E30 Zone

like the e28's and e12's will this be a classic or will it be over looked?

I personally think they will, just not anytime soon...

i do think as a car the e34 really is under estimated! as i know for a fact if you stick some good suspension on them they can handle as well as an e30 can. to me they really do feel like a big e30 only better imo! as they are more refined yet feel very similar!

some would argue that the e32 and e34 were the last of the proper bmw's built.

E34 is regarded as the best built BMW ever.

I'm very tempted by a 525i sport instead of an E30.

Oh my god. Just registered the plate number. Its my dads old sport.

http://forum.bmw5.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f ... 09#p923009

I had a 535i for a short stint. Loved it, other than its petrol consumption!

A 535i (and 535i sport), obviously manual, would be the first to become desirable... providing petrol costs dont go up stupidly again.

I would love an e34. Am thinking of a 525 as an ideal compromise between performance and economy.

i had a 530i v8 my mrs has never wanted a car back as much as that after we sold it
thirsty but very nice i hope they do become a classic

Blitz wrote:E34 is regarded as the best built BMW ever.

I'm very tempted by a 525i sport instead of an E30.

Oh my god. Just registered the plate number. Its my dads old sport.

http://forum.bmw5.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f ... 09#p923009

"525i" and the word "sport" dont belong in the same sentance!!

no it should be 540i sport lol

why not have you owned one? i have one and love it! theres not a huge difference in speed and pick up in a 535i to a 525i m50 but i do agree they feel different to drive. my sport with tweaks i would day having owned both is quicker than a stock 535i.

Admittedly, I'm biased but I think it will be,
I've completely enjoyed mine since I bought it, easy to work, easy to get parts, no problems on the last 3 MOT's & (for a 24v 2.5 litre) fairly economical.
The only reason it'll be for sale soon is that I'm rebuilding an E30 Cab & unfortunately I can't afford to keep both,
(The Cab will have a 24v 2.5 in it though)

The only reason it'll be for sale soon

Hello! How much!

They are good cars, but they do have more than their fair share of faults, many of them very expensive to repair and would realistically write them off

i don't think theyll be collectable for quite a while. however, if youve got the space and spare cash, now would probably be a good time to hide a few away. i can't really see anything other than 540 amd 525 sports and obviously m5s ever being all that collectable.

e28s have far more old school appeal and there are far less around, but you can still pick up pretty tidy ones for not a lot of cash so i think it'll be a while before e34s start being considered proper classics.

Out of interest, are the m50b20 engined e34s any good. Pal of mine had an m20b20 engined one and I know these are generally derided as being slow and thirsty... and to be honest his was. Just wondered what the opinion of the m50'd ones were like?

are the iX's desirable? I fancy one. it'd be great in this weather we have, but then I guess they score high in the fault department

For sure the best overall buy is 525 M50B25,, try to get a 91-92 non vanos car ((the strongest and the best engine))
5 speed manual,,

ok power,, and fuel consuption is fair,,

but if you want to go all the way ,,

540, also manual ,,M5,, or try the ultimatum of them all

ALPINA B10 BITURBO,, and smoke them all in to the dust,

but i would reccomend 525 as an average car

robbo86 wrote:Out of interest, are the m50b20 engined e34s any good. Pal of mine had an m20b20 engined one and I know these are generally derided as being slow and thirsty... and to be honest his was. Just wondered what the opinion of the m50'd ones were like?

M20B20s are horrific - dog slow to the point of being dangerous (especially the autos). The M50B20 is better but hardly a ball of fire - my Dad had a manual touring which was a pleasant cruiser but needed working hard to get it to move. The M50B25 is considerably better with superior fuel economy as well.

Around town, I actually prefer the 518i over a 520i. Its got far better low down torque and the M43 engined ones are very good cars.

