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Read the WELCOME ALL BMWFANATICS post.
E30/E36 Good First Car???
- Thread starter Greenz
- Start date
Sankekur
///Member
Also keep insurance in mind, not easy to get insurance for a 325i (or any BMW for that matter if you are 18) that is if you are worried about this.
Something else to keep in mind is that it is a BMW it will be more expensive to maintain, so you need to be very happy with what you get and not do it for badge snobbery, else there is a good chance you will end up hating the car.
It has been said, but keep safety in mind as well, the e36 is not a very safe car (still better than most other cheap cars) and it is not known to have a very forgiving chassis setup, so you will have to be careful with the car (speaking just for myself, if my first car was a 325i I would probably have killed myself with it)
Other than this if you find a good one you will have yourself one epic machine.
Something else to keep in mind is that it is a BMW it will be more expensive to maintain, so you need to be very happy with what you get and not do it for badge snobbery, else there is a good chance you will end up hating the car.
It has been said, but keep safety in mind as well, the e36 is not a very safe car (still better than most other cheap cars) and it is not known to have a very forgiving chassis setup, so you will have to be careful with the car (speaking just for myself, if my first car was a 325i I would probably have killed myself with it)
Other than this if you find a good one you will have yourself one epic machine.
my 1st car was an uno and i did a 360 in it :rollsmile:
I dont think a 2.5l is too much power for a 1st car anything between 2l and 2.5 will be nice enough without being over powered...
I dont think a 2.5l is too much power for a 1st car anything between 2l and 2.5 will be nice enough without being over powered...
Sankekur
///Member
All I am saying is to explore the dynamics of the car a bit and gradually work up to pushing it to the limit (and beyond if you like) so you know what the car does......don't want to be like the school kids (around here at least) that gets a new car and then wraps it around a tree or ploughs into wall within the first week.
Though considering the OP seems to be saving up his own money I don't think this will be a problem, you tend to look better after things you worked for yourself :=):
Though considering the OP seems to be saving up his own money I don't think this will be a problem, you tend to look better after things you worked for yourself :=):
Nic_s
///Member
The rear end on my E30 318i once broke loose in second, although that was on a wet road and the yokohama I had on wasn't very good in the wet. Luckily reacted quick and lifted off just enough to to let it grab traction and keep moving. Was completely unexpected and made me a much more patient driver as I was going for a gap in traffic. Now I just wait especially when it rains. The 540's ASC never gets turned off either.
An E36 325i would be a fantastic first car. Just treat it with respect. They have enough power to easily get you into trouble :thumb:
An E36 325i would be a fantastic first car. Just treat it with respect. They have enough power to easily get you into trouble :thumb:
Doomsdaya
///Member
Sankekur said:
+1000
You can pick up an e36 325i/328i cheaply BUT you gona end up spending more money on maintenance then what you paid for the car. If you can live with that, then by all means go for it....
Just a note, not all things (like engine parts for example) for an e36 can be bought from places like GW, Autozone, Midas etc etc... In those circumstances you will have to get it from the stealers who don't offer student discounts....
Greenz
///Member
I consider myself to be quiet responsible.I'll only drive hard if its a straight empty road and showing off to my friends is not on my "to do" list.
Many people have told me not to go BM because of insurance.parts etc.So I guess I'd rather go the vw route.Vtecs are near impossible to find at a reasonable price and so are Rxi's.
Many people have told me not to go BM because of insurance.parts etc.So I guess I'd rather go the vw route.Vtecs are near impossible to find at a reasonable price and so are Rxi's.
Legacy
///Member
Personally I would buy some shit box and drive it around for about a year and then buy something I really like. This way you can only go up in terms of upgrading the car and you learn to drive in the real world. This also gives you the chance to experiment a bit with a cars dynamics and to see what happens when you try something "brave", also when you bump it or drive over a curb you won't really care.
:rollsmile:
:rollsmile:
you going to give up just like that :yuck: parts for my 9N polo (which i owned before the e46) cost about the same as what i pay for my e46 parts... people are just giving you the bad because they dont want to say buy it and then you do not realize the other side of the coin :rollsmile:
If i had to do it over I would most definitely consider and e36 for my 1st car you can do alot worse...
