E30 convertibles are cheap and easy to locate

[rex]

Oh yeah totally

[ZeKahr]

From what I’ve seen, it’s easy to find a nice vert vs a nice sedan/coupe. Most of the sedans/coupes I’ve seen are trashed

[82eye]

From what I’ve seen, it’s easy to find a nice vert vs a nice sedan/coupe. Most of the sedans/coupes I’ve seen are trashed

same. verts were always pipe and slippers crowd, plus here they lived 8 months of the year or more indoor. top down season is super short. on the downside, a vert here is almost always a slushbox, and easy / cheap 5spd swaps are long gone.

[gazellebeigem3]

a slushbox pairs perfectly with a floppy vert chassis, no need for heel toeing on the way to the ice cream shop.

[varg]

Well yeah... as a driver's car they suck in comparison and because of that they never attracted the same broke boy drivers or amateur racing crowd who trashed coupes and sedans en masse. They're way heavier, even less rigid than an already fairly flexible car, they barely feel like the same chassis. Have you driven one? It's a car for a completely different audience in the used market, a cruiser vs sport compact.

[Tom Galloway]

All true. But they are beautiful.

[McGyver]

I've had 3, and although I'd like to get another drop top, I think I'd rather get a miata/s2k/boxter than another e30 convertible. That being said, it is fun to cruise around on nice days with the top down.

[rex]

Well yeah... as a driver's car they suck in comparison and because of that they never attracted the same broke boy drivers or amateur racing crowd who trashed coupes and sedans en masse. They're way heavier, even less rigid than an already fairly flexible car, they barely feel like the same chassis. Have you driven one? It's a car for a completely different audience in the used market, a cruiser vs sport compact.

No I have not driven one, do we really think a manual vert will be less fun to drive than an auto eta sedan?

[ZeKahr]

Well yeah... as a driver's car they suck in comparison and because of that they never attracted the same broke boy drivers or amateur racing crowd who trashed coupes and sedans en masse. They're way heavier, even less rigid than an already fairly flexible car, they barely feel like the same chassis. Have you driven one? It's a car for a completely different audience in the used market, a cruiser vs sport compact.

Haven’t driven one. Never liked the profile of a vert compared to a sedan or a coupe, so I more or less ignored their existence. Also don’t like having wind blasted in my face while driving

I wish these cars never got popular with the broke boy crowd; they make excellent daily drivers given the creature comforts (torquey six cylinder engine, AC, 4-speed automatic transmission, power steering, cruise control, etc), small size, excellent looks (sedan and coupe body styles), and fantastic visibility. Thanks to the broke boy crowd, there are now less pristine examples to daily drive as a normal car and its harder to find one locally without having to travel. You also can’t be choosey about the interior/exterior color combo if you want a nice condition car within a reasonable timeframe. The good thing is that that demographic is slowly being priced out of these cars since they’re rising in value.

[McGyver]

Honestly, convertibles are totally fun to drive. They might not be as rigid as a coupe/sedan, but they're still fun. Not everything needs to be race track firm, plus 90% of a DD is cruising to work and back or running errands, things where you don't notice any chassis flex. Sitting in the front with the windows up, you really don't have that much wind, and you can also get a wind deflector to black more wind. Cruising in spring / fall in coupe is nice, but it doesn't compare to the feeling of not having a roof. Then again, rain can be annoying if the top doesn't seal well. Shoot, maybe I'm talking myself into another convertible.

I had mine on H&R Race springs with grippy tires, swapped to e36 5-lug, and put in an m30b35. It was an absolute blast to roar around back roads with the top down.

[dnguyen1963]

Don't know about you guys, but chics really dig E-30 vert.

[varg]

No I have not driven one, do we really think a manual vert will be less fun to drive than an auto eta sedan?

We don't think anything, fun is a matter of opinion. What is a fact though is that convertibles didn't get balled up in spec E30/drifting/hooning nearly as often as coupes or sedans. I also recognize that it is easier to manual and 885/b25 swap an eta than it is to turn a convertible into a coupe. A nice eta is only a couple grand worth of parts; a 325i drivetrain, springs and swaybars, away from being as fun to drive any stock 325is. It's worth noting that a manual 325ic is also somewhat rare, having been a very expensive car when new, I believe they were as expensive as or more expensive than an M3. How common and relatively cheap they are now goes to show how well they were treated in relation to coupes and sedans. They really don't feel like the same car imo, the interior may look the same when you sit in it but the convertibles are noticeably more sluggish in acceleration and noticeably flexible. I once manual swapped a convertible for someone back when my car was still M42 powered and when I test drove the convertible afterward I remember that it felt noticeably vague and flexible in the front end going around a dipping corner near my house compared to my 318is. That was my first impression, I have driven a couple of them since then and am just not impressed. I must admit I don't "get" convertibles, I have had motorcycles for open top experiences for most of my life and some sluggish old bmw just doesn't hold a candle to a motorcycle

[E30 Wagen]

Man 10 years ago I passed on the chance to buy an '88 auto vert with only 75k on it for only $1600. The pacific blue interior was mint and it had a new top, but the body was just starting to rust so I considered it a parts car.

I would never buy a vert as a second fun car, but if I was rich I'd like having a vert in a collection, ideally a '92 mtech II with a nice and quiet period correct m50nv to cruise around with. Hell even a 318i would suffice. All I know for sure is that for some reason I despise the look of the diving boards on verts more than coupes/sedans and would make a project of swapping to plastic pronto. Regardless, I imagine the extra noise in a vert would make it unbearable for me to drive long distances so it would only be used around town, therefore I've never understood the point of high performance convertibles besides being a conspicuous display of wealth.

[sna77]

Man 10 years ago I passed on the chance to buy an '88 auto vert with only 75k on it for only $1600. The pacific blue interior was mint and it had a new top, but the body was just starting to rust so I considered it a parts car.

I would never buy a vert as a second fun car, but if I was rich I'd like having a vert in a collection, ideally a '92 mtech II with a nice and quiet period correct m50nv to cruise around with. Hell even a 318i would suffice. All I know for sure is that for some reason I despise the look of the diving boards on verts more than coupes/sedans and would make a project of swapping to plastic pronto. Regardless, I imagine the extra noise in a vert would make it unbearable for me to drive long distances so it would only be used around town, therefore I've never understood the point of high performance convertibles besides being a conspicuous display of wealth.

I have e46 ZHP and e30 convertibles as second (and err 3rd cars). We leave them at our beach house and drive them daily in the summer... sometimes cruising around town, sometimes we go for long, windy drives through the great New England uncrowded back roads. I love driving these cars in the summer... and my daily driver SUV that I drive to work in the city barely gets touched all summer long...

BTW, I'm with you--a 92 318 manual is honestly perfect for what my summer needs were. Would have love to have found a 92/93 325, but couldnt find one in the right color combo/in the great shape...

[gazellebeigem3]

IMHO bmw didn't make a 'drivers' vert until the e93. Everything previous suffers from terminal floppiness of the chassis and deafening cacophony from flex/top/other jalopy noises. That said, I have a 90 vert that's automagic and its great for cruising around like a geezer. I left z cars out of the discussion for obvious reasons.