How much would a manual conversion cost?

[James Crivellone]

Would you reccomend it, and make the eta motor worth it? Or get an i model with a 5spd?

do you have motor swap plans? if so, yeah its worth it, if not then buy an I


I's are not that fast either, which is why I don't consider them better at all, I have fucklots of fun in my eta, and swapping in my manual completely woke the car up.

the ETA is a hella fun engine once you open the exhaust/intake and chip it

325i intake manifold and throttle body help alot as well....


depends on your plan, only I car I personally would get is an 87, cause I like the early models better then the newer late models

Man, don't lie to the poor kids like that.

The e's are good as parts cars and "pick it up for 250 bucks and drive it until it dies" transportation, but other than that, you're just wasting your time with them.

The e is basically a gas powered diesel, it's nice for idling in stop and go traffic, but other than that, it's an unresponsive motor that runs out of steam very quickly. Good for grandma, but death for anyone with a set of testicles. For the time & money that it will cost to get a 5 speed swapped into the e, you can buy a decent 87 'i motored car.

-Charlie

I am going to agree. 100% ETA's are ECONOMY CARS. eCONOMY CARS FOR ASSHOLES.

Because I cars are so much faster

[nando]

sorry, but an e is no match for an i. you're kidding yourself if you think so. just ask the guy who runs specE30 (he just switched to an i).

and it would make a lot more sense to buy another car, with a better motor, than to dump money into an e (especially if he's not doing a motor swap of any sort).

but if he does want to do the 5 speed swap, DIY is the only way to go. paying a shop $2,000 to work on a $1500 car isn't too smart.

[Digitalwave]

I'd love to see a stock bottom end eta hang with my car...

[BS87]

Hilariously long quote.

Because I cars are so much faster

Sorry James, but as much as i love my eta, and it's low end torque, i cannot even compare it to the (heavy) cabrio. When you hit 4k in the eta you can feel it just kinda die off soon afterwards..... it has no top end for me.

[James Crivellone]

Hilariously long quote.

Because I cars are so much faster

Sorry James, but as much as i love my eta, and it's low end torque, i cannot even compare it to the (heavy) cabrio. When you hit 4k in the eta you can feel it just kinda die off soon afterwards..... it has no top end for me.

My stock ETA beater sucks ass for power, it drops off

but open up the exhaust and intake, and chip it, and the engine really comes alive, which is why i like it so much.


I can almost hang with I's with my car. Plus I's are slow as hell too :p

[mikeedler]

they are still faster than your weak no hp having ETA

[James Crivellone]

they are still faster than your weak no hp having ETA

not enough to warrant swapping to a stock m20b25.

I mean if you m20b25 guys are happy with your horsepower, then have at it, i'm happy with my ETA for what it is.


No Naturally Asperated M20 is enough power for me