First time E30 Owner

[RI Rob]

Hey all, quick question. I've decided that I really want to get an E30 but I've never owned a sporty car and I've never learned to drive stick. Am I getting myself into something I shouldn't be or should I be ok.

Sorry for the vague question.

Also, I'm looking a lot at the 91' 318is. Is that a nice car to start with?

Thx


Rob.

[e30construction]

e30's are great cars and have a huge following so if anythign goes wrong with the car or breaks ull be able to find a replacement..driving stick is a piece of cake once u start getting the hang of it..318is is a nice car not much power but very responsive which may be good for you since its ur first 5 speed..drive around for a while in a parking lot and youl get it..also when checking the car out look for rust,leaks,old bushings,high mileage, jsut the normal things etc..im sure some others guys will chip in and explain at a couple more things u should watch for

[IAmGary]

A '91 318is will be a great car to learn on. You'll love it. But for your own safety you need to get comfortable driving and shifting under relaxed, controlled conditions before attempting to DD a manual car. Find someone to teach you.

I bought my e30 after only 1.5 hours of instruction/drive time on manual and it wasn't enough to prepare me for all the situations I got into. Things turned out o.k. but I stalled that car everywhere I went, got honked at all the time and mistakenly floored it in 1st when I thought it was in reverse. Yeah, that mistake sucked.

As for buying, this recent thread has some info on buying a car: http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=285540 If you're not an experienced mechanic or don't have a good place to work on your car make doubly sure you get a Pre-Purchase Inspection: paying a shop to fix all the things that can be wrong with a 22 year old car can be really expensive. Wear and tear parts alone can run you $3K with labor.