So I bought an e30 yesterday

I bought a 325es yesterday, it is a 1986 with 186000 miles. It has some spots of rust throughout the car but none look too advanced and I plan on tending to them this spring. The car is at home and I am at college so I won't get to work on it till Saturday.

The car has been sitting since the beginning of summer in a garage and needed a few jumps before the battery had enough charge to start on its own. The handling is very washy and I'm guessing it needs all new struts. When driving it the rear end kept making dull clunking noises, it wasn't loud like something was slamming around but it was audible. The shifter is muddy and probably needs new bushings, the previous owner says that their mechanic thought it would need transmission work soon as it's beginning to whine some. I was planning on changing the fluid to see if this would reduce the whine and prolong the life of the transmission.

The car was serviced at the best shop in town but I haven't seen the records yet (apparently HIPA applies to car shops too?). I will post pictures later, any ideas on what I should replace on it are appreciated!

Joshua

Dull clunking in the rear is rear subframe bushings.
http://e30world.com/suspension/BMW-E30-Rear-Subframe-Bushings-Replacement
http://travelrats.blogspot.com/2009/12/replacement-of-rear-subframe-bushings.html

The rear is probably subframe bushings. Known for wearing. Could be diff mounts as well, but the former is more likely.

The stock springs are apparently rather soft. New struts won't hurt, but figure on a set of aftermarket springs.

The shifter is not exactly precise even when everything is fresh and new, so don't expect miracles there. The shifter in my car was a magic wand when I bought it and while replacing all of the bushings and adding a Z3 lever was a marked improvement, I was still quite disappointed when comparing the feel to our MINI's with a SSK or even my bone stock Mk IV VW. If you're used to something like a Miata, forget any of the cheapish refurb options and go directly to one of the aftermarket setups like AKG or UUC. Yes, they aren't cheap, but replacing the shifter is a tedious project and trust me - you only want to do it once.

The general thought is to get a car up to snuff first, then start modifiying. I'd investigate the rear clunking first and start with that along with all of the other mounting bushings and various joints.

JohnRW1621 wrote: Dull clunking in the rear is rear subframe bushings. http://e30world.com/suspension/BMW-E30-Rear-Subframe-Bushings-Replacement http://travelrats.blogspot.com/2009/12/replacement-of-rear-subframe-bushings.html

Yep, could "possibly" be the Rear Trailing Arm Bushings as well.

I'd plan on needing to replace everything in the suspension, control arms, control arm bushings (Go with offset or E30 M3), etc etc

Nice. Another E30 finds a new home. Our E30 Gertrag transmissions are extremely tough. Doubt it needs transmission work at only 186k. Drain the transmission and fill with Red Line Synthetic gear oil for manual transmissions. It will quiet down in a couple of miles. Do the same for the differential with Red Line differential gear oil. A couple things can cause an audible clunk. What is the the tire wear pattern back there? Could be trailing arm bushings, shocks gone, shock mounts, loose sway bar mounts... UUC double shear shifter kit FTW

Also check the flex-disc (guibo) and the CSB on the driveshaft.

Thanks for the input guys, I was hoping and praying it wasn't the subframe bushings but I bet you guys are right. I will replace both diff and tranny fluid with Redline this weekend, I'm not familiar with the process any idea how difficult it is?

Hntsvl_E30 wrote: Nice. Another E30 finds a new home. Our E30 Gertrag transmissions are extremely tough. Doubt it needs transmission work at only 186k. Drain the transmission and fill with Red Line Synthetic gear oil for manual transmissions. It will quiet down in a couple of miles. Do the same for the differential with Red Line differential gear oil. A couple things can cause an audible clunk. What is the the tire wear pattern back there? Could be trailing arm bushings, shocks gone, shock mounts, loose sway bar mounts... UUC double shear shifter kit FTW

I can attest to that.. A year or so after we got our E30 Project on the road (this summer), I decided to replace my transmission and differential fluid while I replaced the Guibo and the Transmission Mounts. I was amazed!

When I pulled off the transmission drain bolt, I was expecting at least 1 quart + of fluid to come out. I caught about 7 cc's of some dark muck with metal shavings in a plastic water bottle. Who knows how long the P.O. had been running without adequate fluid. It still shifter like butter. I refilled and will drain it again this winter. The Diff fluid was dark too..

While you're under there, do the trans mount and guibo.

Good Luck!

For bushings and crap, check out my build thread in the build thread section. I replaced pretty much all the bushings on the car and have commentary/photos on pretty much all of them, install methods, etc etc.

So what are you going to do with the car? daily driver, race, etc?

The Z3 shifter fixed mine right up. If it's still sloppy, then something else is wrong. These transmissions will vomit gear oil if they are used for racing, and the rear output flange seal is absurdly fussy about being installed properly (correct sealant is a must). I'd hazard a guess that the noise is because the fluid is low.

