my dilema

[devon.818]

so i bought my 325i almost just over a month ago. it has an automatic tranny....now i have a few options i am thinking about doing when the time comes(april/may)

-swap in a 5sp
-sell car, buy e30 with 5sp
-keep car, swap in a big motor and leave it automatic.

i am leaning towards keeping the car, just because i went through the tag/title crap and don't want to deal with another car so soon. plus it's my first e30, im kinda getting quite attatched.

i think the biggest deciding factor is how much HP/torque can the stock auto-trans. handle?
also my budget will be about 2500 cash(+price of my car if i sold it:1500-2k)

any and all input welcome.

[naplesE30]

sell car, take funds and buy a good non running car and put in s50 5spd with profit plus 2500 cash

[devon.818]

don't think i can do that, this is my only vehicle, my DD! if i could, i probably would!

[RainierHooker]

Probably the best bet, since it is you DD, would be to find a well sorted 5-Speed, buy it for your budget, and then once you have that, sell the autotragic. Then take the proceeds from the sale and put it into your new one however you deem prudent.

[devon.818]

^^^ possibility.

how much power do you guys think the stock auto-box can handle?

[grantlacey11]

no auto. no no no no. I don't want to hear it!

[RainierHooker]

The 4HP22 transmission is plenty capable of handling power, it was used behind, among other things, the V12 M70 in the E32 7-Series cars. They are however prone to failure when over-reving when in Park or Neutral. That, and its still an Auto...

[xLegendOZWest]

the swap is pretty easy for the record.

[CleanAzzE30z]

If you swap a bigger, more powerful engine in it before changing from auto-tragic I will literally find you and slap you in the face. ;)

[devon.818]

If you swap a bigger, more powerful engine in it before changing from auto-tragic I will literally find you and slap you in the face. ;)

why? how does a 5sp make the car any better?
i'm not hating, this is a serious question that pertains to my future plans.

[dannyyisntt]

5sp car = more fun to drive and easier to sell in the end.

[devon.818]

5sp car = more fun to drive and easier to sell in the end.

so it has no bearing on performance?, aside from weight?

[McGyver]

5sp will be faster off the line.

it is also a completely different car than an autotragic-failbox. really. I have 2 e30s, one of each transmission, and i used to think that not shifting around the city would be sorta cool. Its not. It lost its appeal after a month.

[devon.818]

gotchya^^^^^
i know this gets asked alot, but could i do my 5sp swap for under 1k?

[McGyver]

you could do it for under $5. It all depends on what kind of deals you find. If you want to save money you have to be willing to wait for a great deal to come along and refuse to pay full price for anything. Pull everything possible from the junkyards and then do all the work yourself.