ddm-j's 1989 325ix Alpine Sedan

[ddm-j]

New to this board -- been a Jeep enthusiast my entire life but I found a new cult to join a few weeks ago.

This is my newly purchased 1989 325ix Alpine sedan!
I rescued this vehicle from the rust ridden state of Indiana and brought it to the Land of Enchantment - New Mexico. Here I can confidently remove rust and know that it won't come back for the next 150 years. Surprisingly, this car has very little rust.

I'm excited to drive this thing on beautiful mountain passes of Southern Colorado where it will be at home.

Pros:

• Excellent mechanical condition
• New suspension components
• New steering column
• Working VC
• Manual Trans
• No frame rust
• No wheel well rust

Cons:

• Minor surface rust on underside of hood, door jam, license plate light mount screw holes, rear valence battery rot hole, and sunroof brackets etc..
• No tint
• AC blowing warm
• Need new tires
• Aftermarket head unit
• Minor dents
• Was repainted at some point and a poor job was done
• Cracked dash
• Fading paint (minor chipping in some areas)

I purchased this car because I've always loved the look of them and they turn heads on the road - especially if they're in good shape. Secondarily, I believe this car will be a good store of value over the next 5-10 years. Even though I plan on putting 5-10k in the way of restoration towards this car, I think it'll be worth much more than purchase+upgrades after that time span. Much better in my view than buying a depreciating class... Plus, the car is so fun to drive!

I believe all e30 stock is on the rise at present and I believe it will continue to move north in the coming decades.

My immediate roadmap is this:

• New tires
• Maximum legal ceramic tint (more thermal energy dissipation for lower % light)
• Full R134a conversion
  • Condenser
  • New Fan
  • Drier
  • Valves & Seals
• Paint rear speaker panel from grey to black
• Acquire and install factory CM5908 Head Unit
  • DIY install Bluetooth upgrade on said unit
• New dash
• Service panel replacement
  • Unable to reset service light - suspect batteries have died
• New knee panel (one that came with car was electrical taped on
• New shift boot
• Fix front right signal bulb wiring
• Remove and replace rusted and stripped front bumper bolts with welder and nuts
• Trim conditioning/painting

Longer term roadmap:

• Repair all rust issues prior to full repaint
• New driver seat
• Refresh headliner
  • New dome lights and dome light frames with warm LED bulbs (+ fix PO bang up job on the driver's side dome light wiring)
• Full repaint
  • Probably do all of the prep work myself and get it down to shell before paint (2-3 year time horizon on this)

[AWDBOB]

I saved this car from a driveway in Kentucky, and gave it a second life! Glad it's back on the forum. I sold it to a young kid who put a bling steering wheel and s1ck shift boot on it, who then sold it to another guy in Indy, who I assume you bought it from. I wish I had as much luck selling it as the two folks after me.

I put new tires on and had it aligned- surprised the tires are shot.

Here is my thread from the rescue:

https://www.r3vlimited.com/board/for...-alpine-rescue