New member - ? about a possible purchase. 1985 318i

[craiglepaige]

Hello everyone, my name is Joey and I'm in talks with the used car manager at my job, about a possible purchase of a 1985 318i.

Before I continue, I want to give a bit of background about myself. I work for a BMW/MINI dealership as a MINI shop foreman. I have been here almost 10 years and have had the pleasure of learning the intricacies of German engineering.

Now having come from the Japanese side of thing - worked at Acura before and I absolutely love Honda - I'm not entirely fluent in older BMW's - pre 2000 or so.

Now being honest here, I don't like bimmers. I don't like the new cars at all. They are waaaaayyy over-engineered to the point of "massive head scratching" and I would never consider buying one. But I have the opportunity to buy a classic and I would like to hear some opinions on it.

The car is a one owner, 93k mile, 1985 318i with minimal, minimal rust on the fenders and passenger side back window. The fenders are almost a non-issue - sand and paint - but the side window does have a good portion of surface rust that will need attention asap.

The car is completely stock. No modifications whatsoever and has all the original equipment, including the floors mats with the 318i logo stitched on them - score.

The car needs work;
Water pump leak.
Oil leaks.
Some lights are inop.
And some other odds and ends.
Besides that, its a nice car overall.

So the question is, what would you value such a car ? Yes, I know pricing a car over the net is difficult but I don't want my lust for the car surpass my common sense lol.

I took three quick picks of it, and here they are.
What do you guys think is a fair buyers price?











BTW moderators - this is not feeler for a quick flip. I want the car and I have a price in mind that I'm willing to go up to, but I don't want to "waste" money on a car that's going to devalue quickly. I just know this is a super clean-unmolested car and I want to add it to my humble mix.

I currently have two project cars - a 1970 VW type 3 squareback and a 2000 Honda Civic SI - so this will be another one to add to the group ;)

[FreedomM3]

It really depends on what they sell for near you. Here in Ga I could probably wait and find a clean one like it and pay $500-$2000.

I'm not the biggest fan on the early models so I would pay alittle less. I would say between $1,000-$1,500 depending on how bad you want it.

[glnr13]

here are the bads:
not highly sought after since it's an m10 motor (momentum car, not much power)
early model = big ugly US bumpers
rear drum brakes
small front brakes
front struts are 45mm

here's the goods:
straight body
it's really clean, interior looks good too
no rust
low mileage + one owner
lightest model e30

I figure if you're into period specific and keeping it OG then yeah it's worth a pretty penny. If you plan on making it into a project car with a swap you're looking to put a lot of work and money into it. I know because I have an '84 318i with a swap.

So overall I'd say $1500 max.

[craiglepaige]

here are the bads:
not highly sought after since it's an m10 motor (momentum car, not much power)
early model = big ugly US bumpers
rear drum brakes
small front brakes
front struts are 45mm

here's the goods:
straight body
it's really clean, interior looks good too
no rust
low mileage + one owner
lightest model e30

I figure if you're into period specific and keeping it OG then yeah it's worth a pretty penny. If you plan on making it into a project car with a swap you're looking to put a lot of work and money into it. I know because I have an '84 318i with a swap.

So overall I'd say $1500 max.

Thank you both for the quick response ;)

Here's where my ignorance comes into play regarding this early BMW's. I actually had to look up what an m10 motor was and Google told me it is 4 cylinder, but this car definitely has an inline 6. Also I'm 99% sure it has rear brake rotors.

So what exactly am I looking at here?

I just texted the salesperson involved with this car - it was a death in the family of the dealership's owner's friend - and he says he was told it was a right hand drive car that was imported and swapped to left hand drive. But he's not sure. If that's true, what should I be looking for as tell tale signs?

My plan is to put it on a lift at work tomorrow and having the oldest BMW tech we have look it over and teach me a few things.

Again I'm not at all familiar with these cars so its all a learning process for me. If it was a MINI or even a pre-2000 Honda, well that would be a different story.

;)

[glnr13]

all signs of trim on this car point to it being originally a 4cyl M10.
pretty sure it wasn't originally a RHD either since the wipers are on the wrong side. Anyone that's done wiper motor work will tell you there's no damn reason to swap that if you don't have to because it's a pain in the dick.

really easy to tell if it's 6 or 4, just take a pic of the motor.
for the rear brakes just take a flash photo of the rear brake from under the car.

[craiglepaige]

all signs of trim on this car point to it being originally a 4cyl M10.
pretty sure it wasn't originally a RHD either since the wipers are on the wrong side. Anyone that's done wiper motor work will tell you there's no damn reason to swap that if you don't have to because it's a pain in the dick.

really easy to tell if it's 6 or 4, just take a pic of the motor.
for the rear brakes just take a flash photo of the rear brake from under the car.

