First e30

[J2Gmaddog]

Hello r3v,

I'm new to the forum and am looking at getting my first e30. I have sort of narrowed it down between two cars.

1. 1987 BMW 325is white/black leather, manual transmission, US car, sport seats, all stock, car has about 90k+ miles but the engine was replaced due to oil pan leak and has about 46k+ on the engine (same m20 from a 1989 car), besides this only the catalytic converter has some rust, but overall has been well maintained and garaged by the second owner whom I would be buying it from.

2. 1989 BMW 325i Touring, blue/ grey leather, manual, manual transmission, Euro car (would be imported), sport seats, well spec'd including A/C, all stock, about 150k miles, and this car has some work that needs to be done on the panels/ doors (slight rust/ dents) and full respray but the interior is pretty good.

I have been doing a lot of research/ reading and was wondering if anyone could give insight on not just these cars mentioned but the pros/ cons of the 325is vs Touring in general.

Thanks for your advice and feedback.

[mark1991]

The touring model is for sure the "cooler" of the two cars. It is rare and would be fun but expensive to "restore". On a euro car, "slight rust" usually means a lot of hidden rust. If you are going to have the car repainted, you might as well have the body fully restored which will be very expensive.

The 1987 325is is the one I would choose over the touring due to the lack of rust. Also, it sounds like the touring has not yet been imported into the United States. I am not an expert on importing a euro car but I would imagine you would have to jump through some hoops to title and license the car here.

[roguetoaster]

Bringing a grey market car over isn't difficult, and it's trivial to register them in FL. That said, get an inspection of the touring if you would want to buy it with the intent to keep it stateside.

As to the "is," you don't replace an engine because the oil pan leaks. Also, it's really odd that they would mention rust on the catalytic converter and explicitly disclaim rust elsewhere. Do be wary of the double claim of low mileage on the engine and car as it's very easy to roll the odometer. That said, if it's a solid car there is no reason not to buy it at a standard (no magic low mileage tax) price.

[Shock(/\)ave]

The touring model is for sure the "cooler" of the two cars. It is rare and would be fun but expensive to "restore". On a euro car, "slight rust" usually means a lot of hidden rust. If you are going to have the car repainted, you might as well have the body fully restored which will be very expensive.

I totally agree, and I write from experience: we started off with a very nice car, and still wound up replacing both front fenders and fixing three small rust holes in the front footwells with new metal, along with plenty of minor touch up, before we had a properly rust free car.

If the rust on the car you're looking at is visible everywhere, I'd bet the sills are rotten along the length of the floor, and that's a huge job to tackle correctly (the car isn't worth buying at that point).