I must have tripped and fallen into middle age, because there's a 325is being sold by one of my neighbors and I want it. The M3 was my dream car as a youngster, replaced by the Z3 as a teenager so the appearance of this car parked in front of my house for sale for $1,900 was a sign.
But there's some things that give me pause. I don't have pictures because it's not yet on Craigslist but here's the rundown:
1. The body is in good shape. Little to no rust. The paint is not original, it's a sloppy black job over the original, which I'm guessing was the bronze from places where it's flaked. Lame aftermarket chrome wheel well molding and trim. The trunk seal leaked so the battery compartment has some rust.
2. The engine runs smooth as anything. I revved, drove it hard and broke hard, and there were no knocks, ticks, clinks or anything that gave me a pause.
3. Current owner did the suspension and timing belt recently.
4. About 134,000 miles.
5. The electrical is pretty messed up. I guess some previous owners attempted to install a stereo and basically broke it all. The current owner did a fair amount of work but the tach is still not working and the overhead panel has some odd behaviors (lights randomly lighting up, the check light coming on for seemingly no reason). I'm having trouble assessing if getting a complete cab wiring replacement is even possible.
6. No ABS. Haven't looked into this. I'm guessing it's the controller in the engine compartment from the looks.
7. No AC. I haven't checked to see if the condenser and hoses are actually gone.
8. Some interior wear. A few tears in the leather.
9. Current owner has the front spoiler off, but claims the foglights don't work.
Anyway, there you have it. Never having owned an E30 and likely not able to see another in my area, I'm left quite indecisive. Perhaps my larger issue is the marital strife caused by having this jacked up in the garage for weeks at a time...
I can try to get some pictures tomorrow.
EDIT: 325is. It was a typo. One gets excited. Also added the mileage.
But there's some things that give me pause. I don't have pictures because it's not yet on Craigslist but here's the rundown:
1. The body is in good shape. Little to no rust. The paint is not original, it's a sloppy black job over the original, which I'm guessing was the bronze from places where it's flaked. Lame aftermarket chrome wheel well molding and trim. The trunk seal leaked so the battery compartment has some rust.
2. The engine runs smooth as anything. I revved, drove it hard and broke hard, and there were no knocks, ticks, clinks or anything that gave me a pause.
3. Current owner did the suspension and timing belt recently.
4. About 134,000 miles.
5. The electrical is pretty messed up. I guess some previous owners attempted to install a stereo and basically broke it all. The current owner did a fair amount of work but the tach is still not working and the overhead panel has some odd behaviors (lights randomly lighting up, the check light coming on for seemingly no reason). I'm having trouble assessing if getting a complete cab wiring replacement is even possible.
6. No ABS. Haven't looked into this. I'm guessing it's the controller in the engine compartment from the looks.
7. No AC. I haven't checked to see if the condenser and hoses are actually gone.
8. Some interior wear. A few tears in the leather.
9. Current owner has the front spoiler off, but claims the foglights don't work.
Anyway, there you have it. Never having owned an E30 and likely not able to see another in my area, I'm left quite indecisive. Perhaps my larger issue is the marital strife caused by having this jacked up in the garage for weeks at a time...
I can try to get some pictures tomorrow.
EDIT: 325is. It was a typo. One gets excited. Also added the mileage.
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