Anyone want to talk about E36’s with me?

[uturn]

I've had 3 e36s, (4dr 328i 5spd, 2dr 320i(Japan), 318ic) all were fun to drive but all suffered from interior trim issues.
None were ever as comfortable or familiar as the e30 so they were sold off while the e30s remained.

[lukeADE335i]

In Aus At least the majority of e36s do not appear to have been looked after. Unsure who was buying these back in the day but alot of them are incredibly ratty. Of course the odd clean one comes along. But as a general rule it appears they are all very sad cosmetically. Mirrors falling off, bumpers half on, trim missing etc.

Agreed - you see very few well maintained e36s down here, outside M3s (which at least we got the proper euro spec S50 :D )

The e36s are piling up in the wreckers, so would make a cheap beater now though.

The LCI e46s have held up quite a lot better, and don't command much money for a daily these days either.

Great looking car OP - very few that neat left it would seem! At least the manual transmission will take away some of the pain of the M43 (I can't imagine how slow they are with the automatic - they'd probably be worse than an e30 with an M10 auto, which was an absolute slug!).

[MPLFoster]

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It's more modern as far as tech and drive-ability go. It out-handles my e30 with waayyyyy more rear grip and with M strut mounts to add caster, the understeer is virtually gone.

...

I definitely feel the rear grip. When transitioning to oversteer its less snappy and more progressive than an E30. I really enjoy suspension mods so if i ever start modifying i’ll keep the M strut mounts in mind.

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Between the e30 and e36, the e36 is a major upgrade in terms of servicing for your average DIY home mechanic. Everyone jokes that they suck, but there's a reason BMW sold so many e36's (and why a lot of e30 upgrades are e36 parts). An e30 325i does take the cake for nice exhaust note though.

So far everything has been easy to manage in terms of service. I’m actually looking forward to refreshing the front suspension soon.

As for the E30 325i exhaust note... M20FTW. I had the money to go dual cam back in the day but something about that sound made me stick with the old M20. Such a great noise. I nutted up and got the IE long tube race headers (after waiting ages..). Those combined with some resonaters and a vibrant muffler was tits.

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E36s are good cars, but don't really have the soul of E30s and to me just aren't that special. After owning one I will not be buying another.

BFC is the best E36 forum that I have found as well.

I can understand this. The E30 does have more character. My E36 is great but i dont have an attachment to it like i do my E30. I would like to see where this goes and maybe swap it in the future. Might make it fun and worthwhile to keep around.

That is one clean 318i! Really liking those steelies.
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It really comes down to the previous owners and the preventative maintenance that was done. From the looks of it you have a perfect car to start with, and you have plenty of engine options down the road.

Thanks! The style 34 lightweight wheels are actually kinda neat. Don’t see them too often. The original owner ordered them as an option. The build sheet looks as though they were trying to create a perfect daily. They missed the cruise control though!

I feel fortunate to have found this one. The previous two owners were older ladies that always had it serviced by BMW and never missed a service interval. It has records back to new. Now its my job to keep it in good condition.

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Great looking car OP - very few that neat left it would seem! At least the manual transmission will take away some of the pain of the M43 (I can't imagine how slow they are with the automatic - they'd probably be worse than an e30 with an M10 auto, which was an absolute slug!).

Thank you! I was surprised when i saw this one in person. Really in top condition.

The 5-speed is a huuuge bonus. If this was auto i most likely would have passed. I dont want to imagine what this engine paired with an autotragic would be like. :yawn:











What are some of your thoughts on suspension upgrades? I was looking into KW but i dont have any experience with them. I hear good things mostly. I dont want it slammed. I want great handling with relatively good comfort and a minor to moderate drop in ride height. I think the KW V1 fits the bill and is priced well for the upgrade it provides. This combined with new control arms, tie-rods, bushings..etc...should be enough to satisfy the handling needs of most any swap i might plan on doing. I dont want anything like BC or fortune. That cheap Taiwanese stuff just isnt for me.

[2mAn]

Is your E30 with you in Germany?

[MPLFoster]

Is your E30 with you in Germany?

Noch nicht.

Maybe in the next month or two i’ll have the paperwork figured out. Kinda in the middle of planning (paying for..) a wedding and also working full time. I haven’t shipped a car internationally so im taking my time so as to do it right and not have any problems with the authorities. Any info on the matter is welcomed. ;)

[2mAn]

Noch nicht.

Maybe in the next month or two i’ll have the paperwork figured out. Kinda in the middle of planning (paying for..) a wedding and also working full time. I haven’t shipped a car internationally so im taking my time so as to do it right and not have any problems with the authorities. Any info on the matter is welcomed. ;)

Ship it to London or something like that and arrange it so you can pick it up with your bride and that cruise home could be the honeymoon!

[MPLFoster]

Ship it to London or something like that and arrange it so you can pick it up with your bride and that cruise home could be the honeymoon!