These cars beg to be lowered. Replace the factory crap springs, replace ALL the suspension bushings (I like poly) and get the offset ones for the front if you lower it. The factory sway bars are wimp city; IE or Suspension Techniques make good bars for these but you'll want to buy the reinforcement kits for the rear or you'll break stuff.

Properly tightened up you'll be amazed at how razor sharp the reflexes will be on an E30.

** what david said.

e30 offset LCA bushings (in the "lollipop"), and also get the offset upper shock tower mounts up front.

I also have the Z3 shifter and it's great. Even with stock springs, bilstein HDs, and just some 325i swaybars, my high-sitting 318i handles great on the road too (with star specs) even though it's not at all intended for that.

What is a good suspension setup that isn't too expensive? Most BMW guys I know run Bilstien's.

Depends on what you're doing with the car. Stock 325ix springs with Bilstein HDs and some bigger sways are good for handling and ride quality.

If you're looking for a lower stance, there are plenty of options with Bilstein Sports or Konis.

The best suspension setup is new bushings everywhere, new balljoints, and HDs, and just use your stock springs until you decide the next step.

I am planning on daily driving the car for now It will be a commuter until summer, then it will see some autocross duty and hopefully a few track days. Depending on how long I keep the car it could turn into a track rat, race car, or rallyx car, but it is unlikely it will stay that long since I can probably sell it for more.

Joshua wrote: I am planning on daily driving the car for now It will be a commuter until summer, then it will see some autocross duty and hopefully a few track days. Depending on how long I keep the car it could turn into a track rat, race car, or rallyx car, but it is unlikely it will stay that long since I can probably sell it for more.

If you're plan is to possibly flip it...........I wouldn't do much more than necessary maintenance. Bushings/control arms, would be good, rotor/cap/plugs/fuel filter, etc. Replace hubs/bearings if necessary.

But if you get into springs/shocks, camber/toe correction for the rear etc you will start dramatically reducing your potential profit.

In fact, I'd fix the clunk, clean it up and sell it. The more wear and tear you put it on it the worse. And if it's a particularly clean example, much else is just going to lower the value.

The Spec E30 suspension kit is reasonably priced, non-adjustable and works really well. I don't find it too harsh for street use, and I live in Pottholevania. Just be cognizant of the lower oil pan.

ddavidv wrote: The Z3 shifter fixed mine right up. If it's still sloppy, then something else is wrong.

I disagree vehemently, but this is an old arguement... But you actually like your car whereas if I didn't have so much money tied up in mine, I'd be happy to see it blown to smithereens on Mythbusters...

I'd do basically everything you guys are recommending.

On mine, I did E30 M3 poly control arm bushings, new control arms, trans mount bushings, UUC shifter.

Is the odo dead or the dash cracked?

Congrats on the new purchase, you will love it. They are really wonderful cars! I actually have a set of kyb shocks/inserts with less than 400 miles on them I will sell for cheap if you are interested. Best of luck with your new project!

-Josh

After looking at prices of shocks and springs I may take you up on that offer for the KYB's Josh.

The dash has two cracks, one behind the steering wheel the other on the passenger side by the windshield. Good news is the odometer works great so far (knock on wood)...

When I start the car cold (and by cold I mean about 20 degrees F cold) the check engine light flashes, however it goes away once the car heats up. Any ideas what that might be? Also the Anti Lock light is on and I'm not sure why, I didn't think these has ABS??

CLNSC3 wrote: I actually have a set of kyb shocks/inserts with less than 400 miles on them I will sell for cheap if you are interested. Best of luck with your new project! -Josh

Interest = piqued...

Clem

Joshua wrote: Also the Anti Lock light is on and I'm not sure why, I didn't think these has ABS??

Probably a blown relay. Happens if someone accidentally mixes up the + and - when jump starting the car. Even for a split second.

You can get a new relay from Pelican Parts or take the old one apart and jumper the burnt out link. I think there's a how-to somewhere on the R3vlimited.com or e30tech.com forums. Of course, jumpering the link may burn out other things if the mix-up should happen again.

Silver relay above the ABS brain. I stock up on them at the U-Pull-It but they are easy enough to fix if you have soldering skills. If that's not it, then there's a fairly simple diagnostic to follow to find the problem, but 99% of the time it's that relay.

Don't know why Ian hates his car so much. Some people just don't have success with certain cars. I had Fiats and liked them. Had a Mopar 2.2 that I wanted to set on fire. There's turds in every brand/model.

So does anyone know how difficult it is to change tranny and diff oil?

Joshua wrote: So does anyone know how difficult it is to change tranny and diff oil?

Stupid easy. Two plugs for each, easily accessible. Remove the fill plug first just in case; nothing worse than draining the fluid only to find the fill plug is stuck.