1988 325is

SOLD

Yes, the time has finally come. I found a car I want so the E30 needs to go. As payment for putting up with me complaining about this car for the last 3.5 years, I'm putting it here first for $2013, firm. Hoping for a quick sale to someone with more E30 enthusiasm than I have. If not, I'll put in on eBay next week.

What:

1988 BMW 325is
214K miles (I've put about 5K on it since I bought it)
5 spd with Z3 shifter and new bushings (right after I bought it)
Black with black leather interior. The interior is in great shape and is pretty much how I bought it except I found a nicer used wheel (w/ new M stripe), new shifter knob and leather boot. The glove box latch was also fixed/replaced. The OBC is wonky and only displays in metric after I replaced the air temp sensor with a G. Graves replacement. Clean and 99% rust free body. There's a wee bit on the bottom front fender seams that's been there since I bought the car. Never driven in snow since I bought it.
Paint and all body panels are original. The paint isn't great, but shines up pretty well with a bit of mop and polish. It's 25 years old with over 200K miles. It's a driver.
I installed a new front lip - and promptly discovered why it was missing when it got ripped off again leaving the local 7-11. Fortunately no real damage and it went back on when I got home. Gotta be careful with steep parking lot entryways.
I fixed/replaced the fog lights, but the left side one occasionally flickers. Was working the last time I drove it (2/13). At the same time, I replaced the front inner fender liners and installed new brake cooling ducts.
Brand new (less than a week old) Bosch battery. Yokahama ES100 (205/60-14) on Bottlecaps

Good - the Mods:
Most were done by the previous owner (GRM member - I bought it off this forum):
H&R Sport Springs
Koni Yellows
M3 LCA bushings
Offset upper strut mounts
Ireland Engineering cat-back
R134a A/C conversion (worked well when I bought the car in 5/2010), but slowly got warmer and then stopped being cold that Fall and hasn't worked since. Probably needs a charge).
Apparently rare arm-rest/cup-holder
By me:
Ireland Engineering HD rocker arms
Ireland Engineering Engine and Transmission mounts (I was planning to build it up for STX)
Outdoor cover with lock

The Bad:
Something is weird with the engine and it's not running right (which is the main reason I'm selling it right now). I ran a compression test and got the following:
Cold
1 - 150
2 - 120
3 - 160
4 - 90
5 - 120
6 - 160
Hot:
1 - 158
2 - 150
3 - 170
4 - 140
5 - 190
6 - 170
No... some of the numbers don't make sense, but that's what they were. In a nutshell, I was driving to work back in Feb and the fan belt broke. I quickly got it off the highway and had it towed home, hoping it didn't overheat too badly. After replacing the belt, it seemed to run fine for about 15 minutes and then the engine tone changed and the mpg gauge dropped from it's usually mid-20's down to about 15 and it is noticeably down on power. It does start, run and drive, although I don't know how far I'd drive it. I checked the valve clearances and they're all pretty good. That was back in Fed, and other than doing the compression test in the Spring (and when I washed it and took these pics), the car has sat in my 2nd driveway since.
When the belt broke, it took out one of the fan blades and the fan surround. I have new parts that will go with the car.

If you're an E30 lover and don't mind doing some wrenching, this is your car. I don't really enjoy driving the car, so finding motivation to wrench on it has been difficult.

If you're in the Northeast Rust Belt and have been looking for a good rust-free swap candidate, it would work for that too.

Some pictures:

That is a nice looking car. It won't sit around long at that price.

I have already emailed a link to 3 people.

Thanks. Kinda hoping to sell to a GRM member before sending it out into the world, but whatever... It is a nice looking car... unfortunately, the two of us haven't gotten along very well since the day I bought it and it's been a rocky, downhill relationship ever since.

Whats you location in Pa? Im near Altoona.

David

m3weaver wrote: Whats you location in Pa? Im near Altoona. David

Croydon, PA - a bit north of Philly off I-95.

