When to move on

[roguetoaster]

My two current registered cars are a 91 318i and a 95 318ti, both of which have similar mods. Aesthetics aside, the compact is a better car, as in a driving appliance. It has slightly higher limits, it offers more utility, gets better mileage,, is simply easier to live with on a day to day, while still being fun to drive and offers very similar levels of mechanical simplicity.

Not to mention that I'll happily take the E36 out in the dirt, will drive it with salt on the roads, have zero parking paranoia, and am not too bothered if it accumulates a few weeks of exterior grime.

[Andrew325is]

I like the E36, but the build quality of an E30 is a lot better. I would choose a 318ti if I was going with an E36 since it's more E30-like. The E46 is a nice improvement over the E36, but it has some issues like electrical glitches since there's a control module for everything, even the headlights. No more simple relays. Still, an E46 ZHP or E46 M3 SMG might fit the bill for you.

[moatilliatta]

A nice E30 is a luxury. I had to take a break from them for a bit but now I'm back. This one I'm not selling.

The next e30 will be more expensive and parts will be harder to come by.

[Motheye99]

BMW DCT 7 speed is silly cheap these days on ebay, they never break it seems. only downside is the weight. And only 1 aftermarket ECU controls it from what ive seen its the MaxxECU one

[TobyB]

This is interesting...so you can pretty much buy a dct tranny and slap it on any car? Am i missing something??

As I read it, any car that uses an M20 based engine for the bellhousing pattern. IF the E46 guy's right, and it'll fit his M54

BUT: I don't think anyone's seen product yet. Personally, if I was headed down this road, I'd get the
'Seems Legit' product in hand before I bought the transmission. One of the new 'features'
of the Kickstarted Millenial Generation is that they put out a great website, but delivering
hard goods is... well, harder.

t
waiting on a couple of things that 'will ship next week'

[packratbimmer]

Facebook would sell us to the glue factory if they could bang a buck - forums rule!

[Aleman]

Facebook marketplace is booming. One can make an ad and post it in multiple groups with 1 click. Can't do that on forums. Also, people can ask questions and get answers right away with instant notifications on their mobile. Not everyone has time to sit down at a computer anymore. Then there's the matter of uploading pics, hosting them, creating links, etc.

LS swap is like $15-20K, S52 swap is $5-7k. There are a lot of variables though.

Unfortunately, most people on FB are scammers and douche bags. Much prefer to do business with r3v people, and sometimes eBay, for used parts. I've had good luck with craigslist for the very best deals though.
If I were looking to get out of the E30 racket, I'd be laser focused on finding a clean E46 M3. Gorgeous car, wicked fast, going up in value. I wouldn't want one for my daily, though, due to the maintenance & repair costs with doing so.

[reelizmpro]

What you say is true! I feel the sight/sales on here have slowed down. I dont know if it is lack of interest or if the young guys are using facebook???

I have seriously considered an e46 m3 for the reasons you mentioned. Maybe i will keep my options open...especially if it will be doing primarily track duty.

Part of me thinks ill really regret giving up on the e30. Not to mention i have a few rare and sought after parts ive been hoarding for the right candidate.

Let me ask you guys this. How much at a shop would cost to throw an LS swap or s52 swap on an e30? Granted this will be an estimate...

Facebook marketplace is booming. One can make an ad and post it in multiple groups with 1 click. Can't do that on forums. Also, people can ask questions and get answers right away with instant notifications on their mobile. Not everyone has time to sit down at a computer anymore. Then there's the matter of uploading pics, hosting them, creating links, etc.

LS swap is like $15-20K, S52 swap is $5-7k. There are a lot of variables though.

[e30 brick]

E46 is going to have a lot more poke, BUT less feel- the E36 really did get a lot of things right. In very nice shape, that's a fair deal around here.

There was just some chatter on the e46 boards about a true DCT conversion with a standalone controller-
THAT would be a FANTASTIC way to not have a clutch but still have transmission control.
The E46 SMG is... well, it only has one clutch, and if the controller fails...

https://www.seemslegitgarage.com/dct-systems

https://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=1270295

t
would hook it up to a pedal, but my disabilities are more mental.

This is interesting...so you can pretty much buy a dct tranny and slap it on any car? Am i missing something??