I will be taking plenty of pics and posting them for everyone to chime in with info/help ;)

As far as pricing, I'm willing to go up to $2200 on it - so that's my max number.

Now for the member who posted about the interior - it's in immaculate condition from what I could see via the windows. Absolutely no rips on the seats nor cracks on the dash. The back seats look like nobody ever used them.

Thank you guys for the help.

[Das Delfin]

Like glnr13 said, how you price that car will depend on what you want to do with it. I'm into one owner cars in nice shape so I would pay more than someone who doesn't necessarily care about the originality of the car.

The part about the manager saying it used to be RHD is bullshit. The only countries that use RHD also require side turn repeaters in the fenders just behind the front tires. Also, usually imported cars still have euro bumpers. Grab the car's VIN and search for the history yourself - there's a link on one of the threads here to a free autocheck service.

Pretty much everything about this car will be a headache when it comes to mod it. Probably the only plus is that if it's a 5 speed, you can reuse the tranny if you want to m30 swap later on. Take some shots of the motor and we'll be able to tell you what's what.

Like I said, I like the originality of the car and would pay around 2k for it, and then not mod it at all. I'd just daily drive it and fix the little things here and there.

I'm always wary about used car salesmen.. I'd offer him 1k and feel it out. But I wouldn't go higher than the number you posted.

[e30onBBSs]

Curious about the engine bay, sounds extremely unlikely the one owner swappen an il6 into it.

I think 2200 is a bit high because it has those problems. It's basically up to you to fix them, and although I'm sure you can figure it out, it can help you a lot to haggle the price. Ask around some shops and see how much they would quote you and bring that to him and he's gonna be like shit.. Then buy it and fix it and enjoy =)

900th post whoot!

[craiglepaige]

Curious about the engine bay, sounds extremely unlikely the one owner swappen an il6 into it.

I think 2200 is a bit high because it has those problems. It's basically up to you to fix them, and although I'm sure you can figure it out, it can help you a lot to haggle the price. Ask around some shops and see how much they would quote you and bring that to him and he's gonna be like shit.. Then buy it and fix it and enjoy =)

900th post whoot!

Well the thing about asking around for repair quotes is that it won't really help this situation. He's the used car manager so if he was to have the car fixed in-house, it would be cheap - parts at cost and UCD labor prices. So that's a wash unfortunately.

Now, I know he won't put the money into it cause he won't get it out of the car, so that's something I can work with for haggling. But same thing, he knows I will get employee pricing on the parts and do the work myself in the shop or in my house, since I have a lift. Crappy situation to be in :(

I gotta be honest, I'm quite surprised on such low estimates on this clean car. For some reason I was thinking a bit higher, maybe closer to $3k. Glad I joined and asked lol. At least I know ahead of time so it will truly be a labor of love as opposed to an appreciating asset :)

[KIRIEIW]

Looks like the front drivers wheel is bent, use that to your advantage on lowing the asking price tag.

[Javier h]

325e

The car looks very clean with the original pin-striping.

If the motor is an M20, then the badge or the entire trunk lid was replaced.

I can't imagine anyone swapping the M10 for the M20. In addition to labor and cost, both engines aren't super fast either. That being said anything is possible.

[jhaurimn]

Any clean, rust free e30 = at least $2000 right now. Id go with $2250 and go from there. Id go up to at least 2500 for sure.

also yes drive front wheel is bent.

[BklynE30Dude]

My 2 cents:

It depends on the kind of car you want, and the kind of enjoyment you are seeking.
Overall, the older 318 is not as desirable due to small engine output. The M10 engine has very little power. So, I believe most people mod them rather than keep it stock. Even as a clean stock car, it doesn't have the same value as a coupe, vert or even a IX (which is what I have).

I think the car is likely worth in the 2's but, even if you get it for that price, you'll have to put at least another 2-3K into it. Timing belt, leaks, electrical ... not to mention the bent wheel. So, your budget is really going to be 5K to make it a good DD.

And the fuel efficiency is at best 21 city / 27 hwy - so if you're used to Hondas going forever on one tank, you might want to remember that you'll likely only get 200 - 250 miles per full tank on this 318i.

Good luck.

[Javier h]

Timing Chain

One of the nice things about the M10, is that you dont have to worry about the T-belt.

[craiglepaige]

Well I feel like a complete idiot... Lucky me I mentiom I was a MINI tech and not a BMW one - yes there's a difference lol.

Well the car is a completely stock 1985 318i.
So yes a 4 cylinder and rear drums.

Sorry for the incorrect information given by me last night.

I still want the car and would go up to $2200 for it. I'm waiting on the GM to come back to work tomorrow so we could work out a deal.

As far as repairs, Im well versed on electrical issues, so thats not a biggie. And the mechanical stuff isn't scary ;)

Thanks and sorry once again for the troubles.
Will post pics tomorrow.