How did you get into E30's?

[rcsoundn1]

For me it was my neighbor, she was the mother I never had. Her daily was a white 88 325i vert. It was my job to keep it clean for years. I drove it after she passed a few years ago on and off, as her husband allowed me to. I was offered 2nd dips just recently to buy it, after I bought my own. If i get the chance to buy it ever, I will.

[evandael]

i was 16 and my father pointed out a 1986 BMW in the paper. it was local.. went up to check it out and found a coupe with a manual with no rust for $1500.


i knew nothing of the lifelong addiction and financial distress that little car would spark in me.

[oliver.r]

started with vw, my whole entire family (including extended) was into vdubs but front wheel drive was not cutting it for me. got a e46 and found that it didnt make me feel anything so sold that and bought a e30 m3. cant see my self tunring back

[Bearmw]

I was born in the back of an E30...

[kway]

Great thread!

In H.S. I was into VWs (had two rabbits, '78 and '81), then one day my friend let me drive his '84 318i and it was a fucking revelation. I wasn't able to get one of my own right away, but about a year after graduation I finally had my '87 vert and the rest is history (eight e30s later...)

I still have a soft spot for early 318s, and my "keeper" e30 is my Lapisblau '84.

[N2MYE30]

I just liked the looks but my first BMW drive was a E21 in 1991. I was done for. Took me 14 years to get into my own bmw but I just new an E30 was my destiny since ~1993.

[gr8skyr]

My old subaru mechanic got a job at BMW place, so I knew in a panic I could get some help. Rewind 30 years. I had a subaru 4WD wagon, for 20 years, and a couple of 240z's in there along the way, so got a bug for a sports car. After daily driving a 6,000 lb, truck for eight years, and paying it off, finally had some scratch to scratch the sports car itch, started looking at e36's, especially the convertibles. Don't know, just liked the idea of one, and the look abit. But after reading stories of leaking tops, broken motors and then interior issues with panels, handles, heater controls, sagging roof liners, shock mount problems, just didn't find one clean enough to gamble on.Realy liked some e36 M3's too, but what's with the three out of four for sale with salvaged titles? Do they all crash?
But along the way I drove an ancient e30 325i manual that had 210,000 on it. It was tight and handled beautifully for such an old, and at the time, unremarkable looking car.

Then another one I saw for cheap, but was tired and had bad front end shake, but I still liked it. I had never seen an ix in person when I bought mine. But when this one came up for sale, it seemed like a keeper. Was just searching up and down west coast on craigslist when this one popped up in Portland on Saturday a.m. replied right away, and said if the car was as billed, would buy it if he would hold it for me for a week. Ad dissapeared right away, so I figured might even be a hoax.

A week later, when after catching a ride 200+ miles to see it, the area of town just got darker and more secluded each block. So I'm having thoughts of being mugged with the few grand I have in my pocket. Around the next corner, a bright, cheery apartment complex, with carports for each tenant. Cool! And just as advertised, my first e30 was driving back with it's fourth owner.

Well I guess I have the best of all the worlds with an AWD that can cover most roads of the old subaru, with a RWD-biased lowered sporty couple that harkens back to that inline 6 smoothness and notchy transmission of that old z-car.

[Jean]

Awesome stories guys. What I love about e30 owners (well most of them) is that it's not just another car to them. It's a love. Only have owned my current car for a little over 2 weeks and I know it's a car I will always treasure

Yep, there is deff. some truth to that! There are many people (myself included, fuck), who's got more than 15-20k in the car in upgrades/repairs. :loco:

[shameson]

Awesome stories guys. What I love about e30 owners (well most of them) is that it's not just another car to them. It's a love. Only have owned my current car for a little over 2 weeks and I know it's a car I will always treasure

[SmokeE30]

I got into e30s because I grew up near Zygmunt motors (bimmerparts) and always saw cool e30s and their e30 race car going in and out, I didn't get really obsessed with them untill my first year of college though when my buddy had a 91 318is, durring our first class together i overheard him and another guy talking about e36's and I thought to myself "great fucking e36 kids" then a few weeks later he brought in his e30 and we started talking and have been friends since lol

[JoeMadoo]

My dad bought it new in '86. It was sitting in the showroom floor of route 40 in MD. So I pretty much grew up in mine. It's been my favorite car ever since, and mine has a lot of sentimental value.

[Jean]

I sold my 04 Vw R32 and got an 06 A4 S-Line and it ended up being a great daily driver, but it was lacking the fun factor that R32 did have (should have never fucking sold the damn thing!).

I've driven fwd/awd and wanted something RWD that I could work on so I've narrowed down my choices to E30/Miata. One saturday morning I was checking CL and found my first e30, 84 318i on some old enkei 92s and bought it the same day. DOH!

[S14pwrdE30]

My e38 had just been totaled and my uncle told me he had an old M3 that he didn't drive and asked if I wanted to buy it from him. So I did, drove it for a few years and sold it. This time around I was bored of my DD so I picked up a 325i.

[JRYE30]

When I was 16 (3 years ago) my dad and I knew this guy that was selling some old BMW. I was looking for a first car, so we went to test drive it. It was an automatic bronzite 325i. I just remember it whined like a jet taking off, so we decided not to buy it. I didn't have a clue about e30's then.

A few months later I bought a 300zx fairlady.

Sold it.

And then as I was looking into other cars my friend bought a 4 door 'beater' e30. I recognized the car and then realized I had test driven one a while back. Just went from there, I decided I needed one, dreamed about it for a year and then bought my 318is. That's what I have today. Won't be turning back.

[udelE30]

When I was 16, I came home one day and my father had bought a co-worker's E30 4 door for $500. It had 133k on the odo, and was super clean. He didnt plan on it being mine, and my parents didn't want me driving a non airbag car, but I ended up buying it from my dad.