Lookin for an E30 in Alberta

[carter240]

Hey guys, new here, hoping some of you would know of an E30 someone is selling around Calgary (maybe edmonton if its worth the drive ;) ), i have a $2000 budget, so looking for a DB car, this will be a project, but id like minimal rust/damage. I need it to run so i can get it home as well. Thanks :)

[Mike30e]

Check the Autotrader, there's a pretty nice looking 88 IS coupe in Sherwood Park...

[maniacmatt]

I live in sherwood park and would be happy to check it out for you.

[bimmer_E30]

there is a 1987 325is for sale on kijiji for sale right now, check it out. it's worth looking at.

[carter240]

thanks for the help guys! The search is continued...

i called about one that was $1200, hadn't ran in 2 years and the guy lost the keys for it. Sounded like a huge pain in the ass so i talked him down to $600 and still undecided on the car, the body's great but i need something that will run.

[bimmer_E30]

there is a red Eta for 2200 on kijij he said he will take 1800 but it needs a rear main seal.

[mitch500]

buy my vert, 6500$ best one you will ever find. honestly!
its in edmonton

[carter240]

Been awhile since i've checked this thread... I came across one and the owner said he'd be interested in a trade for my 90 4runner i have. I posted most of this in the interior section but you guys were helping me find me a car so i thought i'd share with you, the lastest car i looked at.

Its a 91 318is, brilliantrot. Everything under the hood looks great with very little mess, no random wires and such - very very clean. It drives nice and quiet on the highway but it does have SOME bump steer and has a slight clunk going over bumps. I suspect the tie rods/shocks/ball joints probably need to be replaced. Its sitting on basket weaves with pretty good winter tires (important here in Calgary AB)

However when i looked at the interior, the center console shakes side to side and feels loose so its obviously not attached somewhere. Being this is my first e30 Im not sure how they are attached.

I have a few questions about some problems with it. Im not going to find a really clean E30 in Canada in my price range, im ok with that, i just want a starter e30 that i can work on for the time being so when im out of school i can go down to the states and bring up my dream e30 for ~ $12 000. I basicly just want to get used to how their designed and how everything works in them and get used to fixing things. This is my first german car so i assume its going to be alot more different than nissans toyotas and GM's.

How hard is it to attach the centner console and is there a common fault with them that'd cause something to be broken and a pain to fix? such as hard to find special clips, or is it held in by screws and its not a big deal?

The temp gauge reads slightly higher than reg. not in the red but just off to the right of normal operating temp. He did say he replaced the t-stat with a 190* so could that cause that or is there something wrong here?

Another issue is the tach doesn't work and the lights on the side of the cluster don't work, along with the left signal indicator in the cluster (he said it used to), i've heard this no tach problem is common as well and im wondering if taking it apart is worth while or should i budget for a new cluster? The current cluster says 381 000km. But the motor has been rebuilt at some point (im not sure of when)

The rocker panel also has major rust but the owners offered my a replacement panel. I would most likely replace that after i roll the fenders. Other than the rust the paint looked really good. He wants $1800, would you guys go for it? the paint is in great shape then the engine pulls strong and idles great, no smoke or anything.

I should also mention that I am a student and i DO plan to fix all these issues in good time, projects are fun, however being a student money is somewhat hard to come by. That said this would not be a daily driver (although it seemed to drive pretty good minus a slight clunk over bumps), the bus stop is across the street and i C train to school everyday.

Given these circumstances would you purchase the car if you were in my position? or not, if not please state why. Any help on the issues i've found with it would be great.

I appreciate any feed back, thanks to those who read all that.

[bimmer_E30]

Been awhile since i've checked this thread... I came across one and the owner said he'd be interested in a trade for my 90 4runner i have. I posted most of this in the interior section but you guys were helping me find me a car so i thought i'd share with you, the lastest car i looked at.

Its a 91 318is, brilliantrot. Everything under the hood looks great with very little mess, no random wires and such - very very clean. It drives nice and quiet on the highway but it does have SOME bump steer and has a slight clunk going over bumps. I suspect the tie rods/shocks/ball joints probably need to be replaced. Its sitting on basket weaves with pretty good winter tires (important here in Calgary AB)

However when i looked at the interior, the center console shakes side to side and feels loose so its obviously not attached somewhere. Being this is my first e30 Im not sure how they are attached.

