Of course they're not super race spec, but they're Brembo products and they work just fine.

And as an aside: Bose makes no top shelf products. In the audiophile community, Bose is a joke. Overpriced marketing crap, as you said. Nobody buys Bose except misinformed consumers at Best Buy. And having a Bose system in a car just means you're FOR SURE going to need to replace it with aftermarket speakers/amps.

I totally get what you're saying though. I will say that Recaro makes some awesome OEM seats, including the bad-ass NSX seats and the S2000 seats.

 

That's the answer right there, you answered your own question. Less affluent people tend to buy cheaper cars because it's a lower upfront cost, it's as simple as that. Cheaper cars also carry other benefits that you may not be considering.. In VA we have property tax on cars, so cheaper cars pay little/none for property tax. Also, you can probably get by without collision on your insurance (drive carefully ). Depending on the car, buying old can be much more economical than you think. A $2k car that only lasts 4 yrs and may not have high maintenance costs isn't a bad deal for $500/yr for a car. You'd be hard pressed to find a new car that'll cost you $500/yr, and of course, then there's the high upfront cost.

For example.. when I was in college I bought a 92 prelude for $4000 as my daily driver w/ 70k miles on it. I sold it 6 yrs later with 120k miles for $1800. That's under $500/yr for the car. Now of course there were maintenance costs, but still, you can't beat it. If the guy I sold it to gets 3+yrs out of it (very likely as it was in great running condition), he'll be doing alright. And if he gets 5 yrs out of it (certainly doable), even better. So.. old cars certainly can be a great bargain if all you need is transportation, and you don't mind riding it till the wheels fall off.

 

fuge bmw because they are unreliable,over engineer,use shit quality parts and almost every freaken thing holding together is by plastic clips.

Also fuge them bmw e30 hipster fanboy.

 

What a great first post. Glad your neurons could connect long enough for you to squeeze that one out.

 

Wow, there is some stupid shit being said in this thread.

Former S2k owner (wrecked by a family member, RIP )

I have an S52 swapped e30, which I've had for just over three years now. It was tracked for a few years prior to my ownership, and I've had it out at about a dozen HPDEs myself. I drive it hard every single time I get into it.

It's extremely reliable. And you can ask my buddy here on the boards (Calling BreakneckS2k ) how quick the car is around a track, even with the shit brake setup I've had on it. You can also ask him how much damn fun it is to drive.

If anything, a 24v e30 is more reliable than a stock m20 car. The only issues these motors have is a bullshit stock cooling system. That's it. They're easier to work on too, imo. The motor bolts to the damn stock trans. The whole driveline can take the power bump no problem. e36s and late model e30s have the same radiator. The e34 pan needed for the swap helps with oil starvation. Stock e30 fuel pumps own.

A TSX is not a driver's car.

 

Why does anyone listen to nunco? He just a troll who likes reading his own boring banter, with no tact or social skills.


I say get it. I wouldn't necessarily make it a primary car or one you would rely on getting to work. But I would certainly have it as a second/third car. Sounds fun and made me start looking at e30s

 

Damn. Looks like Nunco just got owned, because here's a guy with a swapped S50/S52. Great to hear about your positive experience with the car, just reassures me that I'm buying a great car with a great swap.

And I am still LOL'ing about the TSX.

I might get a cheap beater to go along with it in a few months, but the E30 will be doing most of the driving. Yeah, check out r3vlimited.com if you want some great info on E30's in general + their motor swaps.

 

I think the biggest concern you have Riley, Is will you be able to pick up guys in you old BMW?

 

r3v is good for basic info, but not much more that that. Most of its value comes from its popularity. If you want to get more advanced, e30tech is the place. It's falling by the wayside, however, and e30performance.info is looking to take it's place as the source for e30 technical info.

 

I've owned several older cars (20-ish year old) and I've owned a 50 yr old car. All of them had engine swaps, and all of them were totally reliable. Sounds like someone is bitter that they had a crappy car at one point in their life.

I ride a 32 yr old motorcycle that's been attacked with a cut off wheel and welder, completely re-wired, new handle bars, seat, gas tank, etc and it's completely reliable. If I changed the oil today, I wouldn't hesitate to ride 1000 miles on it tomorrow AM.