Pro's/Con's.. Should I buy an e30/e36?

[HarryPotter]

I <3 m20s. They are quirky but awesome--at this point they are about fun and soul more than speed. The way I see it, if you can't appreciate m20s then you can't appreciate the e30 chassis, and you should get something else better suited to your needs.

Pretty much, I love my m20. Treats me damn good.

[5Toes]

E30 parts are fairly cheap. Im doing a brake job on my car, and made in Germany everything is costing me about $200. Thats rotors, pads, and sensors. Thats cheap

My Mums forester, who I just checked prices for the same parts is about $300. Granted both are from Blunttech.. still e30 parts are cheap

[Wh33lhop]

I <3 m20s. They are quirky but awesome--at this point they are about fun and soul more than speed. The way I see it, if you can't appreciate m20s then you can't appreciate the e30 chassis, and you should get something else better suited to your needs.

[TurboJake]

The M20 is a fantastic motor. As stout as a russian hammer.
Ever driven a CA20E?
Didn't think so. Drive one of those. THEN have the balls say the M20 is the worst engine ever.

[InuFaye]

Haters gonna hate.

I'm a hater.

U jelly.

[slammin.e28]

E36.

E30 is just slow. M20 is the worst engine ever.

Haters gonna hate.

I'm a hater.

[mcgillaguddy]

All depends on the e30 you pick up, its history, and maintenance. My car was a family friends and it runs like a champ, still at 288K miles and is modded. The only thing that has happened to this car in its life is the automatic transmission took a dump after 250k...but cmon, thats a damn good life i think. Any car is reliable if it's been taken care of. These cars have been professionally engineered, and yes, every car has issues. But it solely relies on what that cars been through/driven by/taken care of by. If you buy a $1000 car, EXPECT it to break. You get what you pay for. you will find a lot more e36's in better condition, and yes, its faster, but ugly imo. Another cool thing about e30's is that you can USE lots of e36 parts, therefor having the best of both worlds. You can't really put e30 stuff on an e36...or maybe you can, but why?

Hope that helps. and why are you getting rid of the audi?

^this...

i say definitely get rid of the audi tho.. i like them, but I have a few friends with them and the cost to repair and pain to work on factor makes me never want one. E30's are easy to work on and if its cared for then it will be reliable.

[InuFaye]

E36.

E30 is just slow. M20 is the worst engine ever.

[MC Hammered]

E30

The e36 looks way too bland

[HarryPotter]

Neither of these cars are reliable. This board is full of this the "it's regular maintenance" excuse - it's BS. Regular for a BMW maybe, but not for all cars...

If you want reliability look elsewhere.

If you want fun and inexpensive parts look e30.

If you want comfort, fun, a little more investment, and a "nicer car to the public" go e36.

If you want reliability go honda. :)

I bought my e30 a few years ago simply because I KNEW it would break and I wanted to learn how to work on cars. In that time I've done two engine swaps and touched every bolt on my car. I'm getting sick of these things... but at the same time I love the knowledge that I've gained.

Keep all of this in mind and choose wisely... I would be careful to buy a CLEAN e30 - otherwise you will be doing A LOT of maintenance work that will drain on you.

Can I haz tampon?

I've prolly dropped a g on my car in the past two years including tires. New T belt and waterpump and some other useless shit.

[Roysneon]

Neither of these cars are reliable. This board is full of this the "it's regular maintenance" excuse - it's BS. Regular for a BMW maybe, but not for all cars...

THANK YOU! E30 is not the end all be all for any car. They don't last forever no matter what, they're not that fast, and to properly maintain one isn't cheap.

Both of mine are bleeding me dry, the daily driver and the project car. I've spent more money on a car that hasn't seen the light of day for over a year than anything else since I started my little en devour, and the expensive stuff still hasn't started.

That being said; all the early E36's are starting to fall apart, too and it seems they're aging worse than most e30's. When it comes to reliability I'd say they're about equal. The E30 is a great car with a lot of character, tons of possibilities and classic appeal.

E36's have more modern engines, better suspension and diff, but also more to go wrong with them.

My take is: You'll be doing the same ammount of maintenance if you buy a beat, cheap e30 or e36, or a nice e30/nice e36. The E30 is more raw, and simpler. The E36 looks nicer to the general public, more "refined", faster but feels more docile.

Personally I prefer the E30 any day.

[Vince30]

Buy an e30 because racecar

[ak-]

Keep your Audi.
87e30's and Danny's post are the best and honest pieces of advice you're going to get.

[idanity]

1st off...let me ask...are you lookiing for an automatic ?

i would recomend to:
drive 5 e30's, (not beaters)
drive 5 e36's,
now drive your car...maybe you just need to swap in a ls7, 1s9 engine and ditch the 4wd to go rwd on your present car...

now, go buy a $500 dollar toyota 2wd truck for all your parts, and start the build.

[88SuperETABD]

All depends on the e30 you pick up, its history, and maintenance. My car was a family friends and it runs like a champ, still at 288K miles and is modded. The only thing that has happened to this car in its life is the automatic transmission took a dump after 250k...but cmon, thats a damn good life i think. Any car is reliable if it's been taken care of. These cars have been professionally engineered, and yes, every car has issues. But it solely relies on what that cars been through/driven by/taken care of by. If you buy a $1000 car, EXPECT it to break. You get what you pay for. you will find a lot more e36's in better condition, and yes, its faster, but ugly imo. Another cool thing about e30's is that you can USE lots of e36 parts, therefor having the best of both worlds. You can't really put e30 stuff on an e36...or maybe you can, but why?

Hope that helps. and why are you getting rid of the audi?