So I got a new car. BMW 325i

[Daniel.]

After having my already broken down s13 broken into and all my parts jacked, I was in need of a new car pretty badly.

I never would have thought I'd be getting a bmw.

It's a 1992 E36 325i 5speed. 4100 bucks.
I love the way she drives, and it's a great daily driver compared to my base model s13.

The paint is in great condition, but im considering a new paint job seeing as how I don't really like red.

(and yes, i know it's got sunken battleship issues, but those will be addressed accordingly after i sell the remaining parts on my s13.)

[SilviaNinja240]

that's a pretty good deal for 4Gs! Enjoy your new ride (^_^)

[kouki_s14]

good deal, i always wanted to get a bmw for a daily and just track my 240
but i have a feeling its just a matter of time until a 240 falls back into your hands

[Daniel.]

I'm definitely getting another 240. No question about that. It's just a matter of getting a reliable car as a daily driver till i finish school....

- Daniel

[hamlerda]

I owned a 325i last year and I didn't like it very much. The E36 is the biggest POS BMW ever produced. Please read up on the car before you start modifying it. The interior was produced at a time when BMW was attempting to cut cost by using cheaper materials. Suspension parts fail often. The engine is almost maintenance free, bullet proof and nothing feels better than a BMW inline 6! If you need some links with more info I can post them. I love BMWs and Nissans and I must say that the s13 (with a stock sr20) and e30 (325i chipped) are very close in performance. The e30 feels better all around to me. I think in the long run BMWs are more overly engineered than the 240, and are easier and cheaper to extract power and performance from them.

I'm not being a hater, but this (e36) model may not serve you as well as your 240 did. I wish you the best of luck.

BTW I think I have a driver side fog lamp sitting around here. If you want it I just ask that you pay like $10 for shipping.

[Daniel.]

Thanks for all the info. I've already noticed that the interior is lacking here and there. Especially the door vinyl. It's seperating from the some of the interior trim pieces in some places.

In comparison to my stock SOHC KA, It's got much more mid range. The feeling of low - mid range torque is still there though. The bimmer just has more hp. It pulls nicely from 1st - 2nd. 3rd gear however is a little too tall for my tastes. 4 gear has some nice pull starting at 50mph but again, 5th gear seems a little too tall.

I'm not going to be modding it for a while. I'm still eating the loss on the parts that were stolen from my s13. Not to mention I have to pay for school/books and rent/bills.

Also, I'd love to have that driver's side fog lamp. Funny how you happen to have just what I need? I'll PM you my info.

- Daniel

[sw20>>s14]

this may make you feel better: http://www.craigslist.org/sby/pts/136941647.html "kick his ass, seabass!!"

[Daniel.]

Originally Posted by sw20>>s14

this may make you feel better: http://www.craigslist.org/sby/pts/136941647.html "kick his ass, seabass!!"

Ha ha, thanks. My Rota's were +20 all around though. :[

[SimpleSexy180]

not bad. enjoy the ride.

[citizen]

welcome to the dark side~

[that180guy]

i have one of those RIGHT NOW. hahahahah
93 tho, so its got the VANOS system which is basically bmw vtec. i had mines set up mildly witih koni's n hr's etc, but im in the process of puttin my second 240 together in which i think i just blew the motor........
but dood, i noticed ur in milpitas, hit me up on aim.
and i can tell you lik
everything ud want to knwo/need to know to replace or do, etc.

[Daniel.]

Originally Posted by that180guy

i have one of those RIGHT NOW. hahahahah
93 tho, so its got the VANOS system which is basically bmw vtec. i had mines set up mildly witih koni's n hr's etc, but im in the process of puttin my second 240 together in which i think i just blew the motor........
but dood, i noticed ur in milpitas, hit me up on aim.
and i can tell you lik
everything ud want to knwo/need to know to replace or do, etc.

Thanks man, i appreciate it. I'll make sure to hit you up on aim when i get home from work tonight.

Damn. Good find, congrats on it! It's a pretty good looking car. Red takes some getting used to, but it'll be ok.

Well, seeing as how you have a red S13, I'll take your word for it. I miss my Black S13 though. It was inconspicuous. (sp?)

- Daniel

[Ritz S14]

Damn. Good find, congrats on it! It's a pretty good looking car. Red takes some getting used to, but it'll be ok.

[wootwoot]

The paint is decent, dont ruin it by attempting a full color change. Good luck with the BMW. I'm scared to own a German car again after my VW experience.

[santacruisin]

I have an e36 328is as my original drift car. I got h&r springs with bilstein shocks to drop and firm up the suspension. I also got Turner Motorsports sway bars front and rear to create more oversteer. Active Autowork font strut brace and x-brace firm it up some more.I got my kaaz 1.5 diff to get loose on demand. I got the rear subframe and rear swaybar reinforcement kit so it don't tear apart on me.

