2 beater-ish cars, or 1 do-it-all car?

Whats up everyone!

This is more to get opinions than anything. Currently I own a '99 Miata with ~83k miles on it. I own an '89 E30 325is with ~130k on it. The Miata is kind of my weekend/autocross/nice day car. The E30 is more my daily trooper/practical/future-S52-swap-track-car project car. If I sold both, I could probably pull in around $8,000.

Now an interesting situation has arose. The problem in question is this:

http://www.ksl.com/auto/listing/1564430?ad_cid=5

Very clean and well maintained E36 M3. Guy says he will part with it for $8,200. So basically, I can ditch both current cars, and pick up a pristine E36 M3, a car known for its ability to be both a livable daily driver, and a potent track toy.

So I was just curious what your opinions are. Would you rather have two, cheaper, older fun cars, or one do-it-all car thats much nicer? Insurance is dead cheap on the two cars I own since I am paying minimums only. If I were to spring for the E36, I would probably get a better policy.

I think for what I'm doing, the 2 car option is probably better. I can throw one around the track and have fun with it, and if it breaks down or if I put it into a wall, I have a backup car. However, I'm not sure I want to dump money into an E30 when it is as old as it is, and when the E36 is just that much more sorted of a car. The E36 suspension setup is much better than the E30's oldschool strut and trailing arm setup (so I hear).

Anyway, I will probably keep both cars, but if there was an M3 to buy around here, that would be the car. I haven't seen such a well maintained example ever on our local listings.

What are your guys' thoughts? You can make comments specific to my situation, or just about the whole 2 cars vs 1 car thing in general. Thank you, as always!

I would keep the two cars. I am basically completely against ever owning only one car. Even though i have never had less than a pile of cars since graduating high school, occasionally enough of them will go down at the same time that i will have only one car that is well and truly DD'able and when that happens it gives me an annoying kind of anxiety about lack of choice and lack of contingencies.

I think the two cars you've got are a good pair.

Funnily enough, if you still wanted an e36 m3 you'd probably be better off selling the miata and adding 2-4k on top to get one then trying to upgrade from e30 to e36, just because the miata will sell for more.

Just my .02

Actually a nice and clean 325is isn't exactly cheap these days either. Shouldn't be much of a problem to get $5k-$6k for that one, either.

IMHO if you track a car it shouldn't really be your daily driver unless you're a glutton for punishment and can walk to work while you're waiting for some odd backordered tuning parts to show up.

That sure is a nice M3 though.

I would definitely go with the two car route. Just make sure you do a track day in the next 3 or 4 months so you don't regret not going after the M3 so much. You may just need to replace your E30 eventually because if you don't want to dump a lot of money in it because it's old, it's not your S52 swap project car anymore.

Two car. That E30's only going to go up in value at this point, they're past the bottom of the depreciation curve. Right now, a good E30 is worth more than a high mileage E46.

"I think for what I'm doing, the 2 car option is probably better. I can throw one around the track and have fun with it, and if it breaks down or if I put it into a wall, I have a backup car."

You answered your own question.

+1 for keeping two cars, any less than that and you're asking to be left stranded.

Count me with the 2 cars or more group. Cars break. It's always nice to have a spare while you fix the other one. Five or six cars may be the start of a problem.

you have 2 GRM favorites, you need to save for a 4.0 XJ and open trailer to complete the trifecta.

2 is always better than one.

2 cars, I found it limiting trying to track your dd.

ncjay wrote: Five or six cars may be the start of a problem.

I have six right now...

Depends, I've gone back to having one nice, low mileage DD that I'll occasionally Auto-X or HPDE.

A dedicated HPDE car is hard to justify, even as young DINKs with a low 6 figure gross household income in a super cheap part of the country. The maintenance, fees, expense of a weekend........I realized I want a fun car to occasionally go drive 9/10ths vs a $13-15k car I can drive 10/10ths 5-6 weekends a year at a cost of $650+ per weekend

A dedicated HPDE car is hard to justify, even as young DINKs with a low 6 figure gross household income in a super cheap part of the country.

