restoration issues

[paul007]

I have an e30 1.8i convertible for a few years now with the idea of restoring it.
i'm no mechanic or body guy so have had to find guys to do the work.
so far this car has been bottomless pit as far as money goes, and what's really frustrating is getting work done and finding it cost me double of what i thought it would !! i would love to restore this car as it should be but then have to stop as i havent the cash.
so far have restored the engine and added a mtech2 kit
Of course since i was adding an engine (old one died when timing belt broke) i would love to have gone bigger but was told due to loom change and extra work would have cost more.
so how much should a replacement engine cost , this cost 210 plus 300 fitting it was a bare engine changed timing belt cleaned engine etc sound right?
All in all with mtech 2 kit (i provided that), fitting two wings and a door its cost just over £1000.
im getting to the point where i wish i hadnt bought it the amount of cash its eaten up.

[Gert_8]

Post up some pics - we can get a better idea on the car you are discussing.

However, as with any good restoration job, it is a labour of love. If you're concerned about the money you are spending on it (which will never be achieved in any resale value) I'd stop immediately.

You could end up doing the job brilliantly at a cost of £10k to end up with a car worth £4K!

[Grrrmachine]

I wouldn't spend a penny on a 318i - when 33% of the engine is missing, the rest of the car is worth f-all.

Any E30 is a money pit - you just have to draw the line somewhere. And fitting a kit falls well down the list of priorities in terms of "restoration", way below "replacing the brake lines", "replacing all the rubber suspension" and "welding the floor".

If you aren't going to get your hands dirty repairing it yourself, you really can't complain about the cost of owning an old car.

[daimlerman]

Half the fun of owning an elderly car is the tinkering to keep it running and to improve it!

If the OP was to read a few technical posts and study the zone wiki,he would soon learn that nuts and bolts are easy to play with,more difficult is welding,and more difficult still is paintwork.But it is very satisfying to be able to say;

'All me own work'!

[G-Bear]

Last summer. I put on a new timing belt, water pump coolant etc. Upgraded steering rack with new track rods, new rear discs pads and shoes, overhauled my callipers, exhaust, two new tyres and a few other bits. I completed the work all myself and this all cost me in around the £1K area. It still looks like a tatty turd. Okay some bits I could have scrimped on, but these weren't parts from the dealer.

I'm collecting parts for all bushes and suspension currently and have spent another £500 and thats just on shocks and some control arms.

Its an expensive hobby, but once you've got that in your head and its excepted, its a lot of fun, satisfaction, a good challenge and you get it right very rewarding.

As already mentioned get on the wiki pages, read loads on the threads here, invest in some basic tools and you'll be cracking on with the work yourself in no time. Plus you've got the Zone and all its talent to help you out along the way.

[spook]

Remember its a BMW and not a scabby old Ford .

[Split_S]

If you're not ready to part with lots of your money just sell it. I am doing a COMPLETE resto and
doing ALL the work myself (not the paint though) and it will be about 15-20 000 USD... Its just the way it is... A half-assed resto is, well, a half-assed resto!

[suedenim]

If you were concerned about the costs, why did you bother doing the mtec kit? If around £1k spent makes it a money pit, you should cut your losses and sell up.