Will E36 cars appreciate?
Discussion
I had a 328iS coupe in the late 90s and loved it. It was a stunning looking thing.
They remain a great looking car from when BMWs were still aspirational and they can be bought today for very little. Will they ever start being renovated and increasing in value?
I must say I am a bit tempted to buy another.
So said:
I had a 328iS coupe in the late 90s and loved it. It was a stunning looking thing.
They remain a great looking car from when BMWs were still aspirational and they can be bought today for very little. Will they ever start being renovated and increasing in value?
I must say I am a bit tempted to buy another.
They pretty much already are, cheap saloons and coupe are (mostly) rott boxes and the good ones are getting on for silly money! They remain a great looking car from when BMWs were still aspirational and they can be bought today for very little. Will they ever start being renovated and increasing in value?
I must say I am a bit tempted to buy another.
The trouble is because the decent ones are commanding strong money the guys with rotten ones or just tatty examples are starting to ask silly money as well. Recently saw one that needed a complete new engine, had sub average paint work although it was solid underneath, seller wanted £2000! Someone commented asking if that was a typo, he said no he wanted 2k. Suffice to say it didnt sell and he got a fair amount of piss taking but he isnt the first I have seen like this and there have been plenty since, some much worse asking similar money, thankfully they dont seem to be selling at that price but the time will come I guess!
Mr Tidy said:
A mate of mine is hoping it happens soon!
He's been trying to sell a nice clean 320i Cabriolet Auto with just over 100k miles on it for a few months and had very little interest.
I would guess that keeping them running is relatively pricey is it? He's been trying to sell a nice clean 320i Cabriolet Auto with just over 100k miles on it for a few months and had very little interest.
I had mine for about 18 months, when it was under warranty, and it had loads of new parts. Including an engine rebuild because the liners didn't like British petrol. By way of an apology BMW replaced everything on the car that was showing wear, which was quite a lot considering the car was less than three years old.
I think the driver's seat bolster was re-covered or replaced 3 times whilst I owned it.
Well, I've had a fair few of them, i sold the last one, a 323i saloon afew years ago and it was rust free, bar a scab on the rear arch.
After 3 yrs of ownership it gained in value, i sold it for £250 more than i paid.
I think they are gaining, for nice ones, but nice ones are rare if unmolested.
Its not the coupes that are the most valuable, there are loads of them, the standard tourings and saloons are going to be the ones.
Different for the E46, touring 330i's will be the money cars, but good coupes will always be valued.
After 3 yrs of ownership it gained in value, i sold it for £250 more than i paid.
I think they are gaining, for nice ones, but nice ones are rare if unmolested.
Its not the coupes that are the most valuable, there are loads of them, the standard tourings and saloons are going to be the ones.
Different for the E46, touring 330i's will be the money cars, but good coupes will always be valued.
So said:
I would guess that keeping them running is relatively pricey is it?
I had mine for about 18 months, when it was under warranty, and it had loads of new parts. Including an engine rebuild because the liners didn't like British petrol. By way of an apology BMW replaced everything on the car that was showing wear, which was quite a lot considering the car was less than three years old.
I think the driver's seat bolster was re-covered or replaced 3 times whilst I owned it.
No, his E36 has been fine - especially compared to his E91 320i that has had some issues! I had mine for about 18 months, when it was under warranty, and it had loads of new parts. Including an engine rebuild because the liners didn't like British petrol. By way of an apology BMW replaced everything on the car that was showing wear, which was quite a lot considering the car was less than three years old.
I think the driver's seat bolster was re-covered or replaced 3 times whilst I owned it.
The Nikasil bore issues I'd guess you suffered from aren't an issue any more now you can only buy unleaded petrol.
For E36s I would have thought any good (as in rust-free) Coupe, Saloon or Touring should hold it's value.
With E46s there seems to be a definite premium for bigger engined petrol Tourings, especially facelift 330is as they got a 6-speed gearbox. Which is probably why I ended up buying an E91 325i Touring last year.
