Shed Of The Week: BMW 318iS
An E30 318iS will cost you many thousands now - time to get on this E36 while you can!
Less than 100,000 miles? Five greens on the service indicator? Full service history? A good metallic colour? Leather upholstery? Manual gearbox?
Well now this looks rather smart, doesn't it?
We'll get onto that in a minute, but first let's admire the comely shape of the E36 Coupe. It remains an attractive car even now. Ironically, the 318iS to have - if investment is your goal at any rate - would be the 318iS saloon. That was only on sale for one month, in 1998. But the Coupe looks best.
Right, back to the iS bit. Normally of course the sight of '318' on a BMW ad will have any self-respecting PHer turning up their schnozz in disgust. But the iS bit is important. That means it's the 16-valve version of the quietly effective but basically bland small four that droned many a sales rep up and down the motorways of 1990s Britain.
Those extra valves hoisted 318 power up by nearly 25hp to 138hp and gave the Three the top end that was never really there on the 8-valver. You do need to chase peak power somewhat on the iS, as it's not reached until 6,000rpm, just 500rpm short of the redline. Fortunately, revving the mammaries off it is not a pre-requisite for enjoyable iS driving, because you also got more torque in the iS, and lower in the rev range, thanks to its DISA variable-length intake manifold. So it's not a case of peaky not-so-blinder. Indeed, the key advantage of the 1.9 M44 over the forged-crank M42 was its extra driveability.
'iS' means 16 valves and heady height of 140hp
As a post-'94 Three, this car's cams will be driven by a chain rather than a belt. What can happen to these M44 engines though is sudden head gasket failure. If the gasket hasn't been changed yet then it's not a bad plan. Plus it's a good excuse to shove in a pair of Schrick cams.
What else can wee on your iS chips? Well, the cam cover gasket can seep oil, and this model didn't escape the plastic-impeller water pumps that plagued so many BMWs. Check as many pipes as you can for perishing or splits. Idle control valves get gunged up, causing lumpy running. Clutch pedals squeak, diff bolts loosen, and front lower control arm bushes dry up, leading to steering wobble and uneven tyre wear. Power steering reservoirs can leak. Track rod ends wear - but you probably knew that. The front windows don't work on this car. That could be something as simple as a relay.
You'll note from the ad that this car has had a new Final Stage Resistor (FSU) fitted. This is such a common BMW fault that the FSU has even been given a nickname: the hedgehog. If the lads include the pic, you'll understand why. This gizmo controls the air-con blower, or not, as the case may be. If your hedgehog is on the fritz, the fan will begin to operate in an alarmingly random fashion.
Look great; not all that supportive though
While we're in this area, anyone who's ridden in an E36 with leather seats will know they're not really as cool in practice as they look in a picture. Try a bit of hoonage along a bendy road and the outsides of your knees will be black and blue from all the bracing against the trans tunnel and the door.
But they do look great, and especially so here. The pics provided with the ad are the sort that a proud owner would take of his (or her) car. Why, he (or she) has even gone to the trouble of cleaning it! Whatever next.
1997 R-reg E36 BMW 318is Two Door Coupe in silver/green Moreagrün metallic (288) with the higher output M44 designated engine. Manual 5 Speed Gearbox. 5 Seats - Full Black Leather in great condition. Full Service History. A clean and unmolested example. Previous owner fitted 'angel eyes' style headlight surrounds which were thankfully not connected. Headlights are unaffected and work as they should. Mileage is approx 99,300. 5 Months MOT remaining. Front electric windows not currently working. CD Stereo with Aux out. Original car mats.
Full sized spare wheel. Integrated rear sun blind. Air conditioning. Dual zone climate control. Recent Battery. New Final Stage Resistor (FSU) unit fitted. Very keenly priced at £975. Advertised elsewhere. Based in Cardiff - CF24.
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They were a very nice looking car way back when
I owned a very late model E36 318iS (99 model), brilliant drive, smooth engine, seriously good fun on the twisties. Indecently practical on occasion (folding rear seats!) too. Seriously miss that car ....
I owned a very late model E36 318iS (99 model), brilliant drive, smooth engine, seriously good fun on the twisties. Indecently practical on occasion (folding rear seats!) too. Seriously miss that car ....
Half seemed to be 318s with steelies and wheeltrims and the other half 328s with all the options
This appear to be a very decent example for not alot of money. A rare find with these E36's these days. For me, i think it would have/need to be a 328i. I'd sooner have a hot-hatch and have more power if i was to go 4-cylinder but for a BMW it would need to be a proper 6-cylinder.
t?In other news the 318is was my first Beemer and I still miss it. I saw 129mph on the GPS with 500rpm left on the dash on my M-reg, just 3mph off the claimed VMax (non-UK road), tidy for a nearly 10-year-old motor.
This example must be the least Barried-up 318 in Britain.
I'm on my 5th E36 now if you include the Z3 and really rate the M44 engine in fact the only two I have now are fitted with that engine and I bought a minty low mileage Ti for the winter months a couple of years back but could never part with it and it was bought solely because it was an M44.
I find the M44 makes a lovely burble on tick over and really does like to be revved
Also it's lighter than the six pot plus you don't have a vanos to contend with.
Give it another couple of years you won't be able to find a decent car for sensible money so it's a bit of an investment as well as I've noticed now if you want one that's really nice you have to be prepared to travel as a couple of years back all you had to do is look locally for a good example.
But the service lights don't mean it's been serviced regularly as its only a 10 second job to reset the lights with a piece of wire in the obd socket so check the bills but saying that to service one yourself is a piece of cake and costs about £40 all in using quality parts and a decent oil if you wait for a Euro car parts or GSF sale also it's worth removing the CCV valve and idle control valve and blasting the innards with some carb cleaner from time to time to help keep the tick over nice and even.
I also just sold this lovely 64000 mile Cabriolet which is nigh immaculate with the leather sport interior and it's completely rust free for £800 and I only serviced it 50 miles previous and covered the underside etc with cans of waxoyl but I needed the money plus having two already I think I was getting a bit greedy.
The good thing though I do have choice of first refusal if it's sold on again as my father saw it and wanted it straight away and it seems every time he goes out in the old girl people keep asking him if it's for sale.
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|https://thumbsnap.com/M0LmmBCW[/urlt?In other news the 318is was my first Beemer and I still miss it. I saw 129mph on the GPS with 500rpm left on the dash on my M-reg, just 3mph off the claimed VMax (non-UK road), tidy for a nearly 10-year-old motor.
This example must be the least Barried-up 318 in Britain.
was a lovely car, had mine for nearly 5 years before some plonker wrote it off.'98 Techno Violet, subtle lowering and some Breyton Inspirations..and the M3 mirrors....and spoiler...and some amps, upgraded HU and speakers...and a subwoofer, and those silvery speedo rings that make it look well posh..and door pins, door handles..apart from that it was totally standard
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