I had 2 E30 325 tourings, both manuals around 2012/13 and sold them both for £750 each one after each other, couldn’t give them away as everybody wanted E36’s. Crazy how things can change in ten years.
I once owned a very pretty Volkswagen Passat, GL5 estate. Probably the best car I ever owned. The five cylinder Audi engine was silky, smooth and pretty quick, due to its fuel injection system. I think the Quattros had the same engine. I only mention this because the BMW looks very similar in design. I’m sure you meant to say Marathon Bars, not Snickers. LOL
I recall a magazine test at the time getting a manual one of these from 0 to 60 in 6.9 seconds! Almost Cosworth territory. My brother subsequently bought a 215,000 mile E46 323i auto. We recorded 0 to 60 in 9 seconds in that with two mountain bikes on the roof!
Miss my 1990 325i touring ☹️ mine was Lachs silver, and had a manual with a LSD!! So fun and it sounded silky smooth. 255k when I sold it but you'd never known. It had the fabric sports seats that hadn't worn as you described. Great review. Interesting to see the differences.
Ah, very nice! I have never been a BMW person, especially when it became a fashion statement like the other Germans while simultaneously being built to a price than to a standard, but I have a great fondness for these. Nothing screams 1980s like this! It's a solid, sensible, no-nonsense car.
At 6:51 A little reminder to all manufacturers who delete a rear wiper and try to design shapes and manage air to (unsuccessful) keep a rear window clean. Look how simple, clean to the eye and fit for purposes it can be done👍
That brings back memories! Used to have one of those,a very last of the line '94 lowly 316i (Lux) with the 5 spd. Exact same colour, except mine had the grey cloth (with worn out drivers seat). Amazing how much the market has changed, i only paid £150 for mine back in 2010! Now you need about 10k to find a decent example. Only 2yrs between my touring, and the e39 which was light years ahead.... always makes the e30 seem older than it actually is
These are lovely cars, Matt. The automatic in these was pretty useless. 4th gear was direct drive, really hurting fuel economy. That lovely engine is, worse luck, a bit on the peaky side. As an aside, a friend had an 89 328i saloon. He got the same highway mileage out of it as I did out of a 79 Thunderbird that ran on regular. After that, BMWs rather lost their shine, and even more, the cars were actually improved, the Lincoln is pretty.
I love the lit cigarette holder. Only in Germany- no cup holders but you do get a lit cigarette holder. Ash trays were the cup holders of the 80’s in euro cars
Re the lovely engine note. My brother had a 1989 E30 320i at one point which was an absolute bomb, as in it sounded like it might go bang at any moment. Not only the straight-six engine, but also a back axle that grumbled twice as loudly. Being a passenger in a car that will let go on a roundabout without any prompting and with that racket going on behind was quite nerve-racking, as I didn't fancy getting stranded in the middle of nowhere when it all expired. Naturally and predictably, It did expire at the back end. He also had a 1995 E39(?) 520i which exploded at the front end instead.
I had a 1990 black 320i Touring in approx. the year 2000 for about 2 years. Paid I think €1,800 for it. It was such a lovely car to drive. I really loved it, but bought an Audi 80 TDI for a bit cheaper fuel economy. Radiator pipe burst on me while over in France & after selling it the buyer told me it had a cracked head 😱 I didn't really think it overheated. I miss it. Hard to find one now for love or money.
Really like the E30, my favourite BMW by far. I lusted after these and the Alfa 33 after passing my driving test back in 1990. Ended up with a 'breadvan' Mk2A Polo C hatch instead, the E30 Touring for young skint guys straight out of college.
Just one extra warning about the service indicator. The fact that green lights are showing does not indicate regular or recent servicing. Resetting tools were readily available and many owners either had a friendly mechanic reset the lights or bought their own - I had one!
Had one with the same engine and gearbox, it was a two-door coupe finished in Calypso Red Metallic with a black leather interior and rear headrests on a G-plate.
