Author Topic: My quest so far... is there still hope? (Read 14147 times)

AndeeG · « **on:** July 20, 2008, 12:38:59 AM »

I might as well start from the beginning so here goes.

I've been into e30s for several years now. Initially I didn't search too hard because a car was not immediately necessary and I wasn't as sure what I want as I am now. However, the inherited 12mpg, 4800 lb behemoth that is the Toyota Landcruiser quickly grew tiresome. I began searching for any 5-speed e30s in my area with a preference for 89+ (plastic bumpers). Eventually I narrowed my preference to the m42 because of the mileage, reduced weight, and surprising lack of a desire for speed given my age. I began searching my area craigslist daily, but never really found anything up to my standards. Soon the search radius increased to encompass all of California, where it stands now.

I've come reasonably close to buying 2 different cars, both in my area, both alpineweiss 318is' (color was a coincidence). It turned out the first one was owned by a kid that was a year ahead at my school and a bit of an enthusiast. My mechanic's inspection turned up a slew of minor work that needed to be done. All together, the cost for parts alone would have been around 800 bucks plus many hours of labor. Unfortunately, the seller refused to budge under $3k so that fell through.

The second car I checked out just a week ago, and was faced with a similar situation. There were clearly some minor cosmetic problems, but the car drove well, had fewer miles than the previous one, and looked to be a reasonable buy. However, what we hoped was oil leaking from the header gasket turned out to be much more. The engine had been overfilled and was leaking all over the place. Several of the spark plugs were drenched in oil. My mechanic advised no higher than $1500 and once again the seller refused to budge.

Now I've been in contact with several people selling e30's in LA and SF (between which I reside) but every time the car sells several hours after posting or the guy stops emailing me etc. It seems as if I'm not going to be able to manage a mechanic's inspection if I end up getting any further with a non-local buy. Are my experiences at all unusual in terms of the amount of maintenance necessary on these cars? While I feel like at this point I could probably detect the problems I've had so far, I really don't want to get home to discover that there's a major issue that's going to cost me hundreds if not thousands to fix. There's one particular car I'm looking at in LA with only 81k miles. That can't possibly be as problem ridden as these other 180k plus cars?

Any thoughts?

Sorry about the length, here are the cliffs:

2 previous inspections turned up many hundreds of dollars of necessary repairs.

I want to expand my search but am weary of getting nailed by not doing an inspection.

P. Kennedy · « **Reply #1 on:** July 20, 2008, 04:51:58 PM »

I bought mine real cheap, and very nearby. I knew it needed work. I didn't care, because I wanted an M42 and I am capable of doing all the work on it. These cars are now 17 years old. You'd be real lucky to find one extremely well preserved. Don't give up the chase.

John W · « **Reply #2 on:** July 20, 2008, 09:08:21 PM »

You were right to pass on the two cars you already passed on. These are pretty well built cars, but they're old so even well maintained examples will need at best a couple hundred dollars worth of work -- but it may not be stuff you have to do right away like suspension bushings, etc. A car this old with only 81k miles also deserves close attention. It seems like it may not have been driven enough (and as a result maintained) in recent years if the mileage is that low. Also, don't necessarily worry about having to fix a few things -- these cars are easy to work on (and easy to learn to work on) and parts are plentiful and relatively inexpensive. But on the other hand, you don't want your to-do list to be too long because it will seem like you'll never get through it and everything will add up $$$

Another possible option that might help to expand your pool of available vehicles:

This probably isn't the forum to say this, but if you're having a really hard time finding a good m42 equipped car -- and the big bumpers aren't a deal breaker -- don't rule out an 84-88 eta powered e30. They're older, not as desirable from a performance standpoint and much more plentiful, so consequently prices are lower. There are still a lot decent examples around and it's probably about the toughest car BMW ever built. A chip will raise the redline a bit and add noticeable horsepower; a diff swap also helps wake it up. They also get high-20s mpg.

