RE: New to List / Looking for Tips on buying an older 325 (pre 92?)

["Derek van Veen" <derek@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

The E30 is a great car.  All of the E30 cars handle extremely well (although
given the rear suspension setup, they can be occasionally squirrelly in the
wet as compared to the E36) and are a pleasure to drive.

There are two basic 325 cars--the 325e (or eta) and the 325i.  Some people
actually prefer the eta (e-series) to the i-series as the former is a bit
more tractable in city driving (power comes on a lot sooner, but runs out
sooner as well).  Actually the beefy part of the powerband is about the same
(in terms of range), it's just that you have to wind the 'i' motor up higher
to get the power (which translates to more horsepower).  The eta motor is a
2.7 liter motor with smaller valves and a fairly low redline (5000RPM).  It
is good for 171 lb/ft of torque at about 3200RPM, and 121HP at 4800RPM.  The
'i' motor is a 2.5 liter motor with big valves and a much higher redline
(6500RPM).  It is good for about 165 lb/ft of torque at around 4200RPM and
about 168HP at somewhere approaching redline.

The 325is is the car to get (if you don't want an E30 ///M3), with the 325es
a somewhat close second.  The 's' designation indicates that the car is a
coupe with all the performance/luxury options (sports seats, three-spoke
steering wheel, improved suspension, limited-slip differential, premium
sound system, front and rear spoiler, fog lights, etc.).  The BBS
cross-spoke alloys were an option on all the E30 cars and are nice wheels,
but a pain to clean.

Slightly less desirable are the standard 325i cars.  These can be either
two-or-four doors, and are the plain-Jane versions.  The standard 325e cars
come next (which are similar to the 325i, except for some differences in
body style and the motor), and finally the 318 brings up the rear in terms
of performance / features / desirability.

The eta cars will be cheaper as they are considered less desirable, but
given a differential swap (to 3.45 or 3.73) and a Jim C. chip, they can be
plenty quick.  I actually prefer the '86 to '88 body style 325es/is as I
feel that the front spoiler is much more aggressive looking and seems to do
more than the little 'chin' spoiler of the late
'88 to '91 E30.

- -Derek
 '86 325es

BTW:  The head stud issue is easy to remedy...just replace the head studs!

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