Loved my E30, mine was a 1990 318iS; the homollogation one. Flying machine. Did you know that the E30 was fractionally shorter than the E21? If only modern car designers didn’t keep making things bigger eh?
Great review Matt, I owned 2 E30’s 10 years ago- daily drivers. I always found it weird how you have to crank your elbow right back to operate the interior door handles
My wife being a BMW fan we owned two E30s, a 325 Sport and a 328 Touring which I preferred for the extra poke of the larger engine and what I felt was better weight distribution. Another feature which you missed mentioning is that the rear boot cover is removable and the seats folded down nearly flat giving really exceptional load space. The rather narrow boot loading gap I never found a problem and it was more than compensated for by the low sill making loading heavy objects easier than most cars of the time - a bit like a van really. Other good points were the build quality and fuel consumption for its day and performance. No car is perfect and the E30 had a couple of gripes. They had a habit of needing replacement of seized cooling fans - fortunately a cheap (non BMW but reliable) and an easy fix. I found the driving position fine on relatively short journeys but after a couple of hours the offset accelerator pedal started to hurt by ankle. As to instrumentation which was usually lauded to the skies well sorry but there are two areas of the big dials that really matter: On the speedo where the 30 40 50 speed limits are and on the rev counter where the red line is. Why oh why did BMW place these so that they are both obscured by one's hands when driving when if the position of these dials were reversed all would have been well? Both my cars also had the optional computer fitted which was great except that the bit one regularly consulted was the clock which one's left arm obscured! All in all then a really fine car and of the 30+ I owned the touring comes in at number 2 - ahead of the 325 Sport. The best? You must be kidding! Surely the X308 Sport - as well made as the BMWs with a better instrument layout and sumptuous cabin, better driving position and wonderful motorway cruising - $00 miles in that was a breeze.
When BMW foremost made great, very stylish drivers cars ... Most of their 1980s offerings were beautiful cars and I also would consider 3-series touring one of their highlights of that time; only the look of the E34 5-series I'm not really a fan of. I'd love to see BMW go back to their 1980s strategy, but I assume they sell too many SUVs with odd-looking noses for that these days.
Almost bought one of these bout 15yrs ago E30 325i Manaul Touring in Silver on a G. 252,000 miles FSH (mainly BMW and Specialist). Not a squeeze, rattle, creak nothing drive absolutely spot on. Kidding myself for buying.... ah well!!! 🤷🤷🤷🤦🤦🤦
I remember Autocar reviewing this car in 1988 and they said BMW considered it a hatchback and not an estate. Haven't seen an E30 Touring in years but I love all E30s and this is one of the better looking variants. Autocar also compared it to a Citroen BX estate and a shooting brake conversion of a Jaguar XJS called a Lynx Eventer.
I find myself in the second hand market after a fair few years of fairly new vehicles, I want to find a true classic daily driver and I love this, your videos have started a fire in me and i can see a fair few 80/90s vehicle ending up on the drive til i find the one. Or is that how you started ??? :)
I had two of these Tourings . . . both manuals . . . an olive green 316 (didn't keep it too long) and a truly great red 325i. Peak BMW for me . . . especially where the fascia was concerned. My current Touring is a 2007 328Xi which is also fantastic.
Lovely and i was tempted when you mentioned it was for sale at a local dealers and i expected £8000 max but at £16k it's a pass and a shame it isn't a manual....
I love the variety of content - I was absolutely hooked on the Mondeo - now we get a thorough review of an E30 Touring! Thank you - plus pretty cool tyres - they look like the same spec tyres that it came with when new.
Love the review, great looking car and I bought the family F31 330D touring mainly because I wanted an E30 Touring in my youth, BMW do great estates, hope they keep it that way given the dominance of SUVs on the market
Brilliant cars. In 2000 a house purchase forced the sale of my new mk4 Golf. I bought my brothers ‘88 E30 saloon to keep me mobile . It was only a 318 carburettor but could still be quite alarming in terms of oversteer and was brilliant to drive. Many years later my brother turned up in a E30 touring, sadly only a 316i…. Most of the cars I regret not buying are E30s. The 2 door 325i with plaid recaro seats , and of course the M3s…..😢
Had a couple of E30's back in the days, and it was indeed a more special car to drive than "most cars". A sense of occasion the minute that six cylinder fired up. I love them. Rusted badly though
I had a 1989 320i 4 door manual, back in 1994. The engine was the best part, but mine had no options ticked whatsoever. @ 20:24 your brake light(s) failed..