AcSchnitzer318is · « **Reply #3 on:** July 20, 2008, 09:53:58 PM »

With any used car I purchase I plan on doing at least 200-300 bucks in immediate maintenance and repairs. On a 17 year old car that could easily be 500-800 bucks. I got really lucky on mine and got it for 1300 with a great body and interior, but then bought a new motor for it (fairly fresh rebuild, 23000 miles) for another 1100 with trans. Sooooooo that's 2800 and then I had to do about $400 in suspension, drivetrain, etc maintenance/repairs. Did all the work with the help of buddies who knew what they were doing so labor was pretty cheap

Anyway, point is... if you want a solid one that you know will not leave you somewhere, spend about $4000 total on the car. These are highly desirable cars now, all e30's not just the m42 cars. Their prices will not come down... as seen by those 2 sellers.

AndeeG · « **Reply #4 on:** July 20, 2008, 09:58:21 PM »

I'm definitely not afraid of doing a little work and don't really expect to find a totally pristine car. I just don't want to pay $3k for something in OK condition and then have to put another thousand in necessary parts + labor. With the 81k car, apparently the current owner has been daily driving it for 2 years so if it wasn't driven much that was probably by the owner before him.

I might consider an eta, but I think my parents are pretty set on it being airbag equipped.

To AcSchnitzer318is, why do you think e30s are suddenly so desirable? I've read that they're becoming classic cars and the resale value is increasing if anything, but I'm curious as to why this is.

nomad · « **Reply #5 on:** July 20, 2008, 11:41:55 PM »

So you don;t want to buy a 3k car and put 800 into it? I bet you also refuse to buy a car with no issues for 3,800? The real question is how much money do you have to spend total? Every car will have issues that need to be addressed. I bought a car that was close to problem free, probably paid a few hundred too much because I "really wanted one" at the time.

I should have broke it down and examined/replaced a bunch of hoses and expendable parts right away but I was lazy. I was having fun driving it every day until the water pipe let go and overheated/cracked the head etc. Long story short, I ended up spending more money repairing it because I didn't spend a little money upkeeping it the moment I got it.

If you're in Cali you might find a deal on a "project" but you can also pay a lot more for a great runner.

AndeeG · « **Reply #6 on:** July 21, 2008, 12:29:47 AM »

Quote from: nomad;53557

So you don;t want to buy a 3k car and put 800 into it? I bet you also refuse to buy a car with no issues for 3,800? The real question is how much money do you have to spend total? Every car will have issues that need to be addressed. I bought a car that was close to problem free, probably paid a few hundred too much because I "really wanted one" at the time.

I should have broke it down and examined/replaced a bunch of hoses and expendable parts right away but I was lazy. I was having fun driving it every day until the water pipe let go and overheated/cracked the head etc. Long story short, I ended up spending more money repairing it because I didn't spend a little money upkeeping it the moment I got it.

If you're in Cali you might find a deal on a "project" but you can also pay a lot more for a great runner.

What I'm saying is that I don't want to pay a premium price AND have to immediately invest time and money into repairs. I'd be willing to spend more on a TRULY problem free car, or less for something that would require a reasonable amount of maintenance. What I'm really trying to figure out here is if my first two experiences are typical, rare, unavoidable, etc. Can I expect to have to do all of this minor stuff on anything I find and still pay $3k? Or were these two cars outliers?

AcSchnitzer318is · « **Reply #7 on:** July 21, 2008, 02:58:58 AM »

Quote from: AndeeG;53562

What I'm saying is that I don't want to pay a premium price AND have to immediately invest time and money into repairs. I'd be willing to spend more on a TRULY problem free car, or less for something that would require a reasonable amount of maintenance. What I'm really trying to figure out here is if my first two experiences are typical, rare, unavoidable, etc. Can I expect to have to do all of this minor stuff on anything I find and still pay $3k? Or were these two cars outliers?

Yes, this is completely typical. An e30 (coupe especially) that doesn't need ANYTHING maintenance wise will run you $4000-$5000. Demand is high on these cars now so of course price goes up... even for cars with problems. It sounds like you are trying to shop blue book value on an e30; blue book doesn't really apply in this case. For example, and this is extreme, but an example... an e30tech forum member's (don't want to give his SN) e30 sold for $10000 with something like 120,000 miles. And this car was PRISTINE. But blue book on that car is like $2500. Shoot I wouldn't let me car go for less than $5000 and it still needs a few things.

