318ti compact vs e30 318iS

[Ant]

as per topic, given the OTT prices for the iS does anyone consider the 318Ti as a viable alternative ?

M44 engine, MAF, better steering and brakes from the factory and MUCH newer, if you can get past the looks the Ti wins for me hands down.

Discuss

[zaust]

My brother had one of these for a couple of year's, His wife now drives it and I look after it. Not that it ever need's much. I agree with you on the look's, And yes it drive's handel's really well. Few more extra's avalible too.
Yes it is a better car hand's down, But not as much fun even compared to a 316 e30.

[maxfield]

I like them. But I would go for the iS.

I spotted one this morning with the back end out on a local roundabout, not intentionally with the look on the drivers face.

[town325i]

my misses has got the 318ti compact its a great car imo back end does look a little odd but once you have ownwd one for a while it will grow on you.
handling its very good in the dry but in the wet with cheap cheap tyres on it can be a hand full even at low speeds meaning though there is n not much weight over the back wheels.
stick a m52b28 in it and that will be a real quick car

[tim_s]

a fair bit heavier than an e30 318is, with a 'orrid dash and dodgy build quality, and no z axle. I'd prefer a late e36 coupe with the m44 and the mtec bits, half leather and dual climate. they look nicer, are built better and handle better. but then why stop there, might as well then go for a 328 with prices as they are.

[Ant]

ah, some replies...

I agree with all on the awkward looks, but in the right colour, they can look spot on.

build quality on post 97 cars is much improved, no more loose door cards, water leaks or creaks.

re the handling comments, well TBH anyone putting shite ching-lung( insert ditchfinder tyre brand here ) is a muppet in the 1st place

reason for the posting was to see what attitudes were to this overlooked vehicle on here, it could well just be the next "big thing" certainly our Euro brothers saw the potential long ago.

and yes, I too own one( replaced the Honda daily ) '99 in Avus M44 Ti Sport, its the bomb( if a little high )

[E30BeemerLad]

gotta agree on the looks comments as boggo standard they look a bit lame, but with the right M3 kit on and some tasteful alloys i.e. 328i Sport BBS and a sensible drop they make a hell of a lot of sense.

Never been in one. I had an E46 326ti on a 52 plate a few years ago, was a bit slow but once wound up it went OK but I fell in love with the handling late one night in the Lake District whilst lost and very annoyed after being lost for an hour trying to find the hotel we were booked into. Covered the ground across the twisties in a ver sure footed manner.

But I suppose the above has nothing in common with an E36 compact

I'd seriously consider one, but I would possibly be swayed by an M50/52 swap after a while

[zaust]

Depends on the use of the car too. The ti is a good shopping cart, Easy to park, a little bit of poke for the traffic light gp, boot is not bad, most have ac at least.

But styling wise, All dirty six's look the same. And that's never good.

[GrindCulture]

I like them, if I wasn't in an E30 then I'd probably be in a compact.

[BMracing]

My old dear had a very late one in cosmos black with all the sport goodies. It looked pretty good with the m3 style front bumper, spoilers, wheels, half leather etc. Feels heavy compared to an e30, but they drive nicely. I never really explored the handling limits but the rear suspension is similar to an e30 i gather. Must make it more of a hoot than an e36 saloon/coupe.

[ShakeyC]

Only took me like 5 hours to notice wrongda had been replaced

[tomtomiS]

i had a montreal blue sport compact 318ti 5 years ago and loved it, was a great car and had the m42 motor in. handled well and went well too. i did nudge a wall parking it once at a few mph and both the front engine mounts broke leaving oil everywhere, cost about £80 to put right. the foglamps both fell out on a drive over some bumpy crappy roads in kent tho luckily they stayed attatched til i noticed ( they were on at the time )
it got written off bigtime by some guy who hit me at 40 ish while i was stationary and rammed me into the e class merc waiting at a junction in front of me. both ends were more compact than when it started but i got out absoloutely fine so i can vouch for them being very good in an accident

[jamie325isport]

My other half has a 97 318 compact, its an alright car bit gutless Im sure the 16v version is a fair quicker. On the whole its alright, with decent tyres is does handle really well. Build quality is good and does feel heavy but then it feels well planted, with a nice ride.