Issues for your car include the rear wiring harness in your trunk. You may already notice that the trunk light flickers as you open it. Over time the plastic coating on the wires will degrade and the wires will fuse themselves together. Check it out and rewrap the wires in electrical tape for a quick fix. Also, the subframe has a tendency to tear and completely rip the rear chassis over time. I had mine reinforced because of all the drifting I do in the car. My rear sway bar tabs were already starting to tear from the the thicker sways so I had those reinforced, too.

The cool thing about your e36 is that it is obd 1 so you can mod it without the smog issues of the after '95 OBD II cars. I'm out here in frisco. PM me if you wanna feel what its like to drift in an e36. Check out bimmerforums.com for everything you could ever want to know about your car.

[that180guy]

^^ man deffienently knows what hes talking about.

[sr240mike]

Dont Call It Frisco!

[santacruisin]

Originally Posted by sr240mike

Dont Call It Frisco!

Tell it to the Hells Angels Fool !! I was born, raised and work in the sucka free. I bleed SF. It will always be frisco to me.

Here's my e36 in action at Drift Day (aka my sig on bimmerforums)

[rainier]

you should buy my wheels. the breyton spirit lookalikes for 500 bucks =]

[woodchuck]

alotta good info posted here on the e36. I've always considered the e36 a POS cause i broke my dad's 92 e36 twice. once in 95 for powershifting from 2nd to 3rd gear and again in 97 double clutching (we were all young and immature once - it came a second time around for me). both cases the radiator fan shattered and the chuncks killed the radiator - coolant everywhere. I thought it was the "ultimate driving machine." now I'm guessing it was just the bad apple from the bunch seeing that there are people out there driving the e36 more aggressive then i ever did. my lil bro has it now and its suffereing from all of the interior symptoms everyone posted, 2nd grear is shot, and the electrical system is all haywire. sad thing is my dad can't let go of the e36 - he's having the damn thing fixed? and he thinks i'm thorwing away my money fixing up my s14?

good luck with the car.

[bimmerlover]

I'm not sure if it's been addressed, but the first thing that you need to replace are your thermostat housing and water pump. The fins from the pump are plastic, and the housing is plastic as well. If these bits aren't addressed and replaced with the new metal housing and pump, then it's just a matter of time until those pieces fail.

Congrats on the E36, it certainly is a great handling car with its near 50/50 weight distribution. These cars definitely have great potential. Here's a pic of my late 325i (RIP):

[that180guy]

sometimes i kinda wanna keep my e36. has lik all the worldly comforts of a normal automobile. aftermarket so huge, puts the sr20 aftermarket to shame. well balanced car( although, personally the steerings a bit slow)
but needless to say, they do cost a tad much more to maintain and set up. also ive already got my 2nd s13 shell in the works, + i gotta sell it wen i transfer to davis for tuition....gonna kinda miss her

[Daniel.]

Thanks for all the great info guys. I've been reading bimmerforums already for the past 1-2 weeks learning everything i can.

I've decided to forego getting new tires and replace the water pump + do the fan delete mod as initial precautionary mods.

I'll also have to check out the trunk wiring to see if that's been addressed yet althought i didn't notice any flickering last time i opened it.

- daniel

[Daniel.]

So i was taking a picture of my new wheels today in front of my work...

And look what i saw...

a Yellow 996. It was owned by a middle aged nerdy looking asian guy.

[2iv0 sx]

I remember seeing your s13 in that parking lot.. haha

Nice wheels!

[Daniel.]

Yeah, haha. I spend a lot of time at work so i take a lot of pictures of cars in that lot.

I'm kinda disappointed that i can't fit low offset wheels on my bimmer with out a wide body like i can on my s13.

It's funny, im running almost the exact same tire size as i am on my s13 though. 225/45/17 and 245/40/17

[topsecretgold]

my girlfriend has a black 323is and is really happy with it...nice car btw

[Daniel.]

So........ I couldn't stand not having a 240 anymore. I gave up on finding any good clean s14's in my area and settled on a clean auto s13 coupe instead. Luke (Blu808) will be doing my 5speed swap soon.

1992 SE coupe 155k miles. Never been modded.

I've already transferred my kyb agx's and ground controls over from my old fastback.

[citizen]

Why did you sell the e36? downgrade =\

[Daniel.]

I got a good deal on the s13, it was less than half the price of the e36.

money to spend on mods + pay bills + the e36 wasnt really me....

edit: also the insurance on the bmw = ouch