What's better than a BMW E30?

[aarhead]

I'm trying to buy a new car for around $5K-6K and the best car I can think of for that price is an E30 BMW. Does any one have any alternatives in the same price range?

[ARMAN]

Nothing 8) Depends on what you expect of your car. E30s are pretty good cars, fun to drive, good quality but for winter are too dangerous IMO cause you have to have some skills to drive RWD. Dont know how its with snow in Florida :)

[aarhead]

i dont think i'll have to be worrying about snow here in florida for a while

[ARMAN]

:mrgreen:

[aarhead]

do you know what year is best for the E30?

[ARMAN]

second gen is better, dont know the years but the closer to 91 the better

[ZfrkS62]

You might be able to talk an E36 318is or it down to about that range. especially if the engine seems to run rough. (there was a service bullitein to rotate the cams a little bit to smooth it out, but you lose some power) They are fairly simple cars, not as simple as the E30 but if you get a 96 or 97 you'll get traction control too 8)

but the E30's are pretty good cars. easy to swap engines too. save up a couple thousand after you get one, and an S52 should snuggle right in :mrgreen:

[Guibo]

'91 was the best year for the E30. The 318is was the best of the lot, exlcuding the M3's of course. You can find one in very good condition within that price range. Just be aware of the profile gasket issue; make sure the one you're considering buying has had it replaced (should be documented). As with any purchase, best to save yourself potential grief by having a professional mechanic check all the systems.

http://www.mesaperformance.com/faqs/318tcpg.html

I think a '91-94 Nissan Sentra SE-R is also a very good alternative.
http://www.nissanperformancemag.com/july02/images/perry1.jpg

[DUNKiNUTS]

why not get a miata? or a 240SX? But my choice for 5-6K is my truck, 1997 Ranger XLT 3.0L V-6, burns most ricers and is functional, here are pics but its not with me [sorry no customs sorry i will work on that]

http://img113.exs.cx/img113/9493/HPIM0652.jpg
http://img113.exs.cx/img113/1662/HPIM0654.jpg

[mv]

If you are buying a bimmer and its not the E30 M, you should get the 6 cyl. cuz the four bangers from BMW sounds crappy.......the 6 on the other hand sounds great......

yup, the sound of BMW's I6s can be taken as a benchmark

[Caplax40]

If you are looking for something in the 5-6k range I would be surprised if you could find a low mileage M3 for that price. Keep in mind the E30's need a fair amount of maintenance and money put in them. Excellent cars but five or six grand is just the beginning. Check out http://www.s14.net it's an excellent forum and theirs a seperate section devoted entirely on purchasing and insurance.

If you decide that the E30 won't fit the bill I suggest either a 89-92 Supra Turbo, the aforementioned SE-R and 240sx and a little unknown gem, the 91-92 Mitsubishi Galant VR-4. It's basically an early Lancer Evolution. There's one right now for sale in Colorado with 60k original miles on it for 6500 which is an absolute steal.

[ZfrkS62]

If you are buying a bimmer and its not the E30 M, you should get the 6 cyl. cuz the four bangers from BMW sounds crappy.......the 6 on the other hand sounds great......

yup, the sound of BMW's I6s can be taken as a benchmark

not to mention the I6 block is going to take much more power than the 4 banger. What i would do though is get a 318, save up some money and then go online to www.evosport.com and see if they know of anyone that is getting rid of an S52 or S54 motor (according to an ex-coworker that migrated to this shop, people tend to get rid of the S52 for quite cheap) then snuggle it into the engine compartment over a weekend, leave the 318 badges on it, and prepare to beat the living crap out of some punk @$$ ricers 8)

[BADMIHAI]

Nothing is better than an E30 M3! 8)

[cooperluke]

The 318is was the best of the lot, exlcuding the M3's of course


Here in Portugal we had a 320iS version, with 190bhp, that is very close to the M3!! And I think.. far better than the 318!!!!

[ZfrkS62]

The 318is was the best of the lot, exlcuding the M3's of course


Here in Portugal we had a 320iS version, with 190bhp, that is very close to the M3!! And I think.. far better than the 318!!!!

the US didn't get the 320 unfortunatley...we dont' much of the good stuff *cough*CSL*cough*

[Pimp Racer]

Hmm.. The weather here in florida is actually pretty good! It was kinda hot today!

[5vz-fe]

5-6k seems abit cheap for a good condition E30 M3. Maybe u should look into some E36 325i. BMW 4 cylinder engines are bullet prove in the reliablity standpoint, but as other members have pointed out, it just doesn't have the right sound nor power.

