The Neurosis Continues.. Found another Car, help. <pics> --

[lespaul]

Ok, so some of you know that I bought a car out of state and it came back with a bad top, ripped seats and some undisclosed paint scratches. You made fun of me for being a perfectionist on a used e30. It's a blue and tan '91 318ic with 120k miles on the odometer. Mechanically the car is very strong. I think. I paid $4500 for it. The car is pretty cool after all, HOWEVER, my fingers continued to obsessively scan classifieds nationwide and came across this:


Prospective Car
A 1992 318ic, bronzit.
67,000 on the odometer (carfax checks out)
MINT condition, interior and exterior, and I don't say this unless I mean it.
Brand New top.
Bone stock.
2nd Owner.
Price - $5500

What I have now:
1991 Blue 318ic with 120k miles
bad top.
ripped front seat and ripped back seat.
paint is a bit ruff in areas.
mechanically wonderful.

I can sell the blue one down here and probably get $4500 for it. Already put it on craigslist and have people ready to go.

What would you do?! I do prefer the blue color over the bronzit, but I don't mind the bronzit either.

Sorry to put anyone through this again. But I'm at the wire for this decision, and wanted to know your feedback.

Oh and I have to fly out to Georgia and drive it back 9 hours. Flight is $150.

Here are pics of both cars. Keep in mind, I have new basketweaves for the blue one, and the rice lights are outta here.

Here's the blue:


Here's the bronzit:


thanks..

[z31maniac]

But the bronzit, then swap my BMP RS1 kit for your plastic bumpers.

[Julien]

don't fool yourself they both will need work..

[lespaul]

True, if it's garage kept, and meticulously maintained with records, does a lot go wrong at 70k?

don't fool yourself they both will need work..

[akorcovelos]

True, if it's garage kept, and meticulously maintained with records, does a lot go wrong at 70k?

at 70k it likely needs timing belt/water pump etc.

[twothrees]

The blue one is very pretty and what's wrong with the current rims?
Julien is right; all e30's will need work of some sort. I would stick with,"mechanically wonderful" and have the seats and top done by an upholstery shop.

I just moved from Delray Beach, we were on Vista Del Mar/Andrews. If I still lived there I would knock some sense into you.

[lespaul]

318 is the chain though.. so that's a bit of a relief. water pump I imagine is cheap/easy fix.. I'm just thinking if I spend $1300 on a new top, fix the seats at $300 if I even can, and don't have to de-rice the lights, it could be a good option.. Although I love that blue..

at 70k it likely needs timing belt/water pump etc.

[lespaul]

Nice area, I lived in the same neighborhood last year (George Bush and 8th.). hmmmmmmmmm. decisions.. decisions..

The blue one is very pretty and what's wrong with the current rims?
Julien is right; all e30's will need work of some sort. I would stick with,"mechanically wonderful" and have the seats and top done by an upholstery shop.

I just moved from Delray Beach, we were on Vista Del Mar/Andrews. If I still lived there I would knock some sense into you.

[Stu]

Hot damn. I had no idea they made late model 318's in bronzit. Or blue. Do you know if either car has a limited-slip?

[VacMan]

I'd rather keep a known quantity than pull the trigger again. Bronzit is a love it or hate it color, so that's your call. I can tell you that your blue car is much more rare. I'd also agree that a car with so few miles is going to need a lot of stuff that a higher mileage car has already had replaced.

Good luck either way. I'm glad I don't have the same affliction you have, or I'd never be happy. :up:

Tim

[lespaul]

Well is it an affliction, or is it not wanting to shell out the money for a new top and new interior if I don't have to.. :?

I'd rather keep a known quantity than pull the trigger again. Bronzit is a love it or hate it color, so that's your call. I can tell you that your blue car is much more rare. I'd also agree that a car with so few miles is going to need a lot of stuff that a higher mileage car has already had replaced.

Good luck either way. I'm glad I don't have the same affliction you have, or I'd never be happy. :up:

Tim

[E30 Cabrio]

See if you can find another top or replace yours.

Also, you should be able to find seats on craigslist or ebay, but the Cabrio/M3 style sport seats are tougher to find and you'll pay a more on ebay then on craigslist.

It took me a few months, but I found a nice pair of front Cabrio heated sport seats for $250.00 and the seller was about 60 miles from my home.

One of the seat heaters was bad, but I plan on swapping the heating element from my old seat to this one someday, but it's no big deal.

