You know the e30 is getting old when...

[E30SPDFRK]

..the E46 is as old as the E30 was when this site started.

That one did it for me

[95BMWIC]

when the kid down the street - and his Dad - gives you a thumbs up when driving by..

[varg]

When you park next to a new Civic and realize just how small a compact car once was.

[estoguy]

When you have had an E30 is 10 years older than your oldest child. Mine son is 21, he's rode in an E30 for nearly 18 of those years.

My son is will be seven in November, and that will be going into his fifth year of riding in an E30.

[djjerme]

When you realize your E30 is only 8 years younger than you are.

Thanks for pointing this out... :(

[FireFight]

when realoem moves them to classic.

but that makes e36 classics sooo.......

[95BMWIC]

Your rear view mirror falls off.

and you spend $200 and replace it with one that has the little lights in it..

[ForcedFirebird]

What gets me is the clientele has changed over the years at my shop. It went from fixing up $500-1000 e30's, or low budget client cars just to keep them on the road. The u-pull-it would have about 4-6 e30's every day about 8yrs ago, now they are stripped within hours and the community already knows who's car went and what was good on it lol. Now we people come from all over to have us do some crazy things to their e30's, and people don't sweat over the invoice since the cars are being improved upon, and not just kept running.

Over the years we have received many e30's, rollers, complete, crashed in exchange for labor/parts, or on the cheap. I still think back to the title-less and rust-free 318is we couldn't get titled. We cut the floor pan out to graft into the Condor wide body 2002. I would kill for a clean roller like that these days, would have made an excellent race car candidate.

Since I bought that e30 for my wife ~10yrs ago to commute to work (she never drove it, started tinkering with it at the shop). Next thing I know my shop is no longer catering to American, and was overrun by e30's - not that there's any complaints, except the used parts prices have gone through the roof.

When you have had an E30 is 10 years older than your oldest child. Mine son is 21, he's rode in an E30 for nearly 18 of those years.

My oldest daughter is in college and has known e30's since she was 7, oldest son since he was 3, the last two have been in e30's since birth.I got into e30's later in life, happily paid $3400 for my '86es when everyone else was getting them for half that, but, it had 74k miles and was mint in every way. RIP, it was totaled, bought back from insurance and still use many parts to this day in my replacement 88 sedan.

[M-technik-3]

When you have had an E30 is 10 years older than your oldest child. Mine son is 21, he's rode in an E30 for nearly 18 of those years.

[nando]

...when they only decent performance tires left in stock 15" size are basically R-DOT slicks. :p

(I can live with that though)

[dnguyen1963]

...when tire rack.com is unable to supply OEM-size tires for your bottle caps.

I just got mine from Tire Rack...only one brand available for 14" bottlecap (Kumho).

[lukeADE335i]

Or for your 16 inch Alpina rims with the correct load rating!

Last time I got new tyres, the only type available were Yokohama R1s... don't know what I'll do next time unless if they're NLA. I'll have to try and get the tyre guy to look the other way and fit tyres that are under the correct load rating.

[Rib Daddy]

...when tire rack.com is unable to supply OEM-size tires for your bottle caps.

[nando]

..the E46 is as old as the E30 was when this site started.

[estoguy]

When you realize your E30 is only 8 years younger than you are.