A younger version of myself would be surprised by how relatable this sentiment/situation is for me right now. A dedicated track car other than rallycross doesnt even hit my thought radar.

I still wont go back to one car, though. Not by a long shot!!

Also, i kind of doubt the e30 will bring more than the miata unless it is well and truly NICE.

Vigo wrote:

A dedicated HPDE car is hard to justify, even as young DINKs with a low 6 figure gross household income in a super cheap part of the country.

A younger version of myself would be surprised by how relatable this sentiment/situation is for me right now. A dedicated track car other than rallycross doesnt even hit my thought radar. I still wont go back to one car, though. Not by a long shot!! Also, i kind of doubt the e30 will bring more than the miata unless it is well and truly NICE.

Yeah, I'm just tired of messing with stuff for the moment. I'm sure in a few years I may change my mind......again.

We will have to see what happens with my and wife's career over the next few years, we may end up moving to a different state.

I have 4 drivers in my household. I have 7 cars in (and around) the driveway, 6 of which get regular use. The newest is 10 years old. I believe in having the right tool for the right job.

I will most likely keep both cars. Its just you don't find an M3 in this nice of condition here, EVER. Did I mention he said he would take 8300 for it? I just keep trying to convince myself..."The E36 M3 isnt even really an M car..." "You can buy a 328 and make it almost as good" "Just S52 swap your E30, it will be lighter and faster".

Lol still, the temptation is there. If anyone else wants to add to my "convincing statements" feel free :P

If it makes you feel any better, I absolutely love my e46 328. Great platform with tons of aftermarket support. Plus, they can be had for pretty dang cheap (with mods I'm into mine at around 8k).

Yeah, E46s are at the bottom of the depreciation curve. You can get a facelifted 325i for around $4k, and a 330i for a tad over $5k, and that's as fast as an E36 M3 and a whole lot nicer.

Didn't somebody here just score a cream puff 330i ZHP for very cheap? Like under $7k?

Possibly. I still kind of chuckle any time I see someone buy a ZHP for 5 figures. Sure, it's a good example of an E46. No berkeleying way it's worth $6000 more than mine.

Well, a 330i ZHP is what I really wanted a few years ago when I bought my 325i ZSP instead. I had enough change left over to buy the Manic Miata for a toy.

Yeah, I really wanted one too until I priced out Black Cube trim, an M3 gearbox, and some KW coilovers and realized it would be much more cost effective to make my own.

I mean, if it had an LSD or something more impressive you could make the argument, but it's hardly an improvement IMO.

UPDATE:

Ok guys, I know this thread is old. But this has seriously been on my mind for the last few days, so much that I've probably lost sleep over it

The guy will take $8,000 for the M3. I was underneath the E30 today, and I noticed all the pinch welds are pretty crappy. They are starting to "bloom" outwards from rust, and they honestly dont look all that safe. I had plans to swap an S52 into the E30, but I am beginning to wonder if the car is worth dumping money into. Its just very old. Maybe I should cut my losses, sell it and pick up the newer car, with less rust?

The M3 seems like the perfect car right now. Its the year I want, I like the color, the price is right, it seems well maintained and in "turn-key" status, where my E30 is definitely not (about to do a timing belt job on it AND it needs new tires/brake bleed). I'm not sure I want to go back to just 1 car.

If I were eventually to turn the E30 into a "racecar", strip it out, swap the S52, and just have it as my motorsport car, is undercarriage rust a huge deal? Seems like, for me being a garage-wrencher, having to put it on jack stands could be nerve-wracking. I would be afraid the undercarriage might give way and crush me underneath the car. Any further advice you guys can offer?

BTW, seller posted a youtube walk-around: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3WnUL-eeJI