Ian F wrote: Thanks. Kinda hoping to sell to a GRM member before sending it out into the world, but whatever... It is a nice looking car... unfortunately, the two of us haven't gotten along very well since the day I bought it and it's been a rocky, downhill relationship ever since.

weaver is as GRM as it gets. he's just an internet luddite who made his first post here because I emailed him a link to this post :D

So this was mine before Ian bought it. I had it for 6 years and 90k miles. I'm happy to answer any questions about the history and what was done.

It's a shame Ian had such bad luck with it, it was overall pretty reliable and fun and a good car for me in the long time I had it. Sure, I did a ton of work to it (as the massive folder of receipts will attest to), but it never left me stranded and always started.

A few more things that he didn't mention: The car has NEVER had any paint or body work. Ever. The pinstripe on it was painted, and because the car has been loved through the years, it is gradually wearing off, but that attests to the original and straight and rust free body. A good amount of work was done within a few thousand miles before he bought it, including timing belt, water pump, plug wires, poly rear subframe bushings and trailing arm bushings, rear wheel bearings, and probably more that I am forgetting. I also still have a full set of basket weaves with trash tires on it if someone wants the stock stuff.

In fact...now that I saw this I am very seriously considering buying it back and swapping an M50 or S50 into it. I have absolutely no need for it and no room for it, but damn.

That is a damn steal.

Tom_Spangler wrote: That is a damn steal.

Don't remind me... it's less than half what I paid for it... never mind the crap-ton of money I've poured into it since every time it broke (which if you've paid attention to my posts over the past three years, was pretty much every time I drove it - a LOT of money)... Put it this way: If somebody doesn't jump in it quickly, I could change my mind and delete the ad at any moment. But like I said, I found another car (11 years newer, and hopefully more reliable... but frighteningly similar...) that I want and I'm out of parking spaces so this needs to go first.

Hopefully whoever buys it can lovingly bring it back to life and treat it like the war-worn survivor it is and not hack it up... which is one reason I didn't post it on any of the BMW boards. That it's lived its entire life in the Northeast and has so little rust is amazing.

In addition, I have a pile of parts for sale that the buyer would have first-refusal on:

Basketweaves (with caps) and 195/60-14 Z1 Star Specs. They might have 2000 miles on them so they're like new. I pulled them off the car when the weather turned cold a couple of years ago and they've been in my basement ever since. $300

UUC Short shifter w/ DSSR - brand new in the box. I have never been happy with the Z3 shifter so when UUC ran a group buy/special on one of the E30 boards I splurged... but stopped driving the car before I could install it. $300

Front strut housings/spindles - purchased to eventually send off to either Ground Control or AST for coilovers. Both include decent front hub assemblies, if they're worth anything. $100

Brand new rubber engine and trans mounts I had planned to install after I'd given up on ever building it as an autocross car as the poly mounts add no small amount of NVH to the driving experience. $30

Filler piece for the front bumper since PA doesn't use a front plate. $30

Damn, exactly what my buddy is looking for, for the right price, but too far away.

I'm glad to see you're getting rid of it, since the chemistry between you two seems to be all wrong.

That would be a lovely example even out here in the PNW where we don't have so many rust issues. I see it as the perfect S/M52 swap candidate. I paid nearly that much for one which had had the swap done, but the M50 was dead, and I had to bail out the footwell to take it for a test drive, then spend a week gutting it to de-mold after I bought it.

I'm afraid all I've got is best wishes and GLWS...

Amazing deal! This + S50 and you still have a smoking deal.

Why are there no cracks in the dash? Did it get replaced or is it just incredibly far out on the edge of the bell curve?

In reply to Brett_Murphy:

The whole car is that far out on the edge of the bell curve, especially the interior. I think it was garaged much of its early life, and always had caring owners.

It was not garaged at my house unless it was getting worked on. During the inter I had it under a cover. I use a windshield sun-blocker as well and I think the dark window tint may have helped preserve it as well.

I have a few questions.

1) Anyone think they know what is wrong with cylinder number four? Head job maybe?

2) Is / will the car pass PA inspection?

3) How do the floors look?

4) How soon are you looking to move the car?

Thanks Paul B

Donebrokeit wrote: 1) Anyone think they know what is wrong with cylinder number four? Head job maybe?

Probably. An engine is already built into the price though.