I always loved these cars, love a 5 series from the era :). I'm sure the front wheels have been modified, they seem, from the shots to extrude further than the wheel arches, which would not be legal? or is it just an optical illusion?
The BMW 325i touring E30 you are driving has the standard automatic transmission . I have a 325ix touring with the sportautomatic which allows the car to accelerate much faster and to go in higher revs before changing gears . In the S stand all of this happens than . With a manual transmission one really would have to be fast to beat the car with the sportautomatic sportautomatic
Great video Matt, really enjoyed. Build quality exemplary though? Ive only ever been in E30.. My sisters. It was an F plate 320 and shoe bought it when it was 5 years old on 1993, an owned it for 5 years. I found the build quality average at best. whenshe sold it with 88k on it, both front seats were worn though the fabric (shes 5 foot 1 and 8 stone before the fat ass comments come through), 1 rear window winder had broken off, the drivers electric window switch was broken, the were various trim rattles and the fan blower switch broke off twice. Overall, i adore the E30s looks, but i ididnt find the build quality any better in her F reg E30, than in my H plate Sierra Sapphire i had at the same time? It was also pretty average to drive tbh, and the steering wheel in it was the size of a bus! Keep up the great work
Always wanted one never bought one. Even as a 4dr they were still a 2 seater, can remember looking at an M325i 2dr didn't buy it as the boot space was equivalent to a matchbox and couldn't fit my mates chair. Looked at the estate, the rather peculiar light arrangement made me change my mind, again for ease of loading. BMW took the law regarding tear light layout to the extreme, just because the side and brake lights couldn't be on the opening, they cut cost on a premium car by just using the same rear lights thus making the aperture useless, unless loading ski's.
Always wanted one of these but didn't get In before the prices went nuts. My e46 330i and z3 2.8 will have to do as a compromise of sorts. And they together cost less than half the price of an E30.
Genuine q Black plastic rubbing strips vanished over the 90s cos aesthetics (probably). Surely they were there to reduce insurance premiums? So removing them should have caused every vehicle to move up 1 insurance group? And if not, why not?
Love older gen beemers. These and the e46 are peak bmw. E46 coupe is probably the best looking car ever, but any e30 is pure class. My son is wondering if they are practical first cars. Still not sure.
Pigs in blankets ? Gotta be English mustard Matt , never mayonnaise lol 😂, loved this design of BMW and probably my favourite and personally the best I think 👌🏻, such quality and performance.
They look a superbly engineered car, but it's proof how relatively small BMW actually were as a company back then, when a couple of young designers, did the estate conversation in their spare time. Fashion over form though really when you look how restricted the access is with the rear lights jutting so far centrally. Probably one of the most enjoyable and sporty estates to drive , but for looks a Rover 400 estate knocks spots off them for me. But could you imagine any of the Rover employees of that era designing something in their own time?
Agreed. If it had a proper gearbox in it, we'd be queuing up to buy it. As it was, watching the video, all I could hear was the slipping clutch. Autos work best when you can't hear all the clutch slip and wastage of petrol that goes with that - such as in a silent luxury car. But where is the fun in that?
Fine as an auto but I wouldn't want a manual one. A mate had a 320 saloon and I didn't care for the slewed off centre pedals, although I'm not sure if that applied to left hooker examples. I do very much like the interior and instrumentation though.
I used to have one on them, well a 320i, but it was red. Sold it when I needed a Passat to move to Scotland in. Hmm, nice enough E30, no trip computer and comfort seats, I wonder how much they.... SIXTEEN GRAND!?!!!?! Wow prices really have gone up!
