325i auto vs manual

[saloon591]

Sorry if this has come up loads of times but what is a auto like in comparison to a manual performance wise? I am trying to find a half decent 325i 2door or pos a tourer under £1500 but all the ones i can find seem to be auto.
Let me know if you have anything i might be interested in want something solid and original.

[sunnysr]

depends what you want from a car an auto in anything smaller than a 2.0 is usually horrendous to drive anyway ,if you want to just cruise about do some lazy driving or live in a city get the auto ,if you want to have fun go fast blast down some country roads get the manual it will use slightly less fuel and be much better suited ,auto`s are a nightmare to drive hard all your braking is on the brakes so on the back roads they over heat alot quicker your waiting for kickdown and getting that irritating auto gear change noise ,they are perfect however in a traffic jam where you can just sit back and relax you dont have to give you left leg any exercise at all working a clutch.
wait it out and buy the manual there is plenty about ,lots of rotten ones ,have a read on here for places to look for on them too some bits are a nightmare to replace

[magpie]

an auto will sup you dry!

[darkchild]

Autos attracted a different type of buyer when new to a manual 325i. A lot were retirement cars, hence why so many have survived in decent condition, haven't had the nuts thrashed off them or been badly modified. When a tidy E30 turns up it nearly always is an old boy's 320i auto 4 door!

An auto 325i is a nice car. The 4 speed box is a bit of an antique now but is quite responsive for its age, reliable given 25K fluid and filter changes and is cheap to maintain as they use Dexron ATF rather than the modern fully synthetic liquid gold that newer BMWs have. A working switchable box is a nice little toy. Fuel economy isn't as good as the manual but theres not too much difference on a run - make sure the torque converter locks up as it should at 53mph.

[saloon591]

Thanks for the advice I managed to hold out now got myself manual

[pony]

BMW Manual Gearbox

[ajay]

The weakest link in any auto bmw is the condition of the gearbox ( is it still working properly). Even a good auto is not much kop when chasing a manual car around corners but the kick down on a switchable auto on a straight ain,t a bad thing!

[mcbonio]

My last e30 was a 325i auto, great for cruising around and the sports switchable is fun. But they are not as fast as a manual can be as you can set revs before clutch were as the auto you can't of course. They can be fun, but do rob a lot of the e30 driving experience away.

I did get a bit bored after a while with the lazied up 2.5 with the autobox, so a I got a 3.5L m30 with manual box put in. Very lively.!