e30 M3 to e92 M3?!??

[SoCal Life]

Soooo, I absolutely love my e30's!!! I have an '88 325is totally hooked up euro style and a beautiful White/Blk e30 M3 on Gold BBS LM's! ....I also have an Audi S4 that I haven't driven in a year cause my e30's are so fun.

Anyway, I think I'm over having to many cars and just want one car. I've never been a fan of any BMW newer than an e30 but the new e92 M3's have really got me going!!

My e30 ///M is so insanely fun to drive I don't know why I'm even considering it, but the true reason is this: Got divorced 2 years ago so weekends of tinkering, washing, and car meets have turned into doing more things with friends and having fun. So I'm over the maintenance part of owning a car...for now = ) I also moved to the beach were I only have a 1 car garage and having three cars is pretty difficult. I truly don't want to let my e30's go, but having 1 newer car is pretty much the smartest option right now.

My concern is that the new M3 doesn't have the heart and soul of my e30 and I'll get bored soon and want a different car. Has anyone made the switch from e30 to e9x M3??? Please help!!

[cotenseto]

Do you have a second more visceral car you can enjoy on weekends (i.e. small, lightweight, quick, great suspension)?

I have a 99 10AE Miata. With the E90 I believe this pair provides very complimentary performance addressing all of the aspects (shy of being able to afford an exotic) that I'm looking for from the driving experience.

I have never owned an E30, but have driven in one. Yes, it's an awesome car. If the choice was E30, or E9X and it was either or, I would choose E9X hands down. Yes, it has lost some of the visceral experience (but DEFINITELY not all, my wife calls it "the beast"), but it just does so many things well I highly doubt you'd regret the decision.

[ace996]

There is no comparison between the two. One is a purpose-built street legal homologation special , that is now quite old and slow (although very beautiful, and I'd snatch a good example up in less than a heartbeat if I could find one that wasn't priced like it was made of gold)....the other is an over-engineered, "does everything you could ever ask of it better than most", luxurious, and quite fast/track-able spaceship.

I miss the raw experience of my prior MR2Spyder...of my prior Lotus Elise...but the E92 is faster and does everything better, but it's not "raw".

You've a tough decision to make, my friend, good luck.

[lucid]

I recently got a E30 M3 track car, and it is a ton of fun! Clearly two very different cars. The E9X M3 is big and heavy, but it is a surprisingly well balanced car and its performance will surprise when you push it hard. And it has a sweet engine, but you can't really do much with it in town unless you want to drive recklessly. If I were you, I would not get rid of the E30 M3! The 325i might be a candidate for a new car swap. I'd also look into the new CaymanS if 4 seats are not a requirement (I think it looks kind of funny though).

On a side note, for what it's worth, my last instructor in the E92 M3 was the local E30 M3 guru--wins race after race in it. After the first session, he said he was totally surprised by the car and did not expect it to perform the way it did. He said it looked like a boat, but handled great and that we were catching cars he thought we shouldn't be able to around the twisties (a couple of them were E30 M3s)...

[Pimp Star]

Cars you have now:

-E30 325is
-E30 M3
-Audi S4

Cars you should have:

-E30 M3
-E92 M3

I think you should have a daily driver and a fun toy. If the finances allow, this is what I would have in my garage, ideally.

[JC919]

Pic of the E30 M3 please, I'm a big fan

[lucid]

Originally Posted by JC919

Pic of the E30 M3 please, I'm a big fan

How about this DTM car!

[JC919]

^already seen that one , but thanks any way lucid. How's you're E30 treating you? I'd like to see some pics of yours as well.

[MVEED3]

I love the new M3 everytime I get a chance to push it. The chassis dynamics are amazing. When every single article I read praised the new M3's handling, I knew I had to have one. The only downside of it being a daily is the gas mileage.


Allen

[Singletrack]

Originally Posted by Pimp Star

Cars you have now:

-E30 325is
-E30 M3
-Audi S4

Cars you should have:

-E30 M3
-E92 M3

I think you should have a daily driver and a fun toy. If the finances allow, this is what I would have in my garage, ideally.

I concur - sell the S4 and 325; keep the E30 and get the E92.

EDIT - ...and just get a car cover for the E30 for when it isn't getting a lot of use - problem solved : )

[Serious]

I've driven both... if you sell your e30 m3 for an e9x m3 I promise you will regret it everyday for the rest of your life.

If you can hang onto the e30 m3 and get the e9x that might be something but don't give up the e30 m3 for anything.

[Nawaaz]

Originally Posted by seriousm3

I've driven both... if you sell your e30 m3 for an e9x m3 I promise you will regret it everyday for the rest of your life.

If you can hang onto the e30 m3 and get the e9x that might be something but don't give up the e30 m3 for anything.