The best thing about it is that it does have a hatch with folding seats. I personally look at it as a golf with rear wheel drive. The 318ti would be the GTi? I think it all depends on your needs though. But as a every day car I would be tempted towards the compact purely for the reason its probably easier to find a better example.

[toby]

It can be made to look much sleeker than it comes as standard the E36 compact





M3 mirrors and spoilers, nice alloys, clear lenses and other tinsle help.

[dips346]

compact ,you know it makes sense

[toby]

reason for the posting was to see what attitudes were to this overlooked vehicle on here, it could well just be the next "big thing" certainly our Euro brothers saw the potential long ago.

and yes, I too own one( replaced the Honda daily ) '99 in Avus M44 Ti Sport, its the bomb( if a little high )

No more Jap daily??

The mainland European car fiddlers like it, but they have larger engine models over there though don't they?

[harry_p]

really like my little 316i compact, well built, good fun, cheap to run handles really nicely (can be lively when wet / greasy though! )

i went for the 316 for insurance, fuel and running cost reasons, but i can imagine one with a more powerfull, revvier engine would be a fair bit more fun.

just as much room inside as the e30, and sometimes having a hatchback and folding rear seats is a huge bonus! boot is a suprisingly good size too for a car thats had a fair chunk taken out of it's back end. mine's a 95 n reg and has no rust at all anywhere, and feels more modern and solid than any e30 i've ever been in.

maybe not quite so much 'fun' as an e30, but closer than you probably imagine, plus there are millions of things you can do to them. everything forward of the a-pillar is e36 saloon, rear suspension and diff is e30, 5 stud hubs and plenty of factory and aftermarket mods to make them look a little less shopping trolley.

i woudnt expect a huge amount of respect for them somwhere where 95% of people have massive e30 blinkers

[harry_p]

couple of pics,

i went more for a subtle eurostyle look with mine, the m3 lookalike look doesnt really appeal unless there's an m3 engine to match. a big drop on wider rims and a couple of subtle touches here and there transforms how they look.

[Ant]

nice choice of turbines there dude

mine is a factory sport so has the M3 style bumpers, diffuser and side rubbing strips.

it was bought as a newer daily drive, with the right badge on the back and front, back to RWD in a daily kicks arse too.

re the handling, the front and back do feel at odds with each other, I shall play with rear spring rates to help with this, its almost as if the back is too hard, which it almost defo is.

I am pleased to see a few more zoners flying the compact flag, and there was me thinking only Dips and I were tarnished

[Demlotcrew]

Me and Pete have been restoring 'pacts' for a few years now.

Not sure if i would have one over a Z3 1.9

[Simon13]

My missus had this for a year 318ti which i drove alot. i liked it, had leathers and A/C and 35k on the clock. It drove like new but i never quite sussed it handling wise or maybe pushed it hard enough! did at least 30mpg all the time too. Nice car sold for a Z3 2.8 - which i don't really like

I had an E30 318iS waaaaaaaay back on the old zone. I liked it but i had constant engine problems with it. I don't miss it that much tbh

[Jon_Bmw]

Nothing blinkered about this, you lot no I have some slightly suspect vision outside of e30s:

I just don't like the look of them. If I was buying a Bmw or a more prestige make I would want to like the look of the car. Harry has made the above one look very retro cool, but I still don't like it Sorry Harry!

I've never driven one for the above reason, but I can imagine they are nice to drive, do you feel quite low down in them? Do they do 'sport' seats as the e36 comfort stuff looks a bit naff and that coming from someone with a check interior

Stick it on LPG and enjoy 50+ mpg. The TPS is ripe for it compared to an m20 one. Also has a metal inlet manifold for a cheap single point system.

[Simon13]

the 318ti's have sport seats which are nice and comfy, well ours did!

