How much has your e30 cost you?

[BMWManiac]

once you pass $10k you start thinking, "man, i could have bought an m3 for this money."

I've thought about it....but I decided I'd rather have a nicely restored, turbo 325i.....i already have 2 x ///M cars.

[Swanny]

So far:

87 325is - $900
Transmission - $500 installed
Misc engine management parts ~$170
New muffler - $120
ST springs and billy sports - $470
DIY rustoleum paint job ~ $70

Need: control arms, sways, tie rods ~ $500
Refurb the e21 recaros ~ 300
Rims & tires when the times right -$?

So far I'm in around $2300 which is pretty decent IMO

[kamotors]

in total around $7800 to get it to its current state including the cars purchase price, paint,bodywork,wheels, suspension and turbo junk.

[Swanny]

Now $380 more with full meyle suspension refresh on the way.

[ssaylor]

Okay, here it is. You guys made me go back and re-total everything since I bought the car back in 2010 (I sold it it 2007). Every penny spent - including the purchase - since 1990.

This 325is was a demo car used by BMW for auto shows and was never registered before we bought it from Peter Pan BMW in 1990. The 1200 mi. inspection stamp was even performed by BMWNA in Montvale NJ!!

Watch for a story in Bimmer Mag next month.

Enjoy...

[EtaSport]

^ is awesome and makes you really think.

I'm somewhere close to 20k. But it's been in the family since new and I can only imagine with purchase price, upgrades, maintenance, and such since 1986.

[ssaylor]

Yeah, if not for the upgrades and me being so AR, my total would be much less. But that $2500 A/C rebuild about killed me. At 100 degrees, it's worth every penny. There aren't too many 22 year old cars I'd go blazing through the desert in but this one does fine. Took a trip to LA in July for the photo shoot. 113 in Palm Springs and we had to turn the AC DOWN!

Regular maintenance is expensive, but worth it if you've got a keeper.

[canakami]

Dude ssaylor, that's an amazing list. Inflation not withstanding, it's interesting to think you could have bought an e28 M5(when it was only a couple years out) for that amount of money.

Though I'm sure that list would look a lot longer and have another zero or two.

[Vivek]

I'm gonna say around 6k right now. After suspension and wheels I'm fairly certain it'll be around if not over 8 thousand.

[ssaylor]

Dude ssaylor, that's an amazing list. Inflation not withstanding, it's interesting to think you could have bought an e28 M5(when it was only a couple years out) for that amount of money.

Though I'm sure that list would look a lot longer and have another zero or two.

That's the exact reason I sold my 40k mile e30 M3 in April. Not working, I just couldn't afford the S14 - and the 325 - if anything tanked. These are old cars!

[e30conv]

Bought car for $650
Rims $650
Racing Dynamics Springs $200
Bilsteins from my vert $0
Custom bent exhaust header back $450
5 speed swap, shifter bushings z3 shifter clutch, tranny, flywheel, gas tank, new master and slave cylinder, pedal assembly, new fuel line, sending unit, timing belt water pump at shop $1900
=$3,850 damn more than I thought and sooo much to go....

[frankie591]

car - 1100
wheels and tires - 1000
suspension - 1000
motor swap - 2000
random shit - 2000

total 7k or so

[2ndName]

Questions for the vets. Roughly on an 1984 325e with a broken AC. Worst case scenario, how much am I looking at to fix it? I saw a number of $2500 to rebuild it, oh yeah???

[Vivek]

Make a thread in the correct section with more details^

[keefy6]

im around or close to 20k which includes

price of car
parts, parts, parts, parts, parts etc.
labor

once you pass $10k you start thinking, "man, i could have bought an m3 for this money."

nah never thought that, but if one did, my question is 'where's the fun in that?!'