hmm, ID please?

[crazyd]

hey guys, i'm in the process of getting a new car and i'm having a hard time... i race from time to time, not proud of it... anyway i have an auto gt-s celica and it's not getting the job done... so now i need a stick and i'm looking into the BMW's.... my financial status is not so great i have about 20k that i can spend on a car... so i'm thinking a 3-series 98 or a 3-series 00... can anyone tell me what the 2 door ones are called... 328is? there's so many 3's and i'm only interested in the two door ones... also if i got a 98 328is, how much potential does this car have? is there a chip for it? is it expensive to modify? any input would greatly be appreciated... i don't know much about the bmw so i dont know what to look for... i'm trying to get somewhere in the 220hp and 200+ torque... i know that the 328is has 190hp and 206 torque which is perfect to start off with... can it be worked on easily? thanks for any help... i was going to get a 98 or so M3 but good god the price is high on them... that's why M3 is the shit i guess... also any links to any aftermarket product sites would be appreciated


thanks
Dan

 

[nadroj]

you could get an old e30 m3 that is my dream car

 

[manuel]

for 2 door get anything with an 3xxIS or a convertible. if you have 20k, you could get an early e36 M3 for maybe 15k. i have an automatic 328IS. even for an automatic this car is quick. as for maintenance, its the same with any car. there are some things where a service manual is required. for engine/exterior modifications there are a few BIG companies, ESS(esstuning.com), breyton, hamann, dinan...and the list goes on. for oem style parts, theres bavauto.com. there are some good writeups at unofficialbmw.com, http://member.rivernet.com.au/btaylor/technical.html. good luck in whatever you get.

 

[codex57]

err, the 2 door in 2000 was changed to 3xxCi. That's the E46 body style. I think the E36 body (the 98 model) still had IS after the model number.

 

[///M SPEED]

I have a 2000 328i. The name plate on the rear of the car states 328i, however my title officially states 328is. My car is a 4 door. There are many upgrades you can make to the 3 series; 2 and 4 door models.

 

[crazyd]

thanks a lot for all the input, i appreciate it... i got all the specs i need about every car i had in mind, so now it's time to decide ... BMW 3series, 02 1.8T GTi, or the 02 WRX (all wheel drive, turbo)... we'll see

 

[brahtw8]

thanks a lot for all the input, i appreciate it... i got all the specs i need about every car i had in mind, so now it's time to decide ... BMW 3series, 02 1.8T GTi, or the 02 WRX (all wheel drive, turbo)... we'll see

You can get a nice E36 M3 for under $20k, no problem. There are plenty to go around. www.autotrader.com is all you need.

If you really care about street racing, the WRX is probably the best choice you listed, as it is faster stock and easily modifiable to 300-350hp or more. BTW, you don't need to say AWD, Turbo for WRX (which I believe stands for World Rally Cross). The non-turbos are badged as Imprezas. All WRXs are Turbo, and all Subies are AWD.

You'd be best off buying some american iron, like an f-body camaro or f-bird, or mustang, for the most straight-line bang for the buck.

To each his own and all, but stoplight racing is lame IMHO. Take it to the dragstrip or learn how to drive at high speeds on a road course.

 

[crazyd]

very true... i'm not a hardcore street racer... i would love to go to the track, but come on... if i roll in there with my automatic gt-s and pull like a 17.5 i'd be emberassed lol.... so trust me, once i get a car that's worthy i'l be spending more time at the track.... over here i checked out a 96 M3 and it costs 29k!... i have never seen an M3 in my area that's under 28k no matter of age.... unless i go way back to old school... or i get an m3 with 130,000 miles on it... i'm more of an import guy, domestics don't fit me well... the wrx gives me so much option like road course, autocross, street, track.... it's easily modified like you said... and considering my budget ... all wheel drive sounds pretty good to me, especially when it's pulling 191hp and 196torque to the wheels stock... if i get a Blitz nur spec exhaust it will bump it to 201hp and 206torque to the wheels, dyno proved... so i dunno, leaning towards the wrx but i guarantee if i get the wrx now, that when time passes and i graduate college i will own an M3 in the future... number one car on my list to own in the future... very good points tho, thanks for input

 

[brahtw8]

Are you in Serbia? Thats all I could find on akaratovic.

If that is US$, those M3s are considerably more expensive, but remember that the US M3 cost about $10-15k less than its comparable Euro counterpart with the individual throttle body engine.

I didn't expect that you were a domestic guy, but that is the way to go for the brute straight-line power, i.e. torque.

