First Car - 1984 325i - Any suggestions?

Depends.Unless your an expert then buying any second hand cars(wether old or
not) can be a headache. I went safe and bought a nice looking 318i over 1.5
years ago - it had full service history and only one owner but I had to put shit
loads of money into it(including a new fuel tank as old one rusted out). This
year I bought a `91 e30 320iSE with NO REAL SERVICE history but was owned by a
mechanic and I have had no real expensive problems in 6 months(6000 miles) of
driving! In the 1 year of owning the 318i I had spent over 1500UKpounds on
it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Darren

If your only 16 you have to watch out when buying a BMW because the insurance will be very expensive thats if you can get insurance, if your looking for a first car youll be better off getting a smaller car, something like a peugeot, renault or a corsa.

I disagree with some of the above. My first car was a 1984 E30 (318i) that performed well.

1) Parts aren't that expensive if you use junkyard parts or use discounted parts via clubs like the BMWCCA (gets you discounts with many parts dealers).

2) The mechanical repairs on the E30s are actually not that difficult. The biggest headache with BMWs (including my new E83) is electronics and electrical. That can drive you nuts.

3) On the E30s, the big thing to look out for is rust in the rocker panels, and rust/decay in the rear shock towers (look under the carpet of the trunk on the sides to check this).

4) Timing chain can be a big job, but you CAN do this on your own and save a ton of $$$. I found it to not be a big deal.

5) Nothing can replace the handling of the E30s!!! You will love it.

Just my $0.02 !!

i have a 318i that starts and shuts off. does anyone have any idea why?

Basically, non-BMW marked parts. Actually, a lot of 'common' parts are
cheaper to buy as genuine BMW parts!

I only just started following this thread, but on the whole I'd say my
mid-80's 320i is no more expensive to maintain than most cars that
I've owned. It's a *LOT* cheaper than my VW!

Al.



1985 BMW E30 320i

It depends... ask your friend(s) for stuff to look for, good and bad.
Anything 1980s vintage is going to have miles... probably well over 100K,
which is not bad in itself.

It's how the car spent those miles... neglected, well cared for? Driven
hard, moderately or easy?

I've spoken with several BMW mechanics and all have said that Beemer engines
are good for around 200K before rebuild- *PROVIDED* service intervals have
been adhered to.

Bottom line- watch yourself. BMWs are not exactly inexpensive to repair.
Even if are willing (and able!) to work on the car yourself (and thus, be
without car while the valve cover is off `cuz you found it's leaking and you
need a new gasket).

-Tony
`87 E30

It depends... ask your friend(s) for stuff to look for, good and bad.
Anything 1980s vintage is going to have miles... probably well over 100K,
which is not bad in itself.

It's how the car spent those miles... neglected, well cared for? Driven
hard, moderately or easy?

I've spoken with several BMW mechanics and all have said that Beemer engines
are good for around 200K before rebuild- *PROVIDED* service intervals have
been adhered to.

Bottom line- watch yourself. BMWs are not exactly inexpensive to repair.
Even if are willing (and able!) to work on the car yourself (and thus, be
without car while it's up on blocks and the head's off `cuz you found it's
leaking at the head gasket).

-Tony

IMHO:
If I were you, for a first car, I'd buy something which can be easily
dismantled and put back together without too much trouble
All this means that you can practice your car maintenance skills without it
costing you too much money

My first car was a 1100cc Ford Escort, which had the following advantages:
(NB - keep reading, I'll get back to BMW's in a minute)

* A decent rust-free one was cheap to buy (??1800)
* I got 60,000 miles out of it (and believe me when I tell you that I REALLY
thrashed it!)
* I could rely on it to start in a morning to get to college provided I kept
my grubby little fingers out of the engine bay ;-)
* Parts were cheap and readily available from any scrap yard I cared to
visit
* They're built with a half-inch spanner, so there was no need for a complex
toolkit, and when I broke anything on it, I could unbolt the broken part and
fix it myself
* Car Insurance for a Ford is VERY cheap - this is very important in the UK
for younger drivers
* It used very little petrol (again, very important in the UK when it
currently costs almost ??3 per gallon)

However, if you still want a BMW, then read on:

I've actually just bought my first BMW
(1993, 318iS Coupe with 120,000 miles on the clock).

Having talked to a few owners prior to buying one, may I offer the following
(which is anecdotal):

As a rule of thumb, if you're going for a 4-cylinder model, ignore the 1.6
engines because they're just a little underpowered
Ideally, get a 6-cylinder (320i and above)
Above all, make sure you get one with a good service history

I've had my 318iS for approx. 3 months now, and without a doubt it's the
best car I've ever had despite the following:
This model is apparently subject to the cylinder head gasket going.
According to my friendly local BMW specialist, this is a design flaw which
resulted in an engine design modification on later models, and it tends to
happen after approx. 80k miles
However, in my case, it happened at 117k miles, just under 2 months after
buying it!!

The symptoms are a slight water leak which gets worse and worse
The longer you leave it, the worse it gets, and the bigger the bill
I was lucky, but it still involved a serious amount of engine dismantling,
and I was without the car for 2 days - a lifetime for me, because without my
car, I couldnt get to work
At the same time, seeing that the engine was in bits anyway, I got a new
timing chain fitted, and had a steering coupling shaft replaced.
Anyway, on completion, the garage were able to report that the rest of the
engine
showed no signs of wear, and I could comfortably expect to get my target of
at least 4 years and 80k+ miles from it before I sell it on and get an M3

My other bit of advice to you (whatever car you get):

Make sure it is as free from rust as possible
Get one that has as good a service history as possible (service book,
receipts, etc)
In the UK, we can check out a car's history, to see if it has been stolen,
crashed, built from 2 or more scrapped cars (yes, it does happen) or that
there's no outstanding finance on it. If you can do the same in your
country, then I'd highly recommend it
Clutches may wear out, but they can easily be replaced

Oh, and don't forget the sun cream ;-))

Dave G
(using someone else's PC 'cause I've spent all my money on a BMW)

...

BMWs are capable of racking up very high miles, but they are very
complex for DIYers and parts are expensive.

--
Joel Gallun
'93 525iT
BMW CCA

OK, My $.02.

I bought my first BMW 2 years ago. A 1987 325 with 100k
miles. Good shape. Good maintenance history. Rust is not a
major problem where I live. Best car I've ever had.

Had it looked over. The only major problem I have had is to
Replace the air conditioner, a MUST where I live. And since
the US govt outlawed R-12, updated the refrigerant. About
$1200 US.

However, maintenance _is_ required. It is not cheap, and it
is not simple for do-it-yourself. Brakes, Timing belt,
clutch, etc., maintenance items will be due soon, if not
already. Not cheap.

Bottom line. You would have a quality car, it can last a
very long time, and over the long haul, might cost less. If
you are skimping now, it most likely won't.

Good Luck.

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No they are not. Pre-90 BMWs are no more difficult than the equivalent Fords
or Vauxhalls and parts are as cheap as Fords. at least in Europe if you buy
pattern parts.

...

What are "pattern parts" ?

Tom

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