E30 Zone

Found an old What Car? up the loft from 1988. 320i v Alfa v Mitsubishi Sapporo (whatever that was!).

The 320 is timed to 60 in 8.8 sec. Wow. If that is that case, what would an iS mangage with fewer doors and a few more HP?

Yet I always see iS times to 60 about 9 to 9 and a half secs. I reckon mine does it in less than 9 easy.

What's occurin'?

Wow, imagine how badly the 320 would cream your IS if they emptied the moredoor boot..........

Some 320i's are surprisingly quick. My first E30, a 1984 B-reg 320i L-Jet Moredoor would do it in around 8 seconds, whereas a later 1987 E-reg 2-door L-Jet took seemingly an age.

Could have been down to different diff ratio, maybe...

I had an '85 moredoor too. It felt faster then the M40 318i I part-exchanged for it. And strangely, felt more rapid than my cherished iS.

320i the 'Q' car we've all overlooked then?

320i's really are wonderfull. Very nippy and alert. Rev beutifully. Of course quicker than the iS. Very close to the 325 actually.

MartinSE wrote:320i's really are wonderfull. Very nippy and alert. Rev beutifully. Of course quicker than the iS. Very close to the 325 actually.

This, they are also way better on fuel.

^^ Really, my experience of them was that they are slow, a 318i could keep up, no where near as quick as the 325i, and fuel consumption was on par with the 2.5.

Yes, most 320i's are indeed like that, but you do get the odd one now and then that is quite spritely.

I never used to see much beyond about 26 mpg average out of the two I had though, which was the official magazine test figure. Mine maxed out at around 125 mph.

Whereas, my 1988 325iSE fitted with a Mild chip could easily return 30 mpg with normal driving, yet could also do 0-60 mph in around 7 seconds and go on to an indicated 140 mph.

So, the 325i was significantly quicker, and you could instantly feel the torque difference, that made it more responsive.

I'll do a test after work tonight on the way home and let you know how a moredoor with 120000 on the clock does. *Edit - if my speedo decides to work for a change.

320i left, 318is right

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Ah, but the 320i had its head and fog lamps on, which will have slowed it down due to the extra drag on the alternator!

Speedtouch wrote:Ah, but the 320i had its head and fog lamps on, which will have slowed it down due to with the extra drag on the alternator!

how much better will the 0-60 be on a 318is with a chip?? knock a second off?

Yes, it may well do, as there's a gain of 8-12bhp to be had, along with a raised rev limit.

kangman wrote:

Speedtouch wrote:Ah, but the 320i had its head and fog lamps on, which will have slowed it down due to with the extra drag on the alternator!

how much better will the 0-60 be on a 318is with a chip?? knock a second off?

that extra second, could well all depend on the engine,box,diff, conditions, the suspension,wheel and tyre set up, etc etc etc, a lot of factors

Laughable that people are concerned about losing one second from their 0-60 time during their commute.