Nothing Dirty About This E30: 1989 BMW 325is

Why We Like It

You know you’re aging when the new cars you liked in youth are now considered icons, modern classics, or just vehicles remembered so fondly they are now worthy of the cost of restoration. Personally, this Zero260 contributor has always liked BMWs, but while they were great to drive and fairly smacked of quality, they were priced considerably higher than other possibilities, including Ford’s hot and relatively inexpensive 5.0L Mustang LX, which offered a lot of bang for the buck to a young, performance-minded driver. While the 2002 was BMW’s first real North American success, the 3-Series that followed – especially the brilliant E30 generation of 1982-1991 – truly made BMW a household name on this side of the Atlantic. While in college, one of my first encounters with an E30 BMW was a wildly upmarket (at least to me) new 325is purchased by the parents of a friend in the townhouse across the driveway from my digs. It looked great in White over Black leather and I still recall its sheer sophistication very well.

This 1989 BMW 325is caught our collective eyes and gave us pause to look closer. It comes from the San Francisco Bay area and looks virtually as-new following a recent restoration including a repaint in Dolphin Gray Metallic over Tan upholstery with re-covered front seats. Features include a 5-speed gearbox and swing-out rear windows, plus select and discreet performance upgrades. According to the seller, the car, runs and drives wonderfully and is everything you could want in a reliable E30. It currently has 166,223 miles and the timing belt was last replaced at ~158k miles in December of 2017 during the restoration. The 325is front lip-type spoiler was replaced by the seller in favor of a standard 325i equivalent due to the drastically sloped driveways characteristic of the Bay Area – a sensible and barely perceptible modification. Mileage is not a big consideration to us, considering the comprehensive mechanical attention performed during the car’s restoration and the fastidious – obviously loving – care lavished on this delectable E30 Bimmer by the seller.

We’ve seen many modified and highly maintained 1980s BMWs over the years, and the marque’s products seem to attract caring and attentive owners in greater abundance than others. A quick review of Hagerty’s current Price Guide reveals a value range of $4,400 for a driver with some issues to $31,400 for an as-new #1 car, with $13,200 for a #3 driver and $20,700 for an excellent #2 car. While our subject car’s mileage is not inconsiderable, BMWs have long proven to perform great when provided the proper maintenance and care, and this one’s restoration takes it a cut above and it should provide many years and many more miles of enjoyment for the new owner at just a touch above driver money, rendering it VERY well-bought in our opinion.

Let's keep it clean folks!!