Rusty project 323i

[karpiel]

Old vs. new left side.




Should have taken photos with the whole front end off, not a speck of rust under the fenders.

As she sits with the new fenders, still the old hood.



Would having "323 IS" on the trunk lid be ricey? It is technically a sport model.

[iwantspeed]

looks real good!

[M-technik-3]

Just debadge it since most don't have a clue anyway. I am surprised at the dedication and amount of work you are putting into this car. I honestly would have purchased another chassis and transfered parts.

[mikeedler]

I would put the stock 323i badging on it.

[karpiel]

Real quality work done by the guys who federalized it, I swear it looks like they used a gun to make the holes for the side markers.

Surely the bumper beams are factory though, no way could some redneck with a cutting torch make something this nice.

[TexasTerp]

progress looks good! how is the interior rust coming along?

[M-technik-3]

Bumper bars are not factory. Factory never officially imported cars with EU style bumpers. They came with US spec, if you wanted eu's you had to grey market your car through a registered importer but they were lack in the day as to what was legal vs not.

[RainierHooker]

IIRC, one of the period tuners (either BBS or Zender, or the like) did make a bar for under the Euro bumps for federalization purposes. I think there was a thread about it a few years back...

[craiggroves91]

I find it funny I got a perfectly running rust free 325is for 1600.
Not putting you down, it is just funny.
GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR PROJECT!
ill keep coming back for updates

[karpiel]

I find it funny I got a perfectly running rust free 325is for 1600.
Not putting you down, it is just funny.
GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR PROJECT!
ill keep coming back for updates

Thanks.

If a wanted a car that didn't require work, I would have bought one. I was specifically looking for some sort of semi unique gray market car, if I wanted something everyone else had I coulda bought any number of sub 1500 dollar cars at the dealers auctions.

Something like this...

http://denver.craigslist.org/cto/1512435724.html

When I went to look at it in OCTOBER it was listed for 1700 which I knew was too much for the car (It had been on CL for at least 2 months before that as well) they were telling me stories about driving cars to destruction, didn't know ANYTHING about it and couldn't even tell me when the oil was last changed. They hadn't even bothered to run a vacuum through it or remove the trash from the trunk.


Funny thing is, it's probably still a better overall car then mine right now.:)

[Edev]

I find it funny I got a perfectly running rust free 325is for 1600.
Not putting you down, it is just funny.
GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR PROJECT!
ill keep coming back for updates

Uh you're from California. California typically has rust free cars. His is an actual euro. I'd choose his 323i over your 325is.

[craiggroves91]

Uh you're from California. California typically has rust free cars. His is an actual euro. I'd choose his 323i over your 325is.

If you look at the outright value.
his for 1000
and mine for 1600
someone who didnt car for these cars and just want a car to drive
would say thats a ridiculous amount for something that bad
There's no need to take offense to anything. I'm just pointing something out.

Its a cool project. How do you know its euro?

[karpiel]

Its a cool project. How do you know its euro?

Maybe the euro bumpers, getrag dogleg, the fact it's a 323i, it has "imorted by the autobahn society" on the vin sticker, check panel is in german, engine bay stickers are in german, guages are in L, the reciepts I have from it being federalized...

I could go on...

[craiggroves91]

Maybe the euro bumpers, getrag dogleg, the fact it's a 323i, it has "imorted by the autobahn society" on the vin sticker, check panel is in german, engine bay stickers are in german, guages are in L, the reciepts I have from it being federalized...

I could go on...

Sweet I wouldnt know I'm a noob. I thought euro bumpers didnt have sidemarkers?

[karpiel]

Sweet I wouldnt know I'm a noob. I thought euro bumpers didnt have sidemarkers?

Part of the $4900 federalization process performed by D.C. Johnson.

I'm also a noob, this is my first German car of any type and I bought it like 2 days before I started the thread.