noel0leon 0 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 (edited) After only a few years with my NA nissan s14 I think I'm over the whole rice/drift/race thing. That being said i still like a nice car so I'm looking at getting myself into an e30 316i/318i. Just something nice, comfortable with a small motor but with RWD and decent suspension. I would go for an E36 but I think I"ll only get around 4g for my Silvia (swaps? lol). Plus the e30's look better... I'm mainly just searching through the forum at the moment, trying to suss out how difficult maintenance is, what to look for when buying, what kind of fuel economy i can expect from the 4 cylinder (8-9l per 100k ?) so yeah.. hello Edit: this looks nice and this Edited July 22, 2009 by noel0leon Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Forrest 35 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 Welcome mate. I had a 316i...and used to get 10L per 100km if I had about a 50/50 split of thrashing and 'easy' driving. Good work and good luck on getting a E30! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brockie123 31 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 welcome! you're right e30's do look better than e36's you'll fit in here quite nicely. economy is what you would expect from a 1.8 or 1.6.. but go the 318i economy isn't much different than a 316i and they go pretty well if they are in good shape.. pretty easy to maintain especially with all the help on here you can get.. and it makes finding the bits you need easy! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_BRS_ 199 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 Welcome, good choice in going for an e30 I think a 4 cylinder would be ok, but if you want a little more fun, hold out and buy a nice 325. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
noel0leon 0 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 Welcome mate. I had a 316i...and used to get 10L per 100km if I had about a 50/50 split of thrashing and 'easy' driving. Good work and good luck on getting a E30! That's not bad... I get the same in my s14 and that's just with easy driving... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
noel0leon 0 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 Welcome, good choice in going for an e30 I think a 4 cylinder would be ok, but if you want a little more fun, hold out and buy a nice 325. I see your point but power is no longer my cup of tea aye... If was interested in power i'd just turbo my current ride Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mark 178 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 Pay more for a well maintained car that has some service history, you'll thank yourself when it comes to maintaining the car in the long run. Go 318 over 316, and go manual to get the most out of the wee "sewing machine" engine! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DRTDVL 0 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 you might find you get better fuel economy from a larger engine as your not having to push the car as much to get the same level of performance from it... depending on your driving style obviously... IMO e36's are much nicer than the e30's Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
noel0leon 0 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 anyone have any fuel economy numbers on the E30's and E36's? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bravo 34 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 e36's get slightly better economy in the larger engined cars due to the 24 valve engines and VANOS (variable valve timing). The smaller engined cars aren't hugely different due to the extra weight in an e36. e30's have plentiful parts at fairly reasonable prices and love DIY. e30's are the DIY king of bmw's. Great cars to fix and work on yourself. e36 are ok for DIY too, but are on the cusp of the newer technology that starts to ruile out much DIY, so not as good as e30's in that respect. e36's have a superior chassis to e30, so handle better out of the box, but e30's offer a more tactile driving experience, and with some good handling mods handle fantastically (they handle fairly well stock, but really benefit from the right upgrades). e36's have a more luxurious interior, but they are quite ugly inside with no character. e30's are quintessential 80's inside and out. External looks are very much subjective. I think e36's look like fat, lazy slugs. Others think they look taut and sleek. stock e30's (esp f/l) can look very ugly too! But that's all opinion. If it were me I'd get a good e30 vs a tired e36, but it's up to you at the end of the day. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
APT 179 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 Put some pics up of your silvia Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mtech1e30 0 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 City driving in my 318i (1.8L M10 Auto) I get an average of 10.4km's per L of Petrol (BP98). That's an average from a time period from October 07 until today. I mostly do motorway driving from west auckland into the central city. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DRTDVL 0 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 I mostly do motorway driving from west auckland into the central city. I can average 10.9L in dad's v8 explorer on the motorway from home to wiri... i though that was rather good... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
antil33t 90 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 Welcome to the forums! I have a E30 320i, it's not very fuel efficent. I would say go for a 318i Manual... Good luck with finding your new car, and thank you for choosing E30. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
e30plz 1 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 Whatever you decide to buy, E30s are so much better in Manual. Good luck with your search & Welcome. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Carl 3 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 Fuel economy in an E30 requires a manual with a diff to match your preference. For example, i've had 4 different ratios in mine and settled on a 3.64 for a balance, running a 3.25 was extremely economical and with very good driving netted 13km/L ~ 7.6L/100km Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sharp1989 0 Report post Posted July 22, 2009 ive got an e36 320 manual and its awesome on gas. drove down to welly in the weekend from hamilton then back on sunday, we had 4 people and luggage and we only used just over half a tank on the way back. was sitting on about 7l per 100km. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
noel0leon 0 Report post Posted July 23, 2009 (edited) was sitting on about 7l per 100km. hmm... but isn't that because its mainly highway driving? City driving would be more definitely cheers for the diff and model info. I'll probably try for a 318i now.... I would really like this: http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=228515587 but i have to sell my car first lol By the by, thanks for the warm welcome. I really appreciate it. Im not used to noobs getting welcomed on car forums, especially those that don't even have the correct vehicle yet lastly, Whats the deal with compacts? For such a practical vehicle they're rare (especially in manual) and expensive. Plus i've had loads of people tell me they're girls cars. True or False? Cause i rather like them Edited July 23, 2009 by noel0leon Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brockie123 31 Report post Posted July 23, 2009 TRUE TRUE TRUE TRUE ( sorry to offend anyone) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
noel0leon 0 Report post Posted July 23, 2009 TRUE TRUE TRUE TRUE ( sorry to offend anyone) gutted.... i rather thought they could be the Deutsch equivalent to the AE86... And in my books RWD + Hatch = perfect Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
e30plz 1 Report post Posted July 23, 2009 Deutsch!? Lol. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brockie123 31 Report post Posted July 23, 2009 i had to look it up.. it's the German word for.. German Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
e30plz 1 Report post Posted July 23, 2009 Sounds too much like Dutch, I lol'd. My bad. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brockie123 31 Report post Posted July 23, 2009 hahah a female german is a Deutschess... k this is getting off topic.. any luck with selling the s14? is it on trademe? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
*Glenn* 854 Report post Posted July 23, 2009 (edited) lastly, Whats the deal with compacts? For such a practical vehicle they're rare (especially in manual) and expensive. Plus i've had loads of people tell me they're girls cars. True or False? Cause i rather like them I might add that statement is FALSE...you can take a little girls car...pull it to bits and then turn it into a car with balls. If you like compacts, dont be pressured into choosing something someone else likes. BTW: Welcome to the forum Edited July 23, 2009 by *Glenn* Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
