Used E30 question

Hello guys, while on my way home from school today I saw a small BMW sitting in a used-car lot near my home. I stopped to check it out and saw that it was indeed an e30 325, with a manual 'box. The lot owner does not appear to know very much about the car, though it is an '86, and supposedly "runs and shifts real nice, but, of course, needs some TLC." It has a clear title, but other than that I don't know very much about it either. I asked about the timing chain, and he said that he did not know about that eiuther, but it should be in the papers that the car came with. He said that it has a four-cylinder engine-I did not have much time to give it a look-over, but on the decklid there was simply a "325" badge--does this not mean that it is the base model, and I thought that these cars had the m20 I-6..hmm. The price was $1800. This all sounds slightly iffy to me: and the fact that it has been a long time since I drove a car with a manual 'box is what is keeping me from snapping it up. What dost y'all thinketh?

If its a 1986 it is not a 4 cylinder unless it was swapped in after that. You could only get the four banger in 1984-85 and 1991 (later in the convertibles).

If it runs and drives and is at least somewhat solid, I'd see how low you could get it. For $1000, it would probably be worth it. But hard to say without seeing pictures or knowing more information on it.

All E30s other than the 318 should have a 6. It will also have a timing belt rather than a chain and it's pretty important that it gets changed out on it's service interval as these are interference engines. It's a good idea to go ahead and replace it anyway, especially if there isn't any paperwork detailing when it was last done. Definitely do get one with a manual gearbox.

I guess it depends on where you live, but $1800 should get you a pretty spotless E30. You might have better luck finding a less expensive example on craigslist and maybe have a seller that knows the history of the car.

I sold my '87 325is for $1500.

If its an 86 and a 325 that means 2.7 liter 6 cyl.

I have the automatic version.

It is a timing belt, not pump and if you cannot verify it, replace it. Do the water pump at the same time as well as a valve adjustment. The walkthroughs on pelican parts should get you through it.

Timing belt, the rad has to come out. Dizzy, water pump, belts, fan, you name it. between the block and the core support it all comes out. It really isnt too bad, just a pita. Replace the water pump while you are in there.

there is a whole list of common problems, but none of them major concerns other then rust. I guess a fractured rear subframe would be a major concern.. take a peek if you can.

Thanks everyone for the information--I will have to check these things out, if they do need to be changed then I could ask for a few more $ to be knocked off. I have my reservations about this place anyway: a few years ago I stopped by to ask about a 190-series Merc, and when I asked the man if the car ran well he said "well, I don't know yet, we don't have the keys!"

If you want an E30, I'd wait and find a 2.5 version. The 2.7 is a low revving fuel economy engine. While they can be built into a decent stroker motor, the 2.5 is instant smiles and requires no extra effort.

E30 prices have been going up. Carson's car would likely be worth closer to $2500 now, at least in my area.

I had an '86 325e, the low revving fuel economy model; but for $50 someone on the local BMW Board sold me a chip. Youwzah! It would be worth it if I paid full price, ~$200.

Eibach springs, some nice tires and you're off and running. Look for rust, but for $1800, I wouldn't be aftraid of it. $1200 leaves room for improvement.

914Driver wrote: I had an '86 325e, the low revving fuel economy model; but for $50 someone on the local BMW Board sold me a chip. Youwzah! It would be worth it if I paid full price, ~$200. Eibach springs, some nice tires and you're off and running. Look for rust, but for $1800, I wouldn't be aftraid of it. $1200 leaves room for improvement.

Love the mirrors -- I am thinking of something similar on my Miata (although I am going to nationalist and make them Canadian flags :)).

ddavidv wrote: E30 prices have been going up. Carson's car would likely be worth closer to $2500 now, at least in my area.

When Sonic and I transfered the title to my '88 325is, it turns out the PA-state-official "fair market value" of the car that came up on the computer is actually more than the $4500 I paid for it by a little bit. And to think, less than 5 years ago, a MINI shop I deal with had a lead on a '87 325is that was literally being given away...

I've been casually watching ebay for the last couple of years and the $1500 325is is a thing of the past.