[e30 brick]

The update has really slowed down the site and made navigating a bit aggrevating. Same boat here except I go back to when my mom bought a 325e new in 84. I now have 4 E30's after selling one last year. Most don't understand why but it's more nostalgia for me. Anyway, nothing wrong with moving on to the next platform that will suit your needs. IMO, you should go straight to the E46 M3. One can be had for about the same amount of money as a lower mileage E36 M3 (face it, that's no big deal) except with perhaps more maintenance but you'll have SMG which uses the same trans as the manual 6 speed should you decide to sell and the car will hold it's value better since it's a "true" M car. This is what I would do, if it were me.

What you say is true! I feel the sight/sales on here have slowed down. I dont know if it is lack of interest or if the young guys are using facebook???

I have seriously considered an e46 m3 for the reasons you mentioned. Maybe i will keep my options open...especially if it will be doing primarily track duty.

Part of me thinks ill really regret giving up on the e30. Not to mention i have a few rare and sought after parts ive been hoarding for the right candidate.

Let me ask you guys this. How much at a shop would cost to throw an LS swap or s52 swap on an e30? Granted this will be an estimate...

[lukeADE335i]

Have to admit with the rise in e30 prices of late, I've been looking longingly at e34 M5s recently - might be good to pick one up before their prices head into the stratosphere :)

[varg]

So i was thinking to put a supercharger and some supporting mods to make 300 wheel hp and call it a day. So, what do you guys think? I could definitely use good advice from the knowledgable on this sight. Thanks

300whp will never be calling it a day, especially with a 3,200lb car. 300whp isn't enough with my car and it's 400lbs lighter than an E36 M3.

Classic cars aren't for everyone, but if "more modern" is a concern for you, and I'm guessing it is since you went out of your way to mention it first, you should probably be looking at cars that aren't 20+ years old. 20+ years old meaning they will soon have the same kind of problems our E30s do actually more of them because there's a lot more to go wrong. E30s are old and have reached classic status and are just more expensive now. E36 and E46s are still on the depreciation cycle so no kidding they're a little more reasonably priced. Also, US E36 M3s are the worst M3s, good LS swap recipients

[TobyB]

This is what ive been eyeing...

E46 is going to have a lot more poke, BUT less feel- the E36 really did get a lot of things right. In very nice shape, that's a fair deal around here.

There was just some chatter on the e46 boards about a true DCT conversion with a standalone controller-
THAT would be a FANTASTIC way to not have a clutch but still have transmission control.
The E46 SMG is... well, it only has one clutch, and if the controller fails...

https://www.seemslegitgarage.com/dct-systems

https://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=1270295

t
would hook it up to a pedal, but my disabilities are more mental.

[lukeADE335i]

The e36 & e46 are now where the e30 was at when a lot of us became e30 enthusiasts - values bottoming out, plenty in wreckers for parts & cheap / plentiful new parts. We're now getting into the zone that 2002 enthusiasts have already gone through - the cars become classics, get too expensive, none in wreckers & parts start getting harder to get / more expensive. That said, compared to modern BMWs, the e30 is still pretty cheap to own. If you're going past the e46 though, be wary of the costs. Running an N55 track car if you're used to tracking an e30 will be expensive - the cars can be had cheap, but they aren't cheap to maintain.

Case in point - the running costs for my humble e92 320d have been pretty high (no doubt cheaper in the US of course, but in Australia it's pretty daunting). Despite buying an immaculate, 40k mile car that was previously owned by a surgeon who maintained everything possible, the maintenance cost after 18 months of my ownership has still been $2590 - new brakes + interim oil change by me - $780 (Dealer wanted $2k! I said no thanks); new rear tyres and wheel alignment at an indy - $760; Dealer major service - basically an inspection 2 in e30 speak - $1050! Thankfully the dealer service was not paid for by me, the original owner must have thought he was keeping the car a long time as he bought the 10 year pre-paid service package when the car was new & it still has 3 more years to go. Once it runs out, I'll just do my own servicing.

None of this was unexpected & the car itself has been rock solid reliable, but something to be aware of if you're thinking of tinkering with modern BMWs, especially if coming from e30s and not working on them yourself.

Slightly off topic, but I have to admit that spending time at the dealer yesterday waiting to pick up the car, it became really obvious that I am not the target market for BMW any more. Wandering through the new car show room, no sales people came over to speak with me even though I could easily lease a new M240i or 3 or 4 series if I wanted to. They were too busy selling expensive SUVs to trophy wives & retirees.

[Motheye99]

A SMG E46 M3 will be way better, people actually like to track those gearboxes. Or you could get a 135i the latter one has a F'n 7 speed DCT and a N55. I see nice ones go go for 15-20.