+1

The Evo IX that I used to have isn't exactly an e30, but it's also very lightweight when you compare it to the e9x M3.

I honestly have to admit, I do miss my Evo. It was a race car on a diet I tell you.

Looks like I'll have to strip down my M3 in the future...

[edcvin]

Originally Posted by Pimp Star

Cars you have now:

-E30 325is
-E30 M3
-Audi S4

Cars you should have:

-E30 M3
-E92 M3

I think you should have a daily driver and a fun toy. If the finances allow, this is what I would have in my garage, ideally.

Yep this definitely is the perfect situation.


-Vin

[kmarei]

i had an E30 M3 before my E92 M
both red
don't ever let go of that E30
nothing will put a smile on your face better than the original M3
the new M3 is great, it's a more grown up M3
but on the fun scale
not even close to the E30 M3
the S14 engine in the E30 is much nicer to thrash than the S65 in the E92
it truely is the soul of the E30 M3

and honestly
if you haven't driven the S4 in a year
why are you keeping it?
lose that and get the E92

my E30 M3


and my current E92 M3

[Dr.G]

you can take everyones advise so far and keep your e30 and get an e9x by selling the other two, but i think you are gonna hate the trade in value of your audi

[SoCal Life]

Thanks everyone for the advice and opinions! I think I got exactly what I wanted out of this thread!!

I guess I wasn't really asking for a comparison of the 2 cars...they are clearly in two different words. What I meant was....the shear joy of driving the car!! Every single time I think I want to sell my e30 M3 I drive it and I get an instant grin from ear to ear!!! The car brings absolute joy to my life! Driving that car on SoCal roads is truly therapeutic to me, and I just wanted to see if the e92 would be the same.

Judging from everyone's response, I don't think it would be. If you haven't driven an e30 M3, you're just plain missing out!! The engine is ridiculously snappy, it screams from 5k-8k and it's so light and nimble you just shred up the roads here in SD. I just drove it to LA and Back to see a concert last night and had a smile on my face the whole ride...even in congested LA traffic.

One thing most of you missed is that I only have a 1 car garage and parking my cars on the street is NOT an option in Mission Beach. And I'm over paying $200 a month to park the other two! So I can only have one car. My only concern with only keeping the e30 ///M is racking up the mileage...small price to pay to drive in pure happiness... I'm not worried about trade in value of any of my cars because all of them are pretty heavily modded and should fetch a good fair price. My S4 is a Stg 2+ B5 (twin turbo V6) that makes close to the same hp as an e9x M3 and about 400 ft/lbs tq.

Hmmmm I guess it's good that these are the hardest decisions in my life right now.

Thanks all. he's the cars in question = )

YES I know it looks like a monster truck, haha!! Coilovers are my next purchase...keep in mind, all these cars were bone stock when I got them.

...there's a clean pic of when I first got her in my sig = )


With old RS's


With new RS's



And the S4

[SoCal Life]

Originally Posted by MVEED3

I love the new M3 everytime I get a chance to push it. The chassis dynamics are amazing. When every single article I read praised the new M3's handling, I knew I had to have one. The only downside of it being a daily is the gas mileage.


Allen

Hey Allen,

I'm pretty sure I've seen your 335 around Mission Beach. You have a Euro vanity plate that says your username on it right??

[MVEED3]

Not me. That's pretty funny if someone put my username on their ride. Snap a camera phone pic if u see it again. My 335i has standard issue plates front and rear. I'm down to meet up if you want to compare M3s up close and personal.


Allen

[808MGuy]

Originally Posted by SoCal Life

My S4 is a Stg 2+ B5 (twin turbo V6) that makes close to the same hp as an e9x M3 and about 400 ft/lbs tq.

Coming from a B5 S4 myself I can tell you that even though the numbers are similar, the S4 just doesn't compare to the E92 M3. The M3 is way better in terms of handling, balance, and overall just driving enjoyment. I'd say the OEM suspension on the M3 is better than the Vogtland GTs I had on my S4. It seems like you don't have too much invested in that car as compared to if you had a stage 3 so I would just cut your losses now with that one unless you have an absolute need for AWD.

Here's a pic of my old S4

[Pimp Star]

One car maximum?

Keep the E30 M3 and be happy. But keep some money allocated for maintain and management.

[lucid]

Originally Posted by JC919

^already seen that one , but thanks any way lucid. How's you're E30 treating you? I'd like to see some pics of yours as well.

I'm taking it to WGI soon. Needless to say, it's a fun car. On the way to Mt. Tremblant below:

[urbo73]

Originally Posted by lucid

I'm taking it to WGI soon. Needless to say, it's a fun car. On the way to Mt. Tremblant below:

Attachment 307407

Sweet! You should take it to South Central as well. A much more dangerous track!