My rear lower bench needs to be restitched or replaced as the seam down the middle is starting to come apart.

Not a big deal, but eventually I will either have it re-stitched or will buy a used one when one comes up on eBay or craigslist.

These cars are about 20 years old, so finding one that doesn't have a few warts for a decent price will be tough, but mechanicals are usually less expensive fixes then cosmetic items, depending on if you're buying new or used as well as other factors.

One expensive issue on the 318's is the Timing Cover Profile gasket, as those are prone to failure on the 318's and can be expensive to fix.

The clear coat on these cars tends to peel as well, so it's important to take good care of the exterior and use a Polish (not a wax) that has good UV protection, as painting a car is a huge expense, so preventative maintenance to the exterior of the car is important as well.

Once the clear coat starts to peel, it's too late then so it's best to not let it get to that point.

I like the color of your 318ic, and it would look awesome with a Black interior IMO
I also like the wheels, although some 15" weaves would look nice as well, but I don't see a reason to swap out the wheels you have unless they are bent or curbed, or you flat out don't like them.

If you decide to keep it and replace your seats, it's not all that difficult to change the interior color.

I changed mine from Navy Blue to Black by using vinyl paint on the door panels and rear hatch, I dyed the rear seats and as mentioned above, found a pair of nice cabrio style sport seats for cheap on craigslist.

I also took my old headrests, bought some rear headrest brackets, dyed the old headrests black and installed them. Although not in the picture below, I really like the way they look.

The only thing I didn't do was the carpet, which is mostly covered by black floor mats.

A Black leather interior on an E30 with sport seats is one of the "sexiest" interiors ever IMO

I just love the way it looks in that color.

Another inexpensive interior upgrade is to add a leather e-brake handle and leather e-brake boot.

Not only does it look nice, but the leather e-brake handle has a nice feel to it.

If the Blue 318ic runs good, then I would keep it and fix the cosmetic items.

The top can be really expensive though. You might be able to find a used one on ebay, but installation is a PITA and if you have someone else do it, it will be expensive.

I would contact the PO and ask him to give you a partial refund as you stated he misrepresented the condition of the car.

Whatever you decide, always try to get a service/maintenance history of what's been done.

A Car with 120K may have already had something like the steering rack go bad and the PO had it replaced, while the car with 67K hasn't yet.

These cars can get expensive when they approach 100K in mileage, as that's when things tend to need repairing and/or replacement, so sometimes, it's better to buy a higher mileage car that already has had a lot of failure-prone parts replaced.

Often, you'll find E30's with around 125K on them that are being sold because the PO is tired of having it repaired all the time. These cars are the one's that you want to have service records with so you can see what's been replaced and what you can expect to replace in the coming months/years and they can be great finds if the PO replaced/repaired a bunch of stuff.

A low mileage car that has had very little required repairs done can suddenly hit you with a bunch of things needing fixing as they approach 100K or so.

Super low mileage isn't always a good thing, as there could be a bunch of upcoming repairs due soon.

Instead of spending another $1000.00 on another car, plus time and travel expenses, shipping the car, or driving it home, keep the Blue one and spend that money on fixing the top and the seats, depending on their condition and see if the PO will refund you some of the purchase price due to the undisclosed issues with the car.

Also, you probably won't be able to sell it for what you paid for it, so I would keep it and spend the extra money you were going to spend on the Bronzit and put that money into the car you have now.

Especially if it runs great and has maintenance records so you know what's been done and what will eventually need to be done.

[morningsmiler]

I would sell the blue one and invest in psychiatric care.

Seriously, the blue is a known quantity, I would stick with it and work out the issues one by one. NONE of these cars will be perfect!

Now go drive it!

[E30 Cabrio]

After I bought my car, I too continued to check craigslist, ebay, etc...somewhat out of habit as I spent 6 months searching for the right car, and to also validate my choice.

The more I looked at other cars afterwards, the happier I was with my car.

I got a good deal on it and am very happy with it. Now, if I can just get off my ass and paint the "is" air dam and rear spoiler that have been sitting in my garage for about a year and install them...

That and the new Clarion HU that I bought almost 2 months ago but haven't installed as I need to bypass the factory amp and run some new speaker wires.

[lespaul]

I know. I'm being psychotic. I'm a perfectionist looking at E30's. Maybe not the best combination. :)

I would sell the blue one and invest in psychiatric care.

Seriously, the blue is a known quantity, I would stick with it and work out the issues one by one. NONE of these cars will be perfect!

Now go drive it!