I did love mine though. It was my first "grown up' car. The step in the rear floor, however was a pain (literally) the one time I tried to sleep in it....
I’ve got an E34 5 series, and it’s interesting to notice the similarities and differences. Judging by this video they’re probably quite similar to drive, and a fair amount of the interior is the same. My car is later on in the E34s life (1994) and you can see it’s a fair amount more modern, especially when comparing equipment (my car is a fairly low spec car, but it is slightly better equipped overall than that E30)
@@e28forever30 absolutely, but there was a significant crossover of generations, and my car doesn’t feel that far off a modern car (to sit in, drive, work on etc)
@@sambarker7930 I understand. There are some elements on the E30 that are closer to the E34, like the dashboard, the front end. There is always some crossover in these designs and that makes them interesting to compare. The E34 was a big leap forward. It was also a lot heavier than the E28. I own both the E28 and the E39, and they are worlds apart. Both very nice to drive.
@@e28forever30 fair enough, I wouldn’t imagine there’d be much similarities! One of my colleagues used to have a 2005 E61 (525D), and I remember thinking at the time there was only 2 generations between my car and his, yet that 525D had more in common with the modern 5 series than it did with my car
It can’t be underestimated how much of a status symbol these were back in the day….even tho the modern ones are superior they still don’t have the iconic standout “you’ve made it’…back in the 1980s, owning a range topping 3 series was more akin to owning a range topping merc today. And I agree the modern BMWs don’t look as good as these. …personally I would choose the automatic over the manual.
318, 320, 325 all of them were amazing but beautiful design, perfect weight distribution, great ride, Sporty handling, strong engines, what's not to like? Zero practicality that's what. Step forward the Touring. Perfection.
10.5 0-60 ? Is that correct ? If I remember correctly the saloon could do it in sub 8.5 Maybe my memory is playing tricks , it was a very long time ago 😱
There is a simple reason touch screens are bad. The majority of us are right handed but we drive on the left so your "wrong" hand has a finger waggling around as you rock about in the drivers seat trying to stab at icons whilst keeping your eyes on the road'. I put that to a left handed mate and he agreed he finds using a screen quite easy coz its on the "correct" side for him
I'm a reformed automatic transmission-hater, but a beemer with an auto box has always seemed like an aberration. Handsome cars as an estate, even more so in the 5 series.
This is such a great car, but the yuppie image has always put me off buying one. Now though, I think time has eroded the association with red braces and filofaxes, and these days the E30 makes a superb modern classic. Unfortunately, everyone else seems to think so too and prices have risen accordingly. Still, if the right car came up at the right price, I could see myself in one of these now. They're so much more desirable than pretty much anything BMW sells today.
How is it possible that a BMW 325i Touring, which cost a lot new, doesn't have electric opening of the rear windows? It's ironic that even a simple but refined Rover 213 SE from the mid-1980s had them.
@@malcolmlane-ley2044 I also don't remember wanting a Mercedes or a BMW. And lucky for me, the first time I wanted a Rover, they offered it to me and even in my favorite color - british racing green😁. It turned out so reliable that I still have it today. Unfortunately for the British brand, and for so many others with fond memories, fewer and fewer people wanted them. It is a pity that the German industry has a culture of selling cars that are not only expensive, but also force the consumer to pay for things that are normally included by other brands, because they are useful.
Electric rear windows were extra options back in the day that said mine has them but sadly no leather Matt is correct the fabric disintegrated on the seats though
![[DRIP] ‘Woke Up In Tokyo (RUKA & ASA)’ PREVIEW](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/QN44lcR_VkI/mqdefault.jpg)
I had 2 E30 325 tourings, both manuals around 2012/13 and sold them both for £750 each one after each other, couldn’t give them away as everybody wanted E36’s. Crazy how things can change in ten years.
Still only worth that. The seller of this example is sniffing glue and high on crack if they think its worth 16k
@@ZafiraSteve I agree mate, the prices of E30’s are absolutely horrendous now.
@@MarkieC1990
That’s why I got myself an E28, haven’t looked back since…
@@e28forever30 even they’re silly money for what they are I think.
