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While the rear subframe was out of the car, I thought I better get it cleaned up as it was in a bit of a state. First time getting parts powder coated... won't be the last. Had them done at Arkro Powder Coating in Wairau Valley and they were a breeze to deal with. They sent the items off to get sandblasting before coating and the final product is absolutely top notch (extremely reasonable pricing too).

Well I know the guy quite well and he was pretty disappointed about it. Going off the extensive and detailed ad you wrote, he thought he was buying a much nicer rust free car. I guess he didn’t see much point in going back to you as the deal was already done and he had the car. I’ve been into E30’s for well over 20 years so he asked for my input, and I was shown the ad on TradeMe. It presented the car as a really nice example with no mention of rust at all. I told the buyer to go for it based off the pictures and the description you provided. Once I eventually ended up seeing the car though, I couldn’t believe it was the same one in the ad. No need to even get under it to see the corrosion with actual holes and bubbles around the place. One thing I know the buyer had been really excited about and was a must have for him, was that you mentioned it had a sunroof. It turned out, it was all rusty and sealed shut with some kind of sealant and there was a massive rust bubble in the roof you couldn’t miss, all never mentioned by you. I would have expected an enthusiast to have been more up front and disclosed all this. Saying all E30’s have rust after the fact isn’t good enough. You blatantly misrepresented the car by choosing not to mention any of the serious corrosion issues it had. The buyer is now having to spend a large percentage of the purchase price having it fixed. Good luck to the poor bugger who you manage to flog this S85 off to.

Especially considering a crash damaged V10 M6 was sold for just under $7k the other day lol. Higher mileage granted, but I'd take that complete car for $2k less over that engine all day.

Just got a low charge cooler coolant message . No real indication or smell. Was around 60,000 km with car running standard factory engine tune. I check the charge cooler fluid levels about every 5k now. But no issues since.

You do you but $9k for an engine plucked out of a puddle is f**king wild. Would hate to be the guy that shells out even half that only to find out of its origins after the fact. Was always going to happen though, wasn't it?

Exceptional example of the iconic E30 M325iS Sports coupe in the rare BMW original aero silver paintwork. This genuine M-Technic 1 Shadowline South African assembled (NZ New) only a handful remain in NZ This car is a PROJECT and listed as rolling body sold with: - Original M325is coupe (working electric sunroof ) - Ireland engineering racing sway bars (front and rear) - Original LSD 3.73 ratio - Original M Technic 1 body kit (complete) - XYZ racing coilovers (previously certified) - Iconic Italvolanti leather steering wheel - Manual G260 driveshaft - Steering rack - 325i body loom - Manual 325i pedal box - Headlights & taillights - Orginal doors with hounds-tooth door cards - Windscreen, rear screen and 1/4 glass + seals Condition & Provenance This E30 has been maintained to a high standard, from its original spec to race preparation. The paint retains its metallic lustre which follows its way to the roll cage . The stripped interior has been prepped for a new coat of paint (intended to match the exterior colour) in rust free chassis. The door and glass were removed for the paint process. - All glass/door and body panels included in sale. The car was race ready and road legal when purchased however after putting the rego on hold and plans to stroke the motor to 2.8l the registration lapsed. - Will need engine, gearbox and Motorsport authority card to get it back on the roads. Serious enquires only, this car will only be viewed by appointment. $13,500 No swaps or trades Priced accordingly. Will not come on wheels pictured.

After 10 months of ownership and fairly constant wrenching on the car I thought I better start a thread to document and discuss the on-going project. Shout out to @Sammo and his thread for the inspiration!! My first car was a Lachssilber 1987 M325i so have always had a soft spot for the Mtech 1 e30’s. Would have been a lot cheaper if I had kept it rather than selling it for $6k back in 2014… crazy how much the market has changed since then. Side note, if anyone has any info on that car I would love to hear where it’s at and how it’s going. Rego was NF9539. Current goal with the car is to use it semi daily / on going project. I have already done a fair bit to the car over the last 10 months which I will list below. The plan is to document as I tick jobs off the list and will also be posting breakdowns of work I have already carried out along with photos. Things completed: Engine / Trans: Cambelt / water pump / tensioner / cam seal / accessory belts / air filter Valve cover gasket / Valve adjustment / spark plugs Engine mounts Oil filter / oil pan gasket New OE fuel lines / filter / pump / fuel regulator Clean and rebuild injectors New OE coolant hoses / coolant reservoir / level sensor / thermostat New OE vacuum lines / intake boot New OE Distributor Rotor / Distributor Cap / spark plug cables New gaskets: intake manifold / throttle body / thermostat housing etc Z3 shifter Manual Transmission Mounts Shifter cup / Washers for Shifter Linkage Derlin rear bushing carier / Derlin shifter bushings Suspension / steering: New Bilstein B8 Sport dampers / Eibach Pro-Kit performance lowering springs Shock housing refurb / hubs / brake pads and rotors Purple tag rack / custom power steering lines New control arms / tie rods / bushings / drop links / sway bar bushings Front subframe stripped and repainted Exterior: Window seals Repaint shadow line trim / grill / plastics Brand new OEM tail lights 15" basketweave refurb: paint stripped / lips cleaned up / repaint Centre caps: paint stripped / repaint (New BMW emblems yet to be stuck on) Interior: New OEM style shift boot New driver door handle / surrounds / sunroof crank Lots of things to come with the car, most notably a full new interior re-upholstery. Have the kit ready to be installed (in all its OEM houndstooth glory)

Tyres Tires - one genuinely good reason to live in 'merica.

Powergys are the updated Dragon Sport - meant to be OK. 19’s are all expensive though, ~500 / corner RRP for a name brand. Hankook Ventus / Falken / Nexen NFera may be worth a look?

Charge cooler is the other thing to keep an eye out for. Replaced mine as it developed a coolant leak. Sounds like they have also become a maintenance item. Thought about going aftermarket, but wanted to keep it factory and despite the marketing for aftermarket units from the usual companies the plastic / alloy OEM is very efficient and effective. If it goes again I think I’d seek out the F80 GT4 version though.

Yeah good point, Ive had dragon sports in the past and they were a bit meh, but you're right the name matters for resale rather than how good they are. I get some trade discounts so will make some calls tomorrow.

I had Pirelli Dragon Sports on my 328 and, for what they cost, they were fine. IIRC they were around $200-$250 a corner? In similar sizes to what you're looking for. Okay in the wet too but quite noisy in the dry. The benefits of these is that the construction is unlikely to fail on you and most people won't look at the tyres and think you've cheeped out. Most people don't even search for Pirellis when thinking "inexpensive but not cheap tyre". P-Zeros, these are not. Edit: just looked they were even less expensive, 4 x 225/45/17 = $546, less than $150 a corner. They were from Hyper so I suspect I got 4 for the price of 3 or something. And that was 2017! Can't find them on Hyper at the moment but they have these for $185 a corner: https://www.hyperdrive.co.nz/product/122154/pirelli-powergy

Cleaned up the pedal box. Repainted parts that had surface rust on them and took everything apart for a clean and re-grease. Accelerator linkage bushings were completely perished but the rest were in decent shape. New clutch master cylinder, all ready to go back in when time comes.

NZ being such a small market and us being great at lying down and taking it means they can ignore it for the most part. Lots of good will gestures too that NZ doesn't typically receive

Painted block. Giving POR-15 high temp paint a go. So far, the flat black was the exact finish i was after. Some before and afters