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  • mw

    March 15, 2010 12:17 p.m. mw Reader

    Recently I've been keeping my eye out for an e30. I'm assuming that once we have kid #2, the miata will no longer be a practical DD for me since I am the one who does pick up drop off from daycare.

    I was driving last night and saw a black boxy bmw at the side of the road with a forsale sign. It was an 82 320is. The car looks to be in reasonable shape. The interior looked good, but the front fenders had rust and so did the metal underneath the rear taillights. The car had 140km on it.

    I know these cars are quite rare, and it is cool looking, but how would it compare to an e30? I would probably end up with a 4cyl e30, so keep that in mind. Will I ever be able to find parts for an e21? Do they blow up all the time without warning?

    Any help would be appreciated.

  • BoxheadTim

    March 15, 2010 12:21 p.m. BoxheadTim HalfDork

    I think mechanically they're not much worse than the E30. OTOH I remember them rusting a lot worse.

  • jrw1621

    March 15, 2010 12:26 p.m. jrw1621 Dork

    With two kids in tow I would suspect that you would be happier with a 4 door. The 320i only came in a two door fashion.

  • stuart in mn

    March 15, 2010 12:32 p.m. stuart in mn SuperDork

    They're neat little cars, although not particularly fast. The four cylinder engine is basically the same M10 that was used in the e30 (except for the 1991 318is, and the M3 of course.) The biggest concern is the rust. On a 320i, it's like an iceberg - 90% of it is hidden. If you can see rust on the exterior there's a lot more you can't see.

  • mad_machine

    March 15, 2010 12:35 p.m. mad_machine PowerDork

    the e21 is an odd car.. it is more 2002 than E30 underneath. The E30 was a MUCH better car.. even if the E21 was a better looking one

  • ZOO

    March 15, 2010 1:13 p.m. ZOO Dork

    Please tell me you saw this on the CASC board:

    BMW 320 wtih standalone

    And just a teaser for everyone:

    Rob

  • White_and_Nerdy

    March 15, 2010 1:16 p.m. White_and_Nerdy Reader

    Take a 2002. Then take it upscale - make it more luxurious, more comfortable, heavier with more features, soften the suspension a bit and give it more travel for even more comfort. Throw a 320i badge on it and you're done. :)

    They're older than E30s, and therefore a lot simpler and easier to work on. There are far less electronic doo-dads to go wrong. They've also had more time to rust. The rear shock towers are particularly prone., They're not fast cars by any means, but I did enjoy mine quite a bit - partly because I swapped some factory Recaros from a 320is into mine. If this 82 is an S model, it already has them. The S has no more horsepower, but it adds a rear sway bar, and maybe a LSD? I don't remember for sure. I do know that when I added a rear bar to my non-S 83, it would lift the inside rear wheel badly in tight fast turns, to the point where I removed the bar and was better off without it for autocross.

    I used to have a web site all about my car at 320i.com, but that server disappeared a few years ago. I still have it saved to my computer, though.

  • ClemSparks

    March 15, 2010 1:45 p.m. ClemSparks PowerDork

    I had one I was given for free (it was purple, some here will remember it).

    Mine was a prime example of a cheap car ("there's nothing more expensive..."), but it was kind of cool.

    I ultimately sold it (rather than fixing it more and keeping it as a DD) because I didn't want to invest the time (in learning), money (in tools/gauges), and energy (fixing/cussing) into the mechanical fuel injection system.

    I've been told time and again that it IS in fact a good system...but for me at the time, it just wasn't worth messing with.

    I'd have another if a clean one came along...but I wouldn't bother much with a rusty one.

    Clem

  • Tim Baxter

    March 15, 2010 2:10 p.m. Tim Baxter Online Editor

    The rust you saw is only the tip of the iceberg. If it's got rust there, it's got a lot more, and it's probably way more work than its worth.

    And I LIKE E21s.

  • mw

    March 15, 2010 2:14 p.m. mw Reader

    Thanks for the advice. On an unrealated note, since there seems to be a number of bmw guru's checking out this thread, how hard is it to go rom auto to manual in a 98 318ti?

  • WilberM3

    March 15, 2010 2:15 p.m. WilberM3 New Reader

    i'm more of an e30 fan, and in new england there arent any e21s left. my favorite e21 was a flat black lowered 320i that i saw at the bavarian autosport show'n'shine a few years ago. what really struck my eye was the amount of front camber and the wheel studs. upon closer inspection i found the car was sporting a built 2.5L 270+ hp S14. he said he went from the slowest car on the straights to one of the fastest and found he surprised more than a few flag workers who were getting ready to throw him the blue flag.

  • m4ff3w

    March 15, 2010 3:30 p.m. m4ff3w Dork

    Boost the snot out of it.

  • jrw1621

    March 15, 2010 3:41 p.m. jrw1621 Dork

    mw wrote:

    Thanks for the advice. On an unrealated note, since there seems to be a number of bmw guru's checking out this thread, how hard is it to go rom auto to manual in a 98 318ti?

    I do not know but advise may be over here.
    http://www.318ti.org/forum/

  • bludroptop

    March 15, 2010 4:15 p.m. bludroptop SuperDork

    e21 = the red-headed stepchild of BMWs.

    I had a biscayne blue '81, and I LOVED it. I've had a bunch of cars and that's one of the few I really miss. And yes, the rear shock towers are the first to go. Also, they have a weird wheel offset and a couple of other quirks, but if I could find a clean one I'd probably jump on it.

    Go back and take a closer look on the off chance it is not too far gone. If it is too rusty, the 5-speed is worth something to a 2002 owner.

  • nicksta43

    March 17, 2010 8:21 p.m. nicksta43 New Reader

    Sorry to bring this back but I've just now been able to post after seeing this thread.

    This was my last project I took on.

    It was probably to far gone but I did it anyway. Basically I had to replace all the metal form the rockers down. New floor pans, rockers and trunk(surprisingly the rear shock towers were good). If I had to do it again I would have saved my money but it was a good learning experience. It was an "is" and had a 3.92 lsd, rear swaybar, recaro's, and the ever elusive big toolkit in the trunk. The car was a blast to drive and the little m10 made some wonderful noises. It's far from fast but I found the steering telepathic and a dragon run was like heaven. I didn't get to mess with the drivetrain due to the birth of our first son but even with 293k it was very solid. I don't know if the engine had been rebuilt but it really pulled strong compared to another one I was able to drive.

    Like has been said if you can find a good one I would recommend owning one.

 

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