Just about to buy a E30 325is

[stalklee]

Hi guys, I'm about to purchase a '89 E30 325is, is it a good buy? cuz one of my friend owns E30 M3 said it cost alot money to fix E30 and oil leak blablablabla, but I like the way E30 looks and performance, the car owner is a lady and got brand new transmission and car check out already, but still need some job on it, what do you guys think? should I get it or not?


Thanks

[FSETH]

Love the car if it is a manual trans. Any good e30 is is a hard find these days. I had an e30 318i and an e30 325e and loved both of them. I drove those things into the ground and they kept ticking.

I would personally love an e30 M3, but they are maintenance nightmares. Those engines needs a lot of attention, from what I have read and heard.

The e30 318is is considered by some to be the "poor man's" e30 M3. Biggest difference between the 325is and 318is is weight. The 318is is a high revving 4 banger and the 325is is a little more front heavy due to the larger 6-cylinder engine extending over the front axle. You can actually supercharge the 318is to have more hp than the 325is (if you are into that).

Here is a good webpage for the 318is if you want to compare.

http://www.m42club.com/

Having said that, the e30 325is is a great car and would be alot of fun as a daily driver or a track/weekend toy, IMO.

Also, maintaining an e30 is not very expensive and it is not that hard to fix many common issues yorself. Your buddies e30 M3 is way more expensive to maintain than a 325is.

[stalklee]

Originally Posted by FSETH

Love the car if it is a manual trans. Any good e30 is is a hard find these days. I had an e30 318i and an e30 325e and loved both of them. I drove those things into the ground and they kept ticking.

I would personally love an e30 M3, but they are maintenance nightmares. Those engine needs a lot of attention, from what I have read and heard.

The e30 318is is considered by some to be the "poor man's" e30 M3. Biggest difference between the 325is and 318is is weight. The 318is is a high revving 4 banger and the 325is is a little more front heavy due to the larger 6-cylinder engine extending over the front axle. You can actually supercharge the 318is to have more hp than the 325is (if you are into that).

Here is a good webpage for the 318is if you want to compare.

http://www.m42club.com/

Having said that, the e30 325is is a great car and would be alot of fun as a daily driver or a track/weekend toy, IMO.

well, only thing I want to do is keep it running good, and be my everyday driving car, I'm not going to race or anything, will that be okay to buy?

[FSETH]

You have to remember that you are buying a 20 year old car as a daily driver, so if you are capable of taking care of regular maintenance and small issues yourself, then I would say go for it. If you need to go to a shop for every repair, I would suggest another car because that can get expensive.

Also, remember that you will probably only have one air bag and that the A/C does not blow quite as cold or hard as most new cars. Other than that, it should be a fun car to drive.

[stalklee]

I can take care of it for sure, Internet teach everything and I'm only driving ten mins to my school, actually only in the city, if I go far distance I will go with my X for sure, and I living in Oregon, no need AC at all lol. thanks for advise I will get it soon

[Bimmer Ese]

I really miss my E30 (even though it was a 325es). See pics on my X5 webpage. I paid $900 for it and sunk in around $12000 (got carried away with mods and replacement parts). If you do buy the E30, first thing I would do is change the timing belt. Pretty pricey if the belt snaps. With regular maintenance, the E30 will last forever. Just be sure to check the car all over for rust. If possible, throw the car on a lift to inspect the undercarriage.

Maybe one of these days, I will buy another E30.

Good luck,
Daniel

[haigha]

I had an 89 325i for fourteen years. It was a great car.

I agree with the timing belt comment. My indie mechanic had me change mine about twice as often as the recommended maintenance schedule.