If i had to do it over I would most definitely consider and e36 for my 1st car you can do alot worse...
badaz87
Member
I had a '94 e36 316i for my second car... Parts are NOT as expensive as people have been telling you...
When the fuel pump on my e36 packed up, I thought that replacing it would kill me... I called my dad's mech, and he:
1. Sent out a diagnostics team to my house
2. After diagnostics, they towed my car to the workshop in Retreat, from Athlone, Cape Town
3. He replaced the old Pump with a brand new one
4. The car was washed and cleaned when I picked it up
All of this, including labour, cost me R1500. To put things in perspective, my car had been running on the ORIGINAL fuel pump when it packed up.
OEM parts lasted 15 years and 285 000Km! :thumbs:
You can confidently say that, once you have spent your money repairing/replacing the part/s that need attention, your car should run perfectly for decades more...
As long as you look after your car with care, she'll treat you well and give you many great years of service...
EDIT: My e36 is the white one next to my Alias
When the fuel pump on my e36 packed up, I thought that replacing it would kill me... I called my dad's mech, and he:
1. Sent out a diagnostics team to my house
2. After diagnostics, they towed my car to the workshop in Retreat, from Athlone, Cape Town
3. He replaced the old Pump with a brand new one
4. The car was washed and cleaned when I picked it up
All of this, including labour, cost me R1500. To put things in perspective, my car had been running on the ORIGINAL fuel pump when it packed up.
OEM parts lasted 15 years and 285 000Km! :thumbs:
You can confidently say that, once you have spent your money repairing/replacing the part/s that need attention, your car should run perfectly for decades more...
As long as you look after your car with care, she'll treat you well and give you many great years of service...
EDIT: My e36 is the white one next to my Alias
Greenz
///Member
I'm going to keep my options open,ideally i would like to buy a decent car even if i need to spent about 5k getting it right,i still wanna have some change to put in the bank for future use.
so at the moment my list comprises of
-E36 320/325/328
-Ballade Vtec
-Rxi
-Velo/Life/Rox
-mk3 or Jetta VR6....
Thanks for all the help guys!
raise:
so at the moment my list comprises of
-E36 320/325/328
-Ballade Vtec
-Rxi
-Velo/Life/Rox
-mk3 or Jetta VR6....
Thanks for all the help guys!
raise:
W
wikk3d88
Guest
Nothing wrong with getting a RWD as a first car.I cut my teeth on my dads bakkie and his W124 Merc. Both RWD.
Just avoid trees. and damp intersections. and the urge to floor it to get the rear to swing out at every possible opportunity.
Just avoid trees. and damp intersections. and the urge to floor it to get the rear to swing out at every possible opportunity.
AdiS
Well-known member
Sulky said:I'm going to keep my options open,ideally i would like to buy a decent car even if i need to spent about 5k getting it right,i still wanna have some change to put in the bank for future use.
so at the moment my list comprises of
-E36 320/325/328
-Ballade Vtec
-Rxi
-Velo/Life/Rox
-mk3 or Jetta VR6....
Thanks for all the help guys!
LOL, out of that list, you have the best chance of finding a clean E36 as the others have all probably been raped to death, and please oh please, don't buy a CitiGolf. For your own safety, it's probably better you driving a 6cyl RWD car.
W
wikk3d88
Guest
Are you gonna have the money to maintain any of the above? The VR6 is called the R1000 car. Pretty much every major replacement part for it costs R1k +
Vtecs and RXI's/RSI's are a similar story. Parts from the agents aren't cheap, and at the age and mileage they are at now, a minor overhaul is probably on the cards.
Citigolfs. bleh. no comment
E36s aren't cheap either... so yeah. do your sums properly. Rather a cheaper car thats easier to maintain than bankrupting yourself just to keep up with the cool crowd.
Vtecs and RXI's/RSI's are a similar story. Parts from the agents aren't cheap, and at the age and mileage they are at now, a minor overhaul is probably on the cards.
Citigolfs. bleh. no comment
E36s aren't cheap either... so yeah. do your sums properly. Rather a cheaper car thats easier to maintain than bankrupting yourself just to keep up with the cool crowd.