@@e28forever30 Even E28, 34, 36 are going for crazy prices nowadays. I dont get why BMW cant understand that's the kind of cars people want
I once owned a very pretty Volkswagen Passat, GL5 estate. Probably the best car I ever owned. The five cylinder Audi engine was silky, smooth and pretty quick, due to its fuel injection system. I think the Quattros had the same engine. I only mention this because the BMW looks very similar in design.
I’m sure you meant to say Marathon Bars, not Snickers. LOL
I recall a magazine test at the time getting a manual one of these from 0 to 60 in 6.9 seconds! Almost Cosworth territory. My brother subsequently bought a 215,000 mile E46 323i auto. We recorded 0 to 60 in 9 seconds in that with two mountain bikes on the roof!
Miss my 1990 325i touring ☹️ mine was Lachs silver, and had a manual with a LSD!! So fun and it sounded silky smooth. 255k when I sold it but you'd never known. It had the fabric sports seats that hadn't worn as you described. Great review. Interesting to see the differences.
the perfect spec!
Ah, very nice! I have never been a BMW person, especially when it became a fashion statement like the other Germans while simultaneously being built to a price than to a standard, but I have a great fondness for these. Nothing screams 1980s like this! It's a solid, sensible, no-nonsense car.
At 6:51
A little reminder to all manufacturers who delete a rear wiper and try to design shapes and manage air to (unsuccessful) keep a rear window clean.
Look how simple, clean to the eye and fit for purposes it can be done👍
That brings back memories! Used to have one of those,a very last of the line '94 lowly 316i (Lux) with the 5 spd. Exact same colour, except mine had the grey cloth (with worn out drivers seat). Amazing how much the market has changed, i only paid £150 for mine back in 2010! Now you need about 10k to find a decent example. Only 2yrs between my touring, and the e39 which was light years ahead.... always makes the e30 seem older than it actually is
Matt, considering how much you love a rusty old car and estates, I’m shocked you’ve not got one 😉
There’s only one reason I haven’t-they cost way more than a knackered Rover 😂
@@furiousdriving Ah, I thought you were going to say it’s something to do with something that begins with an ‘L’ and ends in an ‘a’ 😆
@@NeoNeko99 no, that’s not the issue; begins and ends with A is a problem as are the PRNDL in between
@@furiousdriving do a manual swap?
These are lovely cars, Matt. The automatic in these was pretty useless. 4th gear was direct drive, really hurting fuel economy. That lovely engine is, worse luck, a bit on the peaky side. As an aside, a friend had an 89 328i saloon. He got the same highway mileage out of it as I did out of a 79 Thunderbird that ran on regular. After that, BMWs rather lost their shine, and even more, the cars were actually improved, the Lincoln is pretty.
Excellent review as always Matt, one of my favourite versions of the 3 series alongside it's successor, but these really do look good as a tourer.
The shape works perfectly for it, amazing the factory didnt think of it!
I love the lit cigarette holder. Only in Germany- no cup holders but you do get a lit cigarette holder. Ash trays were the cup holders of the 80’s in euro cars
Re the lovely engine note. My brother had a 1989 E30 320i at one point which was an absolute bomb, as in it sounded like it might go bang at any moment. Not only the straight-six engine, but also a back axle that grumbled twice as loudly. Being a passenger in a car that will let go on a roundabout without any prompting and with that racket going on behind was quite nerve-racking, as I didn't fancy getting stranded in the middle of nowhere when it all expired. Naturally and predictably, It did expire at the back end. He also had a 1995 E39(?) 520i which exploded at the front end instead.
I had a 1990 black 320i Touring in approx. the year 2000 for about 2 years. Paid I think €1,800 for it. It was such a lovely car to drive. I really loved it, but bought an Audi 80 TDI for a bit cheaper fuel economy. Radiator pipe burst on me while over in France & after selling it the buyer told me it had a cracked head 😱 I didn't really think it overheated. I miss it. Hard to find one now for love or money.
