BenDem Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Hi all. About time I introduced myself here. I recently picked up an '88 325i cabrio while visiting my old man in Florida, and drove it back MKE about a month ago. It's in pretty good shape. The only rust I can find is a bit on the battery tray -- no holes, but a bit of flaking. There's also just a wee bit of surface corrosion on the frame just below the battery -- something leaked at somepoint, methinks. Mechanically, it's sound. Just ticked over to 100k on the road trip up (almost exactly on the Georgia state line). The rear subframe bushings need done (I'm assuming the RTABs do to), and the pinion bearings in the diff are starting to complain. It's an automatic, but a 5 speed swap may be in it's future << Or not, this car is for crusing around with the wife and kids. I seriously doubt it's ever going to see a track.The plan is to keep it basically stock. I *might* decide to put some H&R convertible springs w/ bilstiens on there at some point. Other than than, just keep 'er nice, and drive it. It's not a daily, I've got a bike and my wife's company car for regular transportation duties. My goal is never sell the car -- until I either can't drive anymore or gasoline becomes outlawed. This is the first car I've owned since '98 -- I've always ridden my bike everywhere, or used my other half's car when needed, so I'm out of practice when it comes to working on these things. I did have a run at driving and (constantly) fixed air-cooled Volkswagens back when I was in my 20's, so I know the very basics. The rest I'll learn as I go. All try to get more pictures up later, but I've attached a snap my brother took from the trip up. If you want to see more from the trip that he took, just search for #redbird2wi on the Instagrams. Finally, a question: Where to find decent used parts for these things? Any place local-ish ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassboy3313 Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Welcome! Looks extremely nice and clean. Very cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClassE Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Welcome'This is the first car I've owned since '98Holy. Wow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkoepp Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Welcome and nice picture Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KaiserRolls Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Welcome!! Great first car since 98!! Also. I think jdesign has some HR/billies for sale yet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc43089 Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Awesome car, welcome! As for replacement/maintenance parts, there are lot of places but I usually get stuff from pelicanparts.com or bavauto.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenDem Posted June 6, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Welcome!! Great first car since 98!! Also. I think jdesign has some HR/billies for sale yet Thanks. If I'm going to break a streak like that, it needs to be for something worthwhile . I just posted on jdesign's thread asking if they were vert-specific or not. Awesome car, welcome! As for replacement/maintenance parts, there are lot of places but I usually get stuff from pelicanparts.com or bavauto.com. Yeah, I'm cool with finding places for new stuff, but I'll be looking for a used diff when my pinion gear gets really bad, or when I decide to do the 5 speed swap. Whichever comes first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc43089 Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 I have a very good condition 4.10 open dif available, (stock for auto trans). I swapped to a 3.25 when I trans swapped to a manual. How are you determining that the pinion gear is messed up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6670charger Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Looks like a very nice car. Mine's an 88 Cabrio automatic too. I've had very good luck buying replacement parts on ebay, and a few at the dealership of all places. Those are the two places I've found my best deals on new stuff. Rockauto.com and Pelican are supposedly other good sources, although they can be a bit pricey. http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/ looks like another place with a good assortment of parts for E30's. For used parts, your best bets are either Ebay or any of the local "You Pull It" salvage yards. The salvage yards are a wild card as their inventory constantly changes, and the E30 that you were lucky enough to find and pulled from a week ago may not be there two months later. A lot of these cars are also pretty well picked over by the time you get to them too. They can be substantially cheaper than Ebay, though. It's all a matter of what you need/want and how badly you need/want it. I just picked up a leather auto shift knob and leather handbrake handle cover, along with a spare power mirror switch at my local yard for $10 total. Cleaned the leather parts with some leather conditioner and they look like new! BTW: Be sure to check out the items that members of this forum have for sale. I got a nice set of aftermarket taillight assemblies from a member on here. Hope this helps. Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenDem Posted June 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 7, 2014 I have a very good condition 4.10 open dif available, (stock for auto trans). I swapped to a 3.25 when I trans swapped to a manual. How are you determining that the pinion gear is messed up? Well, there's a whine coming from under the car. It occurs regardless of the gear selected. It's there even if the the car is off, coasting downhill in nuetral. I took the car to a shop a block away, and had them put on the lift with the car in gear to determine which bit is making the noise. (I wasn't about to get under a car on jackstands with the motor running, in gear, and going to 30 MPH indicated).The tech said it was coming from around the pinion bearing area... So, that's where that's at. So, the gear is OK for now, but who knows how long it will last... The diff that's on there is 3.73 (as was put on auto's in '88), but I wouldn't mind the extra pep of 4.10. However, if I'm going to to a manual swap down the road, I think 4.10 might be a bit buzzy on the highway. I'll PM you re: the 4.10. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc43089 Posted June 7, 2014 Report Share Posted June 7, 2014 I forgot about the switch, mine is an 89 but mfg in 7/88 so not sure what it is. The tag is not readable, I will have to spin it and count. It was definitely too aggressive after a manual swap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenDem Posted June 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2014 Just sent you a PM. I'm still on the fence about the manual swap. If it wasn't a 'vert I'd do it in a heartbeat. However, the slushbox isn't exactly out of character with relaxed nature of the car. I think I can probably live with it for a while, and get the rest of the car *just right* first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earl Posted June 9, 2014 Report Share Posted June 9, 2014 Are you just going to keep this as a clean weekend driver with subtle mods? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenDem Posted June 9, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2014 The general idea is to keep it within the 'character' of the car as it was originally produced. Lumps and all. So, the diving boards stay, as does the 80's sound system. I'd happily swap / add anything that was an 'option' by BMW when it was produced -- maybe a 5 manual swap. LSD, etc. I also might do spring / damper mod -- as that's a simple thing to revert to 'stock'. I've also got this idea for an engine montoring device that would work with a smartphone via bluetooth -- but that would be completely hidden from view and would only be to monitor how the car is running. I'm not interested in 'perfect' either. Instead, I'm going for 'approptiate patina' as the car ages. I'm expecting the car will gain between 2-5k miles per year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoungCR Posted June 10, 2014 Report Share Posted June 10, 2014 Very cool, I'm all for the originality and OEM+ mods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B C Posted June 10, 2014 Report Share Posted June 10, 2014 If it is of any comfort to you, I ran my car hard with the automatic on a regular basis and it held up just fine. The weak point on them is revving it while in neutral since the pressure buildup can dislodge a seal and cause you to lose Drive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc43089 Posted June 10, 2014 Report Share Posted June 10, 2014 As Snap said the 4hp22 is a solid transmission, a guy I work with has a '90 325i vert, which has 280+k on it (odo stopped before he bought it) the auto still worked great, he had the trans gone through when i built the engine and the guys said it looked decent inside, just put new seals in it and a kickdown cable I think. Which reminds me, I put the engine in it over a year ago and he still hasn't finished putting the last bits together... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenDem Posted June 10, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2014 I'm not sure you guys are making me feel better. I was telling myself when the trans died, I'd do the 5 speed swap. Now I'm going to have to wait another 100k miles ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc43089 Posted June 10, 2014 Report Share Posted June 10, 2014 More burnouts! (revving in neutral will do it in real quick) "Sorry (wifes name) not sure what happened, trans seems fried" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i_love_cars Posted June 10, 2014 Report Share Posted June 10, 2014 nice, did I see you on I-94 W last week during rush hour on Thursday or Friday? I gave a nod to a dude in a red 3.2.5 cabrio when we were right next to each other that looked just as clean as your example. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenDem Posted June 10, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2014 Ha. Yup, that was me! (Nice 135, my favs of the 'new' BMWs ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i_love_cars Posted June 10, 2014 Report Share Posted June 10, 2014 yes sir! My old boss had a couple of M3's including an '88 E30 that he just sold - to me the 135 is as close as possible in modern times to how that M3 felt. This thing is tiny for sure and reminds me of the older 3-series in that regard. +1 for manual trans conversion ditch your auto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jdesign Posted June 18, 2014 Report Share Posted June 18, 2014 Yay another vert, Welcome to you sir! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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