Getting another E30 (318is), what to look out for?

[MazterDizazter]

Hey guys,

Been a few years since I've been on r3vLimited, and I'm happy to say that I may have finally found another E30 worth getting into! My last car was an Alpine White 89 325i 2dr manual, and it was beat to hell but I loved it. I wanted another one after I sold it, but I wanted slightly better gas mileage, given the amount of driving I do. 1991 318is it would have to be.

Finding a 318is in my neck of the woods sucks. Sucks. They're all either clapped out or total garage queens, and either way, people want too much money for them. Well I found one up in East Bum****, Maine of all places for a good price, and am going to drive 5hrs up there to check it out tomorrow. It's a 2 owner car with 190k; full service records since new. No rot or major rust (according to owner; I'll be the judge of that when I go up there).

My plan for the car is simple: I want to repair the minor body imperfections and get it re-painted while updating the styling slightly using quality parts, and get it mechanically 100%. I want to use it for my daily driver until I am ready to purchase my next car, a 2013 Subaru BRZ, at which point I will sell it and hopefully break even.

Which brings me to my questions:

1: Anything I should look out for that's a specific issue for the 318's? I know my 325 had a laundry list of quirks (trunk/wheelwell rust, valve adjustment needed, electrical gremlins, broken sunroof gear) but I was wondering if there's anything additional to be aware of. I know it needs a tie rod and has a small power steering leak.

2: The car needs a cat-back exhaust. I don't want to do OEM replacement nor do I want to spend $1,000+ on a Billy Boat or Supersprint system. Are there any less expensive exhaust systems I can get to work with the car with a little ingenuity? ex. Ireland Engineering 325i cat-back, E36 M3, something? Just want a nicer sound and the traditional twin-tip look, like this:

I have a friend who runs a Porsche/BMW race shop and can fab me up something nice if I provide the materials, so any suggestions are welcome. I'll poke around the exhaust subforum, too.

3: Once I've repaired the car 100% and it needs no additional mechanical repairs, fluid changes or adjustments, let's say I have $1,000 to spend on performance upgrades. What is the best way to spend the money? I have wheels with sticky tires already. I was thinking a Turner Motorsports chip, Tokico shock/spring set, M-Tech 1 steering wheel, and
some upgraded brake pads/fluid. Thoughts?

Thanks guys! I'm looking at roughly 1 month to get the paint and bodywork completed (friend owns a body shop, and if you can pick two from "good", "fast" and "cheap", I chose good and cheap), so I should have it in my garage by December. I hope this 10+hr round trip drive is worth it tomorrow!

[e30jake]

1. Profile gasket is the big one here

2. According to the link below, Supersprint makes a catback for like $400. Other than that I really don't know

3. The general consensus on r3v at least is that the MarkD chip seems to be the best for the 318is. This site has some good info about m42 stuff

[kwill22]

From experience, Check front suspension bushings, make sure all the bolts to the valve cover are all matching and not stripped out. Make sure it idles good, check profile gasket and also the oil filter housing gasket has been known to leak. Check all the window switches and central locking system. Also check for rust around the battery tray and rear tail lights.

MAKE SURE THEY'RE NO VACUUM LEAKS. If there are your car idles like booty in a strip club.

Now if you get the car there will be more to do just as a part of preventative maintenance if you choose too, such as the timing guides and chain, sprockets, take off the lower oil pan and make sure they're torqued to spec. They tend to loosen over time on some vehicles.


Cheapest best performance upgrade will be the mark D chip. Suspension go ground control if you want shocks and springs because if you go with a combination of bilstein sports and whatever other spring you get wont be far from the price of getting coilovers. Other than that you'll be doing a swap or trying to put together a turbo build.

My car is stock right now other than billy sports and IE3 springs which I like but for what that costs I wish I would've just got the coilovers and dealt with the welding. The car is fun but I will eventually go M30 swap or S50. Turbo is in the back of my mind but those 2 engine choices make me drool

[MazterDizazter]

Thanks for the speedy replies, guys. What the hell is a profile gasket?

Also, if I want to ditch the airbag steering wheel for an M-Tech, can I just yank the bulb for the SRS light so it's not always on or is there a more comprehensive solution?

