Hey does anyone know where I can find an old E30 for a decent price? People are asking around $15k for one. Thought it'd be fun to have a lil track *****! They have a couple on ebay and autotrader but the prices are kinda high. If anyone knows, just drop a line.

 

They are not cheap track cars by any means. Parts for E30 M's are $$$.

PM 'Warren' He has an E30 M3, and could provide more insight on the costs.

 

heh, actually i'd like to see what people have to say about these as well...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by .RJ &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">They are not cheap track cars by any means. Parts for E30 M's are $$$.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

I second that.

Although the E30 is my favorite M3 of all....

 

i think warren HAD an M3....

 

I used to race E30 M3 in BMWCCA club racing. I raced in stock class. It is probably the funnest car I had ever driven on track.

The downside is, it is a BMW. Very expensive to maintain and operate. Engine rebuild is well over $8K and it is almost impossible to find used engine for this car. This car is more expensive to maintain than E36 M3.

Given the car is pretty old, there are lot of things need TLC.

One thing for sure, you get what you paid for. A good street E30M3 will cost around $15K. A good race car will cost $13K - $15K. If you finds a car that cost $5K, be prepare to spend $10K to make it worthy.

 

i looked heavily into buying one about a year ago.

as was already stated, an engine rebuild is over 5g's in parts alone, and can end up at 10g's pretty easily. everything is expensive, even exhausts are about a grand.

the saying goes with these cars that you'll end up spending 15k no matter what. you can buy one for 10 and have to put 5 into it to make it run right, or just buy a nice one from the start for 15.

 

well, i'm not ready for w2w racing yet, so what are the more common problems i should expect from hpde use?

perhaps h-t isnt the right place to ask bmw questions...

-brian

 

Not trying to hijack, but anyone have experiences with racing a e30 325is or 325i? Just wondering if they are as expensive to race.

 

Yeah the E30 is growing on me a lot. I currently own a ITR, but to have a E30 would be great to. Maybe I'll save up some more, I wouldn't want to get a beat up one by any means. But yeah as far as BMW goes, German cars =$$$ But I'm in the same boat with the ITR as well, a decent exhaust for one is well over 600 bucks. I'm gonna look around a little bit more though, the two cars I would love to own is either a E30 or a 914-6.

 

the e30 M3 is way more expensive to maintain/operate than an ITR.

not only that, but there are very very few people left in the country who know how to do a proper rebuild on the motor. the guy i knew in MN who raced one shipped his motor out to NJ every time he needed work done to give you an idea. everyone and their mom know's how to work on B sereis honda motors.

 

Yeah, that's true, I know its difficult to find parts, and good mechanic's to work on the E30's, but I much rather invest money in an old E30, than in the R right now.

 

Sorry bro, I just sold mine for 9500, FULLY track prepped by Bimmerworld with all the Turner goodies.

edit: just read the read of the thread. Mine did NOT cost the new owner 5k to fix up. He took it out to Summit last weekend and had a hoot.

Warren

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Warren &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Sorry bro, I just sold mine for 9500, FULLY track prepped by Bimmerworld with all the Turner goodies.</TD></TR></TABLE>

SWEET DEAL

 

Warren, where did you advertise it, if I'd known I'd have bought it in a second. I'm looking for another...

Just like any older car you are looking at bushings and rubber parts. Nothing that you wouldn't do to any car destined for track use.

YOU MUST HAVE AN OIL PAN BAFFLE!
You will need to do front LCAs every 20 events on R tires, ball joint failure issue. Go steel not aluminum, 1/2 the price.
Brake ducting is a good idea, Turner kit seals better to the hub than the Bimmerworld kit.
Carry a spare water pump.
Iigomotiv chip is a must.

I love mine, for a track day car I wouldn't trade it for anything. They aren't cheap but they certainly aren't the huge investments, PITAs that people make them out to be. I'd be happy to take anyone for a ride at any SCDA event, mine is silver, just say hi...

As for sending the motor to NJ, there are many who do that. Those motors are going to Mr ///M Car, Don Fields. He's THE guy when it comes to E30 M3s in the US. There are a few folks who really know the cars and they have a rather fanatical following. There were less than 5000 brought to the US and by all accounts the estimate is about 2000 are left driving around.

If you want some more info head to http://www.s14.net

 

There's nothing wrong with an M20 powered E30, either!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Mike P. &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">There's nothing wrong with an M20 powered E30, either! </TD></TR></TABLE>
No doubt. The only thing that I can think of that is near an E30 in the fun to drive bang for the buck category is a miata. I'd rather have a car with a roof...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by DBurke &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
No doubt. The only thing that I can think of that is near an E30 in the fun to drive bang for the buck category is a miata. I'd rather have a car with a roof...</TD></TR></TABLE>

I can't wait to have one of each.

 

I have a 325i E30 and love it! handles great and the engine has a lot of power! Parts are cheap when you know where to get them from. I find it very easy to work on and I have replaced just about everything over the years! As stated above m3's engine parts are pricey everything else is resonable. A good option is a 318i, same great weight balance of the m3 but cheap repairs!


