E30 tough enough for ice driving?

[trackdemon]

Bit of an unusual subject I think! I'm in the process of setting up a series of ice driving trips in Norway for the coming season, trying to keep prices sensible so avoiding the silly expensive cars to run (it's just as much fun in something cheaper anyway). Naturally RWD is a must, and as a BMW fanboy my thoughts naturally turn to E30's (maybe E36). I guess the main question is whether or not you think the cars are tough enough, and what kind of mods would be sensible (and of course, where do I find 5-6 318/320/325's!). Overheating in -10 shouldn't be an issue, but do any of the systems object to such cold use? We may weld the diffs, so LSD not important. We'll probably put rev limiters on them (just a little below standard) as again it's not really important to have huge power, the fun is in balancing the things sliding around constantly.
Any thoughts? Are E30 maybe just a little too 'classic' for the kind of customer abuse they may receive and still be worth something afterwards? Do either of the petrol motors have serious issues which prolonged high rev use can reveal? Also, I'd be interested on your thoughts about what type of oil may be appropriate for this kind of use. Our main objective is to keep the things running to avoid having to share cars too much, so getting mechanically solid cars and keeping it that way is the preference. Thanks in advance!

[Speedtouch]

I'd say they are generally pretty tough, but from my own experience (having owned 4 of them, two 320i and two 325i versions), the door locks are prone to freezing up in very cold conditions, and that's just here in the UK.

The six-pot engines are very durable, and will withstand high revs as they are perfectly balanced, however, the rockers can sometimes break, along with the cam belts, of course; in that respect, you may be better off using an E36 or E39 with timing chains (M50/M52 engines) rather than cam belts, plus on the E39 at least, there is switchable traction control that would be useful on icy tracks, plus they are cheaper to buy than the E30.

[trackdemon]

You know, I never thought of an E39! Might handle a bit easier with the long wheelbase, and as you say mechanicals might be a little tougher. Being younger, less rust too. But! I do love an E30, so if I can pickup one or for the fleet it makes for some variety - especially if I can get a 6'er

[Speedtouch]

Yes, having recently owned a 1997 E39 523i (with M52B25, around 170bhp), I can confirm they are well-built and handle pretty well for a large saloon, 50/50 F&R weight balance, responsive rack & pinion steering, so surprisingly chuckable. Similar performance and fuel economy to an E30 325i.

Another important point for colder climates is they have very effective heating and windscreen demisting.

[trackdemon]

Had a quick look and there are certainly E39's less money tha E30, but I definitely want an E30 or 2 in the fleet; having driven some over there, they are really fun on the ice, very responsive and you can feel the lack of weight. A 325 would be awesome, but 320 would do the job too - as would a 318iS, with that lovely revvy engine but they are too valuable to rent out for abuse. Sounds like the 6 pots might be more robust too. Bodywork unimportant as long as it's not falling apart, just need solid mechanicals; if anyone has something that might fit the bill feel free to shout!

[Speedtouch]

I would think the 316/316i/318i/320i would be more durable from a point of view of renting it out to Joe Public, with less chance of cylinder head cracking, etc.

You could trick out an E39 to look like this which recently appeared on E-bay, to perhaps make it more suitable for driving off-road:

[trackdemon]

Ah; do 325's suffer head cracking then? No need to trick out E39 - it'll add cost, and.... I hate that We're not off road as such, it's driving on an ice lake - and a huge one at that, last years track was nearly 4kms. Think of it more as a race track covered in ice, with soft snowy stuff to catch you if you get it wrong.

[Speedtouch]

Yes, alas the 325i cylinder head is well known for sometimes cracking across its water ways, probably more likely to happen in a very cold climate...

http://www.e30zone.net/e30zonewiki/inde ... acked_Head

[Brianmoooore]

It's true that the 325 head can, and does, sometimes crack beneath the cam bearings - much more so than the 320 head, but it's still a rare occurrence, and usually, but not always, follows some kind of 'outage' with the cooling system, such as an airlock or loss of coolant.
316i and 3i8i M40 engines are close to indestructible, and in any case, are cheap enough to be considered disposable.
I once thrashed a 318i for about a mile with the majority of the sump completely missing, and it suffered no apparent damage at all.

[trackdemon]

A, shame as a 325 would be fun. Finding a couple of 320's it is then! I'll have a look here of course, not much on autotrader, anywhere else I should look?

[jonnyfartpants]

hi
ive done two ice drive trips to Sweden in e30's
700 mile road trip to get there a week on a frozen lake covering almost 1000 miles (well the wheels spun round a 1000 miles) and then 700 mile drive home, on our 2nd trip 120miles of the homeward trip I was towing a 205!!!! no probem for a 325!!!

[trackdemon]

Sounds an epic trip! I'm tempted to drive out in my E46 330d, good to have own car there too. I know many locals run 325's as well as 318 & 320, just want to go for the option which will give us best chance of reliability (all versions will be hilarious on ice, as I'm sure you know!).

[Captain_Birdseye]

Good luck, have plenty of spare parts

[jonnyfartpants]

We always took 325’s over
A tip would be to use neat antifreeze as it gets real cold
Also a new or very good battery, spare fuel pump and ecu
We also used studded tyres
LSD also adds to the fun
Search for ”aice drive Sweden”a a‘a