[SilviaS15Cwest]

Well lets see here. First of all get it checked. My first BMW was a E30 325e and it broke down two weeks after I bought it. BMWs are either taken really good care of or beat to shit. I wouldnt get a BMW with a 4 cylinder. There slow as shit and someone said that they E36 318 came with traction control??? I dont know if this is true or not, but isnt traction control on that car the fact that it has a 4 cylinder??? And to answer your question whats better than an E30, an E34. :D Picked mine up for $4,500. Its a 1991 with the 24 valve 2.5l I6 rated at 189 hp and 181 tq. It came with a 5 spd manual, a limited slip, and all the service records dating back to 1996. When I bought it the car had 123k miles, now has 126k and havent had a single problem. Very solid car. Leather, sunroof, heated seats, excellent car.

[ZfrkS62]

Well lets see here. First of all get it checked. My first BMW was a E30 325e and it broke down two weeks after I bought it. BMWs are either taken really good care of or beat to shit. I wouldnt get a BMW with a 4 cylinder. There slow as shit and someone said that they E36 318 came with traction control??? I dont know if this is true or not, but isnt traction control on that car the fact that it has a 4 cylinder??? And to answer your question whats better than an E30, an E34. :D Picked mine up for $4,500. Its a 1991 with the 24 valve 2.5l I6 rated at 189 hp and 181 tq. It came with a 5 spd manual, a limited slip, and all the service records dating back to 1996. When I bought it the car had 123k miles, now has 126k and havent had a single problem. Very solid car. Leather, sunroof, heated seats, excellent car.

ASC+T(straightline traction control) was introduced 1/97. Still E36 :wink: DSC(straightline AND cornering) was introduced in the final year of the E36 (1998)

[aarhead]

I like the E34 a lot, but i want a small car, thats why the E30 seems so right.

[Bigdaddytwon]

I've had an 89 325is for the last couple years and i love it . Driving in snow is perfectly fine as long as you get snow tires. I just finished driving up to Michigan in all that snow we got over thanksgiving week and it was as good as my old FWD accord.

try to get the IS model purely because of the limited slip differential. I'm really pissed BMW doesn't offer LSD's in anything but the M-Cars anymore (i really want a 540i with a LSD and a 6sp). With 170 hp (180- something) with a chip it'll definitely keep pace with a civic SI ( published 0-60 of 7.4).

Handling is great, but you definitely need a 15 or 16 inch tire. 17's are available but now you're really getting pretty low aspect ratio, and in the midwest that spells disaster. The car does have an understeer balance which is good for getting back under control after hangin the tail way out, but if you're planning on autocrossing i'd get a new rear ARB, along with some shocks. If you do get the rear ARB you need to get stronger mounts welded in as BMW made these thin enough that aftermarket ones and spirited driving will rip them out. Adjustable shocks will also give you a good way to tune the chassis.

Power tuning is kind of limited. Parts are rare (korman BMW), if you want to get any kind of serious power you have to swap the M20 out for one of the newer twin cam M50's. I have heard of 3.0 - 3.2 liter M3 swaps, the procedure is identical (as long as its OBDI) but the engine is a lot more expensive. Don't expect to see much over 200hp without dropping some major coin.

So in conclusion
Highs:
Great long distance GT car
Classic style
Adequate power
handling (especially IS models)
BMW service


Lows:
Not many power upgrades
Rear ARB change can be a problem
Some sellers think they're worth a lot more than what they are
no available trunk pass through

[Gnome]

I've had an 89 325is for the last couple years and i love it . Driving in snow is perfectly fine as long as you get snow tires. I just finished driving up to Michigan in all that snow we got over thanksgiving week and it was as good as my old FWD accord.
I don't believe you. I've heard bad things about it, and the last time I saw a E30 stuck on snow was on saturday. It was uphill, but not very steep. It also was rather slipery, but the car in front of the BMW had no problems. The owner had some problems turning the BMW around to take a detour around this little hill. He knew what he was doing. It was the car, not the driving skills that stoped him.

Driving RWD on snow takes some skills, but driving a E30 takes some skills and 100kg of sandbags in the boot...

Luckily, there's no snow in Florida, so you'll be fine, aarhead.

The E30 325i is nice for turbo charging. www.bmwpower.no
The last time these guys were at the Dyno they had to stop at 385 hp :twisted: because of some exhaust problems... And they are just a few boys in a shed. Norwegian text, but under "Filmer" in the menu there are some videos.

[caneswell]

There isn't much better for the money. Hence my choice of car! You will be better going for a late model e30 (325 preferably) than an early e36, which are aparently not amzingly well put together. The later e36s are better, but still not as much fun as an e30. And yes the e30 m3 is the best car in the world ever, but im a little biased

[Skyliner]

An e30 is a very good car. Fun to drive, reliable & cheap. Take the model after 88' with plastic fenders.
A 325 or an 318Is would be perfect choices. Don't underestimate the 318Is. 136hp and comes with the M-tech suspension as standard.

For mods, a m52 engine fits in with some modifications. A 3.5 liter m30 can also be put in.

Or like others mentioned it is possible to either supercharge or turbocharge with good results

[aarhead]

dont worry, I hate driving pickup trucks.