Maintenance costs of E30

[mchifala1]

Can anyone give me any estimates on the average yearly maintenance costs for a well-kept, under 100k mile E30?

Thanks,
Michael

[nando]

this can vary so much it's almost impossible to say. how well kept? a shit E30 probably costs a lot, a mint one less. Most of the cars on E30 forums are shit.

Basic E30 maintainence isn't so bad. oil changes, filters, etc. You need a timing belt & waterpump every ~50k, valve adjustment every year or two. Brakes are simple to do and cheap. the rest is typical car stuff.

The problem comes when you start modifying things, or doing "while I'm in there" replacement of parts, then it gets expensive. Other than fixing things that aren't really broke, my car hasn't really required anything more than the basics.

[McGyver]

i spent $140 for the timing belt, but it would have been 3 or 4 times as much if i hadn't done it myself.

like nando said^, it will really depend on how much needs to be replaced and if you are doing the work yourself. i can't really think of very many jobs that can't be done at home using just the Bently manual, internet acces, basic hand tools, and someone who isnt a moron.

Edit:
to throw out a number, no more than $300-$500

[NC325iC]

its impossible to know the maintenance costs of an e30. at least for me, the maintenance items get done during modification before they really need to be done, and this is an endless cycle.

in all honesty the main things i can think of that e30s need regularly:
timing belt
fluid changes
rear shock mounts (they get eaten for breakfast)

other than that there are no real specialty needs, of course if youre running 20+ year old bushings/ball joints your gonna need to replace them. same for clutch components.

[blefevre]

other than that there are no real specialty needs, of course if youre running 20+ year old bushings/ball joints your gonna need to replace them. same for clutch components.

Thats the real killer there. Buying such an old car you pretty much have to (should) replace all the bushings, which adds up quick. However, just general yearly upkeep won't cost much at all.

[Sagaris]

A.D.D. SUFFERERS: CLIFFS NOTES @ BTTM

Whenever I buy a used car, it usually doesn't have any maintenance history. Even then, I do not trust their word so much. So when I bought my neglected 1991 325i with 186,000 miles for $1500. I did the following items right away. (prices are close approximations from memory and are parts only since I do my own work, not bragging, just stating the facts.)

Valve adjustment:
$10 for a feeler gauge $15 for a valve cover gasket

Fluids:
$35 for rear diff
$50 for transmission
$10 for brake fluid
$10 for power steering
$30 for coolant
$35 for engine oil

Timing belt, tensioner, water pump, new belts
$120

Spark plugs+wires:
$140

Distributor cap and rotor:
$40

Air filter:
$20

Wiper Blades:
$40

Oxygen sensor: $75

Coolant temp sensor: $30

Once I have those basics covered and any other immediate issues resolved (tires, brakes, bulbs etc). I simply go out and drive my car until something starts acting funny. Of the 15 cars I have owned, 14 of them were purchased with over 100,000 miles, and 7 of them were purchased with over 150,000 miles. I have been fortunate to never have a breakdown or any sudden expensive repairs. Just small things like wheel bearings, alternators, batteries, and other smaller repairs that usually give you some clues that they are within a few days of going out.

With this all said. Doing initial maintenance like this will be a bit spendy up front but will help promote reliable running which means that hopefully you wont have to touch the car much for a few years.
It is impossible to give a guestimate of what a typical yearly running cost will be for a car. Outside of the initial maintenance that I did almost a year ago I have spent a little money making the car more fun and looking better, but I haven't had to spend a dime on anything that was a necessity to keep it functioning.

You can buy a cheap car and have it run for years with no issues, or you can buy a car that is a few years old and have quite a few problems with it (brother-in-laws 2005 Sentra).

For myself, if an old cheap car like I have nickel-and-dimes me between $500-$1000 a year (beyond fuel and oil changes) to keep it running then I would reconsider owning it. But on the same notw, more major repairs repairs like having to replace an engine, clutch, or transmission might persuade me to keep a car even longer than anticipated, knowing that a good engine, trans, clutch, etc is already in it.

---------------------------------------------------
CLIFFS NOTES:
It is all up to you to decide what your limits are and what you consider reasonable to spend on a car in a given year. After doing~$500-$600 of initial maintenance on any sub $3000 car, I would expect not to pay more than $500-1000 a year on essential items a car needs to run properly and safely. When it gets beyond that, I would reconsider getting another car.

Think of things in terms of car payments.If you pay cash for the e30 then consider what kind of monthly car payment could you afford on a newer nicer car. Once you eclipse those numbers in maintenance costs and do not have an emotional attachment to the e30, you may want to look into something newer and presumably more reliable.




Apologies for the long windedness of my poast

[nando]

its impossible to know the maintenance costs of an e30. at least for me, the maintenance items get done during modification before they really need to be done, and this is an endless cycle.

in all honesty the main things i can think of that e30s need regularly:
timing belt
fluid changes
rear shock mounts (they get eaten for breakfast)

other than that there are no real specialty needs, of course if youre running 20+ year old bushings/ball joints your gonna need to replace them. same for clutch components.

RSMs? really? Who still uses stock E30 parts anyway? E46 M3 mounts used to be the "hot" setup years ago, and I had them for a long time. otherwise I think most RSM failures are improper installation or original parts.

[hotghias]

If you do the work yourself, shop around for parts, and can live with the little things that go wrong because you consider the car fun but more-or-less disposable: very little. (example: driver door lock doesn't work so I unlock from the trunk, coolant light has been on for 4 years but level is fine, odometer is broken, etc)

If you want everything to function as new and let a shop do the work: very much. I have $4k+ in records for labor alone from the previous owner's shop.