From what i’ve been able to find out, it looks like shipping to the Netherlands or a northern port in Deutschland will be the cheaper and faster route. While i certainly think that sounds like a great honeymoon idea, I’m not sure if the girly would appreciate it as much as the Maldives and Indonesia as we’ve planned.

[TobyB]

Rear suspension. It's awesome.

Driving position. EVERYTHING is right there. E46 is a big let- down after-
the ergonomics are worse, even with an adjustable wheel.

The brakes are better, and can be made even more so.

The interior falls apart on any car that experiences a real, nice, warm summer.
I suppose in Greenland, they're ok.

They are now 'classic' in realoem.

t
has 2, drives 1

[MPLFoster]

Rear suspension. It's awesome.

Driving position. EVERYTHING is right there. E46 is a big let- down after-
the ergonomics are worse, even with an adjustable wheel.

The brakes are better, and can be made even more so.

The interior falls apart on any car that experiences a real, nice, warm summer.
I suppose in Greenland, they're ok.

They are now 'classic' in realoem.

t
has 2, drives 1

Ergonomics are nice and my E36 has a tilt wheel as well making it a bit more adaptable to my driving position.

You mentioned brakes...my 318i has non-vented discs and brake performance is lacking. Ive been scouring bimmerforums but havent found a thread documenting what is needed to upgrade to 323, 325 or 328 brakes. I dont really think i’ll need to go for the full M treatment but i would like better brake performance. You wouldnt happen to know what is needed or maybe a link to the right thread?

[TobyB]

I did that-

all you need are 325 calipers, the caliper brackets, and the rotors. It's seriously
no harder than changing calipers and rotors.

$40 at the junkyard for calipers and brackets, $120 for new seal kits, pads and rotors and the
ti no longer warps them anymore.

I must say, the 'retro' ti doesn't have the nice dash nor rear suspension- it's far closer
to the E30 than the E36 in driving experience. Not that that's a BAD thing. It just is.

t

[MPLFoster]

I did that-

all you need are 325 calipers, the caliper brackets, and the rotors. It's seriously
no harder than changing calipers and rotors.

$40 at the junkyard for calipers and brackets, $120 for new seal kits, pads and rotors and the
ti no longer warps them anymore.

Thanks for the info! Sounds like an easy job.

Now when you say “...and the ti no longer warps them anymore.” Do you mean this is a parts list for the ti only or will it work for all E36s with small front brakes?

[TobyB]

Not positive, but I'll bet you a stein and a schnitzel that the 318i with solid rotors
will be a bolt- up experience as well for the 325 parts.

BMW thought that way for a long time- lots of things interchangeable.

RealOEM part numbers will tell you for absolutely sure, though.

t

[roguetoaster]

My '99 ti has 325x25mm fronts from an E46 330i. It stops really well, and although I didn't do the work, the PO swapped carriers/calipers and of course, new rotors/pads.

The '95 ti I have will be getting an upgrade to vented post 4/98 286x22mm fronts from a parts ti as I fully agree that the solid rotors are a big weak point.

Check out 318ti.org for good brake upgrade info for E36s with solid rotors.

[MPLFoster]

My '99 ti has 325x25mm fronts from an E46 330i. It stops really well, and although I didn't do the work, the PO swapped carriers/calipers and of course, new rotors/pads.

The '95 ti I have will be getting an upgrade to vented post 4/98 286x22mm fronts from a parts ti as I fully agree that the solid rotors are a big weak point.

Check out 318ti.org for good brake upgrade info for E36s with solid rotors.

Not positive, but I'll bet you a stein and a schnitzel that the 318i with solid rotors
will be a bolt- up experience as well for the 325 parts.

BMW thought that way for a long time- lots of things interchangeable.

RealOEM part numbers will tell you for absolutely sure, though.

t

I’ll check it out. Thanks guys!

[Sh3rpak!ng]

I have always had e36s and always liked them very much. To be fair, I've done plenty of work on both my e30 and e36 in terms of gluing interior parts back together. Yea e36 door cards pull apart. Idk what the big deal is just popping them off, smearing some epoxy all over the separated parts and done. It's an afternoon job.

Regarding the mechanicals, as long as its taken care of, it'll take care of you. As a daily I really love it. They drive well and look good when you have a clean well maintained tastefully modded example. I really don't understand why so many people hate them so much. Just like any e30, or any car, if you buy one that's been neglected and driven to the moon, its gonna fall apart and need ALLLL the maintenance. If you find one well maintained and lower miles, you're fine.

I'm actually in the middle of a resto mod of a 328 convertible. The first car I ever bought. I've had it 10 years now and am going through the whole car basically making it new again so it'll be my daily in a few months. Motor rebuild included.

Feel free to bug me if you have any questions/issues. I've probably seen it all when it comes to these cars at this point.

And yea, BFC is/was the best place for info. Seems kinda dead lately :(

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