I have a few questions about some problems with it. Im not going to find a really clean E30 in Canada in my price range, im ok with that, i just want a starter e30 that i can work on for the time being so when im out of school i can go down to the states and bring up my dream e30 for ~ $12 000. I basicly just want to get used to how their designed and how everything works in them and get used to fixing things. This is my first german car so i assume its going to be alot more different than nissans toyotas and GM's.

How hard is it to attach the centner console and is there a common fault with them that'd cause something to be broken and a pain to fix? such as hard to find special clips, or is it held in by screws and its not a big deal?

The temp gauge reads slightly higher than reg. not in the red but just off to the right of normal operating temp. He did say he replaced the t-stat with a 190* so could that cause that or is there something wrong here?

Another issue is the tach doesn't work and the lights on the side of the cluster don't work, along with the left signal indicator in the cluster (he said it used to), i've heard this no tach problem is common as well and im wondering if taking it apart is worth while or should i budget for a new cluster? The current cluster says 381 000km. But the motor has been rebuilt at some point (im not sure of when)

The rocker panel also has major rust but the owners offered my a replacement panel. I would most likely replace that after i roll the fenders. Other than the rust the paint looked really good. He wants $1800, would you guys go for it? the paint is in great shape then the engine pulls strong and idles great, no smoke or anything.

I should also mention that I am a student and i DO plan to fix all these issues in good time, projects are fun, however being a student money is somewhat hard to come by. That said this would not be a daily driver (although it seemed to drive pretty good minus a slight clunk over bumps), the bus stop is across the street and i C train to school everyday.

Given these circumstances would you purchase the car if you were in my position? or not, if not please state why. Any help on the issues i've found with it would be great.

I appreciate any feed back, thanks to those who read all that.

Hey Man, Good luck with the Purchase of that 318is.


So for the Centre console, i am wondering it could be a loose bolt or somthing like that, It's not to hard to take the centre console apart and inspect everything. again i am not really to sure about Getting the centre console apart. i am pretty sure if you Search on here you will find it. i am trying to find out too since i am troubleshooting some Electrical problems with my car and ineed of knowing how to take it apart.


Now for the Clunk Noise, i am 100% sure it's the Control Arm bushings or a Balljoint. i had the same Problem with my old car and it was the CAB's.


For the Overheating, Does the temp gauge climbs up when you stop at traffic or it just sits always alittle bit over the half? if it does that when you come up to a stop, it's a bad FAN clutch, easy to replace. and i would say he probably orderd the wrong Thermostat(again i am not to sure with 318is) or you might have to bleed the system.

The tach problem, if your Radio and the Tachometer isn't working thats the fuse for sure. or a bad Grounding. should be an easy fix. Check if the Odometer is working and report back.

The rust problem is a big issue here, i would say if it's really bad then i would stay away from it and find you a good base. Dealing with Rust is Abslutley horrible. unless you know what you're doing. if he says that he will offer the rocker panels and you have the knowledge then i would say go for it. after all we don't want another E30 to End up in the Junkyard :(

This is my 5th E30, i love these cars. so simple and easy to work on and they have a timeless designing. if you need any help let me know, i love E30s and i don't mind helping out another Fellow E30 owner outhere.

Good Luck.

-Huss

[carter240]

Hey Man, Good luck with the Purchase of that 318is.


So for the Centre console, i am wondering it could be a loose bolt or somthing like that, It's not to hard to take the centre console apart and inspect everything. again i am not really to sure about Getting the centre console apart. i am pretty sure if you Search on here you will find it. i am trying to find out too since i am troubleshooting some Electrical problems with my car and ineed of knowing how to take it apart.


Now for the Clunk Noise, i am 100% sure it's the Control Arm bushings or a Balljoint. i had the same Problem with my old car and it was the CAB's.


For the Overheating, Does the temp gauge climbs up when you stop at traffic or it just sits always alittle bit over the half? if it does that when you come up to a stop, it's a bad FAN clutch, easy to replace. and i would say he probably orderd the wrong Thermostat(again i am not to sure with 318is) or you might have to bleed the system.

The tach problem, if your Radio and the Tachometer isn't working thats the fuse for sure. or a bad Grounding. should be an easy fix. Check if the Odometer is working and report back.

