How much is your e30s upkeep?

[Oofie_SD]

Still looking for one...i want to buy one now, but i know i should wait for a good car.

[StereoInstaller1]

Still looking for one...i want to buy one now, but i know i should wait for a good car.

Right. Basically, that is one of the only 2 choices you have...wait for a pristine beauty, or buy a pile and expect a shitstorm, but hope for the best.

I am currently building a beauty. New paint, fresh motor, tranny, decent LSD, nice wheels, new tires, great suspension, great stereo, alarm, clean and pretty throughout.

An absolute beauty by anyones standards.

No records at all, because I got the shell for free and am building it piece by piece...so I suppose I could say "here is a pile of receipts, good luck"

I am not going to take less than $6500 for it.

That is a lot of dough for a car I got "for free", but I will have hundreds of hours into it, plus a fair bit of cash. I suppose the moral of the story is When the right car comes along, be prepared to pay for it.

[funcrew]

Forget it - old thread; fooled by the search function.

[Nic01101011]

It seems like the only time I ever have to spend money on it is when I break something.

basically

i beat the everloving shit out of my car

most of the money i spend is just gas

[2002maniac]

If you do the work yourself these cars are very cheap to maintain. If you have a shop do it, you'll wish you had a toyota.

Example, last week I took my ix in for the yearly state inspection. The mechanic said I needed new front pads/rotors and control arm bushings. He would gladly replace them for $870.

I went home and ordered the parts from BMA for $112 and it will probably only take me an hour to change everything out.

[BillBrasky]

'89 two door zinno w/black int 325IX 5 speed 134K miles

I paid $2400 for the car. I shipped it from Rhode Island to Ohio for $550 in Oct. '07. I immediately put about $400 into the drivetrain to make sure it was suitable as a DD. I have only put another $50 in it for a crank sensor since then. It has rust holes in the fenders large enough to stick my fist through and the floorboards are completely rotted to hell. It's a fucking cheapass battle tank and I beat it like a rented mule. I've owned e30's for about 11 years now and you can't get much cheaper and still get a lot of bang for your buck than an e30. However, if you are person that chases every little knock, ping, squeal and rattle, then you will go broke replacing parts on a 20+ year old car.

[Dillinger]

I spend a little less than a grand a year for all the services and repairs on my car so far, I drive about 15k a year.

[urbancynic]

after the initial amount of about 800 i spent to have my driveshaft repaired and balanced, timing belt, water pump, valves adjusted and a coolant hose replaced, all i do is routine maintenance and the odd thing here and there that pops up. like yesterday, my clutch slave went out. so i ordered the master, slave, line tat connects them, and a hood strut (got tired of it falling on me when im working on the car) for around $150.

overall though all i have to do is gas it up and go.

[JUMPNYC]

100 Million Dollars! Muaahahahah!!

[woofster]

My E30/M42 engine is almost bulletproof. It's bailed me out of car trouble on my old A4 numerous times! I don't drive my E30 all that much but regular maintenance and fixing things that break generally cost me about $500 a year.

[dashboardmonkey]

Holy thread bump.

I got my car for free, gutted and all fucked up. After putting a total of about $90 into it and a huge fucking pile of good used parts (that I had to work my ass off for) it is now a running driving gutted and all fucked up. But it is a major project and another story.

About 3 or so months ago I bought another E30 for the wife (it turns her on to watch me work on cars) I told her if she wanted me to work on her car it had to be an E30. Paid $500 for it and have put about $500 more into it. It's kinda ugly but I wouldn't hesitate to go on a road trip in it.

This place is a wonderful place to buy parts and get advice on things to do to an E30.

[Aptyp]

Every time I buy an e30, I plan to spend $1000 in random maintenance.

Timing Belt and Water Pump, other belts, all fluids, some hoses (breather hose under manifold and intake boot). By the time basic maintenance is complete, you'll spending the rest of that dough on tie-rods, control arms, bushings, and tires. You'll be happy when your e30 drives and handles crisp once again, but if you fall under that grand, you'll be the happiest person.


PS: following Inspection II routine as recommended by BMW is the best way to go. It systematically guides you through entire car, so you'd know what you're spending money on.