I've had a bunch of people ask me to make one of these threads, so here goes.
The Whip:
NA spec 318is slicktop
M42, 5 speed
Brilliantrot exterior, Nicotine Stain interior
Produced June 28th, 1990
VIN: WBAAF9310MEE68640
Background:
I've spent the last 4 years traveling the world living out of a backpack. In early 2020 I was looking to move overseas permanently and had $30k saved to make the move. 2 days before my flight, all international flights were canceled indefinitely due to Covid. I knew lockdown would be more than 2 weeks, so I decided to pick up a good driver's car instead.
I knew I wanted something analog and fun, and eventually knocked my list down to an E30 318is, a 944 S2, or a Miata. Since I wanted a car that could still do car things, that knocked the Miata off the list. And I happened to find a good E30 before a good 944.
I bought this car April 1st 2020 with 95,6XX (correct) miles and zero rust. The cylinder head was cracked, the tach was wrong, and the exhaust was soaked with oil. But overall it ran alright. The engine was kind of glued together with silicone so I didn't know about the cylinder head at first. It had a wood shift knob but was otherwise totally stock. The car was owned by a doctor in Charleston, South Carolina and left in storage since 2002 until I bought it. Upon taking it out of storage, I drove it home 1,915 miles with zero preparation.
In the past year I have restored the car to good working condition with a LOT of outside help. I'll be excluding that maintenance from the list.
Modifications:
- Z3 steering rack
- 370mm Mtech2 steering wheel
- Custom cluster
- Z3 short shifter
- Supersprint exhaust
- D'sylva tune (93 octane)
- Oil catch can added
- Front strut brace added
- 4.10 LSD (factory 25% lockup)
- 15 inch Amil Gamma wheels
To-Do List
- Solid metal steering joint
- DSSR install
- Ground Control coilovers
- replace stock sound system (??? not sure what to do here)
Since I've had the car for about a year, here's some pictures of my experience with it to this point:
I will add more to this at some point. I'm open to fielding questions, although I have fairly limited technical knowledge.
Special Thanks
- Advice, direction, and guidance: getouth, Jordan, mike.bmw, agent
- Diff rebuild: https://danvillediffs.com/
- Cluster work: http://www.bavrest.com/index.html
- replacement cylinder head: roguetoaster
- Amil wheels: Michael P
- Mechanical work: https://www.facebook.com/RennSport-T...7854077915422/, https://www.bimmerbuddies.com/
- 318is facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/7351300863
- E30 Discord server: https://discord.gg/aTbkDEv
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