The WRX is a nice ride. I have seen them run low 14s with little modification. I have only been to the drag strip once. I prefer the long european style road courses like Road America, or even a smaller road course like Blackhawk.

 

[crazyd]

aah i'm an idiot haha... i must have read it wrong and typed in my last name... sorry about that my name's daniel akaratovic i was born in Bosnia... I live in Newport News, Virginia right now... sorry about the confusion bud... i love autocross and etc i'm just afraid that i'm gona suck at it... my celica gt-s is perfect for me and autocrossing but i don't dare lol... i'm leaning towards the wrx right now unless i can come up with a 98 M3...

 

[brahtw8]

I did a search on autotrader for 1995-1999 M3s under $24k. There was only one for sale within 100 miles of where you live, but 48 for sale within 200 miles. They are available, you just have to travel a bit to get one.

Drive them both. Buy the one you love. Don't settle.

 

[crazyd]

yea, i'm gona look into it a little more and see if i can find something a little farther away... thanks for the help bro

 

[AndrewBall]

E30 are cheap maybe 3500, for one that is running but its a good idea to rebuild anything thats over 10years old, i think. normal wear of the engine could always use a nice refrese and they genereate less power when they arent fresh, and you have to assume that the person that had it first might not have taken care of it, so regardless what you get youll want to keep some money in your pocket for parts. cause to rebuild my engine which i jsut did recently was 2800 bucks not including some other parts i put in. but i put mostly performance parts in, 288 cam, went up to 3.1liters instead of 2.5, and boosted the compression a little bit, and some other things. so that obviously was more expensinve then a stock rebuild but only a little more, since i already had the parts. But some of teh e36 M3's are in real nice shape and go for 15 ive seen a few they might need something minor, but nothing thats gonna be disasterous if it doesnt get fixed, the e36 motors are prolly the ones easiest to get parts for e30 motors are expensive and parts are hard to come by when upgrading, or replacing you usually have to go OEM on something and BMW thinks they can charge 17x's more then what everything is worth cause they are BMW. So look at the e30, e36's the 325, are mostly 2doors i think there was a 4dr 3series model but that was thier e36 brain fart im not sure what it was, but the search for 325i, is, or 323i, or 328i, is anything I cause think of it as a sound stand point, the e goes eeeeeeee which sounds asian and the i goes iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii which sound german. I do for a 328 or the 325 which runs a M50 which is a real nice motor to work on, but my choice would be an M3 cause the twin cam is just much nicer.

 

[brahtw8]

E30 are cheap maybe 3500, for one that is running but its a good idea to rebuild anything thats over 10years old, i think. normal wear of the engine could always use a nice refrese and they genereate less power when they arent fresh, and you have to assume that the person that had it first might not have taken care of it, so regardless what you get youll want to keep some money in your pocket for parts. cause to rebuild my engine which i jsut did recently was 2800 bucks not including some other parts i put in. but i put mostly performance parts in, 288 cam, went up to 3.1liters instead of 2.5, and boosted the compression a little bit, and some other things. so that obviously was more expensinve then a stock rebuild but only a little more, since i already had the parts. But some of teh e36 M3's are in real nice shape and go for 15 ive seen a few they might need something minor, but nothing thats gonna be disasterous if it doesnt get fixed, the e36 motors are prolly the ones easiest to get parts for e30 motors are expensive and parts are hard to come by when upgrading, or replacing you usually have to go OEM on something and BMW thinks they can charge 17x's more then what everything is worth cause they are BMW. So look at the e30, e36's the 325, are mostly 2doors i think there was a 4dr 3series model but that was thier e36 brain fart im not sure what it was, but the search for 325i, is, or 323i, or 328i, is anything I cause think of it as a sound stand point, the e goes eeeeeeee which sounds asian and the i goes iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii which sound german. I do for a 328 or the 325 which runs a M50 which is a real nice motor to work on, but my choice would be an M3 cause the twin cam is just much nicer.

Translation/Correction-

BMW sold 140,000 E36 sedans in the US (not counting Ms). The sold 77,000 coupes (no Ms), plus 55,000 convertibles. They also sold 35,000 E36 M3s, of which 8,000 were sedans.

The E36 sedans were 318i, 323i, 325i, 328i and the M.

All M50 engines are twincam (DOHC), 24 valve inline sixes. The M3 engine is just a larger 325i engine.

The M3 is a good choice, but for most people a 328i or 325i would be similar and adequate, at a lower expected cost of ownership. Don't get me wrong, I am thinking very seriously about trading my E36 325i for an E36 M3 (or 740 or E28 M5 or E34 M5, or landcruiser(?) you see my dilemma).