My first BMW ('85 318I)

[gettinscurvy]

Hey guys! I'm completely new to the BMW world but I've recently been gifted a cleanish 1985 318i. My friend and I have decided to work on it as a joint project and haven't yet decided to what end that project will lead us.

The battery was completely dead when we received it so that was the first thing we replaced. We were informed that there was a potential fuel system issue and that seems apparent as it will start but then surge to 3000 rpms before stalling out. I look forward to working on the car and gently weeding my way into the e30 community.

I appreciate any advice offered as we try to get this classic running right.







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[rcsoundn1]

5spd or auto? Put some dry gas in the tank and get it cleaned up!

[Holland]

As a M10 318 owner, you should keep it stock. Modding an M10 car is a long, hard road.

[irish44j]

As a M10 318 owner, you should keep it stock. Modding an M10 car is a long, hard road.

I would concur that you should keep it stock for a while and see what the car will give you (and while you learn the car). Your car is a carbon-copy of mine when I got it...same color, same year, same everything - but probably better condition! Even with the M10, it will be a fun car to drive around, as the 318i early cars are really very lightweight and well-balanced, and the M10 doesn't feel bad in them (hopefully you have a manual transmission).

That said, I won't totally agree with my esteemed colleague Holland about it being difficult to mod.....as long as you have a spare M42 in the garage :)

[irish44j]

oh also, it sounds like you have a vacuum leak or perhaps a bad IACV causing your surge-then-shutoff problem. Hit up the M10-specific forum here....the fixes for those issue have been extensively discussed there.

[gettinscurvy]

Wow! Thanks for the advice guys. I would be very happy to get this baby to a steady reliable stock state. I have an RX-7 that I already like to mod. This 318 is in the master race of 5speeds and I think it'll be a blast.

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[Holland]

I would concur that you should keep it stock for a while and see what the car will give you (and while you learn the car). Your car is a carbon-copy of mine when I got it...same color, same year, same everything - but probably better condition! Even with the M10, it will be a fun car to drive around, as the 318i early cars are really very lightweight and well-balanced, and the M10 doesn't feel bad in them (hopefully you have a manual transmission).

That said, I won't totally agree with my esteemed colleague Holland about it being difficult to mod.....as long as you have a spare M42 in the garage :)

And a disc brake conversion, larger strut tubes, medium case LSD, etc.

[gettinscurvy]

I'm looking forward to spending some time on this black beauty this weekend. I tried starting it up again last night. It started right up, revved right to 3k and then shut down. It did this 5 times in a row. I'm happy to report that the headlights and windshield wipers work!

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[cabriodster87]

Looks just like my first BMW, hope it brings you as much fun.

[irish44j]

And a disc brake conversion, larger strut tubes, medium case LSD, etc.

Hey, I didn't want to discourage him. That said, I have all those things on mine and none were particularly difficult to do :)

[ZM Blue Devil]

Congrats and welcome. Whats up with all the e30 m10 finds lately.

We just picked one up as well. Here are some pics. Let us know if you need help with anything.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.528524033850165.1073741829.123083637727542&type=3

[gettinscurvy]

Looks just like my first BMW, hope it brings you as much fun.

Thank you! Looking forward to being on the road!

[gettinscurvy]

Congrats and welcome. Whats up with all the e30 m10 finds lately.

We just picked one up as well. Here are some pics. Let us know if you need help with anything.
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?...7727542&type=3

Wow, I like where you're project is going! I wish I could get on it that fast and with so many readily available parts! Here's a link to some pics I took today.

http://imgur.com/a/tUV8N#0

[thebutterson]

I hope we have an m10 revival going on here!

I disagree with what others are saying about the medium case lsd. They're larger, heavier, and have more frictional losses. Stick with a small case, it'll be able to handle the monstrous 100hp the m10 puts out.

Nice door panels, how about the seats?

[gettinscurvy]

I hope we have an m10 revival going on here!

I disagree with what others are saying about the medium case lsd. They're larger, heavier, and have more frictional losses. Stick with a small case, it'll be able to handle the monstrous 100hp the m10 puts out.

Nice door panels, how about the seats?

Ah! Here's the thing about the seats. They're sport seats either from a vert or a coupe because they have that little lever on the side to bend them over forwards and they don't mate up too well in the car. When I acquired the car they weren't bolted down and I didn't think twice about it.

Are the seats specific to certain models or even generations?