Best states to own an e30

[delatlanta1281]

Good here in GA.

[e30austin]

I love the PNW. Don't see myself moving anytime soon.

Things to consider:
Motorist laws- everyone drives slow as hell here
Historic/vintage car laws- 1975+ all have to pass DEQ, but you can get special interest plates, if the car isn't a daily driver
Climate (read: susceptible to rust?) no salt on the roads, rains a lot, but Portland is far enough from the coast that rust isn't a big deal
Concentration of e30-people- Lots of enthusiasts, some POS hipster cars
Local motorsport events (auto-x, local racetracks, etc)- PRO3 at PIR, lots of fun to watch among a handful of CCA and other hosted track days
Traffic and driving roads (twisties?, potholes and condition of roads)- tons of great roads in the gorge, country, etc...however, the streets here suck ass, in the city, at least
Places to buy E30 related things locally (shops, machine shops, or aftermarket manufacturers)- TONS and tons of shit, don't even know where to begin
Local e30 availability, condition, and prices- they are everywhere, I just bought a '89 coupe for $300 last week that ran and drove...some people think their shit is worth its weight in gold though!

[lambo]

Solution: Keep car registered car in NM, move to California. ;)

Beautiful.

[Shanes325]

south carolina! cars dont have to be smog legal or what ever its called (we dont have to do it) pay you taxes and drive what you want within reason. snow? what is snow? warm and hot from april to the first of nov maybe last oct. cars are considered vintage after 20years so taxes are dirt cheap. lots of winding roads and mountains. the bmw scene is growing very fast mostly the last 2 years. only bad thing about that is is now the price is getting drove up.

[agent]

Tennessee

Motorist laws - It's the South. Don't try and outrun a state trooper or drive drunk and you're good.

Historic/vintage car laws - 25 years. A permanent plate is a one-time fee of $35. You can drive a car with a vintage plate anytime on weekends, or on weekdays if it's to and from a car event or if you're working on it. Carry a greasy rag and a set of wrenches at all times, done like dinner.

Climate (read: susceptible to rust?) - It's the South. There might be a dozen salt trucks in the entire state. Rust is a non-factor.

Concentration of e30-people - lots of them, both locally and regionally. Fairly large and diverse car scene in general.

Local motorsport events (auto-x, local racetracks, etc) - There are fewer local events lately since the super speedway closed, although there are a number of great tracks easily within driving distance - Road Atlanta, Barber, VIR, etc.

Traffic and driving roads (twisties?, potholes and condition of roads) - It's the South. Arguably some of the best roads in the nation. Traffic in the big cities is the same as it would be in any big city. Awesome driving roads both locally and throughout the state. Two of the best driving roads in the US are here: Tail of the Dragon and Cherohala Skyway. They are kind of well known.

Places to buy E30 related things locally (shops, machine shops, or aftermarket manufacturers) - not much in the way of E30-specific aftermarket or performance shops.

Local e30 availability, condition, and prices - no shortage of E30 guys or parts in Middle or East TN. As for the condition of the cars available around here, well... it's the South. We have arguably the most desirable E30's with the exception of California and Texas.

[Albuquerque30]

The scene up here in the bay area is better than NM, but NM has almost no laws against modifying cars.

Solution: Keep car registered in NM, move to California. ;)

[e30lov]

Unrelated: I'm currently on tour driving across the country. I've driven over 4,000 miles so far starting in San Diego and I have not seen ONE e30 since I've departed SoCal. In PA I would regularly see a couple of e30s driving around.


I would say Maryland is a great location to own an e30. Plenty of them driving around, good bmw scene around those parts, and its pretty lax in terms of car modification laws.. etc.

[Vivek]

Cali seems to check off all the boxes except they are the absolute worst for motorist laws, historic car laws, modified cars. Traffic too (or so I heard). Those two things are really major though.

Northern cali and the bay area don't really strike me as having terrible traffic. Unless it's the morning or evening on a work day, you can flow pretty fast on the freeway. LA is really terrible though basically all the time. I have no real experience with the motorist laws but I know people who daily turbo cars and people who drive insanely regularly and for the most part they're okay.

[lambo]

thinking of moving to NM....wondering if I should not now.

Albuquerque has a decent car scene...but I don't think I would want to live there...or anywhere in NM. Just my opinion, though.

[ssaylor]

AZ - insure as a collectible and the car is smog exempt. Did this for my 89 325is and 91 M3.

[F34R]

NM has essentially no car laws. However...there is, approximately, zero bmw scene.

thinking of moving to NM....wondering if I should not now.

[lambo]

NM has essentially no car laws. However...there is, approximately, zero bmw scene.

[Bimmerman325i]

CO. Awesome roads, lax laws, and a lot less people than Kalifornistania.

[camip]

Bro PNW. E30 prices are a little high but oh well shop around, mountain roads to play on, laws aren't to bad, E30 PICNIC, and e30s are everywhere when I'm in Seattle area I at least see 5 a day.

[F34R]

NY is really great!

Things to consider:
Motorist laws
The e30 does not have to have catalytic converters, or be hooked up to a computer to pass inspection.

Historic/vintage car laws
Anything older than 25 years can have Classic plates

Climate (read: susceptible to rust?)
I store my BMWs for the winter and a little into Spring to wait for the rain to clean the roads clear. NY winters can be harsh but the spring-late fall is like no other. late Nov-Feb is my E30 down time. 3 months is not bad IMO

Concentration of e30-people
Mostly old people own e30s in upstate NY. I only know 4 locals

Local motorsport events (auto-x, local racetracks, etc)
Abundant, we have SCCA every other weekend and Watkins Glen International is only 35mins away from me!

Traffic and driving roads (twisties?, potholes and condition of roads)
Traffic is not an issue, and the roads are good ehough for me to DD on one of the harshest e30 suspension on the interwebs. I don't even notice having full poly bushings and heavy spring rates. Now in NYC they could NEVER get as low or stiff as me for a DD.

Places to buy E30 related things locally (shops, machine shops, or aftermarket manufacturers)
Local e30 availability, condition, and prices

The local junk yards used to have 4-6 e30s at all times, they are just drying up now. Lucky to see one or two, they get parted fast(mostly me stocking up for the future).

Replacement parts are bought new from Blunttech or GPS, performance parts are from the best providers on the webs. That is how I have done it.