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[Chyrosolite]

Hi, Ive recently purchased a 325i se. Needs some work but will eventually be a tidy car.

Few questions...

Engine? Comon faults or things id be recomended to change first.
Interior. I presume a leather e30 interior would slot straight in.

Apparantly there is a slight vibration through the steering wheel, could just be unbalanced wheels, but are there any parts that wear out commonly such as ball joints, bushes etc etc

Any help is good help. And hopefully ill be posting step by step restoration and modification with this car.

Thanks

Mark

[Jesus325iTouring]

I'm a bit pushed for time right now to answer your questions,but got enough time to welcome you to the unrelenting pull of the mighty E30Zone

[MONSPORT42]

Welcome to the zone. The 325 M20 engine is a good solid lump that'll easily pass 200k without taking out the wallet if well maintained. First off check when the cambelt was last changed - they need doing every 36-40k miles. Expensive if they break! Normal oil/filter changes recommended - the book says 6000miles but I and many others do it every 4000. If it's all going OK and mpg is acceptable I wouldn't change anything unless you want to start improving performance. Plenty of suggestions for that here on the zone but it's the normal route perhaps starting with zone chip and bigger throttle body, 'free-flow' filter in the airbox, upgraded exhaust, hotter cam....... the list can go on as much as you want to spend!
But with all tuning you need first to get the basics working at their best.
There can be problems with the induction system causing poor idling and flat spots. Best to check that all the hoses around throttle body to rocker cover and AFM are not leaking.
Vibration through the steering wheel could be anything and is a process of elimination, starting with wheel balance as you said, check for buckled wheels, poor tyres, then tracking. Track rod ends, wheel bearings, control arm bushes can all go but no worse than any other car in my experience.
I would probably go for a good Inspection II service if you can from a BMW independent that'll get almost everything checked over. Hope this helps. Get some pics up here and join in! Enjoy your E30!