-nate

p.s. on thing to know about e30's if they are on stock suspention they are kinda tippy with r-compounds as you can see I found out below

 

I never advertised it. It was always up for grabs if the right offer came along. I put maybe 14k into it, cost included. I lost some from the sale, but I think it was very fair to both of us. My engine and tranny were rock solid. Awesome leakdown and compression &lt;97k miles.

I agree with the baffles and control arms except the AL vs steel. The AL arms supposedly have better ball joints.

Here's the description of the car: http://forums.audiworld.com/ra...phtml

Warren

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by PUSHER &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Not trying to hijack, but anyone have experiences with racing a e30 325is or 325i? Just wondering if they are as expensive to race.</TD></TR></TABLE>

The E30 M20's are affordable to own and maintain - if you know where to look for parts and/or if you can find a good shop. (Stock replacement parts and go-fast parts are no more expensive for my 90 325is than equivalent parts were for my SE-R's, my CRX, or my Miata. Many of them are actually cheaper!)

Reliability? That's all relative, especially for track cars. A 200k-mile street beater will not be a reliable track car without some preparation, but that's the same for any car. Luckily they made a lot of these so things like used transmissions and differentials are readily available in junkyards. And an M20 rebuild costs less in parts than an equivalent Honda B-series rebuild (for example.)

Donor cars are everywhere for &lt;$3k and many of the later/stronger motors bolt right in. In relative terms, for $15k (the cost of a good E30 M3)... you could buy a solid E36 M3... or even better, build an E36 M3-powered E30 325i that would smoke an E30 M3 around any road circuit in the world.

Just like everyone else... I'd love an E30 M3 but not for the cost of entry, and cost of maintenance.

Hope it helps-

Jon

 

I've been tracking a e30 325is since '99, and started racing it last year.

I agree with pretty much everything Jon said. The 6 cyl e30s are very cheap to operate, modulo one thing: the rocker arms are weak. I've never had a set last more than 2 years. Consumables are dirt cheap.

HOWEVER -- adding HP to any BMW costs big bucks. If you race in a class that limits mods to the motor you can do ok, money-wise. If you get into a class that allows motor mods prepare to spend lots of money.

Like others have pointed out, the only cheap parts on a e30 m3 are the ones that are common with the 6 cyl cars, and there aren't a lot of them. The e30 m3 doesn't have a bodykit -- all the sheet metal other than the hood is unique to the m3. bend it and prepare to pay. Everything on the e30 m3 motor (S14) is expensive -- sparkplug wires, rotor, dist. cap, FPR are all 2x what the same parts for the 6 cyl are. I don't know what internals cost and I'd rather not find out.

The main difference between the 6 cyl and m3 from a driving perspective is the S14 has a much higher redline and it doesn't have much torque down low. I kinda like the way the 6 cyl pulls myself, but it would be nice to have that higher redline. Handling-wise, there are no significant differences between the suspensions on the 6 cyl and the m3, and all the useful m3 parts can be used to upgrade the 6 cyl cars.

If you are interested in racing an e30 for cheap, there is a group racing under NASA sanction called specE30. They have a mailing list on yahoo called specE30

Joel
BMWCCA CR K Prepared #151

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JoelG &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">HOWEVER -- adding HP to any BMW costs big bucks. If you race in a class that limits mods to the motor you can do ok, money-wise. If you get into a class that allows motor mods prepare to spend lots of money.</TD></TR></TABLE>

True from what I've seen also. It's cheaper - and arguably more reliable - to swap in a later (twincam, chain) 2.5 or 2.8 than it is to build an earlier (single cam, belt) 2.5 to make near equivalent power. This isn't legal for any reasonable racing class, unfortunately... but it would make for a good cheap track car.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If you are interested in racing an e30 for cheap, there is a group racing under NASA sanction called specE30. They have a mailing list on yahoo called specE30</TD></TR></TABLE>

Great group of folks, and the cars seem to be quite reliable/affordable. Details are at http://www.northamericanbavari...0.htm

Jon

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by getfast &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">True from what I've seen also. It's cheaper - and arguably more reliable - to swap in a later (twincam, chain) 2.5 or 2.8 than it is to build an earlier (single cam, belt) 2.5 to make near equivalent power. </TD></TR></TABLE>

I agree with this part.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">This isn't legal for any reasonable racing class, unfortunately... but it would make for a good cheap track car. </TD></TR></TABLE>

There have been a couple of hybrid e30s run quite successfully in ITE in the MARRS. Bob Eveleigh was 3rd in the final standings in '02 in his S50 powered e30.

And a hybrid e30 is a perfectly legal D or C Modified class BMWCCA club racer, depending on displacement. C = 2981cc to 3499cc, D = 2200cc to 2980cc

joel

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JoelG &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I agree with pretty much everything Jon said. The 6 cyl e30s are very cheap to operate, modulo one thing: the rocker arms are weak. I've never had a set last more than 2 years. Consumables are dirt cheap.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

Hey Joel - where are you sourcing those rocker arms? I went with BMW-loged dealer-sourced rockers since the design has been modified - there is more metal at the normal breakage point on the dealer parts. Other "OEM supplier" parts may be still using the old weaker original design.

Mine have been fine for 3+ years and 30+ events now, including a lot of time bouncing off the 6900 RPM limiter at autocrosses.