S14 - Overrrated or Underrated?

[strickland]

E30 handle poorly?!

[moatilliatta]

E36 handle poorly? What a newb.

[TobyB]

In the case of an E36, yep its got more power and torque, but god do they handle poorly.

Hey now, the E36 is probably the first BMW that can actually be made to handle at all. All the trailing arm bullshit is finally
beaten down to the point where the rear sticks well. Yes, they are pushy pigs in stock form, but reasonable modifications make them
pretty nice.

For a BMW.

If you actually want it to HANDLE, then other marques beckon... he says, also stirring the pot. And putting a rotary into a Miata...

t
I mean come on, balancing handling with rake angle???

[roguetoaster]

I don't know, its just not that much better than a normal e30.

It's also almost too valuable to be fun. Most of us still here got in to E30s because they were cheap fun with a fancy badge on the hood.

Cheap fun is always the best, E30 M3s with S14s aren't that.

[digger]

the engine was never really the strong/focus point

[Northern]

... ..

Remember when the $25k rule was a thing for the M3? The train left that station without me.

I don't know, its just not that much better than a normal e30.
I'd either just buy a really nice non-m e30 or do what you did and stretch for a 911.
Still tempted by the GR86 or an F56 JCW Mini for the price.

[e30davie]

I didn't realise they were "worth" that much. That is ridiculous. I'd be afraid to even start it up at that price.

[MrBurgundy]

... ..

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/engine-23/

S14 is not for us peasants LOL

at least it comes with the radiator

*heavy sarcasm*

[AWDBOB]

... ..

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/engine-23/

S14 is not for us peasants LOL

S14 market is all over the place. There was a 120k mile engine in TN for sale for a month at $7k

[2mAn]

Honestly I don't know. Maybe $25k is my cutoff for an M3.

... ..

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/engine-23/

S14 is not for us peasants LOL

[reelizmpro]

Yeah it all depends. There are so many factors at play. I bought both of my M3's for under $10k but that was many, many years ago. I bought a third for 17K like 6 years ago, then got rid of it because it was S52 swapped and I was swapping my 323i at the time. Not to say, anything was wrong with it, I just preferred having S14'd M3's. Recently, I worked on a mint Sterling Silver on black (my original dream combo) M3 that was up for sale for $50k. I just couldn't bring myself to pay that much for it as that's well over what I paid for my all 4 of my E30's. If I didn't have any E30's at all, then it would be different. Many people who are paying today's prices missed the boat, either they weren't BMW guys originally, too young at the time and now have to pay to play. Buying the well sorted cars ...they don't have to put in the time or knowledge to restore it. Another factor is the investment aspect because they probably aren't going to lose money in the long term, they just have to have a place to store it and keep it up.

[Northern]

Honestly I don't know. Maybe $25k is my cutoff for an M3. I like them, but I'm not buying a 2-3 season car that sits in my driveway over the winter for that much. Maybe if I had winter storage or moved it would be different.

Sometimes I think it would be nice to have something different. A GR86 or newer Mini JCW, both shitbox-y, but have aftermarkets/potential and are something new and much easier to replace should something happen. Also both things I would drive in the winter.

[AWDBOB]

^^^ that is subjective relative to how well off you are IMO.

For a ballin on a budget cheap ass like myself, I decided it would be worth it to keep the S14 in my car if I could get another or rebuild the one I currently have for $7500 or less. Any more and I can get a healthy 24v in the car which will be more enjoyable, for my application/desires.

Modifying an S14 incurs incredible cost, so from that same angle, stock+ is the only thing that makes sense to me (flywheel+exhaust+tune).

If you didn’t get an M3 for a decent price I see no reason to shell out the cheddar for one. I like the 325iS better in most ways. M3 5 lug, back seat and cluster on a well setup M20 car is bliss for me.

(Unless of course you chase the high of the cars and coffee handjob, in which case, the M3 is for you)

When I had the M3 and Linda the red 325iS out here at the same time, a guy from my old job said, “man I really don’t like the body kit you put on the other one, it looks tacky”. Then I told him it was a 4cyl and he was even more disgusted

[2mAn]

Theres obviously a lot of 'hate' associated with the costs VS what you get so I wonder...

still overrated at $40K? $60k? $80k?

I feel like at they get more expensive I would lean towards needing it to be a larger displacement motor with suspension mods VS a low mileage example. I think so many people buy a mint, low mileage one and are disappointed VS having a spicy one

[Northern]

Simon stirring the pot...

I think it was great at the time.
Still sounds excellent when modified, *can* make great power for the displacement. It's the 'Right' engine for an M3.

I prefer the sound of an equally worked M20.
I prefer the power/cost/weight of modern aluminum 4-cyl like a K-series, B48, or... well I guess that's it.

Maybe lacking 'Soul' but I have no argument for/against that. Would never buy an S14 on its own, and would never buy an M3 at these prices so it's not a real issue.