Really like the E30, my favourite BMW by far. I lusted after these and the Alfa 33 after passing my driving test back in 1990. Ended up with a 'breadvan' Mk2A Polo C hatch instead, the E30 Touring for young skint guys straight out of college.
Just one extra warning about the service indicator. The fact that green lights are showing does not indicate regular or recent servicing. Resetting tools were readily available and many owners either had a friendly mechanic reset the lights or bought their own - I had one!
Had one with the same engine and gearbox, it was a two-door coupe finished in Calypso Red Metallic with a black leather interior and rear headrests on a G-plate.
Loved my E30, mine was a 1990 318iS; the homollogation one. Flying machine. Did you know that the E30 was fractionally shorter than the E21? If only modern car designers didn’t keep making things bigger eh?
Thats brilliant trivia!
I totally agree with your last sentence.
Great review Matt, I owned 2 E30’s 10 years ago- daily drivers. I always found it weird how you have to crank your elbow right back to operate the interior door handles
My wife being a BMW fan we owned two E30s, a 325 Sport and a 328 Touring which I preferred for the extra poke of the larger engine and what I felt was better weight distribution. Another feature which you missed mentioning is that the rear boot cover is removable and the seats folded down nearly flat giving really exceptional load space. The rather narrow boot loading gap I never found a problem and it was more than compensated for by the low sill making loading heavy objects easier than most cars of the time - a bit like a van really. Other good points were the build quality and fuel consumption for its day and performance. No car is perfect and the E30 had a couple of gripes. They had a habit of needing replacement of seized cooling fans - fortunately a cheap (non BMW but reliable) and an easy fix. I found the driving position fine on relatively short journeys but after a couple of hours the offset accelerator pedal started to hurt by ankle. As to instrumentation which was usually lauded to the skies well sorry but there are two areas of the big dials that really matter: On the speedo where the 30 40 50 speed limits are and on the rev counter where the red line is. Why oh why did BMW place these so that they are both obscured by one's hands when driving when if the position of these dials were reversed all would have been well? Both my cars also had the optional computer fitted which was great except that the bit one regularly consulted was the clock which one's left arm obscured! All in all then a really fine car and of the 30+ I owned the touring comes in at number 2 - ahead of the 325 Sport. The best? You must be kidding! Surely the X308 Sport - as well made as the BMWs with a better instrument layout and sumptuous cabin, better driving position and wonderful motorway cruising - $00 miles in that was a breeze.
When BMW foremost made great, very stylish drivers cars ... Most of their 1980s offerings were beautiful cars and I also would consider 3-series touring one of their highlights of that time; only the look of the E34 5-series I'm not really a fan of. I'd love to see BMW go back to their 1980s strategy, but I assume they sell too many SUVs with odd-looking noses for that these days.
Almost bought one of these bout 15yrs ago E30 325i Manaul Touring in Silver on a G. 252,000 miles FSH (mainly BMW and Specialist). Not a squeeze, rattle, creak nothing drive absolutely spot on. Kidding myself for buying.... ah well!!! 🤷🤷🤷🤦🤦🤦
I remember Autocar reviewing this car in 1988 and they said BMW considered it a hatchback and not an estate. Haven't seen an E30 Touring in years but I love all E30s and this is one of the better looking variants. Autocar also compared it to a Citroen BX estate and a shooting brake conversion of a Jaguar XJS called a Lynx Eventer.
I find myself in the second hand market after a fair few years of fairly new vehicles, I want to find a true classic daily driver and I love this, your videos have started a fire in me and i can see a fair few 80/90s vehicle ending up on the drive til i find the one. Or is that how you started ??? :)
I had two of these Tourings . . . both manuals . . . an olive green 316 (didn't keep it too long) and a truly great red 325i. Peak BMW for me . . . especially where the fascia was concerned. My current Touring is a 2007 328Xi which is also fantastic.
That is an absolute stunner. I think the 10.5 seconds to 60 is a bit pessimistic though.
Yes, the 171hp 325i saloon was 8 secs, probably 7-something.
