Let's talk e36's. What e36 parts will be valuable and harder to find in the future?

[flyboyx]

You guys do make good points in favor. Generally, I wouldn't disagree with any of them. The engine is for sure better. I debate the transmission. Why no overdrive?

Also I'm guessing that all of you who have chimed in positively have never tried changing the oil pan gasket while the engine is in the car.

Also, it may just be that my car had the misfortune of requiring all the worst maintenance jobs. Oh well, they are complete now and ready to last the next owner another 100k miles.

[nando]

E36 is a good platform for an N52 swap - less weight than an M42/M44 boat anchor, but twice the power. Don't have to deal with modding the oil pan, for the most part things bolt together. 250+whp isn't terribly difficult to achieve.

i don't hate E36s that much, but I don't really care about them either. I don't really think the E46 is any better or more of a collector car - they are good cars, but there are way too many of them and most of them are shit too.

[TobyB]

I'd only argue that the E46 is incrementally 'better', in that the electronics improved,
the block is lighter, some of the bugs got ironed out (and some new ones invented...)
and maybe one can get lucky and find a 'less used' version- the e36's are getting trashed.

I debate the transmission. Why no overdrive?

Because lower (numerically) final drive. The trans isn't doing anything in 5th
(where you theoretically spend the most time) and the diff is less stressed with
a larger pinion gear. Which is all kind of academic-
I was going more on the 'it weighs less, shifts better, handles more torque, and lasts longer'
theory.

t

[Sh3rpak!ng]

Most of the "complaints" I've read here of the e36 are not even really specific to an e36... after 100k miles of life in the sun here all interiors start to fall apart. That's not e36 specific.. anyone have a cracked e30 dash?? And yea e36 door panels slowly fall apart, but so do e30s. I ripped all the clips out of the e30 door card last time I removed it. E36 oil pan gasket is a bitch, but its also a bitch on the e30, e46 and every other model. Yea the headlights fade, but so do the plastic lenses on dozens of other makes/models. Idk, I haven't heard a single complaint here that isn't just part of owning an older/higher mileage car. Maybe my experience is better since I was lucky to buy a garaged, low mileage, unmolested car to begin with. If anything, the e36 is easier to work on.

In case you didn't catch on, I love my e36. I think its a great car from an enthusiasts perspective. I don't feel like I'm driving an appliance. It's sporty enough and modern enough to make a great daily that I don't feel bad about putting miles on. And they're cheap!

Funny how this thread evolved...

[JimmyP]

Most of the "complaints" I've read here of the e36 are not even really specific to an e36... Idk, I haven't heard a single complaint here that isn't just part of owning an older/higher mileage car. .

I don't think you are really reading the posts then.
MANY of these things are (a) specific to E36s and (b) happened commonly WAY before 100K miles or old age.

I remember being at the track with guys with NEW E36s watching water pumps and cooling system parts fail. These were the people that were seeing these failures and shortcomings for the first time in the mid to late 90s.

E36 interiors fell apart WAY before 100K miles, there were complaints all over the internet of headliners and door panels falling apart while the cars were still under warranty. SAME with the window regulators. Dealer techs were actually advising E36 customers on the QT to not close the doors too hard with the windows down!

Lets not forget about the rear floors. When was the last E30 rear floor or rear subframe that you saw ripped out? I personally have seen probably 3-4 E36 floor failures. I call it a rear floor failure, I'm not 100% sure what the E36 community calls it, (they probably don't call it anything because its just another E36 flaw they ignore talking about) but I think we all know what I am referring to. When you can see down through the floor and your rear subframe is not attached to the car anymore,,, thats a flaw.

I could go on, but I suggest you re-read all the posts.
These things ARE specifically systemic to the E36 long before they reached older ages and higher miles.
Many of them while they were still under warranty.
Hell, E36s are probably better in old age because their numerous shortcomings have been addressed by owners fixing them with better water pumps, better radiators and cooling system parts, shoring up the window regulators, re-welding reinforcements into the rear floor, and re-gluing every goddamn part of the chintzy half assed interior.
I just did what another poster did and screwed my door panels on. Was not worth the trouble to play around with gluing those stupid posts in.

My Ti (which is only sorta an E36) had sheets of dealer repairs to the door panels and window regulators while it was under warranty that came in the cars folder the PO gave me.

There simply is no comparison on the build quality between any E30 and any E36.

Yes the E36 line benefitted from years of newer tech, 4 valve engines, COP, better engine mgt, bit better aero (at the expense of the classic look of the E30 but that subjective) so yeah, you might say its got some better stuff in them due to the advancement of time and technology, but certainly not better build quality.

EDIT: Look I don't hate E36s,,, I own one,,, sorta.
I have never really "liked" them, always thought they looked boring as shit and was a boring design destined to be dated.
They are fun to drive and they can make fast as shit race cars.
It mainly just annoys me when the E36 fanboi base can't accept the facts that they had loads of build quality issues in their DNA that BMWs didn't have before them.

[Codym42]

Haha, I didn't mean for this to be an e30 vs e36 debate...but here we are. Yes, I know e36s definitely have their faults. But, e30s do too - cracked dashes, faulty gauge clusters, shitty plastic such as the door tweeter clips. I could go on. The e36 rear subframe is a bit worrisome though. I had forgotten about that one.

Anyway, as far as parts go, you guys have given me some good ideas. I guess I'll be on the lookout for good seats, door panels, and LSDs.

I'd really like to own an s52 powered m3 or a swapped 318ti.

The e30 will always be one of my favorite cars, but honestly…most of the things that have really improved it have been updating it with e36 parts (24v, ZF, steering rack, etc.). The way I like to look at things is that the e30 is the end of the 2002 lineage, whereas the e36 marks the beginning of the “modern” BMW.

Just my two cents from owning both the e30 and e36 over the years.

Very well said. I'm looking forward to having the m52 ZF, and m3 steering rack combo in my my e30. It should be the best of both worlds.

[TobyB]

was lucky to buy a garaged, low mileage, unmolested car to begin with.

This is the KEY to E36s and E46s. And they're still out there.
While it's nice to find a well- cared- for E30, fixing up a rat is still
possible, because many of the parts are durable and worth swapping. There are very few
plastic parts on junkyard E36 and e46s that are worth the effort- hell, you can't
get them OFF without busting them apart.

But then, they were bitching about 2002's for exactly that in the '80's- the E21s
were 'built so much better'...

heh

t

[M-technik-3]

E21 were bastardized here on NA market. ROW they were not that bad. It was our EPA choke laws that killed them, that and 5 mph bumpers and crash bars in the doors and numerous other things. OK driving on public streets is dangerous but an accepted risk otherwise it would have been outlawed years ago.