just getting my first BMW!

[groovylee]

hi all,
well, after being a long time fan of Alfas, i am about to get my hands on my first BMW - an E30 320i cabriolet auto, 1989 in dark blue

a mate of mine let me know that it was sat on his parents drive, and hadn't moved for the last two years, and would i be interested? so in the end, for the princely sum of two bottles of wine, it is mine

i know it has been looked after, full service history right up to the point where they just parked it up and forgot about it (company cars now you see).

anyway, i have signed up to E30zone, and got a bit of advice on things to look at, but i was wondering what you fine chaps on here think should be the priorities for the car. i am going to charge the battery, check all the fluid levels, then try to start her up. is there anything else i should be considering before cranking her over? it is an auto, which is new to me, so i don't want to miss anything important that could bite me in the bum!

it also has a very good condition genuine BMW hard top, that i am considering selling to fund the rebuild. is that a good ide? or should i keep it because they are getting rare?

basically, any and all advice would be most welcome. oh, and i will try to get pics up tonight

cheers all,

Lee

[Frances The Mute]

It's fairly straightforward - recomminsioning to get back on the road. The ballache as with most cars and all E30's is looking for rust and sorting it. There's no point going to all the time, effort and expense of sorting to car out to find it's a pup.

As a rule, the facelift verts fair far better than their other bodied brethren. Nevertheless, you need to check it out. Floors, sills, scuttles, battery tray - they all need checking.

Check the roof mech, too. The electric versions are pretty problematic and can be expensive to fix.

[E30M3SE]

groovylee said:

i am going to charge the battery, check all the fluid levels, then try to start her up. is there anything else i should be considering before cranking her over? it is an auto, which is new to me, so i don't want to miss anything important that could bite me in the bum!

I would pull the plugs and turn the engine over by hand, then on the starter before refitting the plugs and attempting to get her running. How much/how old is the fuel in the car? Fresh fuel would be a good idea.

groovylee said:

it also has a very good condition genuine BMW hard top, that i am considering selling to fund the rebuild. is that a good ide? or should i keep it because they are getting rare?

Lee

Genuine hardtops are quite rare, worth about £700 upwards depending on the condition it is in. I would be inclined to keep the hardtop unitl you know what the true condition of the car is, i.e. how much rust is hiding.

[groovylee]

cheers for the tips guys, i will let you know how i get on. good call about pulling the plugs first. as for the fuel, i guess it has been in there for two years at least. so some fresh fuel will be in order too.

thanks again,

Lee

[E30M3SE]

Also, you are aware that these cars run timing belts, so depending on how old it is I would not run it for long, or removed the cover and check the condition of the belt before attempting to actually start the engine.

[groovylee]

well, poor pics i know, but here she is

new things i have found out - there is also a stand for the hardtop that will be handy, the timing belt was changed 24k ago, but 7 years ago and the aerial is broken.

we pulled the plugs and had a quick look in the bores, and after chatting to my mates dad, he let us know that it has been started periodically, so we decided to bang the jump leads on and give her a crank.

started first time

well happy.

ETA: the roof is manual, and had a new rear screen not too long ago

will get more info and pics up when i get it shifted to my place and give her a good clean.

there is rust on the rear arches, but not toooooo bad, and a bit where the sills meet the front arch on the drivers side. the glovebox is knackered, and one of the fog lights doesn't work, but there is a new replacement in the car.

will update more soon.

[S3_Graham]

that plate must be worth £500 alone!!

[DennisCooper]

Hi

It would be really nice if you were indeed to save the car and restore it back to good health or even potentially, a well modified E30 convertible with tasteful choice in upgrades. Nowadays, with more knowledge, engine swaps can be done to later 2.5 or 2.8/3.0 litre engines relatively easily (I forget the engine code names) and it means you'd be able to have more power with a more efficient engine. The original engines whilst still good, especially if you do intend to keep it totally original, aren't so good when the newer engines can be fitted. I'm not pushing you into definitely doing such things, but keep in mind, if the rest of the car is sound and clean, it's potentially worth doing.

If this sort of thing isn't for you, then a modest amount spent on the car to make it road worthy as described above, and running smoothly, some amount to clean it up and you'd do quite well into selling it to an enthusiast who perhaps could tinker with it more. Or indeed, keep it as a nice car for yourself! two bottles of wine is a fantastic purchase price!

Cheers, Dennis!

[BoraBora]

id change the oil and filter before driving it as its been stood for two years