Still the E46 325ti Compact has quite a following on here! I had one for over 3 years before I got the 325i (because my E46 was getting pretty crusty underneath).
Which is probably the biggest issue with E36s and E46s now.
But a clean example of either is well worth keeping and enjoying.
Mr Tidy said:
A mate of mine is hoping it happens soon!
He's been trying to sell a nice clean 320i Cabriolet Auto with just over 100k miles on it for a few months and had very little interest.
Its not surprising is it!! Fair enough E36 M3 and 328/325i manual coupes are desirable models that are getting pretty slim in numbers. He's been trying to sell a nice clean 320i Cabriolet Auto with just over 100k miles on it for a few months and had very little interest.
A 320i cabriolet auto is not an enthusiasts car and it's not super low mileage either. Bet its green with beige interior or something nasty like that as well.
The E36 was the last BMW that was easy to work on. Everything is designed to be simple to get at, pretty straightforward - no can bus electronics, no EML. The E46 is an absolute pig by comparison, a collection of rust and fragile plastics held together by luck and designed by a maniac although a good one that's been well looked after is okay as long as you keep on top of it. They are quite needy though. A decent E36 also drives very well, even better with a few inexpensive mods such as an E46 steering rack.
318i saloons will never be wirth a great deal, 323i and 328i Coupes will, and a good Touring with any engine will always have a value. Maybe even Compacts as well.
318i saloons will never be wirth a great deal, 323i and 328i Coupes will, and a good Touring with any engine will always have a value. Maybe even Compacts as well.
Not seeing any signs of price appreciation yet, bought my low mileage (34k) 328i coupe for £4k in 2016 but higher mileage cars are still coming up for sale at £3k or less. Having said that, there are far fewer decent E36s around now than a few years back, thanks to the drifters, corrosion and drift-wannabe chavs wrecking the remaining population.
The E30 has certainly appreciated, even the lower powered models, as have the E36 M3 variants, but I'd expect the 328i Sport Coupe to go next, perhaps followed by the 6 cylinder coupes.
Mine has cost at least as much as the purchase price to bring up to standard over the last few years though so I'd suggest buying one because you want to own it rather than expecting to make any money!!
The E30 has certainly appreciated, even the lower powered models, as have the E36 M3 variants, but I'd expect the 328i Sport Coupe to go next, perhaps followed by the 6 cylinder coupes.
Mine has cost at least as much as the purchase price to bring up to standard over the last few years though so I'd suggest buying one because you want to own it rather than expecting to make any money!!
Mine's estoril. ironically i'm not mad on it but it was the healthiest one for sale at the time.
I had 2 manual 328i coupes before it. One was a dark metallic green SE with black leather interior (really like it in the colour) and the other one was a completely standard one, no sill trims, grey sill paint (factory) in arctic silver. I bloody LOVED that car, it just looked right.
I had 2 manual 328i coupes before it. One was a dark metallic green SE with black leather interior (really like it in the colour) and the other one was a completely standard one, no sill trims, grey sill paint (factory) in arctic silver. I bloody LOVED that car, it just looked right.
V1nce Fox said:
Mine's estoril. ironically i'm not mad on it but it was the healthiest one for sale at the time.
I had 2 manual 328i coupes before it. One was a dark metallic green SE with black leather interior (really like it in the colour) and the other one was a completely standard one, no sill trims, grey sill paint (factory) in arctic silver. I bloody LOVED that car, it just looked right.
I think Estoril is about the best colour on your car.I had 2 manual 328i coupes before it. One was a dark metallic green SE with black leather interior (really like it in the colour) and the other one was a completely standard one, no sill trims, grey sill paint (factory) in arctic silver. I bloody LOVED that car, it just looked right.
Touring442 said:
I can't stand silver on these. Avus blue and Bright red (Hellrot) were great colours along with Boston green and Cosmos black.
Estoril has never been a fave either. Daytona and Techno violet were both epic.
I think it depends on the model.Estoril has never been a fave either. Daytona and Techno violet were both epic.
The silver looked excellent on the 328i Sport, less good on other models. I think the contours of the body and accents just worked with silver.
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