Lovely and i was tempted when you mentioned it was for sale at a local dealers and i expected £8000 max but at £16k it's a pass and a shame it isn't a manual....
I love the variety of content - I was absolutely hooked on the Mondeo - now we get a thorough review of an E30 Touring! Thank you - plus pretty cool tyres - they look like the same spec tyres that it came with when new.
Love the review, great looking car and I bought the family F31 330D touring mainly because I wanted an E30 Touring in my youth, BMW do great estates, hope they keep it that way given the dominance of SUVs on the market
Brilliant cars. In 2000 a house purchase forced the sale of my new mk4 Golf. I bought my brothers ‘88 E30 saloon to keep me mobile . It was only a 318 carburettor but could still be quite alarming in terms of oversteer and was brilliant to drive. Many years later my brother turned up in a E30 touring, sadly only a 316i…. Most of the cars I regret not buying are E30s. The 2 door 325i with plaid recaro seats , and of course the M3s…..😢
Had a couple of E30's back in the days, and it was indeed a more special car to drive than "most cars". A sense of occasion the minute that six cylinder fired up. I love them. Rusted badly though
Had a G reg one a few years ago, only a 318i, but once the rust got hold of it, no coming back from that. Sold it for £500
These are, along with the Rover 400 estate, the best looking estates ever sold.
I had a 1989 320i 4 door manual, back in 1994. The engine was the best part, but mine had no options ticked whatsoever.
@ 20:24 your brake light(s) failed..
What a spot!😀
I love the MPG-ometer, I thought it was fairly unique in the Hyundai Coupe watching the MPG fall dramatically
I always loved these cars, love a 5 series from the era :). I'm sure the front wheels have been modified, they seem, from the shots to extrude further than the wheel arches, which would not be legal? or is it just an optical illusion?
Hi Matt im a massive fan of the channel and hate to correct you but I've just dug out a copy of CAR from Dec 85 and the 0-60 is 8.3
I had a manual one of these, in Boston Green, when I lived in Germany. One of my favourite cars.
I love this car so much this is a great vid
The BMW 325i touring E30 you are driving has the standard automatic transmission . I have a 325ix touring with the sportautomatic which allows the car to accelerate much faster and to go in higher revs before changing gears . In the S stand all of this happens than . With a manual transmission one really would have to be fast to beat the car with the sportautomatic sportautomatic
Great video Matt, really enjoyed. Build quality exemplary though? Ive only ever been in E30.. My sisters. It was an F plate 320 and shoe bought it when it was 5 years old on 1993, an owned it for 5 years. I found the build quality average at best. whenshe sold it with 88k on it, both front seats were worn though the fabric (shes 5 foot 1 and 8 stone before the fat ass comments come through), 1 rear window winder had broken off, the drivers electric window switch was broken, the were various trim rattles and the fan blower switch broke off twice. Overall, i adore the E30s looks, but i ididnt find the build quality any better in her F reg E30, than in my H plate Sierra Sapphire i had at the same time? It was also pretty average to drive tbh, and the steering wheel in it was the size of a bus! Keep up the great work
Beautiful car! My dad had a 90 2.3 20V quattro in the late 80s, can't compare to this E30 though. Great review Matt.
Why do you think the 90 20v doesn't compare? If simply on driving dynamics, I would agree.
Always wanted one never bought one. Even as a 4dr they were still a 2 seater, can remember looking at an M325i 2dr didn't buy it as the boot space was equivalent to a matchbox and couldn't fit my mates chair. Looked at the estate, the rather peculiar light arrangement made me change my mind, again for ease of loading. BMW took the law regarding tear light layout to the extreme, just because the side and brake lights couldn't be on the opening, they cut cost on a premium car by just using the same rear lights thus making the aperture useless, unless loading ski's.
10.5 secs 0-60? Maybe for the 316.
Autocar tested the 325i saloon at 7.4. The Touring was 7.6, both manual.
