e30 cab

[aze30]

okay guys i need some help lol

ive seen an e30 convertible/cab for sale
its a 88' F 325i auto switchable sports manual hood. grey leather heated seats, air con, m tech1 kit all around (i think its factory fitted) bbs 15' alloys, lip spoiler, usual spec in midnight blue metallic.

i asked the guy for history he said hes not sure he will have to look for it but he does have the v5 document present

the condition of the car is good, bodywork is straight, 2 minor rust spots on arches and a little scab on the colour coded bumper, no rust under bonnet and scuttle is mint as is the hood
engine is sweet started up lovely and had a smooth note although its done 134k which sounds right 4 age of car
now the bad bit i did a hpi text check on the car and the reply was as follows:

BMW 325i cabriolet
auto 2.5
aug 88
8 owners
no colour changes
not scrapped
vehicle has multiple insurance loss records
most serious is vehicle recorded as stolen loss date 24-04-1989

okay so thats the report and i know it should set alarm bells ringing lol but the guy has dropped price to £800 the vehicle isnt advertised anywhere and is parked in his drive and has been off the road for 6months as he has purchased an e36 318is

the multiple insurance loss records might have been the hood being replaced? im not sure but the car does look straight i.e no accident damage.

whats your opinions guys should i pounce and buy or stay well clear? any help would be appreciated as ive got this excitement bug of buying a cab for next summer. i wont be keeping it long maybe just a year then i want a tech2 is

im sorry if my post is in the wrong section i do apologise as im kind of new to this site

[bigdoe]

get it bought, for that money and condition it`s hard to go wrong.

[daimlerman]

Cabbie's were expensive and desirable when new,that stolen loss you highlight was when the thing was almost new!
134,000 miles is a walk round the block for these engines,if it has been properly maintained.
You need to know when the cambelt was last changed,if no record and you buy,change it sooner rather than later!Check the oil for water,and the water for oil,these engines have a known habit of mixing the two,and it is rarely 'only the head gasket'.
Cabbie specific,the hood needs to be sound in every respect,fitting one is difficult and expensive,typical quotes for a good quality hood is £750.Check carefully for rust,rear arches inner as well as outer.Rear of the cills,in the door shut area under the plastic cover.Front footwells should be dry,bulkhead under the fusebox is well worth checking.Scuttle panel in the corners by the rear of the top of the front wings should be sound.
£800 is cheapish,a good 'en should fetch £1500-2000.

[Blitz]

Same here, it will break for more.

[aze30]

thanks guys with due respect i appreciate the info and help
i will go and pick it up on friday eve or sunday morning and i will post up a few pics once i have picked it up. (if i can work out how to post them lol)

oh and yeah condition is quite good on the car the passenger wheelarch has signs of rust scabbing coming through but nothing major

engine oil and coolant i did check and it seemed fine wasnt mixing, header tank had clear blue antifreeze water.

[bss325i]

15" BBS
Grey leather
A/C
Tech 1 kit
Midnight blue
Switchable auto

Sounds like it could be a Macau blue Motorsport convertible.

Does it have a stiched grey leather centre consol and stiched grey leather door trim panels?

Has it got chrome trim at the bottom of the side windows or shadowline (black)?

[aze30]

yeah door cards are stitched and the centre console is and yeah might be macau blue what does this mean? lol is it a rare spec?
sorry i just know my simple stuff like wat an 'is' is and wat an 'se' is lol

[aze30]

i think im not sure but i think the door trim below window is shadowline black

[gare30]

bargain snap it up

[Blitz]

If its a Motorsport it could be the bargain of the century. Any pics?

[aze30]

nah i havnt any pics yet guys im sorry. ill try get some pics asap hopefully i will go collect it on friday after work and do some pics.
it will need tax and testing before i get it on the road so im clearly looking at spending around £400 to freshen things up, so £1200 on the road is still a good deal i think lol

[aze30]

forgot to mention that the seats have the motorsport emblems in them

[B7]

Barrys on the right track. This sounds suspiciously like one of the early F plate motorsports with the tri colour bars in the backrest instead of the tri coloured triangles.

Get the car bought ASP before he changes his mind. Either that or PM me the guys address and I'll be there within the hour.