With an E30 that nice at that price I would sell the engine/trans to an SE30 guy as a rebuild core and put something more interesting in the hole and still be ahead. It's possible to only be out $4.5k give/take a few hundred for a lovely S52 swapped DD E30 here.

The timing is poor for me - I am over leveraged (read: broke) on two other car projects but were I not... this would have been in my trailer yesterday.

Donebrokeit wrote: I have a few questions. 1) Anyone think they know what is wrong with cylinder number four? Head job maybe? 2) Is / will the car pass PA inspection? 3) How do the floors look? 4) How soon are you looking to move the car? Thanks Paul B

1) Not sure... when I pulled the plugs to do the compression test they all looked OK, so that was no help.

2) No. The car failed miserably after I bought it (HC too high). My own stupidity for buying a car in PA that didn't have a valid inspection... I never bothered inspecting it... around here, the cops don't seem to care. Plus, I work in NJ, so I was rarely driving the car in PA during the daytime. The way it's running right now, I wouldn't even try... but it may depend on the shop. The shop I talekd to about fixing it said pre-OBDII cars don't have to do dyno emissions tests anymore (why it failed), so it might pass now.

If nobody buys it within a day or so, it's off here and goes on eBay for more. If it doesn't meet reserve there I'll get the engine fixed and the car inspected so I can drive it while I work on the TDI. After that it won't be for sale at this price... Probably 2x at least. It'll also get a set of OE springs I have for it and the rubber drivetrain mounts swapped back in. Possibly new all-season tires for the Basketweaves as well. Basically, if I'm going to be driving it for a couple of months, it needs to be more comfortable. Right now, it's not a pleasant car to drive at all.

3) Floors are perfect.

4) Sort of answered that in #2, but ASAP, hence the low price. I found a car I want that meets my needs, but this car needs to go first. However, if that car sells before this one I won't cry about it... I've been bitten too badly too many times going down the snap-purchase path again.

Part of the reason I have it here is like I said - payback (me essentially giving someone the fvck-load of money I've put into this car since I bought it) for listening to me whine about this car for the past 3 years... but it's a limited time offer. Hell, I sold my Cummins that was in far worse condition (as in needed to be towed away - worse) for more. If it comes to it, I'll have no reservations about driving this car down to the shop in Philly I've talked to about fixing it.

Hell... if GPS thinks he could S52 it for ~$2500 I'd be tempted to drive/tow it to him and pay him to do that...

I don't suppose you want my ES for it?

Sine_Qua_Non wrote: I don't suppose you want my ES for it?

If I had a place to put it and finish it - absolutely. But alas, I do not.

http://www.harborfreight.com/garage-shop/portable-garages/10-ft-x-20-ft-max-ap-canopy-with-white-cover-68767.html

Got parts too.

2 doors, rear hatch glass, extra set of steel rims and other smaller stuff

Sine_Qua_Non wrote: http://www.harborfreight.com/garage-shop/portable-garages/10-ft-x-20-ft-max-ap-canopy-with-white-cover-68767.html

I already have one of those... it's actually a bit bigger. and I already have a pile of ES in my basement... attic... shed... back yard... Yours is much closer to drivable, tho...

Ian F wrote: Hell... if GPS thinks he could S52 it for ~$2500 I'd be tempted to drive/tow it to him and pay him to do that...

Here is the formula: - Acquire S52 + trans + driveshaft for less than $2500
- E34 pan + oil pick up + dipstick ~$150
- OBD-I harness + 413 red label ECU + intake + MAF ~$200-250
- fabricate motor mounts from $2 of aluminum
- Buy Raceland headers + bunch of mandrel bends and a couple straight 2.5 lengths from Summit and a universal cat ~$200-260
- Know the magic for making all the wiring stuff work, the exhaust clear and so on.
- Sell engine and trans in it for $750
- Take the original cats to the recycle center for $90
- hoon

BTW: I'm just bumping this because I cannot berkeleyin' believe you still own this thing. Is everyone broke? All it really needs is a flippin' head gasket and maybe have the valves done while you are in there. Someone buy it so I don't have to open a freaking credit card. It's only 80 miles from my house.