Re: new member intro

[alex.fadeev@xxxxxxxxxxx]

"Doug Wright" <dgwright@domain.elided> wrote:
> 
> I got an E30 a few months ago, and I'm trying to figure out what I want
> to do with it (i.e. how much time and money I want to put into building
> it up). It's an '86 base model 325, 5-spd, 2-door, with about 200k miles
> (the odometer is stuck at 184k). My dad bought it new, then my brother 
> had it for a few years, so I know the history pretty well.

Doug,
What you've got yourself is an E30 with an ETA economy oriented engine.
It is anything but a speed daemon, which is probably why your dad felt 
good about giving it to your and your brother in the first place ;-).

> It still handles and runs great, but is badly in need of a paint job, 
> some upholstry work, and the passenger side window won't open. 

For the window, start with the window switches. Swap them around and see 
if one is bad. If that does not help, open your Bentley E30 manual 
(www.rb.com if you don't have one), remove the inner door panel and test 
if 12V are getting to the window regulator. If they do, the regulator is 
toast - not an uncommon problem. 
I would not bother touching the paint, unless you have a glaring rust 
problem. A high quality paint job will run north of $2-4K (depending on 
what party of the country you live in). In other words, it will cost most 
than the car is worth, and in the end will barely nudge the value of the 
car. 
Upholstery is not inexpensive, but have a rat hole of a car interior would 
bother me as well. BMW dealers can special order original interior 
upholstery at somewhat reasonable prices. 

> So, is it worth putting money into? 

That is a personal choice that will be influenced by the size of your bank 
account.

> What is an e30 capable of with the right modifications? 

E30s are great reliable and relatively inexpensive to DIY daily drivers.
ETA engines are low rev and low friction designed in the time of the oil 
crisis. They have the same torquey M20 engine with loads of low end 
torque, but there is no practical way to overcome the need to shift at 
4500 RPMs. They are not particularly suited for track/autoX use, but are 
economical and well handling vehicles.

> It's always seemed a little sluggish off the line, and the owner's 
manual
> says it only has 121 hp ... not much.  I'd love to do autocross sometime, 
> but I'd at least like something that's fun to drive on the road.

I'll bet anything that you have a LOT more time to gain from learning to 
drive the car properly than from doing all the mods up to and including an 
engine swap. 
The single biggest band for the buck you can get on your new car is fixing 
the nut behind the wheel. Join BMW CCA and sign up for your local 
chapter's Driving School. Than do a season or two of autoXing. Relax about 
being 10+ seconds behind FTD and concentrate on being compatible in your 
class. 

> It's just got some generic tires (195/65-R14) and factory alloys, so 
> wheels and tires are up on the list.  I think I saw that 205/50-R15s 
> will fit, but I'd might like to go even lower profile than that if 
> possible.  What are the limits?

_YOU_ are the limit.
Forget the wheels/tires (that cost 2-4 DEs), chips (one DE), diff swaps 
(two DEs) and other somewhat helpful or damaging 'mods'. 
Concentrate on learning to drive your car until YOU can tell yourself 
which part of it is holding you back.

alex f

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