e30 is discouraging me...

[mikejungle]

as a student and a starving artist, i'm finding it very discouraging to try and work on my car...practically everything needs to be replaced/fixed and i've made some headway, but it seems hard to follow through. i've got no money and very little time. i'd just rather sell it and get a clean e36 or something...

am i crazy talking or is it warranted? will a clean e36 give me just as much/more problems? My eta is just so slow and i just want something that will run strong until i have time and money to fix/mod it.

[Turf1600]

If you're that low on money why are you worried about it being fast?

I bought an e36 once. A few months later I had it crushed.

[SamE30e]

if you're that low on money why are you worried about it being fast?

I bought an e36 once. A few months later i had it crushed.

e30 ftw..

[mikejungle]

well, i've got a honda accord for daily driving. the purpose of having a bmw is so that i can work on something when i've got time and have fun with it. the amount of work that i would need to put into the e30 is what sort of discourages me. Everyone's got different needs and different things they look for in a car, you know? I just want to know if the e36 would be somewhat reliable.

and don't mistake my intentions, i love the e30. But as in normal relationships, love ISN'T all you need to make the relationship work. so yeah. that's why i'm asking.

why'd you crush it?

[Turf1600]

It was a POS. It always had problems. I have to say that my wife killed it though. She drove it like 15 miles with the temp pegged.

[mikejungle]

but please...elaborate. i've only driven an automatic 318, so i don't know much about em.

[SpecM]

you can't sell you eta and buy a "clean e36" with coughing up some more $$$, didn't you say you were broke/starving?

if you want something reliable, don't get an e36. They're worse. Terrable, really

but if you already have a DD, why does it need to be reliable?

if you want it to have fun, keep the e30, they are LOADS more fun

but in the end, do what YOU want to with your money/time

[gearheadE30]

e30s are more reliable than e36s in my experience, and they are also more expensive to maintain. Before you even get started it will probably need a new water pump, t-stat, and radiator expansion tank. The VANOS controllers on the 6-cylinder cars also have a tendancy to fail, and interior quality on early cars is very sub-par.

The biggest issue that I came across is that the e36 is new enough and looks cool enough to be in demand by highschool/college kids who want the looks. This means that a lot of them have had little or no maintainence and were driven somewhat hard. Watch for burning oil.

If you find a good one, they can be okay cars. Just not anywhere the connection of the e30, in my opinion.

[mikejungle]

yeah, but i'd like the advice and input of fellow e30ers that might have tried the e36 route and found it a mistake or the complete opposite.

if i had an 'i', i don't think i'd even have this dilemma. so i don't really know what to do. even after i get everything to spec, an lsd and a chip would still fall short of an 'i', right? Maybe it'd be enough to have fun with. I don't know...which is exactly why i'm here.

[SpecM]

yeah, but i'd like the advice and input of fellow e30ers that might have tried the e36 route and found it a mistake or the complete opposite.

if i had an 'i', i don't think i'd even have this dilemma. so i don't really know what to do. even after i get everything to spec, an lsd and a chip would still fall short of an 'i', right? Maybe it'd be enough to have fun with. I don't know...which is exactly why i'm here.

no, it wouldn't be a fast as an "i", but the fun in e30 isn't the power, it's the driver connection. A chip and a 3.25 LSD will quicken up an eta enough so its not such a slow pig, and some suspention mods will transform the car.

just don't get an e36, exp not a 318 auto (ewww....)

[jeer]

the eta is a good car, gets good gas mileage, usually reliable once you've replaced all the old parts that usually go bad at this time.

once you get past all that you can start having some reall fun with it.
the combination of mods are endless. and if you shop around can usually be fairly cheap. compared to newer cars that will be slower once you've gotten all the potential out of the e30 if thats even possible lol.

the e36's can be nightmares. and just wait a few years everything needs to be replaced from interior to engine parts such as oil seperator, and pipes. water pump radiator thermostat. and stuff.

suspension is more expensive and will go bad.

just my 2 cents

[morningsmiler]

eBefore you even get started it will probably need a new water pump, t-stat, and radiator expansion tank. The VANOS controllers on the 6-cylinder cars also have a tendancy to fail, and interior quality on early cars is very sub-par.

The biggest issue that I came across is that the e36 is new enough and looks cool enough to be in demand by highschool/college kids who want the looks. This means that a lot of them have had little or no maintainence and were driven somewhat hard. Watch for burning oil.

Very true..we have 2 at the shop right now with blown headgaskets. Both driven by dopey college kids.

We'll most likely patch them up and sell them to more dopey college kids then buy them back when they blow up again.

Oh, and every e36 we've had the door cards have been falling off.

[SpecM]

oh yea, OP, don't get so down/discouraged about it
my e30 is my DD and it needs lots of work!

just keep swimming, just keep swimming....

[kamotors]

in 4 years of ownership of my e30 it has only needed to be taken to a shop once when the fuel pump died at my dads work, and that was in the first year. i purchased the car with 95,000miles it now has 126,000miles and i find it far more reliable than my moms lexus, which kills a C.O.P every few months

[TDE30]

am i crazy talking or is it warranted? will a clean e36 give me just as much/more problems? My eta is just so slow and i just want something that will run strong until i have time and money to fix/mod it.

Everyone says etas are slow, I've never understood that. I think everyone's beef with the B27 is that it doesn't sound fast (5k redline and all,) and then people look towards a B25 or M5x/S5x swap. Etas are plentiful, they are quite smooth, robust, and offer plenty of torque. I'm no one to talk, having swapped in a cam'd B25 in my car, but I have never understood why eta motors get such a bad rap. With fuel prices the way they are now, you should cherish the extra 3 or 4 mpg you are getting over everyone else.

Something that will run strong, eh? Get something with an M30 in it. Better yet, find a M30 B35 and swap it in the E30. When you get some additional funds, surf on over to TCD.

E36's are neat, but nowhere near as rewarding as an E30. It seems that almost everyone who modifies an E36 end up making it look like an E36 M3.