If you were shopping 2 or 3 years ago you could get an awesome one for super little cash. But not the case anymore. You have it better than here in Texas. E30's get snatched up like hotcakes unless they are total junk.

Bottom line. Expect to pay 2500 - 3000 and then put 500 - 1000 into it, especially if you aren't doing your own labor.

nomad · « **Reply #8 on:** July 21, 2008, 09:42:17 AM »

Yes, what he said.

What i was getting at was that i bought my car for 3000 and I thought it was problem free, which for the most part it was. I looked at the little nit-picky things and didn't care (broken dash button, some cracked interior trim, basically wear and tear) and I figured I'd just drive it.

I should have still spent my 3-400 changing out everything i could afford, but i procrastinated and it bit me with a couple hundred to just get it running again. Now i know better, but I still have a car (after the work I've done now) that I feel is at a great position. I'd sell it for above 4k and I'm adding some more mods for me that add a tiny bit of resale value (but I don't have false hopes).

good luck, anything you get will need work so budget it.

pmcinema · « **Reply #9 on:** July 21, 2008, 11:25:48 AM »

I saw this add in the Los Angeles craigslist. Perhaps it is still for sale.
http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lgb/car/758277521.html

good luck.

AndeeG · « **Reply #10 on:** July 21, 2008, 12:32:29 PM »

Saw that one too. Thanks for the heads up!

AndeeG · « **Reply #11 on:** July 22, 2008, 08:14:30 PM »

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/car/762074276.html

What do you guys think of this? Seems like a pretty reasonable deal to me.
As far as unmentioned issues go, I noticed that the front valence is pretty bent and there appears to be a weird looking ding on the right front fender. See anything else?

nomad · « **Reply #12 on:** July 22, 2008, 08:34:34 PM »

I'd work on that price, because of lack of engine work. There's more than "Tune ups" needed after 100K of his driving on it. I'm sure the suspension is shot, the timing and cooling system need a full going over and replacing parts since he never did. The front valence and fender are whacked beyond dent-guy repair. Craptastic wheels, but hey, whatever you like, and a window held up by wood? Geeze, what else did he rig up? Since paying for parts and mechanics are certainly not his type of thing? Lots of little things to replace like fogs, lip, dash, repair seat, tires, brakes, speedo and odometer gears, etc.

I don't believe anyone with odo failure that it "just happened". More like 200K. That just says to me "when my car breaks... i ignore it"

Price 'might' be in the right ballpark if the engine is strong, leak free, A/C works and P/S is leak free and works. No overheating etc. Go look at it very closely, wouldn't hurt to scope it out.

I'd look at the white one if it's closer.

AndeeG · « **Reply #13 on:** July 22, 2008, 09:46:33 PM »

Thanks for the advice, Nomad. I called the guy selling the white one and he should be sending me some more pictures today. Apparently he has the original rims, which is a nice bonus considering I'd be swapping them out anyway.

Also, does the white car look lowered to you? The tops of the wheels look very close to the fender, but maybe they're just oversized or something.

Edit: I seem to remember him mentioning that the odo had recently broken at around 180k. I think he also said that he had recently bought the car, so maybe I could look at the title to confirm?

nomad · « **Reply #14 on:** July 23, 2008, 09:43:15 AM »

Ride looks to be stock height.
No sport seats but you can add those later. I bet the driver side bolster is toast, he didn't show it in the photos.
You notice he has a rear roundel on his front hood? weakness
In his ad he says 156k the odo broke.

The key will be the condition, sounds, wear, of engine/transmission and suspension. Cosmetic stuff can be taken care of and at a price of 1500 you have a lot of money to work with to fix a lot of stuff. Still looks like you'll be spending $3000 when it's all done.

Black is nice, not sure if you prefer 4 doors either.