M42club.com - Home of the BMW E30/E36 318i/iS

DISCUSSION => General Topics => Topic started by: SRV91 on September 18, 2012, 12:23:33 PM

Title: 91 325i or 318i/is
Post by: SRV91 on September 18, 2012, 12:23:33 PM

Which would be a better buy, saying both are in mint or fair condition.

Title: 91 325i or 318i/is
Post by: DesktopDave on September 18, 2012, 04:59:03 PM

The M20 325i has more torque but slightly duller handling.  The M20 is more durable and has a bit more headroom for performance improvements.  You can also get an automatic with it...say if your wife will only drive them, that's a downright advantage.
 
The M42 e30 is rarer and far more advanced - needs less routine maintenance.  No timing belt and no valve adjustments.  When things do go wrong, they're a lot more expensive to fix though.  Overheating is a chronic M42 problem that the M20 doesn't seem to suffer from.