Rrascal 4 Report post Posted December 13, 2013 Than to buy another cheap BMW. Mind you I've had two Alfa's between... I'm from Hawkes Bay and have recently aquired a 1988 E34 530 M30 Manual... In the past I've had a 1989 E32 730 M30 Manual and 1992 E32 740 M60 Auto. Loved the first until I wrote it off. Loved the second, for different reasons, but it's parked now as it just isn't economically viable for me to take care of all the issues it has. It's looking like the E34 might be more of a problem than I bargained for, but I'm stuck with it now...! I've never been on this forum before because the E32's hadn't thrown any unsolvable gremlins at me. The Alfa's taught me the value of forums, so here I am, begging for useful advice for the BMW... I'm posting my most urgent request for "what the hell do I do now? Where do I start? How come it's doing these weird, seemingly unconnected things that all started at once?" advice in the electrical system forum. I look forward to any and all ribbing for buying such an old, rattly heap, plus some useful advice on how to sort the old bag out. Cheers...! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil-540i 166 Report post Posted December 13, 2013 Welcome to the site............& I like your honesty..........& umm sense of humour............ If you get sick of that E34, or are sick of it - feel free to PM me what ya want for it............. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jonesrp 63 Report post Posted December 13, 2013 It`s not a heap, and there isn`t much about them that is complicated to get right( in modern terms)... I had a 1992 535 for 8 years and loved it. Guess what... fix it up and enjoy it. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rrascal 4 Report post Posted December 13, 2013 Cheers guys... It'll get her fixed, slowly... I do actually like it, in spite of it's tatty condition. And as I said above, I've enjoyed two other BMW's. I'm just a wee bit frustrated as it had been running fine for several weeks. For many years I ran MkII Triumphs, 20+ year old BMW's actually seemed like a kind of natural progression from there... Straight 6, rear drive, Macpherson strut/semi-trailing arm suspension, leather and wood... There's been a Series 3 Jaguar XJ6, an Alfa 155 and an Alfa 156 in amongst the beemers, but I've come back...! Thanks for the welcome... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil-540i 166 Report post Posted December 13, 2013 Lols - I did wonder if that burnout pic was a Triumph, & then it progressed to 'Nah, it can't be, surely not'........... Personally, I think ya should give it some TLC & fix it up too, but hey, if ya don't wanna - I will............ Burnouts in a Triumph............. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rrascal 4 Report post Posted December 13, 2013 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil-540i 166 Report post Posted December 13, 2013 (edited) Sick ba$tard..................... That 530 even on its last legs after doing 500,000kms would still feel mint in comparison with that............... Burnouts in a Triumph ae, there's something new...............I don't think I've seen that before............lols. Edit - I might have owned a Dolomite at one stage of my life. It spent short periods of my ownership, 'going'. Was probably the most uninspiring unreliable oil leaking POS that I've ever owned, bar early days of 4WDing, where I learnt ya needed 2 Landrovers, in order to have 1 to drive at any given time.....hence there was the switch to Toyota 4WD vehicles. Edited December 13, 2013 by Blue-540i Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rrascal 4 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 That Triumph felt pretty good... Urethane and Koni's in it, pistons and rods all balanced, and crank etc all balanced too, 3kg off the flywheel, ports and combustion chambers all cleaned up, TR5 cam, overdrive box, was good for an indicated 130mph, (probably more like 120 tho). Surprised a few people with it that's for sure...! They were an inherited sickness, 3 great uncles and my father all owned them at various times... Always wanted to drop an M30 in one, or even better, an M60... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil-540i 166 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 Hopefully you've cured that 'bug' now, by buying this gem. So, we've got all the windows etc working & happy again - whats next for it...........?? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rrascal 4 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 Cooling system needs sorting... Clean out radiator and replace water pump. Replace radius arm bushes. Get the rest of the fluids changed... Remove the cylinder head from the E32 and vacuum test it, resurface it and clean it then swap heads. Might steal the rotors and calipers off the 740... Find some stiffer front springs... Hmmm... Oh yeah, swap out the rusty sunroof... Find some interior rear quarter panels and replace those. Find a better set of bumpers... And maybe a bootlid... Paint it. We'll see, it mostly comes down to money, of which I only periodically have any... 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rrascal 4 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 The E32's 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil-540i 166 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 Nice...................... The current one - should have that sorted by Xmas then.............?? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rrascal 4 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 That's a Tui billboard right...? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kiwi535 538 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 so whats actually wrong with the e34 apart form being a few years old?That list above doesnt count,it is a 25 year old car after all. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rrascal 4 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 Mate, nothing you wouldn't expect from a 25 year old car that cost 1k... It's just surprises I don't like... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kiwi535 538 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 (edited) Mate, nothing you wouldn't expect from a 25 year old car that cost 1k... It's just surprises I don't like... 25 year old cars are nothing but surprises esp cars that cost 1/150 of its new price Edited December 14, 2013 by kiwi535 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Eagle 1662 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 Sounds like you didn't get the greatest example but 1k for manual its a good price regardless, id be wanting to drop a 3.5L in it if i was keeping it long term. E34's are pretty robust, cheap and easy to fix so im sure you will have it sorted in no time esp with a parts car. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rrascal 4 Report post Posted December 14, 2013 Cheers Jared. The cars I own generally improve in condition, barring accidents... If I was gonna do an engine swap I think I'd be looking for an M70... Although I'd probably be more inclined to fit a turbo to the M30B30. Catching up on a decade or more of poor maintenance has to be the priority first. Hmmm... Speaking of parts cars, must check the diff tag on the E32 M30, think that one is limited slip... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
