positives of the 325e?

[mikejungle]

i have 325i envy.

can someone tell me good things about the 325e?

[Mike325]

LOL. It's an I, but slower. The good things are that they are less beat on. That is really it.

[nando]

I don't own one, but I can think of a few:

reliability - a lower strung M20, so there's much less stress on the rotating assembly. 300,000 miles is no problem
fuel economy - 30+mpg easily
torque - isn't it 190ft/lbs at the crank with a chip?
smoothness - the inline 6 is buttery smooth. riding in blacktrail's eta, it's hard to tell if the motor is on or not

really for a DD I don't see any downsides, except maybe the diving boards and extra weight over a 4cyl car...

[Jscotty]

smoothness - the inline 6 is buttery smooth. riding in blacktrail's eta, it's hard to tell if the motor is on or not.

That's what I was going to mention. My 325i is so doggone loud! Although I sometimes tend to look down on e owners thinking to myself that they wish they were me, no other car on the market in that class has the same kind of fuel economy. Most new cars don't get 30MPG unless its one of those tin cans that gets totaled from a fender bender.

[Raxe]

I prefer the lower rpm power to the higher rpm power of the 2.5L, as I'm not one to rev the engine very high on a regular basis.

[gazellebeigem3]

torque- for pulling tree stumps

[MarshallM]

The advantages are in the name. Economy. Between all my friends with e30's I'm the only Eta. My car will lose to them in acceleration but for trips my car has the $$$ advantage. Oh the eta's are also about 100lbs lighter then the average I too. I don't even have a 325e, mines just a 325.

[nando]

That's what I was going to mention. My 325i is so doggone loud! Although I sometimes tend to look down on e owners thinking to myself that they wish they were me, no other car on the market in that class has the same kind of fuel economy. Most new cars don't get 30MPG unless its one of those tin cans that gets totaled from a fender bender.

well honestly, my B28 is really quiet under 3000rpms. people don't even hear me pulling into their driveway :p

[Kilomph]

It's not only a couple peak ft/lb advantage, i'm sure it's got more throughout the entire revband aswell. I'd love to rip a chipped one around NYC for a day.

[MikeE30325i]

i have an 86 325es, and though i am slower than an "i" i still pull off of the line quicker. and who really wants to rev all the way to 6500? i enjoy stopping at 5k. (not really)

oh and Mike325 i love to beat the shit outta my eta. its wicked fun.

[backtrail69]

I don't own one, but I can think of a few:

reliability - a lower strung M20, so there's much less stress on the rotating assembly. 300,000 miles is no problem
fuel economy - 30+mpg easily
torque - isn't it 190ft/lbs at the crank with a chip?
smoothness - the inline 6 is buttery smooth. riding in blacktrail's eta, it's hard to tell if the motor is on or not

really for a DD I don't see any downsides, except maybe the diving boards and extra weight over a 4cyl car...

+1.... I love my ETA. Gets me where I need to go everyday. Add a suspension, wheels/tires, euro bumpers, some decent headlights and you have a hell of a cruiser/DD/Auto-xer. The low end torque really shoots you (kinda) out of corners.

[ldsbeaker]

i have an 86 325es, and though i am slower than an "i" i still pull off of the line quicker. and who really wants to rev all the way to 6500? i enjoy stopping at 5k. (not really)

oh and Mike325 i love to beat the shit outta my eta. its wicked fun.

Srsly. + eleventy billion.
I redline mine EVERY DAY. I'll be doing the M30 swap pretty soon, and I'm going to REALLY beat it right before I retire the M20. But I know it's not going to matter. 5000 rpm? puhlease. Child's play for that matter, not stressed whatsoever.

[CleanAzzE30z]

yay another opportunity to whore my eta out!!!

[MacBudd541]

I had an e for a couple years, then put in an i motor and wrecked it two weeks later but i loved it. with 3.73LSD and a chip it embarassed my buddies i cars for a couple seconds. they still look great and plenty of fun. power to the e!

[e30xcel]

^ great looking white ETA

I owned an Automatic 4 door ETA and now I own a Cabrion 325i

The TQ of the ETA was nice and the car pulled smoothly and operated smoothly. The I is a little faster only on the top end of the RPM band. I think a tweaked ETA with a load of TQ is a great ride!