e30 Calypso, 4 door, 325i stick rare?

Asked by shotguncheyney Aug 08, 2012 at 11:18 AM about the 1990 BMW 3 Series 325i Sedan RWD

Question type: Shopping & Pricing

I recently came across a nice 325i for sale online.

It's a Calypsorot (Burgundy-ish red). Which seems to be kind of rare color in the U.S.

It's got the plastic later day bumpers, which seem to be pretty popular.
It's a 4 door. Also, did I mention, it's a 5 speed stick shift?

I know it's not an an M3, but it seems to me like it might be a hard find for a couple different reasons:
-The color (think i've only seen 1 other calypso e30, in person, my entire life. It was a 318i convertable)
-Plastic bumpers (from my understanding, they only made these toward the end of the line)
-4 door, stick! hmm. i don't think you see too many stick shift 4 door cars in general, since they're more family oriented... is this especially true for Bimmers?

It's an older car, and needs some TLC here and there.
But all the major stuff seems to be in tact.

What do you guys think?
Is this a good lead to follow up on?

Need quick response before it's gone!!




5 Answers

9,685

Sounds like a nice car with options is has. But you need to look at the vehicles history and what kind of shape it is in mechanically and visually. Is the body rusty, are there oil leaks. Most the time when I look at e30 they require quite a bit of work to make into a nice car. My suggestion is to have a bmw specialist look over the vehicle. Hope this helps.

5,895

Robert is spot on here. The e30 is near bulletproof IF it is maintained. What kind of mileage are you looking at? You need to get in the car. Get a feel for it, especially the clutch and shifter. Then get under the car. Personally, I would be all over it, with red not being a preferred color in my book, but it is indeed a rare domestic ride.

65

the real rare thing about the car is the color, plastic bumper cars are more desireable but were made frome 88 to 92 so there are plenty out there. Finding a 5spd in a 4dr isnt rare for bmws, but it still sounds like a cool car so look it over and see if its road worthy.

Hey guys, thanks for the swift replies!!! I had my mechaninic look at it this weekend. The odo gears stopped around 140k (which is pretty comon in e30s, from what i read). But over all the car is pretty solid. It's a 22 year old car, naturally it does need a little tlc: Looks like the timing belt and valve job might be due pretty soon and maybe a new radiator and hoses wouldn't hurt. But the most important components (Engine and tranny), per my mechanic, pull hard. He pushed her up to about 120 in small freeway traffic, without any hesitation. The paint isn't too bad either. Maybe like a 7.5 or 8 out of 10. Stil presentable in public :) For the plastic bumpers, i thought they made em from lik 89- about 94 (on the convertibles

5,895

Sounds like a good find! Look up www.odometergears.com They have a specific kit for the E30. I have rebuild a couple myself. Have fun!

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