A 525i sport is nothing special, just another 525 with bumpers and a slipper. Will never appreciate as much as a 325i sport.
The only E34's that will be worth anything in years to come will be the odd nicely kept 540i M5's and Alpina's, everything else is just light iron as far as im concerned

E34 M5's will probably become the more collectable, as is the E28 M5 atm.

the sport is more than bumpers and slipper! you get mtech suspension too and thicker arbs. but still it wont take much to get a normal one up to sport spec.

looking at the comments and the fact that you can buy an m5 for 3kish now, is now the best time to buy one as i dont think myself they will go any lower in the future.

The E34 535i Sport was the car that properly opened my eyes to BMW's - but I've never owned one

Shame the ones that are left are tired, thrashed and with space-shuttle mileage

320ise wrote:the sport is more than bumpers and slipper! you get mtech suspension too and thicker arbs. but still it wont take much to get a normal one up to sport spec.

looking at the comments and the fact that you can buy an m5 for 3kish now, is now the best time to buy one as i dont think myself they will go any lower in the future.

E34s are still plentiful and are still going through their council/ banger phase and will be there for a long time yet. E28s have emerged from years of being a sorry council chariot and the numbers have been sufficiently culled that there are very few decent cars being chased by quite a few would be victims.

The E28 M5 is a very different car to an E34 and investment potential is a lot better simply because so few were made, 187 RHD iirc. Even then they are not worth a huge amount so don't hold your breath waiting for an E34 M5 to become the next E30 M3 !


Most if not all 3k M5s are corpses on stretchers/ticking bombs and are usually being sold on as big bills are imminent. Definately a car to be avoided unless you are very handy with deep pockets

I have owned loads, including 5 M5 tourings, I would only have one now if it was buttons as I know what it costs to get them up to scratch and how difficult they are to sell

Hmm, what's the betting Pete is busily stashing them up his back passage...

You can get a nice 525i or 535i sport for half the of a 325i sport. Its a bargain at the moment.

lol so what e34 would you say is the best to look after and will in time be collectable?

I think in time, the E34 525i Sports/E34 M5 will be a well sought after car - just like the E30 sports & M5..Has a while to go...but will get there!

And the model [E34] will always have a following...

value for money is correct blitz! esp if the car is needed for passengers etc i used to love my e30 sport but that did annoy me the 2dr thing as there not a great passenger car. the e34 is great for every occasion! and if i am honest i would have another e30 again but would never pay the premium over the e34 when you get less for your money.

the e34 really handles like a big e30 and soon shrinks around you, love it on the motorway too!!!!!

S38B38 wrote:For sure the best overall buy is 525 M50B25,, try to get a 91-92 non vanos car ((the strongest and the best engine))
5 speed manual,,

ok power,, and fuel consuption is fair,,

but if you want to go all the way ,,

540, also manual ,,M5,, or try the ultimatum of them all

ALPINA B10 BITURBO,, and smoke them all in to the dust,

but i would reccomend 525 as an average car

I would have to agree with this, (that's all the models mentioned,)

But especially agree about the 2.5 24v non vanos !!

i have driven a vanos 320i coupe that my dad ownes and to me i dont like the way they rev, its more "punchy" with out the vanos imo.

320ise wrote:i have driven a vanos 320i coupe that my dad ownes and to me i dont like the way they rev, its more "punchy" with out the vanos imo.

Then the 320i was shit. Oh hang on............

Vanos cars are much, much better. That's why they introduced variable inlet cam timing to increase torque.
Non Vanos stuff is just old scrap now, shagged out old J plate rubbish. The only ones worth having are the late wide grille 94-95 cars with the full or half leather. Not a bad car for £800.

DanThe wrote:A 525i sport is nothing special, just another 525 with bumpers and a slipper. Will never appreciate as much as a 325i sport.
The only E34's that will be worth anything in years to come will be the odd nicely kept 540i M5's and Alpina's, everything else is just light iron as far as im concerned

Spot on there IMO...

what makes an e30 sport so special then? they only have the same upgrades as the e34.

320ise wrote:what makes an e30 sport so special then? they only have the same upgrades as the e34.

2 doors and a sporty image/ cult following as against 4 doors and a council image/following !