[aze30]

lol ok ill get it picked up asap im so excited now lol couldnt sleep till 3.30am just tinkin bout the zimmer hehe
im like a little boy who cant wait lol

[SPADGE]

Before you get all excited and go and buy this let me have the guys number and i'll soun him out for you
I won't buy it from under you i er promise

[Mattyc]

Common as muck these early Motorsports!

Have a look at the pics of my early Motorsport cab in the photo gallery to give yourself an idea if its an early Motorsport, M-badge on the boot aside mine is as it left the factory. Certainly sounds like you may have struck lucky. Another good indication would be the paint code on the strut top - Sonderlack indicates special paint finish - which is the gorgeous Macau Blue.

As already said bargain of century if its the real deal.

[corkie]

looks like this could be an intresting find,good luck,looking foward to seein pics

[Rodderz]

If it is a motorsport the interior's worth your £800 alone!

[B7]

Keep us posted on this. I'm enthrawled to know whether it is or not..........

[aze30]

okay ladies and gentlemen....oh sod it lol ryt peepz ive bought the car after work today i picked it up (couldnt wait was itching to get it lol)
the log book states its a convertible...i think the convertibles regardless of the motorsort spec all are stated as convertibles?
yeah i think its quite definateley a motorsport it has no chrome on the bodywork whatsoever
the centre console allong with the doorcards and handbrake lever are stitched leather
on board computer in the dash with plenty buttons lol
has the mtec1 kit allround with a mtechnic writing in the rear bumber which i noticed.
also has a lip bootspoiler with an extra little rubber lip which is half colour coded and the rubber lip part is black
the seats have the notorsport logo in them as an emblem strip not the triangle type
gearchange is smooth and power is nice and strong
the handrake shoes and cable will need freeing up as its been parked and the arch is bit worse than i thoght but hopefully ill get this done over this winter and turn her into a beaut for the summer
again guys thankyou for the help much appreciated

[shazE30]

deffo sounds like a motorsport you jammy git

[eko]

Pics or ban!

[aze30]

okay okay lol how do i post a pic up? i took 2 quick shots once i parked it in my brothers garage although it was dark and the pics didnt come out good usin my cam phone
but yeah i got 2 pics to tease all of you till the weekend when i take it out for a good clean and polish lol

[ImysE30]

www.photobucket.com

Register, upload and then copy/paste the [IMG] code on here

[aze30]

[ImysE30]

You need to copy the link, it will be the last one underneath each pic

[aze30]

okay cant work out how to put them up on here just yet but if you go to photonucket and view it through my profile? my profile name on photobucket is azzye30 let me know what you think guys
will post good fresh pics on weekend

[ImysE30]

If you hover over the picture with your mouse, you will get 4 links underneath the picture, copy and paste the last one.

[aze30]

thanks dude

[ImysE30]

No problem, look forward to seeing some better ones

[aze30]

lol immy if i cant work out how to transfer these pics by the weekend i might have to employ you to do them for me from photobucket lol

[Funnybear]

Check out the 'Replacement hood for a cabbie' thread that we got going. A new hood doesn't cost the earth. It still aint cheap but it's not as much as 7 or 800 squiddles.

[B7]

Deffo another of the very first F plate motorsports. Not as early as MattyC's car I reckon as his still has the chrome window surrounds but intriguing all the same. The 3rd F plater to emmerge in a couple of weeks.

In the words of Monty Python

YOU LUCKY LUCKY B4STARD!

Well done that man and get some better shots up ASAP. Sort the arch and other little issues and you've got yourself a rare car (for 800 quid!). Even as a cat d insurance job it's £3k all day long (if you can trace a bit of history to support it all).

[Mattyc]

Well done - and welcome to the early Motorsport cab club! I thought i'd done well with mine but you've practically been given it! The bloke who sold it obviously had no idea what he'd got. You've now got a good few months to get it sorted for the Spring.
Looking forward to better pics.

[aze30]

lol yup im a happy chappy and i think the bloke hadnt a clue what it was, thats why after realising myself what it really was, from the help of you guys i didnt hang around for the weekend to pick it up.
i thought id get it before
A) he changes his mind
b) he realises what hes got
thaks guys looking forward to sorting it out and ready for the summer lol