It's not the cleanest car around, but it's cheap, rear-wheel-drive, reliable and comfortable. Plus, it doesn't need a turbo to make torque.
The BMW 3 Series has played more than a small role in defining the term 'sport compact car' and has been around for five generations, sweeping up a massive following with each one. So it's taken us long enough to acquire a 3 Series. But if nothing else, our procrastination has allowed us to pick up this 1993 BMW 325i at a time when anyone selling more than lemonade can now consider cars with blue-and-white propellers on their hoods.
And we're glad we did. There's something so right about the 3 Series: a venerable inline-six stashed lengthwise in the nose, transmission filling the hump between driver and passenger, and driven wheels in the back-just the way it should be (rear-wheel drive snob! -AH). The steering is direct and talkative enough to make you wonder why anyone would blow $50,000 on a new model.
Maybe some BMW fans were hoping for an E30 and something characteristically crazy, like an SR20DET engine swap, but it ain't gonna happen. And the reason is simple. You can steal an E36-chassis BMW (1991 to '99 3 Series) on craigslist.org as easily as you can an E30 (82 to '91 3 Series) and they're just as good, if not better. On top of the E30, the E36 has more horsepower and more structural rigidity too. Wanna talk engines? The iron block 2.5-liter (dubbed the M50) has a 10.5:1 compression ratio, and loves to be turbocharged. In stock form, the '93 325i produces 189bhp (more than an E46 325i) and will reach 60mph in less than seven seconds.
With the original stock suspension near death, there was plenty of room for improvement. There also wasn't much point in hitting any track days with a setup 172,000 miles old.
So that's out of the way. But why is this one a four-door? And for God's sake, why is it green? Well, speaking of structural rigidity, the sedan has a thicker B-pillar and the doors have frames. It doesn't weigh much more than the coupe, either. Besides, if anyone hasn't noticed, the cool factor of sedans has been going up steadily with the years, while that of coupes, sadly, has been declining. Oh, and it's green because it was $2800.
That $2800 bought a one-owner, no-accident, southern California car. It's loaded with ice-cold A/C and power seats for both driver and passenger. On top of that, there are none of the tell-tale electrical issues known to plague the E36-all the instrument lights work every time and there are no mechanical gremlins to speak of. Sure, it has 172,000 miles on the clock, but it's stronger than any of the six other 325s we tested before buying this one. A quick look underneath when it was on the lift revealed no leaks. Considering a used 325 engine can be had for around $500 (and every other E36 we found in this condition cost at least $1700 more) the choice was obvious.
Just a few things, though: the tires were utterly bald and the suspension was completely shot. But, for a true automotive enthusiast, that's a good thing. Blown factory components provide a perfect way to wipe a conscience clean and rationalize the purchase of aftermarket stuff.
Eibach also supplies a set of Pro-Dampers in the Sportline System Plus kit. These are valved to match the included springs. The Pro-Dampers aren't this short when compared to stock, they're compressed during packaging.
Which is what we do best, but we needed a goal before ordering a random amalgam of parts and hoping the car worked right. It didn't take long to arrive at our simple goal: we wanted to build a German alternative to the Japanese steals-on-wheels now flooding the market, like the Nissan 240SX and Mazda Miata. Those cars are big hits for one big reason: they're rear-wheel-drive and cheap. So we're out to prove that the rear-wheel-drive BMW has the same hit potential as the Miata and the 240SX.
We'll build a solid daily driver that we can feel safe bashing around the track on weekends. It's cheap, so we'll keep our modifications that way. As always, we'll complete the car in a series of installments, starting from basic suspension tweaks but spanning to the design and build of a high-compression engine. In doing so, we'll attempt to prove that the 325i isn't as risky, slow or expensive a purchase as is generally assumed.