E30 325i Motorsport (Tech1) written off

[Golfboy666GTI 68]

Is it just me or have a good number of E30 325i Motorsports been written off in the last 12 months?

http://www.manheim.co.nz/damaged-vehicles/4516959/1987-bmw-325i-sport-sedan?referringPage=SearchResults

[Michael. 2313]

Ha, Déjà vu? We had another like this crashed earlier in the year right?

[MD13 494]

:-(

[vtgts300kw 90]

Looks like it was perhaps an innocent victim?

[_ethrty-Andy_ 2132]

Maybe its a sign of the age of these cars, they are unlikely to be daily drivers, people are used to all the safety gizmos you have on a new car to keep you on the road,

these just have 4 tyres and a bag of bones behind the wheel

Just a thought.

[Mark 178]

I'd like to add that e30s are very popular at the moment with the young hipster crowd using mum and dads money to buy their first car. Old tech plus minimal driving experience equals accidents.

This makes me sound like an old coot but my first car at 15 was a FWD Mazda 323 with an asthmatic single carb 1.5 that couldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding. I too would've ended up backwards through a fence if I owned a 170hp RWD 6 cylinder with no safety features and a tendency to oversteer.

[charles28 136]

When new these cars were known as Widow Makers, so its not that surprising, at least i remember reading that about E30 325i's a long time ago.

Have owned 3x of them myself, they do feel rather old fashioned and flimsy after driving modern cars, I never had any problems with the handling.

There is something cool about them too.

The steering ratio, Brake pedal feel etc do however give it a 1970's Ford escort feel..ok maybe that's a bit harsh, they were designed over 30 years ago.

Edited August 6, 2015 by Charles32

[trip3 16]

Let's see what this one goes for... Gonna be interesting...

Thoughts on price? Tech 1, uk import...

Anyone have more specs on this car?

hopefully someone gives the old gal a new lease on life...

[Allanw 1071]

This makes me sound like an old coot but my first car at 15 was a FWD Mazda 323 with an asthmatic single carb 1.5 that couldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm... Rice Pudding!

Two things I've done in Dads E30 that could have gone badly:

Dad got his E30 (325i SE manual) when I was 18ish. I grew up driving old VWs with swing axles, so knew about how badly the back end can behave (luckily!) if you do something silly.....

..... I remember vividly going around the corner the Nissan dealer was located on, with a little too much speed, and a little too much throttle... in the wet! I still had it crossed up as I went past the workshop doors, a couple of the techs watched me go by (probably waiting for the bang!). I'm sitting in the hot seat, butt clenched tight, waiting for the road speed to catch up to the rear wheel speed hopefully just as it straightened up, but BEFORE I ran out of road... The only thing I knew was that backing off the throttle too much might result in it being parked INSIDE the Nissan dealership

The other was stepping from the E39 (525i manual) into the E30 just last year. I needed to pull quickly onto a busy main road (80 km/h traffic, very small gaps). In the E39, you just add a few more revs, slip the clutch a little more and give it full throttle - never any drama, it goes as fast as the grip/DSC+T allows and gets upto speed. I did it in the E30, and of course the back lit up, and instead of drama free, I got a wriggly, smokey blastoff Bonus was, the cars behind slowed down and made a bigger gap

When new these cars were known as Widow Makers, so its not that surprising, at least i remember reading that about E30 325i's a long time ago.

Have owned 3x of them myself, they do feel rather old fashioned and flimsy after driving modern cars, I never had any problems with the handling.

There is something cool about them too.

The steering ratio, Brake pedal feel etc do however give it a 1970's Ford escort feel..ok maybe that's a bit harsh, they were designed over 30 years ago.

I've always found E30's to be pretty good handlers... until they really suddenly aren't! They really are old tech - our E39 runs rings around it. The E39 does it faster, quieter, more economically and WAY safer, but I can't see it becoming a cult/classic like a manual E30 325i has.

Like you say - seriously OLD school, but cool. Dads has been an amazing car. There is absolutely no question - If you ask him what the best car he ever had was - It's the E30... and it's not the newest car he's had! They've done about 18 years and 130K together.

Dads starting to think quite a bit more about selling it, but after 18 odd years, we'll all miss it if he does! He worries about Mum driving it (not sure if he's more concerned for her, or the car though ) BECAUSE of the trouble you can get into in it!

If he sells it, I honestly think he'll cry

[Driftit 2078]

Keep crashing them. Makes mine go up in value. Slowly.

Out of all the BMW's I have driven. I still get the most enjoyment out of the E30. Only one I could imagine that would just as fun would be the 2002.

Not considering the M cars of course.

And Allan sorry but there is no way in hell a 525 is more economical or faster than an E30.

My E30.

Open road: 5.8 to 6.1L/100kms

Town: 8.9L/100kms.

My E30 is only 4 seconds off my 535 race car at hampton. Which is 300kgs lighter than your E39.

[M3_Power 636]

That looks like the one near my house ... if so then it's parked on the side of the road all the time day and night so I wouldn't be surprised it was hit by someone careless or racing through that street (which happens often).

Edited August 6, 2015 by M3_Power

[Allanw 1071]

And Allan sorry but there is no way in hell a 525 is more economical or faster than an E30.

My E30.

Open road: 5.8 to 6.1L/100kms

Town: 8.9L/100kms.

My E30 is only 4 seconds off my 535 race car at hampton. Which is 300kgs lighter than your E39.

I could say the same... but I actually have both to compare.

Not many (if any) E30 325i owners will have similar economy to that.

