Bring a Trailer Auctions, E30 edition

[Powling]

Wait - did the ACS guy really go back and delete all his posts in this thread?

[roguetoaster]

Wait - did the ACS guy really go back and delete all his posts in this thread?

He decided to ghost, I'd chalk it up to thin skin.

[Gentlejackjones]

I think making a dedicated thread for your car and asking those types of questions there will get more traction and more views from people who could potentially help you.

This.

[bradnic]

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1987-bmw-325ic-16/

Not sure how this one slipped through the cracks

been helping the seller out with what was a pretty poor job presenting the car. it's a low mileage car with minimal rust. will make a terrific driver for someone and not for much cash.

[agent]

This.

He did, in the General forum, then decided to delete all those posts too.

[Powling]

He did, in the General forum, then decided to delete all those posts too.

Looks like he went back and deleted / edited every post or thread he made. Weird flex but ok.

[2mAn]

$16k shouldve been enough for that S52 car... shame it didnt sell

[JimmyP]

Looks like he went back and deleted / edited every post or thread he made. Weird flex but ok.

Yeah I was sorta following that,,, I think he just thinks its way more "everything" than the rest of the world thinks it is.
Obviously Im biased, but on no planet near earth is that car worth anywhere in the same realm as an S3. Cannot even come close to comparing the two.

Now Im also a believer that an S3 isnt near worth what a real Evo 2, an Evo 3 or a Cecotto / Ravaglia edition is worth. Honestly I just dont think they are that special.

I thought the $48K that the insurance company offered to build an agreed value policy based on was way more than the car is actually worth myself.

Just my .02,,, dont want to trample anyones feelings though.

[JimmyP]

The point of my take on it is, I take the car (every car) at face value.
I take all cars at what the lump of metal is in front of me.
If there is no good back story, or conflicting, whatever I use my knowledge as a car guy, evaluate what I am looking at and make a decision.
I dont care who owned it, if it was repainted, if someone cut the goddamn roof off and welded a new one on, etc.
If the "car" is a good car as it sits available for sale, Im fine with it.

I think too many people are looking for "snuggly warm fuzzy guarantees" on what are old / used cars.
My opinion is in general when buying any used vehicle, collector or otherwise is Man the fuck up, use your car guy skills and offer / buy / walk away.

So a repaint, an emblem out of place, an engine rebuild, a head gasket, someone changed a fender, whatever, none of it scares me if its the car I want.
If I screw up and pick a bad one, I fix it or sell it and move on.

Be very suspect of someone selling a car on behalf of someone else. It insulates the owner from liability even though the car is sold "as is".

I got this advice from someone years ago who sold cars for a living and was use to dealing with scammers.

Oh I am sure there are valid reasons why people do such things. Could be a language barrier but often times, sadly enough, it hides ignorance and a story.

That seller went from "touch up" paint to a re-spray yesterday. The trunk emblem I am pretty sure did not come that way from the factory but without the real owner, no one knows the story.

And sure, to top things off, after 30 years, hardly any service records because the guy is some Director who now lives Rome?

Could be a good decent car. No one is taking away anything from a good respray but for $59k which is what I think he wanted, its a stretch.

That car is super sketchy for some.

And if the Director's name is Tony Montoya (I think that was the spelling), we are in for some major drama.

[freeride53]

I was the losing bidder.... thought it was mine after my first bid, but WAH, WAH.

Oh, are you the guy who's beautiful Alpina-kitted Bronzit 325is was wrecked? I posted that photo of your car @ Vintage. It was gorgeous, hope you find another shell soon.

[JimmyP]

I know this isnt E30 related,,, but maybe one of you guys knows.
How is it remotely possible that the white Euro E36M3 with the good engine and a cool interior is lagging behind so many boring as fuck US spec E36 330is???

When an E36M3 with all the actual good parts shows up, no one wants it?
Im baffled by that one.

[bimma360]

I know this isnt E30 related,,, but maybe one of you guys knows.
How is it remotely possible that the white Euro E36M3 with the good engine and a cool interior is lagging behind so many boring as fuck US spec E36 330is???

When an E36M3 with all the actual good parts shows up, no one wants it?
Im baffled by that one.

Very easy. The car is in Canada, so there is still an import process to go through to get it in the US. I bet thats keeping most at bay. For the collectors, they care about the GT2's, GT's, 1 of the 40 original Canada EU spec M3s, the LTW's and the low mileage US spec cars that were actually sold.... in the US. Apparently the Japan imports in Canada are not that rare, so you have that as well.

I bet this car will go over $20k once its all said and done, and frankly thats what I think its worth. In the grand scheme of things, from an investment standpoint, its not that special. From an enthusiast standpoint, for someone that will take it out often on the weekends, its very special. Although I'd say up to a certain price, as beyond that I'd rather have a properly swapped S54 US spec. And honestly, at least for me, I don't think the eu s50b30 is all that great. Dare I say I don't think it brings that much more to the table than a S52. The s50b32 is a different story.

[JimmyP]

Good insight.
Im not a fan of the E36 at all so to me it just seemed like "hey this is the car we should have got, that everyone bitches we didnt" and it didnt seem to be getting much interest at all while much more pedestrian cars had the E36 fanbois fawning all over them..

So how many "special" E36s were there (outside the boring US "Lightweight")?
I know a guy who raced a GTR which was pretty cool, thats really the only special one Im aware of. The only E36 that ever got my attention LOL.

At anywhere near that $20K-ish I'd rather have an E46M3, I think its overall a much sexier car.

[bimma360]

Good insight.
Im not a fan of the E36 at all so to me it just seemed like "hey this is the car we should have got, that everyone bitches we didnt" and it didnt seem to be getting much interest at all while much more pedestrian cars had the E36 fanbois fawning all over them..

So how many "special" E36s were there (outside the boring US "Lightweight")?
I know a guy who raced a GTR which was pretty cool, thats really the only special one Im aware of. The only E36 that ever got my attention LOL.

At anywhere near that $20K-ish I'd rather have an E46M3, I think its overall a much sexier car.

I think the ones I mentioned are the "special" ones, generally speaking. I'm sure there are some others with unique stories (like a US LTW that had a euro s50 installed by PTG), but I think thats about it. I'll say this though, I don't think the US LTW is boring. I am not an encyclopedia of e36 knowledge, but I think the LTW got a tad more lightweight treatment than the euro GT cars. Which I think is pretty cool. Yes, we didn't get the original motorsport derived engine but I don't think the motor alone necessarily constitutes whether a car is boring. If it did, than every single m20 e30 would be boring. And I think everyone will agree, that an all stock e30 is actually pretty boring haha. Luckily it only takes slight tweaking to make them extremely fun. And the same could actually be said for the US E36 M3.

I've been daily driving an e36 M3 for the last 6 years (still have the e30), and I love the thing for the same reasons I love the e30. In fact, I think both cars are incredibly similar. I'd say that the e36 M3 is 80% the e30 experience, with a tad more oomph and a bit more comfort. And I think a good part of that is the US spec engine. By us getting the "inferior" motor we got another chassis car like the e30. Which for me is one of the biggest reasons why I love the e30. And an S52 with some bolt ons and very mild cams, yields EU S50B30 HP and a better torque curve. It brings the power into the sweet spot for the chassis without overpowering it, and is also the reason why I don't really regard the EU S50B30 very highly. I may be an oddball though. I've learned that I much prefer a less powerful car I can really wring out on the street than I more powerful one I can only drive at 5/10's and still face jail time. There is nothing like rolling through the gears.

[2mAn]

1990 S14- swapped 325i

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1990-bmw-325is-25/