Cheap E36 318iS sanity check

[LemonHunter 583]

Looking for a shopping trolley/weekend toy and came across a 4 door Southafrican 318iS Motorsport with interesting options.

but, it's had a helluva life by the looks of its ownership history including being registered to a pick a part at some point... Been deregged and reregged at least once

dude only wants $1700 for it, gearbox won't stay in 3rd when decelerating and aparently front windows won't stay on rails.

i have a getrag 260 I can probably make fit, and if the motor lunches itself id put something more exciting in it anyway...

http://www.etk.cc/bmw/EN/vin/decoder/NA37235/EN/

 

https://carjam.co.nz/report/?ref=AFAF414F

 

should I run for the hills? or is it worth a gamble...

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

Well e36 parts are in abundance and not too expensive I think? 

[LemonHunter 583]

9 minutes ago, BreakMyWindow said:

Well e36 parts are in abundance and not too expensive I think? 

That's true, i have this horror idea that at pickapart it was picked apart and put back together with compact parts...  or it was somthing mundane but serious seeming and someone had it salvaged for nothing, ended up at pickapart who fixed it and sold it complete.  

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

I guess all u can do is go view the car and decide?

[LemonHunter 583]

Needs wheel alignment and whatever would make the front right wheel able to wiggle in/out toe, but made an offer based on having the BBS wheels not the rubbish chromes, will wait and see

[LemonHunter 583]

Looks like he accepted my offer and didn't realise I only wanted one set of wheels included... Anyone into shadow chrome?

[qube 3570]

any pics of the said vehicle?

[LemonHunter 583]

20 minutes ago, qube said:

any pics of the said vehicle?

 

[qube 3570]

how about the bbs wheels? 

[hybrid 1043]

getrag 260 wont fit a 4 cylinder because of bell housing differences... it will fit if you get it cut and welded. bit of a job though.

[huff3r 347]

G220 conversions pop up frequently and often cheap anyway, worst case grab one of them.

[LemonHunter 583]

2 hours ago, 3pedals said:

More like B(buffalo)  sport --------- that ride height is seriously "up there"  more suited for cross country not  tarmac

Does seem high for an M sport doesn't it... 

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

Reckon you'll get bored of what's left of the 103kw. If you're planning on doing a manual conversion with your 260 box wouldn't it be better to find a decent 6cyl auto e36? Like a 328i ? 

[LemonHunter 583]

29 minutes ago, BreakMyWindow said:

Reckon you'll get bored of what's left of the 103kw. If you're planning on doing a manual conversion with your 260 box wouldn't it be better to find a decent 6cyl auto e36? Like a 328i ? 

It's possible yes, but most of the 328's are 3.5k up, the difference would buy me a turbo kit ;o)

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

4 minutes ago, EURO V8 said:

It's possible yes, but most of the 328's are 3.5k up, the difference would buy me a turbo kit ;o)

That include the fuel system, cert, brake upgrades and tune? :-D

[LemonHunter 583]

4 minutes ago, BreakMyWindow said:

That include the fuel system, cert, brake upgrades and tune? :-D

My Libero never needed any of that carry on ;o)

It has the same or slightly more power than my antique M20B23, that was plenty of power to put smiles on my dials in the port hills.

Edited September 5, 2016 by EURO V8

[Rubix 434]

I drive a 318is MS, well, I've owned it for 3 weeks and have driven it once.
Boring and slow as hell. My Paseo is quicker and handles better.
Looks nice though.

Spend the money on a 328, or if you really want to turbo something, buy a 325 with an m50b25.

Edited September 5, 2016 by Rubix

[LemonHunter 583]

Wonder if Kulgans 740 is still available, no replacement for displacement, right?

[LemonHunter 583]

I guess at $1500 I thought it would be good bang for buck

[gjm 3258]

An iS should be a fun car to drive, even with less power than many have become used to. 

[Rubix 434]

6 minutes ago, gjm said:

An iS should be a fun car to drive, even with less power than many have become used to. 

I should probably drive mine a bit more and find out.

[huff3r 347]

1 minute ago, Rubix said:

I should probably drive mine a bit more and find out.

Is it manual? It should be much more fun than a Paseo unless the suspension is completely flogged and motor rooted.

 

1 hour ago, BreakMyWindow said:

Reckon you'll get bored of what's left of the 103kw. If you're planning on doing a manual conversion with your 260 box wouldn't it be better to find a decent 6cyl auto e36? Like a 328i ? 

Whats left? Probably 102kw. Takes some major engine issues with most BMW motors for a substantial drop in power, my M20 was making within 5kw of factory numbers at 25yrs old! And thats a dinosaur motor!

[gjm 3258]

Looks a bit on stilts at the front... Probably had suspension replaced with stock, non-iS parts.

[Rubix 434]

35 minutes ago, huff3r said:

Is it manual? It should be much more fun than a Paseo unless the suspension is completely flogged and motor rooted.

 

Whats left? Probably 102kw. Takes some major engine issues with most BMW motors for a substantial drop in power, my M20 was making within 5kw of factory numbers at 25yrs old! And thats a dinosaur motor!

They were all manual.
Suspension is great (new bilsteins in the rear) - Motor is fine. Whole car is mint, but I just don't drive it like I do the paseo (Which I bought for $500 and don't give a crap about, so I drive it like a rental car at all times).
I'll drive it more come summer, but I did downgrade from an M3 so definitely missing a bit of power

[qube 3570]

did you buy dan's 318is? what size tyres are you running on the style 32s? and what is the wheel specs/offset?