads because the grip and handling limits are lower than more modern cars you can have fun without driving at ridiculous speeds.

And I also like the way everything is laid out inside too.

I'm smitten

Cheers,

Iain T

[Adammcf]

Ive always loved the way they look and after seeing a few Sports in action I knew I had to get one. Once you drive one as well you realise just how good a car they are. They must have been miles above anything else when they first came out.

[Mahmood]

I'm a fan of the old skool type car design and the traditional 3 box design.

I hate jelly mould shape cars ala Beetle and Audi TT

RWD, smooth six cylinders and a very functional cabin swung it for me.

Yes, there are other choices but I have always wanted one after getting a ride many, many years ago in a new E30 325i Sport owned by a friend's brother.

Old Skool Cool all the way ...

[Andy_magic]

I had a couple of E28's when I was young, first (legal) car was a 528i which I bought the morning of my driving test - lol

After that I wasn't really into them, then the E30 got a fairly poor image due to the fact that every scrote with a few quid bought one and proceeded to ruin it/wheelspin it to death. Thankfully the scrotes all seem to aspire to an E36 now and don't bother with old E30's

I got one purely by accident when I jacked my job and handed back the company car due to doing 6000 miles a month. I rang a few mates for a cheapy and the only thing I could find was an F plate 320i with MOT and TAX for Ԛ£200, I was desperate for a car so I bought it, haven't looked back since, I bought a 320i touring off the same mate for bit's for Ԛ£50 as it had BBS 15's on it.

The current E30 was also got by accident, a guy I know had it for 5 years and it had developed a running problem that no one could sort, picked it up in a deal on a motorbike and sorted it with all the bits I'd robbed from the tourer.

The factors now are performance, noise (4 pot guys won't know what I'm on about ) the way they drive, build quality and they are easy to work on.

[motorsport]

Always admired them when i was too young to drive, "one day......" I said.
Since then had around 7 of them and will probably keep this one for a long time. 6yrs+ already.
Oozes class and quality, performance matches new cars 15 yrs on. For me this, and the older sl mercs were the best convertible design.

[A1BMW325iSport]

lived 1/4 mile away from bmw dealer for years and always used to see the e30`s on the forecourt, since then i`ve always liked them

[320Touring]

I needed a car, my touring was up for Ԛ£300. went onto the web to see if i could get any info, stumbled on e30zone.co.uk-signed up and TADA!!!

my dad has had e34's before and the e30 is like a compact version of that-

well built
Easy to work on
Great handling
6pot roar/4pot buzz (esp the iS)
Touring are really versatile and like sideways on the lockstops too

The keyring helps with the ladies too

[jonbuoy]

My old supervisor said to me he was buying an E30 as i was telling him about my dad saying to me that, "When you drive a rear wheel drive car, you'll never go back to a front wheel drive". I was very excited when i found out my supervisor was buying an E30 and kept pleading him to sell it to me before i had even seen it!
When it turned up at work i fell in love, the colour was right, it had 4 door's (the miss's was pregnant), family car and a fun toy to learn to drive a car properly. Front wheel drive car's drive for you, you have to drive the E30

Plus he gave it to me for Ԛ£400 without the wheel's that are on it now

There are other car's out there but for the running cost the E30 fit's the bill

[Gouki]

i bought mine because I was in the look out for a nice looking car and reliable, chance offering a mate was selling the BM I now drive and I know what these cars are like because when I was really young my dad had a E30 325i in the dark grey had the motorsport kit on and was uber cool and fast! 6 cylinder engine is fantastic and RWD is so much more better, don't think I'll ever go back to 4 pots and FWD again.

[Brianmoooore]

When BMW designed the E30, they quite simply got it right!
At the end of the eighties, when BMW could sell every car they produced almost for whatever money they chose, they designed the successor, and a bit like Ferrari does in F1, they thought that whatever they produced it would be the dog's bo***ks.
This resulted in the pile of c**p known as the E36 (engine excepted).
Since then, the threat of litigation has neutered the handling of succesive BMW models, they have put on weight and become generally middle aged.

[Skip]

The looks and the fact that where else can you get an economical practical and good looking RWD car for pennies?!

E30s rule!

[mancs_joker]

ermm my first ever sexual experience was in the back of an e30 so i had to have 1 whoo hooo and i just love the look and feel of them always have always will

[dazleeds]

to put it in plain and simple words

(because they are the nuts)

cnt do with new cars hate em all
rwd fun on a budget, as well as easy to work on and solid handling when sorted what more could a proper driver want???

[mancs_joker]

ermm a fit bird wih her head between ur lap while ur driving daz lol

[fuzzy]

for me its the look, the front end is unmistakable,its also got that solid chunky sort of look,and is a pretty cheap and well handling car

[bmwe30mtech]

Its the look for me. Amazing and mean looking front end, and a very well proportioned car. Back not amazing, but with the mtech kit looks 'heavy' ?!

[Rich_W]

OK Im not quite in the same boat as most people on here. I chose my car because of its heritage. And for the last 5 years had vowed to get one.

As for the E30 shape in general. A friend of mine had a B reg (IIRC) 320 in grey, lowered and was on Azevs. Loved the look of it. Very clean, no bodykits or spoilers or such like. Just a simple car which looks good.

