The worth of my 91 318i...

[rloewy]

I wouldn't spend more on crappy paint job to sell the car...imho. what if it turns out worse than it is now ? (are you willing to spend hours to get the car prepped for maaco paint?).

I would not either. When you are ready to sell it - put the price tag you think makes sense for it (As I said, without looking at it in person I would guess anywhere between $3,500 - $4,000 for a nice one) and when someone is serious - you might have to take 2-5 hundreds from the price to get the deal done - if you do not want to just drag the sale process too long - it might be worth it.

The way I look at cars when I sell them is not "how can I maximize every last cent from the buyer" but as "what did it cost me during my ownership to drive this car" and try to shoot for a number that will be 1/2 or less of the depreciation of a new car. In other words - if in the next 2.5 years I put an extra $1,500 (on top of gas/routine maintenance) in it bringing my overall "budget" of the car to $5,000 and I can sell it for say, $3,500 - it comes out to $500 per year which is darn cheap if you ask me, especially when you compare it to new cars and factor depreciation in it...

[E30FreaK89]

Another question...

Do you think it would increase the sale price substantially if I had Maaco spray it over before it was sold? It'd have to increase the value by quite a bit after valance installed.... which I didn't think would happen.

in all reallity what ever after market thing you do to your car does not make the value go up! thats why people say "if you want something better then sell that and buy something better"....maybe in some cases where theres alot of work like a insane turbo s52 andful coilover kit and all that, then maybe the car will be more to a personal buyer!

[golde30]

cheap ass looking skirts, 318i 4dr...for $5000? naw, u will be lucky to get $2700.

[Spec]

cheap ass looking skirts, 318i 4dr...for $5000? naw, u will be lucky to get $2700.

I'll put $300 down on a personal bet with you that I'll get more then $2700, but thanks for the support.

And technically speaking the skirts were cheap. $16. Haha.

[Van Westervelt]

Right, but how much more are you going to spend getting it to that point with fixing the valance, grills, rad. support, paint etc?

[Spec]

$300 for valance, already replaced the grill, nothing wrong with rad support, determined above not painting it... so $300 total.

[Van Westervelt]

300 for a new painted techII valance?

[Spec]

Getting the one from Abrahams Motorsports:

http://www.abrahamsmotorsport.com/e30.htm

I'll just krylon paint it as I've done with the left fender, sideskirts, and front bumper cover already. Cant tell it's rattle canned... in fact have had numerous people ask if I have Alipne1 on one part and Alpine 2 on the other....

[Spec]

Anybody know where I can get a ring for the headlight locally? It's all I need to get the grill/headlight area back to normal....

[Van Westervelt]

Thats a sealed beam unit. You have the whole metal from for the high and low? if so, then all you need is the new bulb. If you need the whole unit, Funkmaster has plenty of them more than likely. I had some but I threw them away.

[Spec]

Thanks. I have the metal cone that holds it in place and the bulb itself, but I need the little ring that surrounds the sealed beam and holds it in place. I couldn't figure out any way to hold the bulb in there without it.

[Jesse30]

your car isnt mint, your not going to get 5k for it.

shit, i couldnt get 5k for my car if i wanted to.

[LivingLegend06]

your car isnt mint, your not going to get 5k for it.

shit, i couldnt get 5k for my car if i wanted to.

Nothing with a flat black hood is worth 5k.

[ptownTSI]

not even close, its a 4 door. $3500 at most, its just basic transportation.

[Belteshazzar]

uh

i'd be a player in the mid $3k's.