[dips346]

proper compact

[whipsey]

i had one and i'm tempted by another i replaced the diff in mine to one that was given to me by gooner form a 318i touring and it flew top speed was only 100mph iirc but feck me it got there quick

[harry_p]

looks are always going to be a subjective thing. i'm not a huge fan of standard compacts, but think they look ok. i too could never own a car i didnt like the look of no matter how well it drove which is why i will never own a mitsi evo or an impreza, despite thousands of people lusting after them.

i don't find e36s handsome or attrctive, but nor do i find them ugly or offensive, and they haven't dated too badly at all.

[a_kara]

looks like Diegos

[town325i]

looks like Diegos

it looks a mess

[Morat]

Some nice cars on this thread but I hate all E36s, and for the same reason. The headlights and grill are AWFUL. All the nice shots of E36s are taken from the side or the rear because the photographer knows that the bogging square volvo style headlights on an E36 make the baby Jesus cry.

Sorry, but they're just grim. If you can come up with a replacement to make an E36 look good from the front then you should market it!!

[harry_p]

i actually prefer the front end to most modern bmws, nice and simple without being over styled, i like how they kept the twin round lights, but put them behind an aerodynamic glass cover. certainly a much nicer way of doing it than vws attempt when it went from twin rounds to all in ones on the mk3 at roughly the same time. plus there's the added bonus that they don't get filthy and become almost totally useless within 5ins of being used on grimey winter roads!

it's a shame that they had to moveaway from teh old shark noses, and being such a different shape to the e30 wsalways going to upset a few people. i still think they can look good, even from the front, but they'll never have the e30s classic oldshool front end.

at least it has it's own look, just look back at how bland and dull the vast majority of mainstream cars were back in the early 90s. mk5 escort, mk3 astra, mk3 golf, mk3 fiesta, mk1 mondeo etc etc etc

i personally prefer the pre facelift grille for it's simple recessed grille too.

[e36boy]

I quite like the Compacts, They look quite cool and the 318ti's are nice.
Ive never owned a compact but driven a couple and thought they were alright....A mate of mine had a Dakar yellow 318ti Msport on an X plate......It was really nice. Another mate of mine had a 318ti and got near 140 mph in it (On a private road of course)

I think they would be good with more power....Ive seen a few on pistonheads with E36 M3 Engine swaps

I think the only thing that would sway me to have one over an e30 318is would be the price tbh....I think the e30 'is' prices are stupid.....Otherwise I think Id pick the e30.

Used to have an E46 320TD Compact and that was awesome....Went like S**t off a shovel but it was an 'SE' so handling wasnt great....Straight lines though, It used to deal with hot hatches for fun

[harry_p]

some interesting figures. e30 318is figs from carfolio.com, 318ti figs from my owners handbook...

kerb weight,

is - 1200kg
ti - 1180kg

length
is - 4325
ti - 4210

width
is - 1646
ti - 1698

wheelbase
is - 2570
ti - 2700

power
is - 134bhp
ti - 140bhp

0-100km/h (62 mph)
is - 9.4s
ti - 9.9s

top speed
is - 129mph
ti - 130mph

so basically, there's not much in it in any area, the is accelerates fractionally quicker, the ti has a fractionally higher top speed. the is is longer, but the ti has a longer wheelbase and is wider, the ti is fractionally lighter.

[GrindCulture]

Supercharge the M44, job jobbed

[e36boy]

some interesting figures. e30 318is figs from carfolio.com, 318ti figs from my owners handbook...

kerb weight,

is - 1200kg
ti - 1180kg

length
is - 4325
ti - 4210

width
is - 1646
ti - 1698

wheelbase
is - 2570
ti - 2700

power
is - 134bhp
ti - 140bhp

0-100km/h (62 mph)
is - 9.4s
ti - 9.9s

top speed
is - 129mph
ti - 130mph

so basically, there's not much in it in any area, the is accelerates fractionally quicker, the ti has a fractionally higher top speed. the is is longer, but the ti has a longer wheelbase and is wider, the ti is fractionally lighter.

Thats quite interesting but I know for definate that the 'ti' will do more than 130 mph but thats the case with most top speed figures on cars.

[town325i]

i cant belive the compact is only 115mm shorter than a coupe that dosnt seem right to me some how