E30 Zone

I am reminded what a great design the E30 is when compared with various modern cars that i and GF share.

For eg- my MG ZT-T- I find it impossible to change a headlamp bulb- it requires tiny hands rubber gloves and access through a trapdoor in the inner wing-

The E30- is simplicity itself

GF has a Renault RX4 with winter tyres- absolutely fantastic in snow- but what a useless heater- the E30 heater (4 speed as it is a 91) is A1.
Also unlike the E30 the windscreen washer bottles are completely hidden from view = so you have no idea how much fluid they need to top up. You just fill them via the fillers until they overflow! The E30 has 2 washer bottles in full view.

Fuses- why doesn't everyone place their fuses in a clearly marked easily accessed box like the E30? Both the Renault and ZT-T require gymnastic contortions and wet knees as they reside in a deeply recessed panel under the steering wheel.

My GF has a Nissan Pathfinder- great load lugger= but poor in stop start traffic because of its "fly by wire " accelerator - my E30 is a doddle to drive in traffic with smooth 6 cyl engine.
And rear bulb changing- the ZT-T is a nightmare- the Renault similar- but the E30- well you know the answer!

Whilst the snow remains I shall struggle on to work in the RX4- the E30 stays locked up until the spring and there is no more salt on the roads!

I like it, makes me feel like I've got some mechanics skills.

U like the 6 cylinder in traffic though!?

What's not to like about a torquey lethargic 6pot in traffic?

6 poy is the work of god man all this other crap that isnt made by the bavaria motor works is the work of the devil

2 lire's a bit start stop jump jump.

Yes I did have a 320i in the late 80's and it was a bit short of torque- but my Hartge is all about Torque and drives vg in traffic as a consquence it will move on tickover in first gear

try bulb changing a stilo or a renault megane!

the new scenics ns bulb is long as fuck!

Another thing I hate about many modern FWD wrongness is how little space there is to work in the engine bay.

My brother's Renault Clio Sport needed a new cambelt and water pump fitted, and access to do the job is nigh on impossible.

You can't beat the good old conventional front engine, rear wheel drive layout for ease of maintenance.

Speedtouch wrote:Another thing I hate about many modern FWD wrongness is how little space there is to work in the engine bay.

My brother's Renault Clio Sport needed a new cambelt and water pump fitted, and access to do the job is nigh on impossible.

You can't beat the good old conventional front engine, rear wheel drive layout for ease of maintenance.

Renaults have always been awful for mounting their engines too close to the wing, resulting in making cambelt changes a pig. Same with the large block engines in the Mk4 and 5 golfs. Can't get the engine mount which goes over the cambelt out without a massive fight.

It's not even brand new cars that are bad for all this stuff. Changing the passengers side headlight bulb on a Mk1 focus required the hands of tailor or the removal of the battery, which can mess other stuff up. Mercedes A classes are just awful to do anything on. The newish VW beetles where a bastard to change any bulbs on. And don't get my started on changing the pollen filters on volvo V/S40's and Mk2 Focus'.

Im in agreement with the above posts, I have owned many a modern daily and struggled to do all but the most basic of manitance (light bulds etc) mainly due thier poorly thoughtout access.

The best example I can give is that of a Fiat Stilo i once owned and my attempts to replace a blown headlight bulb. ..it was almost impossible and in the end i had to remove the whole headligt and various fasteners.

The E30 (and indeed my 190's if i may say so) are generally well thoughtout and well engineered, with good access.

Most of the modern stuff does very little for me.

Speedtouch wrote:Another thing I hate about many modern FWD wrongness is how little space there is to work in the engine bay.

My brother's Renault Clio Sport needed a new cambelt and water pump fitted, and access to do the job is nigh on impossible.

You can't beat the good old conventional front engine, rear wheel drive layout for ease of maintenance.

Tell me about it, my E30 is so easy to work on, however my Golf VR6 is a nightmare, and my mk1 Clio 1.8 is even worse, had to do a clutch on that, and it was basically an engine out job