Yup, M42, M20B25, and Cabrios have been skyrocketing in price.

m4ff3w wrote: M42, and Cabrios have been skyrocketing in price.

Saweet

Purchased for $1800 3 months ago.
140k miles. Some very, very slight rust and a very good interior. I have put 3k miles on the car since purchase and invested no money into keeping it running

They are out there but hard to find.

http://rides.webshots.com/photo/2872519390035467440txQWQq
I will admit, I was lucky enough to buy the car due to a few issues. The seller listed the car on a Thurs in craigslist but did a poor job of writting the listing. The title was " '87 BMW." It did not say 325is just rather "top of the line 3 series." Because of this, the car did not come up on most searches on key words. I made an appointment to see to see the car on that Saturday morning. It truely was 5 degrees outside the morning I bought the car. His $2,200 asking price was knocked down to $1800. The seller and I drove to the bank together to get get cash and notorize the title. On the way back, the seller stopped and filled the gas tank - nice guy.

How are the AWD E30's? Too slow to get out of their own way, or diamonds in the rough?

klipless wrote: How are the AWD E30's? Too slow to get out of their own way, or diamonds in the rough?

Depends on what you want to go fast on... they can fly thru snow, mud, dirt, gravel and sand like a mofo... but they are powered by the same M20 as the 325i except dragging an extra 350lbs so when everybody is making traction they are making less forward progress.

The extra hardware in a 325iX only adds about 150 pounds to the weight of the car. They also have lower gears (3.91 with a manual trans, 4.10 with an automatic) to help offset the additional weight. They're a few tenths slower than a 325iS in the quarter mile.

I own two of them right now, one with a manual trans and one with an auto. The one with the manual transmission feels pretty quick, the automatic is less so.

ddavidv wrote: E30 prices have been going up. Carson's car would likely be worth closer to $2500 now, at least in my area.

DAMN! I just sold it in December too.

It seems the more complicated new BMW's get, the more valuable the older cars are becoming...

ddavidv wrote: E30 prices have been going up. Carson's car would likely be worth closer to $2500 now, at least in my area.

Yup. I just sold my '91 318is back to the previous owner for $5200. Had I put it up for sale publicly, I'm completely confident it would have pulled at least $6k.

Oh, and E30 ix-specific parts are crazy expensive.

Ian F wrote:

ddavidv wrote: E30 prices have been going up. Carson's car would likely be worth closer to $2500 now, at least in my area.

When Sonic and I transfered the title to my '88 325is, it turns out the PA-state-official "fair market value" of the car that came up on the computer is actually more than the $4500 I paid for it by a little bit.

I know it's water under the bridge by now but you can fight that...(does the person doing the paperwork see the car?) I bought a '90 iX for $100 and sold a '86 GMC Vandura for $600...refused to budge as the prices were fair market value for those particular cars at that time in that condition.

Logic I used was "if I buy a new truck do I pay tax on list price or what price they give me; say $5000 less at the end of the model year?"

http://sandusky.craigslist.org/cto/1711488396.html
Here is a '90 325i with 5 speed & 188k miles. It is in my area if anyone wants me to look at it.

shadetree30 wrote: I know it's water under the bridge by now but you can fight that...(does the person doing the paperwork see the car?) I bought a '90 iX for $100 and sold a '86 GMC Vandura for $600...refused to budge as the prices were fair market value for those particular cars at that time in that condition. Logic I used was "if I buy a new truck do I pay tax on list price or what price they give me; say $5000 less at the end of the model year?"

Sorry... you lost me...

The girl at the tag place printed it out and showed it to us. It might be a new thing PA has instituted so folks (buyer & seller when a private party sale)would be less likely to drastically lower the bill of sale price to save the buyer on sales tax (which is collected by the tag agency). Regardless, you only have to pay sales tax on the price declared on the BOS. The tag places will question an unrealistically low price, but since they get no real financial benefit to collecting more sales tax, it's rare they'll press the matter. Just another one of the flukey things about how cars are registered in PA.