He sold it in 2001 (I think) so if anyones got this car now Id be interested in some pics

[Andy335Touring]

erm, i got in to E30s because i wanted a lighter engine stand for my M30 !

[6potWil6pot]

No longer have one but i have had 3

Great styling, and nice compact size. Was a car i loved as a kid too and i always thought owning one would be good, realised i could when i got my licence

[Simon13]

my mum and dad both had E30's at the same time when i was young,

mummy 318
daddy 325

guess my fate was sealed, i'm on my 3rd one now and a 4th is coming soon!

[jonny_d]

they make me hard.... nah theyre the best lookin car ever standard an modified easy as . plus they are quicker than the boy racers think.

[E30BeemerLad]

Always been a good looking car for as long as I can remember. My car was owned by 2 mates before me and i had seen them plough money into it on the mechanicals & mods.

I picked it up for Ԛ£500 as some cheap fun and haven't looked back. It needs money spending on it and always will, but after Alfa ownership it's positively bombproof

[tomstickland]

I wanted a cheapish car that I could service myself, with RWD and rewarding for the keen driver. I borrowed an E30 320i for a few weeks and fell in love with the E30 concept; the minimalist interior, excellent driving position, solid shells, compact size etc.

[Globulator]

I actually started off with a XJS based open top kitcar - with a 3.6litre straight six.. and TR6's were much more expensive..

...after a while of failing to build this a friend wanted to sell his 325i conv., so I figured it would do the same job as the kit... but I wouldn't have to build it - result!

So I ended up with my awesome straight six convertible, leather seats, windows, central locking, computer, injection, abs etc. Since them it's really grown on me - they are better designed and built than any subsequent 3, useful to work on, interesting power, great to drive, versatile, compact but spacious.

I've done a few jobs since I've had it, like:

• Stereo install (spkr rewire+replace, new aerial)
• Clean out headlamps (old style)
• 15" BBS wheels
• Front bumper
• Bilstein front dampers
• Tighten inlet rubbers
• New rear brake lines + hoses
• Torx head bolts, valve clearances, plugs, air filter
• Coolant hoses, thermostats
• Cluster re-solder
• Clutch master cylinder
• Woolies leather paint tart-up
• De-creak (silicone divers grease on the window edge rubbers)

and in the process discovered just how well put together they are.

Also they've got a fantastic turning circle, small, square and dead easy to park, a great exhaust bellow and a decent 6 howl from 4,000 rpm on and well keep up with or see off most modern cars.. the E30 is unbeatable for fun to drive, cost, engineering, size and practicality.

[johnono]

always loved the sound of the 6 cyl, like a ferrari at full pelt... and the sound is unmistakeable. at 3am in the morning i hear one and know straight away its a 6Ԛ´er.

also seeing one sideways is like nothing else, just qwality to see em rip!

i got into them after a lift home in a mates tech 2 sport, with all the gubbins in. the thing was faast , and the sound still haunts

so i got a 318 auto, bit oԚ´kit and some alloys, and loved every minute of it!

then "went sensible" and drove various questionable vehicles from brand new to totally knackered.

moved out of the country, and had to save alot more than i expected to be able to buy a car.. also considering we were starting up a new life and so on, so car wasnt realy first on the list.

soon as i got the chance though

Kaablaaw!! 5 grand gone, and the proud owner of a almost mint(at the time, now F**kin mint ;) touring!


may get a 46 touring when the money and priorities allow, cos they look sweet, but for the mo, the 30 inside and out kicks shit out of most cars ive had the discomfort to had ridden in... both new and old

[JazzMan]

I've owned 3 BMW's and recently I decided to build a kit car, the logical choice a BMW straigth six Enter Marlin who do a kit based on the E30 running gear which meant I could use a lot of parts from the donor, not just the engine This is why I ended up with a 325i E30.

I liked it so much that I plan to get a really nice one when I'm finished with the kit project. (Funds are going into the car for the moment!)

[Bob_S]

well I got sick of fiesta's so I decided to look elsewhere my dad was trying to persuade me to buy a corsa or small newish hatch. But always went on about how good BMW's were the quality the handling etc he had an e30 himself and I really liked it I always like the styling and they have an aire of class about them.

My mate bought a 316 a couple of months before i did and found it was like I remembered it he let me drive it for a week as he had bought a new car. I decided I would buy it off him but he had already sold it to someone so I decided to find my own, with half the mileage and a better shell I've never looked back and it puts a smile on my face when i drive it.

Boy racers underestimate it and people in the know respect it, it's the best of all worlds especially as they are cheap to run too!

[Bob_S]

well I got sick of fiesta's so I decided to look elsewhere my dad was trying to persuade me to buy a corsa or small newish hatch. But always went on about how good BMW's were the quality the handling etc he had an e30 himself and I really liked it I always like the styling and they have an aire of class about them.

My mate bought a 316 a couple of months before i did and found it was like I remembered it he let me drive it for a week as he had bought a new car. I decided I would buy it off him but he had already sold it to someone so I decided to find my own, with half the mileage and a better shell I've never looked back and it puts a smile on my face when i drive it.

Boy racers underestimate it and people in the know respect it, it's the best of all worlds especially as they are cheap to run too!