[Driftit 2078]

I could say the same... but I actually have both to compare.

Not many (if any) E30 325i owners will have similar economy to that.

Average including both street and open is in the 9's for many.

http://www.fuelly.com/car/bmw/325is/1987

and higher for the 525i on average.

http://www.fuelly.com/car/bmw/525i/2001

[Driftit 2078]

Ah found my one. Data is old because I got lazy and stopped using it. But average of 9.4L/100kms with 93% city driving.

http://www.fuelly.com/car/bmw/325m/1987/driftit/143134

[trip3 16]

I had to go and see this car...

Again another uk import living up to its reputation...

Rust in boot... Brown ring around the sides where the jack goes, as if water has been pooled in there...

Rust in windscreen pillars...

No carpet... No shock there cause I all the leaks. Guessing the prev owner took the carpet out because of the smell...

No oil in the engine...

Gearbox sloppy and not engaging properly, press the clutch and accelerator goes down too - that's how squashed it is... Lol

And some serious chassis bending going on there...Floors on drivers side, front and rear pushed up something insane... Dashboard pushed to the left about 5cm...

Oh and the black trimming you see sticking out of the front wheel - is the number plate surround from the other car

My 2 cents worth... Hope this info might be of help...

[Allanw 1071]

Average including both street and open is in the 9's for many.

http://www.fuelly.com/car/bmw/325is/1987

and higher for the 525i on average.

http://www.fuelly.com/car/bmw/525i/2001

Instead of picking the single most economical E30 year, you can average all the E30 325i and 325is years upto 1991:

http://www.fuelly.com/car/bmw/325is

http://www.fuelly.com/car/bmw/325i

Then they average 10.3, and if you remove the (clearly incorrect) lowest 3.3L/100km one from the 1991 325is, and the '84 325i one at 16.9 (highest year, skewed by this entry), we come up with a realistic average of 10.9. I reckon they're both pretty close to 10 or 11 L/100kms - like most people get from one.

The E39 525i average out at 11.1, and I bet a whole lot more of them are autos, than the E30's are.

Dads around town average in the E30 is 11L/100kms. I did 9.2 in the E39, though my wife can never manage it and ends up nearer 11. They're both manuals remember, and in the same town. We have climate air on all the time, they never use the AC. We have 3 boys, seats and gear, they have a handbag dog.

Like I said:

our E39 runs rings around it. The E39 does it faster, quieter, more economically and WAY safer

But thats not why you buy an E30!

Edited August 7, 2015 by Allanw

[Driftit 2078]

The average of the 525i's on that site is 11.5.

So the E30 is still more economical. Which was my point.

Mine must be a freak. Or just properly maintained.

But I shall accept your challenge of which car is faster. 5 laps of Hampton Downs.

[Allanw 1071]

The average of the 525i's on that site is 11.5.

So the E30 is still more economical. Which was my point.

Mine must be a freak. Or just properly maintained.

But I shall accept your challenge of which car is faster. 5 laps of Hampton Downs.

The average of the 525i's on that site is 11.5.

So the E30 is still more economical. Which was my point.

Mine must be a freak. Or just properly maintained.

But I shall accept your challenge of which car is faster. 5 laps of Hampton Downs.

Pretty sure I can't type slowly enough for you to understand what I'm saying - just like last time.

I'll leave you to it.

[Mark 178]

Lol at this being a thread about a damaged E30 and somehow you two blokes turn it into an argument about fuel economy between two incomparable cars built in different decades.

Edited August 7, 2015 by _Mark_

[will 169]

The only way my M325i will get anywhere near 6L/100kms is if I am freewheeling down a cliff face.... anything less than 12L/100kms and you are a Granny!

[hybrid 1043]

I'd like to add that e30s are very popular at the moment with the young hipster crowd

Ponsonby on a nice sunday is very very funny driving the e30 through. They all hipster gaze the e30 then you just scare them off with a parp on the accelerator

back on topic, am rage about this.. can the general populous stop killing techwans .... seriously, theyre pretty rare these days in good order. HellBM can only restore a few at a time .. and Ray doesnt do it for a profit.

Starting to think there needs to be a BMW e30 motorsport licience / practical exam needed before youre allowed to purchase.

[Allanw 1071]

Lol at this being a thread about a damaged E30 and somehow you two blokes turn it into an argument about fuel economy between two incomparable cars built in different decades.

Especially when I have experience with the two entirely different, SPECIFIC cars I made the comparison of and was talking about during my post. My experience with them is as I say. It's not perceived, you can actually measure these things

Even Dad agrees - he's drives the E39 faster, simply because it's more comfortable to do so. It uses less fuel driving around here than his E30, including the month he exclusively used the E39 while the E30 was having work done over Christmas. He often found himself going faster than he thought going up to Kaeo. Dunno how you explain that any simpler. It just IS.

Not sure where the racetrack ever came into it. We use them on the road. For going places.

Anyway - I not going to waste more time on it. The whole actual point, was that E30's ARE an old school car. It's doesn't make them bad, but technology has moved on a lot since the E30, and in not very much time. It's moved on a lot since the E39 too of course.

[Driftit 2078]

Jesus you really took this all to heart didn't you.

I thought you would have caught on that I didn't really care when I accepted your challenge to a race that you never gave...

There was even a winky face in there too.

[will 169]

Must be something in the water in Whangarei, everyone there seems overly touchy!

[E30 325i Rag-Top 2956]

Anybody know how much it went for in the end, and where it's going to end up... Ray? Brent??