New to cars looking for help with an E30

[Fish Milk]

Hey, i'm new to this community and I don't know much about cars but I always have been a little bit and my brother is pretty into cars, we don't talk or see each other much but I just got a 1988 bmw convertible 325i for my birthday as my first car, I looked up some things but I still don't know much about the car
I hope to be able to mod it into a better state than it currently is in, any tips on how to get started with growing my knowledge of this e30 and cars in general? i would appreciate any comments and feedback, thanks!

[roguetoaster]

No idea where you are in MD, but come to the meet Friday to learn what you need. Some of us come from over an hour away, so no excuses on that front.

https://www.r3vlimited.com/board/sho...d.php?t=145091

[Cptcarisma]

How do you milk a fish? Does it have teets like a cow?
(Meet the Fockers)

:-)

[uturn]

When you milk a fish you actually get something else. Think along the lines of rocky mountain oysters. Ewwww

[Haystack]

Well, start on the forums. Not facebook. 99% of E30 knowledge can be found in these halls.

[JasonC]

Where in MD are you? Also we do have a vert section https://www.r3vlimited.com/board/forumdisplay.php?f=192

And agree about the Facebook comment above.

[george graves]

How do you milk a fish?

You can milk anything with nipples.

OP, start with a good wash, then detail the engine bay. Look for anything that looks broken. Then give it a good interior detail, and the trunk. Drive it, and see what's wrong. Then google search. If you don't find the problem, add a "+r3vlimited" to the end of of it.

for example... "e30 blower motor only working on high" change it to "e30 blower motor only working on high +r3vlimited" 99.9% of your answers are here.

[roguetoaster]

You can milk anything with nipples.

True, but can you be in the circle of trust OP?

[IceWhite]

When last was the timing belt replaced and also, what other maintenance work has been done on the car?

Can you post some pics of the car.

[MrBurgundy]

yung newb


You're in good hands

[2mAn]

Id ask for the required pics of your GF, but she might not be 18 so.... post pics of your car instead

[SkiFree]

^^^ Haha, came in here looking for this comment, wasn't disappointed.

This is a good book to get. I did a bit of the editing and provided a number of the photos for the author. There are some inaccuracies still, but by n large it's the best introduction a new-kid could have.

https://www.amazon.com/BMW-E30-Performance-Guide-1982-1994/dp/1934709867#customerReviews

Then get a copy (or the .pdf) of the Bently service manual.

https://www.amazon.com/BMW-E30-Service-Manual-1984/dp/0837616476/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=Z33V99JDFT7VJ967GDRH

As for the basics of how cars work, start with watching the "engineering explained" videos on youtube. He does many informative basic overviews.

https://www.youtube.com/user/EngineeringExplained

Good luck, we were all young once. Take your bruises/bumps as valuable learning experiences and get smart.

[Fish Milk]

No idea where you are in MD, but come to the meet Friday to learn what you need. Some of us come from over an hour away, so no excuses on that front.

https://www.r3vlimited.com/board/sho...d.php?t=145091

i appreciate the invite haha but im like, a real noob. I dont have my license because i dont have enough money for my drivers lessons but im getting a job real soon so that'll start getting me where i want to be and ill be able to drive on my own in no time!

[roguetoaster]

In that case, just take apart whatever you want to learn about on the car, you'll have at least 9 months to figure it out. Or, you know, just read on r3v or e30techarchive. Avoid Youtube crap if you can, and buy a Bentley manual if you can swing it.

You could always ask r3v to fund drivers ed, but only if we get to choose what your new forehead tattoo will say for when you get your license. There's precedent: https://www.r3vlimited.com/board/sho...d.php?t=239960

[Fish Milk]

In that case, just take apart whatever you want to learn about on the car, you'll have at least 9 months to figure it out. Or, you know, just read on r3v or e30techarchive. Avoid Youtube crap if you can, and buy a Bentley manual if you can swing it.

You could always ask r3v to fund drivers ed, but only if we get to choose what your new forehead tattoo will say for when you get your license. There's precedent: https://www.r3vlimited.com/board/sho...d.php?t=239960

9 months for what? and why is youtube bad, also why get a bentley manual if i have a bmw? thanks!