Very cool to know you can adjust the factory cam gears. I'll talk to my friend at Conway Autoworks about doing that. Also cool to know a 325i flywheel/clutch will halve the weight of the crappy dual-mass unit. Not something I'm looking forward to doing, but should be a cheap enough upgrade.

[kwill22]

O yea I forgot about that. Flywheel I hear is a big help. Somthing I also plan on doing in the future.

Profile gasket is the one in between the upper and lower timing covers. Check in the corners right under where the chain tensioner sits. It might leak along other spots in the gasket but that's where mine had a leak.

[herbivor]

Timing chain and guide rails along with the profile gasket. They need to be replaced at 160k or so. It's a pain in the ass job and will cost $800 DIY or about $1800 for the shop to do it. You'll know when it starts rattling or sounding like a diesel.

[bastianshaw]

Timing chain and guide rails along with the profile gasket. They need to be replaced at 160k or so. It's a pain in the ass job and will cost $800 DIY or about $1800 for the shop to do it. You'll know when it starts rattling or sounding like a diesel.

reallly!? $800 in parts for a gasket and timing guides?
ive always hated the m42

[kwill22]

the job really isnt that bad if you have your tools handy. the M42 is easy to work on

and where'd you get this $800 dollar figure from??? its nowhere near that much to replace timing components. 4 guides, chain, sprockets, tensioner, gaskets around 300 and even if you included the water pump and hoses its still nowhere near 800. and thats from pelican which isnt the cheapest of all the places to get these items

[blunttech]

Thanks for the speedy replies, guys. What the hell is a profile gasket?

Also, if I want to ditch the airbag steering wheel for an M-Tech, can I just yank the bulb for the SRS light so it's not always on or is there a more comprehensive solution?

Very cool to know you can adjust the factory cam gears. I'll talk to my friend at Conway Autoworks about doing that. Also cool to know a 325i flywheel/clutch will halve the weight of the crappy dual-mass unit. Not something I'm looking forward to doing, but should be a cheap enough upgrade.

If you swap the wheel make sure you get the little spacer its like 6 bucks and will keep you from r3ving the car

[MazterDizazter]

Ewww, timing chain replacement. I got excited to hear that it wasn't a timing belt, but 160k interval ain't much better... I'll hafta look through the records and see if it was done already.

Here she is! Spent about 12hrs on the road today between picking up my friend in Wakefield north of Boston, driving to Milford, ME to pick up the car, driving to Portsmouth to pick up parts from BavAuto, over to Hooksett NH to drop off the car at my friend's body shop for body work and paint, and back home. So tired! I'll post more pics tomorrow and probably start a resto thread.

If I were in the Middle East in the 90's I'd be ballin' outrageous with these two rides:



The car has an oil leak, and needs a tie rod and a cat-back exhaust. Couple small quirks here n' there, but remarkably free of rust in all the trouble areas; just a couple cosmetic spots to touch up. The engine idles kinda funky and the MPG gauge (which I am to understand is a reverse vacuum gauge?) doesn't give a reading when I'm on throttle, only reads 99 or 0... The MIL comes on briefly here n' there but goes away if I lift off throttle... Vacuum leak? O2 sensor?

I bought a Motorsport front spoiler and clips, new emblems, fog light covers, black taillight filler panel, UUC shifter and clutch pedal bushings, UUC pedal stop and stainless weighted shift knob, and a tie rod assy. Gotta go through the list of receipts from the P.O. and see what still needs to be done. Should have the car back from paint in a month; w00t!

[MazterDizazter]

Alright, did the upper and lower timing gaskets and the profile gasket in between. The timing chain was tight and wasn't making any noise so I decided not to mess with it. I replaced the water pump and thermostat, and replaced a cracked oil pan and gasket. Took 3 cans of Brake Cleaner and a toothbrush to get the whole front timing cover and upper oil pan de-sludged. Looks much better now!

I'm replacing the mechanical fan with an electric one, and I found a Magnaflow universal muffler and resonator to fab an exhaust with, just like the one here: http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=263232
I just hope it's not obnoxious-sounding considering his car was an M20 and mine's an M42...

Just gotta do the tie rod, brake rotors and pads, and the-mess-under-the-intake now. Should be all sorted. The re-spray can then commence once all the mechanicals are sorted and I should be driving it in time for Christmas!