'85 325e & '89 325is interchangeability and opinion on whether or not to buy

[dirtethirty]

So im looking at buying an '89 325is with some rust issues. Bottoms of doors are rusted out pretty badly along with the front quarters - total perforation on the passenger side (usual spot by the rockers) but the rockers themselves are solid. The undercarriage has quite a bit of surface rust front to back because the car sat for quite a bit on taller grass. The interior is in really good shape. The rear license plate light is hanging out because the rust ate away at all the metal holding it in. More rust by the battery tray - that spot is a shit show.

Anyhow I have an '85 e30 roller from florida which has solid fenders and solid doors - surface rust spots are sparce if any at all. I spent the better part of the afternoon pulling off the doors and the fenders.

Will the '85 doors and fenders bolt onto the '89 without any issues?

Put down a deposit on the car already - going to go take another look at it on Monday and get it on the hoist. Car fires right up and all the electronics work.

Heres a link

http://ontario.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehi...AdIdZ556392082



Oh and it only has 204,000KM's so 127k miles

[3toedshewie]

as long as both cars are coupes, the fenders and doors are interchangable.

[dirtethirty]

Yup both coupes
Oh and theres what appears to be slight bubbling like I mean very slight in the roof less than half a square inch
Mechanic assured me there's no rust in the roof he seemed pretty sure the roof wasnt rusted out

[SubDad]

Bottoms of doors are rusted out pretty badly along with the front quarters - total perforation on the passenger side (usual spot by the rockers) but the rockers themselves are solid. The undercarriage has quite a bit of surface rust front to back ... The rear license plate light is hanging out because the rust ate away at all the metal holding it in. More rust by the battery tray...

I bought an (Ontario) 88 iS in that kind of condition. By the time I'd owned it a week and removed the carpets it was clear that it was a no-hoper, beyond saving because of rust.
The front jack points were gone, holes all over the floor and front bulkhead, rear fender arches and shock towers... it was bad, all bad. After spending a bunch of money on it I replaced it with a car from Europe that didn't have the cool iS parts but had an actual structure.

Bottom line? If you buy the iS look at putting all its mechanicals in your Florida shell.
Don't buy the iS without putting it on a hoist and having a poke around. I guarantee that it's way worse than it looks. If it isn't, I owe you a cookie.

[fiveightandten]

What is the goal here?

It sounds like it would make more sense to swap the interior and mechanical stuff over to the 325e. There's no way the doors on that 325is are rusted out and the underbelly, floor pans, valances, battery box, etc are rust free. I'd guess that you would be in for a lot of cutting and welding.

It seems to make a lot more sense to use the 85.

[dirtethirty]

I thought the Florida car was in good-rust free shape albeit a mangled interior. I was about to pull the dash out and had removed the front seats, when I sat on the floor in rear foot-well area I was shocked to find my jeans soaked. Carpet was bubbling with water, the sub-carpet was actually rotting - mold everywhere. I gutted the car. There are a bunch of holes in the rear driver side foot-well and the rust is so bad on the passenger rear foot-well that the center piece of the floor pan popped right out. The seam sealer had deteriorated.

The floors are rotted through, who ever had the car prior must have removed the seats at one point and didn't put the bolts back on tight enough, water was coming in.

The entire frame is rust free, but the head liner is ripped to shreds, and the battery tray is also rotted through. Big time. Not to mention some bad rust spots in the trunk.

That is my Florida car story.

Hopefully this IS (ontario car) isn't that bad. Undercarriage rust is hopefully all surface. That's original paint btw. So how would I know if the floors are rotted through without tearing up the carpet - which is a bear of a job.

I poked multiple holes in the floor of my Florida car very easily with a demo wrench. It killed my soul.

[dirtethirty]

What is the goal here?

It sounds like it would make more sense to swap the interior and mechanical stuff over to the 325e. There's no way the doors on that 325is are rusted out and the underbelly, floor pans, valances, battery box, etc are rust free. I'd guess that you would be in for a lot of cutting and welding.

It seems to make a lot more sense to use the 85.

the doors are rusted at the bottom there are no holes in the doors at all, just rust coming through the paint - there's some bubbling near the mirrors.

the torque boxes are rusty as well