The rust problem is a big issue here, i would say if it's really bad then i would stay away from it and find you a good base. Dealing with Rust is Abslutley horrible. unless you know what you're doing. if he says that he will offer the rocker panels and you have the knowledge then i would say go for it. after all we don't want another E30 to End up in the Junkyard :(

This is my 5th E30, i love these cars. so simple and easy to work on and they have a timeless designing. if you need any help let me know, i love E30s and i don't mind helping out another Fellow E30 owner outhere.

Good Luck.

-Huss

Honestly...its guys like you that make me want to be a part of the e30 scene. So many of you guys are die hard owners and more than happy to help. Reminds me of the subaru brotherhood im used to... :)

Im not overly concerned about the rust if the panel is supplied or sourced, my uncle is a bodyman and has offered his services. i was mostly worried about the control arm bushing if thats what needs to be replaced. How hard are they to replace? I was a 2nd mechanic and went to school for it but somethings are just a pain in the ass if you know what i mean. The cluster i think i can figure out since he said it was working, the radio was working as well so probably not that fuse.

As for the temp i beleive it just sat at hotter the whole time and didnt climb as far as i can remember.

I was also worried about the cent console because it makes the whole car feel low quality. Everything else works on the inside though. If all goes well i'll post pics up!

Also how are these m42's to work on? Thanks alot of the insight!

[bimmer_E30]

Honestly...its guys like you that make me want to be a part of the e30 scene. So many of you guys are die hard owners and more than happy to help. Reminds me of the subaru brotherhood im used to... :)

Im not overly concerned about the rust if the panel is supplied or sourced, my uncle is a bodyman and has offered his services. i was mostly worried about the control arm bushing if thats what needs to be replaced. How hard are they to replace? I was a 2nd mechanic and went to school for it but somethings are just a pain in the ass if you know what i mean. The cluster i think i can figure out since he said it was working, the radio was working as well so probably not that fuse.

As for the temp i beleive it just sat at hotter the whole time and didnt climb as far as i can remember.

I was also worried about the cent console because it makes the whole car feel low quality. Everything else works on the inside though. If all goes well i'll post pics up!

Also how are these m42's to work on? Thanks alot of the insight!

Hey man no Worries :)

So i am sure it's a bad wire grounding for the cluster. Easy.

that's good to hear that your Uncle is taking care of fixing the rust. it shouldn't be to hard. i my self dealing with a rust hole that the P.O didn't mention when i purchased the car.

So the Coolant system issues. maybe you should overhaul the whole system? just replaced the water pump, Fan clutch and all the hoses...bleed the system and see if that changes anything? and Replace the Thermostat with the Recommended one from BMW. Check Palicanparts.com or Bavauto for part number. i usually buy my stuff from Bavauto.com geat Experience so far.

And no worries about the centre console, if you can post some pictures of it that will help alot. also Look in junk yards and some for Sale thread on here. You could score so many parts for so cheap. i am pretty sure you could find the centre console for less than 20$ shipped on here.
this a link that someone posted, it's for Replacing the Dashboard on a E30. it should tell you how to fix that Centre console.

and for the control arms, to be honest i usually pay Eurasia or someone called Dan In Edmonton and they're borth great so far. if i had the proper tools i would do everything on the car by my self. Since you're a mechanic that should be a cake.

M42s are geat Motors, just watch out for the Headgasket Problems on them. and they're decent on gas and easy to work on.
Hope that helps. :)

[carter240]

wow i haven't been on here in awhile. Needless to say I never got the car...kind of ended up a piece of shit when I looked at it in the day light...so I'm still on the look. Maybe for something that needs work because I work at NAPA and get all parts at cost + %10 which is great.

[not2sweet]

E30 in Alberta

Hey guys, new here, hoping some of you would know of an E30 someone is selling around Calgary (maybe edmonton if its worth the drive ;) ), i have a $2000 budget, so looking for a DB car, this will be a project, but id like minimal rust/damage. I need it to run so i can get it home as well. Thanks :)

I have an 89, but needs an engine. very very little rust, been totally babied this car.

[carter240]

kinda need something right now as a daily, it will turn into a project starting with stance and wheels and then a motor swap later on. Right now I need a daily so I can work on my truck. Heres a pic for anyone that cares.

[bimmer_E30]

Still looking for an e30? What's your budget?