Time to move on to a different car.....

[Inspar8r]

After about 6-7 years with my e30, if come to several realizations.

e30s, are just not daily drivers. I can't get into an e30 and NOT WORRY about whether a timing belt will break, if a drive belt will break and let my car overheat, or let it die becaue the alternator is not charging the system, or if my power steering might go out.

Don't get me wrong, e30s are great, but they are daily drivers. Anything over 150K miles i feel is where you start to get into trouble.

All that said, i am keeping my e30. However, it will be stored at 55 degrees all year round, and will become a project car. Chances are, since the frame is getting weak, i'll buy a new chassis (in 2 years most likely), and swap everything over. I'll turbocharge the hell out of the M20 once i have a second mode of transportation. This way, i can take 6 months to install the turbo and not have to worry about how i'll get to work or school.

So what am i going to get now. Simple. e36 M3. Always wanted an M car, and heres the chance. Business is good, so i have my eyes set on a 95 M3, silver or black (carbon or cosmos), with spoiler, 5 speed, harmon kardon, heated seats if available. I wanna be picky, since last time when i got the e30, i wasn't, and had no idea about M3s or 325i's, or what the difference is.

It's funny because my family won't even let me sell my e30, cuz they know i'll hate myself for it later.

Anyway, if you guys see anything near the chicagoland area, let me know. I will travel, but i want the 95 because of OBD1 and the 3 liter. I'm told by previous e36 M3 owners that an intake alone does wonders for the 3 liter, and chipping it with some exhaust makes pretty big power as well.

I'll keep posting here though, since technically, it isn't an e30-only forum, plus it's a pretty quality group of people here. Thanks guys for all the help along the way, and if you have any input about the e36 M3 and what i should look for, let me know.

[Clay'87IS]

Good luck! Glad to hear you'll still be staying :D

[Mystikal]

Good choice, I don't think I'd trade my car for anything but an E36 M3. Other Bimmers are just too damn pretty and nice.

Best of luck with the search.

[OldUser1]

I have had my E30 for almost 2 years...and it has never given me any problems (193,000 miles). I would trust driving it across the country and back with no worries. But the PO was an older lady who put mainly highway miles on it, and probably never brought it past 4,000RPM's. But the story is different for everyone on this board, and for your situation your car might not feel as secure for a drive as other people's. So keeping it as a project car will be fun.
Good luck on your hunt for a E36 M3, I would love to own one. Better yet, swap the S50 into my car. And turbo charging your M20 would be great.
Nice to hear that your staying on this board. Many people here can really help you out with any problems that occur with your future M3 because many people have the S50 engine in their E30.

Good luck with the E36!

[Jand3rson]

Re: Time to move on to a different car.....

However, it will be stored at 55 degrees all year round, and will become a project car.

If it wasn't a project car before, I don't know what you'd call it. People throw around the term "project car" way to loosely.

[Inspar8r]

It was my daily driver that i modded.

A project car is one that is a PROJECT, one that you address when you have extra time, a project won't interfere with how you get from here to there and whatnot.

Project car is thrown around loosely, but that is what it will become. I can do whatever i want to do with it now...

[Charlie]

E30's suck as daily drivers, that's why god made the e36.

-Charlie

[Jon325i]

The '95 M3s are very tunable cars....thanks to OBD I. Simple upgrades such as JC software, larger injectors and CIA can make a noticable improvement. Upgrading the exhaust to a nice aftermarket SS unit won't yield much in the way of power gains, but it will shed a few pounds off the car and give you a nice sport sound.

If you had the bank account for it, toss in some Schrick cams along with all the above mentioned mods and you'll have that S50 making power in the 285+HP range :up:

Best of luck in locating the car you want. Keep us posted.

Jon

[RedBaron86325]

e30s, are just not daily drivers

Anything over 150K miles i feel is where you start to get into trouble.

since the frame is getting weak

General Motors did not manufacture an e30.

Basic maint proves you wrong.

[bmw_e30]

This is funny.

I own a 95 M3 and an 86 325.

The E30 is my daily and the M3 is my weekend toy.

The E30 is much cheaper, more comfortable and more durable than my M3.

The M3 is a superior all around car, I think it is one of the BEST all around cars EVER made. Much better than the E30 or 46 M3's.

But the E36 M3 has much more factory "issues" than my E30. All of whitch need to be corrected before you drive the car. Things like the factory tranny mounts, rear shock towers, water pump, etc.

You can feel free to PM me and I will send you my E36 M3 buyers guide.

[randomtask37]

just wondering, but how the hell do u know when your frame is getting weak?

[nando]

I'd like to have an E36 M3 someday. But seriously, I don't think everyone's cars here are breaking down left and right. Yeah I managed to stretch the chain in my transfer case (partially the way I drive the car, partially related to a bad shifting problem which I fixed) but my car has never stranded me somewhere.

I think the difference with a BMW and a regular car is you can't let things go on a BMW. My parents drive their cars into the ground, never fiixing anything (cept maybe oil changes and brake pads). When their old car dies they just get a new one. a BMW generally you replace parts that are misbehaving or wearing down instead of just letting the car fall apart. I know for a fact that my car with nearly 150,000 miles is in better shape than most newer cars with less miles.

A significant portion of the work I've done to my car (full suspension, brakes, transfer case, misc parts) has been modifications or extras that I didn't really need. My rear wheel bearings for example are going out but I could probably just keep driving on them instead of fixing them. of corse at less than $60 for a new set why wouldn't I fix them?

I bet you will be replacing parts on the E36 like you would with any other BMW. only difference is they will cost a heck of a lot more!

[808BMW]

My rear wheel bearings for example are going out but I could probably just keep driving on them instead of fixing them. of corse at less than $60 for a new set why wouldn't I fix them?

Because its a PITA :P

[bimmerphile]

Wow, you sound like my neighbor.

E30 M3 with M50, track/project car.

97 M3 4-door Daily driver.

[Charlie]

Wow, you sound like my neighbor.

E30 M3 with M50, track/project car.

97 M3 4-door Daily driver.

A lot of us cool guys do the e36 daily/e30 toy route.

35 mpg and a suspension that doesn't remove fillings is nice for a DD.

-Charlie