Retrospect; What would you do with your E30 if..?

[Mike_z]

All of you use your E30 for a different reason.
Some have it as a dedicated race car.
Some have it as a Weekend car.
Drift cars/project cars/show cars and so on and so forth

It's usually down to the situation of the person. You live next to the track or you have a car for daily use. Tons of different reasons.

The figurative question I want to ask you guys is, if you could completely turn back the clock on your E30 and start all over, what would You make it into?

Provide your current use/purpose of your E30 and say if you would change it in a different direction and why.


My reason for asking this.. I'm having a little bit of an identity crisis with my E30. I'm stuck between wanting to make it a nice weekend car, and completely stripping it to make it a nice looking stripped race car. Without a track.. I have a daily driver I use everyday so the car gets used as a weekend car, but I enjoy having a decent interior, However I've driven a few gutted cars, and the raw sensation is also very surreal and very cool. Hoping to absorb some idea for my car from this thread!

[c0rbin9]

An E30 is never the car I would choose as a serious track car. If you are going to make a stripped out track monster, at least start with a platform that doesn't have archaic rear suspension, sedan proportions, and limited fender width. The E30 was designed to be a nice street car, and in that role it performs admirably - don't try to make it something it's not.

[Vincent Brick]

My E30 is my daily driver, my only car, and I don't have a lot of choice in that beyond owning a different car or moving back to the midwest where I can afford a garage.

The only thing I would have done differently to my car is when my first M20 gave out, I should have either tried my damndest to do an S50/S52 swap then, or at least put some sort of 2.7i in it instead of just another stock M20. I was trying to get it back on the road as quick as possible, but I was still driving my roommate's Del Sol for a month anyway.

Maybe also should have bit the bullet and bought an E36 M3 in the first place, I had to spend E36 M3 money to get my E30 reliable anyway, and after owning an E30 E36s don't seem cool somehow anymore. I just want an S52 E30 instead.

[fight4life28]

Well, I like the e30 platforms so much after I got my first one. (e30 Vert)
-it was just weekend car since I drive Work Van all day and from my own home, But I picked up ground controls, poly bushing, tree house racing things and I knew from there I need better chassis then the vert, So I brought coupe. Now for faster motor

Last year I picked up very nice 92 e30 Vert with hardtop,covers,windscreen I knew I couldn't take the nice original e30 out of it so I am keeping it oem+ 5speed swapping also from parts from the coupe.

I drove truck during the winter mouths but it was to fun so I got 5speed sedan IX.

In the end I would like,
-Track Car (87is coupe)
-Weekend Cruiser (92 Vert)
-Winter Car as of now (89 IX)
-Silver car, Selling since I have two verts)

I love the e30 platforms its just I want speedy car and cruiser car but I don't have to fix all the turbo or swap problems for summer cruiser 92 vert.

[Mushroom Stew]

My reason for asking this.. I'm having a little bit of an identity crisis with my E30. I'm stuck between wanting to make it a nice weekend car, and completely stripping it to make it a nice looking stripped race car. Without a track.. I have a daily driver I use everyday so the car gets used as a weekend car, but I enjoy having a decent interior, However I've driven a few gutted cars, and the raw sensation is also very surreal and very cool. Hoping to absorb some idea for my car from this thread!

Not too different from my situation. Recently had to take the carpet out due to a leak somewhere, and ended up gutting most of the interior/trunk and man o man I couldn't be happier with how my e30 feels. I can only imagine how it would feel with some nice track style wheels and some other weight reduction (sunroof delete etc.). It is my DD, but I live in a relatively nice climate and don't mind the more aggressive look of a stripped car. For me at least, I'm totally happy with it.

[flyboyx]

E30 m3 cabrio
All the parts to make it a very stock looking Alpina B6 3.5S painted blue except a modern drivetrain.

By modern, I mean an s62/getrag 420. Z3m trailing arms, e30 m3 front struts, late model m brakes, e36 alpina 17" rims......

That about covers it for me......

[BECKSTER]

I see my current e30 heading in the direction I want it to go.
(Daily driver/Canyon carver)

But I wish I could start over with the last e30 I owned, which was a vert.
I threw money at it to try to make it a fun car, but I didn't pay close attention to getting it to be a "good" car.
I should of taken my time and replaced all of its bushings, not screw up my fenders with wide wheels. I should have went better suspension, and a set of euro weaves.

[88BlackS-ETA]

My e30 is now a show car...That sits in a garage collecting dust because Im to afraid to drive it because of as*hole drivers, even though I have a custom insurance policy. I wish I could just turn back time to before the paint job and body work. Just leave the original paint and part respray by a PO on and be happy driving it around. I love what I have done to it and how it looks, its just I worry to much about the "what ifs".

[rcsoundn1]

^ aside from the expense that is why I have not gone full "resto" yet. I DD mine and would be afraid to drive it if it was to become perfect

[BobombETA]

My next e30 will be a vert and it will be a weekend cruiser. Nothing more.

[nando]

An E30 is never the car I would choose as a serious track car. If you are going to make a stripped out track monster, at least start with a platform that doesn't have archaic rear suspension, sedan proportions, and limited fender width. The E30 was designed to be a nice street car, and in that role it performs admirably - don't try to make it something it's not.

that's ridiculous. There's thousands of serious track E30s that disagree with you.

[djjerme]

Agree nando.

Maybe he's unaware of SE30/PRO3/BMW Drivers Cup..etc.

Or perhaps he's unaware of DTM racing and the history of the M3.

...kids today.

[varg]

So much went wrong during my build to make it take forever, I would've just kept it stock and driveable, maybe do the suspension and wheel/tire upgrades, while gathering parts for a turbo M20 swap.

[Stanley Rockafella]

I shoulda bought an e30 M3

[Todd Black 88]

Sell it and bought real estate