Imported 1990 316i

[phenobarb1]

Congratulations! It looks like a nice one.

[EVLE30]

Congratulations! It looks like a nice one.

It is!

:D

[KIRIEIW]

euro goodness

Well if your buying it for the euro goodness it looks like your going to need a drivers side smiley cause the drivers is a halogen while the passengers a smiley ;)

[Stanley Rockafella]

Thanks!

Hmmmm.... that sounds familiar. The car I'm looking at is pretty close to stock (some minor cosmetic mods), white '87 325is, with red leather interior (Recaro front seats are worn, but the rest is good)..... maybe a coincidence? Maybe the same car?
This is it:

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-cars-trucks-1987-BMW-3-Series-325iS-Coupe-W0QQAdIdZ490688551

(and no, I'm not paying $5,000 for it)

As for the inspection, yeah, I thought about going that route with a "mechanic" looking at it. But for the cost of an actual inspection at around $120, I figure that's not bad to at least get a better idea of any issues with the car.

If the current owner purchased it approx. 3-4 yrs ago, I'd say this is the same car. The interior looks very familiar.

Back then the front end had the proper IS lower spoiler that was painted white (body color). And the wheels were either 15's or 16's alloy's I believe.

Either way, congrats!

[EVLE30]

If the current owner purchased it approx. 3-4 yrs ago, I'd say this is the same car. The interior looks very familiar.

Back then the front end had the proper IS lower spoiler that was painted white (body color). And the wheels were either 15's or 16's alloy's I believe.

Either way, congrats!

The photos in the ad how the car with winter tires and steelies. The original OEM bottle caps are currently on the car and have been plastidipped matte black. And the owner has had it for about 2 years. So maybe there was another owner who was inbetween there? The current owner bought the car at auction, and then did some restoration work (body and mechanical), including rebuilding the top end after the timing belt went while driving it back home from the auction.

In the end, there were some issues that came up during the inspection (such as leaking valve cover, leaking seal between transmission and drive shaft) which were items that were supposed to have been fixed previously by the owner himself. So that made me wonder about other possible DIY fixes that maybe weren't really "fixed" properly? Or maybe these sorts of things are just par for the course when it comes to a 26 year old BMW? I dunno. There were some other things too, like a seized rear brake caliper. All in all, I guess nothing that was immediately a show-stopper that couldn't be fixed, but it just gave me a not-so-warm-fuzzy-feeling about the car, so I walked away. :-(

You guys have all been very supportive and helpful in my various threads as I look for my first E30, but I'll be honest..... after 4 or 5 near-purchases that have not worked out for one reason or another (maybe some of which are due to me and possibly my out-of-whack expectations?), I have to say that I'm feeling pretty discouraged and plain old bummed out. Maybe for the "problem-free" condition of E30 that I'm looking for, I need to consider stepping up to the more expensive and "built" cars that are in my semi-local market? But when think about looking at cars in the $8,000+ price range, I start to feel that I would be better off buying a new car, like a Scion FR-S, to satisfy my light-weight, RWD, manual tranny, well-balanced sporty car needs.

Yes, I know, in many ways an E30 and an FR-S are apples and oranges.... but in some ways, they're not. At least from the perspective of what I'm looking for in a "toy" vehicle to add to my fledgeling stable of vehicles.

[slammin.e28]

Wait.... are you saying to buy an M20 car to so I can out the engine in the 316 body? Or are you saying to buy an M20 car and swap the M20 car engine with another one and forget the 316 altogether? And which things are "garbage"..... the 316 as a whole? Or just the 316's engine (which I would swap out anyways.

I'm sooooo confused! lol

M20s are the gahrbadge.

I think the oddball motors are cool, even if they are turdly. I'd rock an M10 e30 and bitch about it all day, but I'd rock it.

[Stanley Rockafella]

In the end, there were some issues that came up during the inspection (such as leaking valve cover, leaking seal between transmission and drive shaft) which were items that were supposed to have been fixed previously by the owner himself. So that made me wonder about other possible DIY fixes that maybe weren't really "fixed" properly? Or maybe these sorts of things are just par for the course when it comes to a 26 year old BMW? I dunno. There were some other things too, like a seized rear brake caliper. All in all, I guess nothing that was immediately a show-stopper that couldn't be fixed, but it just gave me a not-so-warm-fuzzy-feeling about the car, so I walked away. :-(

You guys have all been very supportive and helpful in my various threads as I look for my first E30, but I'll be honest..... after 4 or 5 near-purchases that have not worked out for one reason or another (maybe some of which are due to me and possibly my out-of-whack expectations?), I have to say that I'm feeling pretty discouraged and plain old bummed out. Maybe for the "problem-free" condition of E30 that I'm looking for, I need to consider stepping up to the more expensive and "built" cars that are in my semi-local market? But when think about looking at cars in the $8,000+ price range, I start to feel that I would be better off buying a new car, like a Scion FR-S, to satisfy my light-weight, RWD, manual tranny, well-balanced sporty car needs.

I dont' blame you. If I didn't already own my e30, I'd probably own something newer (e36 m3?). don't feel discouraged. If you really want a reliable, easy to maintain RWD small car, def. take a miata mx-5 for a spin. I'm sure you'll like it esp. at the discounted price from what a new FR-S goes for

[EVLE30]

Funny you should mention the E36 M3. That was my first consideration a while back, and then I learned more about the E30 and decided to shift my focus. And considering that a decent E36 M3 sells for not much more than a top-notch E30 325is here in Calgary, then maybe that would be more bang for my buck?

And as far as the Miata, I've driven a few of the 1st-generation cars, and I love the way they drive. But I just can't get past the looks of them. A bit too soft and feminine, if you ask me.

When it comes to the FR-S, I think I would probably lease it for a couple of years, and then decide if it's a keeper or not. So it actually wouldn't be a big up-front cash expenditure.

Alas..... decisions, decisions, decisions..... woe is me. :P

[e30blitz]

Move on there is nothing to see end here ;)


325i in the next page I think


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[illest318i]

If you like it get it. The condition looks very good. But let me tell you, your not gonna have a blast until you get a swap, it'll probably be fun driving it for a while, but you'll get bored of it fast.

[EVLE30]

Move on there is nothing to see end here ;)


325i in the next page I think


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

???

[EVLE30]

So.... long story short.... I bought a Scion FR-S. :D

Thanks to everyone for their help and advice along the way. Enjoy your E30's!!!