Always wanted one of these but didn't get In before the prices went nuts. My e46 330i and z3 2.8 will have to do as a compromise of sorts. And they together cost less than half the price of an E30.
now that is a proper car, very handsome & such a great sounding, super smooth straight six. 🙂
I've always thought these were very handsome cars, way out of my league in the 80s though! Terrific review Matt.
Great review and one of the few cars from the eighties that you could drive daily. Solid, comfortable and a joy to drive but would need a manual.
Genuine q
Black plastic rubbing strips vanished over the 90s cos aesthetics (probably).
Surely they were there to reduce insurance premiums? So removing them should have caused every vehicle to move up 1 insurance group? And if not, why not?
I had an E30 316i back in the day. Lowered and with tasteless alloys. Not a 6 cyl. but still a nice nippy car. Another one I never should have sold.
Love older gen beemers. These and the e46 are peak bmw. E46 coupe is probably the best looking car ever, but any e30 is pure class. My son is wondering if they are practical first cars. Still not sure.
This is just asking for a Blaupunkt Bremen reproduction stereo. Would really finish the interior off nicely as it looks pretty clean and original.
One of those needs to live there!
Pigs in blankets ? Gotta be English mustard Matt , never mayonnaise lol 😂, loved this design of BMW and probably my favourite and personally the best I think 👌🏻, such quality and performance.
They look a superbly engineered car, but it's proof how relatively small BMW actually were as a company back then, when a couple of young designers, did the estate conversation in their spare time.
Fashion over form though really when you look how restricted the access is with the rear lights jutting so far centrally.
Probably one of the most enjoyable and sporty estates to drive , but for looks a Rover 400 estate knocks spots off them for me.
But could you imagine any of the Rover employees of that era designing something in their own time?
Agreed. If it had a proper gearbox in it, we'd be queuing up to buy it. As it was, watching the video, all I could hear was the slipping clutch. Autos work best when you can't hear all the clutch slip and wastage of petrol that goes with that - such as in a silent luxury car. But where is the fun in that?
10:20 beautiful ignition start sound.
Have to admit to only liking a select few BMW's, this is definitely one, lovely example of a great model, 👍
Such a lovely car. Would you to see you review a hatch back Nissan bluebird, my dad had a few of them, fantastic cars
Best 3 series ever. Especially the 325 in Touring format. Iconic!
Fine as an auto but I wouldn't want a manual one. A mate had a 320 saloon and I didn't care for the slewed off centre pedals, although I'm not sure if that applied to left hooker examples. I do very much like the interior and instrumentation though.
I used to have one on them, well a 320i, but it was red. Sold it when I needed a Passat to move to Scotland in. Hmm, nice enough E30, no trip computer and comfort seats, I wonder how much they.... SIXTEEN GRAND!?!!!?! Wow prices really have gone up!
I did love mine though. It was my first "grown up' car. The step in the rear floor, however was a pain (literally) the one time I tried to sleep in it....
I had one of those. Best car ever. Sold it for 2000$ in 2010. I wonder where it is today (and for how much it would sell)
I’ve got an E34 5 series, and it’s interesting to notice the similarities and differences. Judging by this video they’re probably quite similar to drive, and a fair amount of the interior is the same. My car is later on in the E34s life (1994) and you can see it’s a fair amount more modern, especially when comparing equipment (my car is a fairly low spec car, but it is slightly better equipped overall than that E30)
I think the E30 compares better to the E28.
They were launched within a couple of years of each other.
@@e28forever30 absolutely, but there was a significant crossover of generations, and my car doesn’t feel that far off a modern car (to sit in, drive, work on etc)
@@sambarker7930
I understand.
There are some elements on the E30 that are closer to the E34, like the dashboard, the front end. There is always some crossover in these designs and that makes them interesting to compare.
The E34 was a big leap forward.
It was also a lot heavier than the E28.
I own both the E28 and the E39, and they are worlds apart.
Both very nice to drive.
@@e28forever30 fair enough, I wouldn’t imagine there’d be much similarities!
One of my colleagues used to have a 2005 E61 (525D), and I remember thinking at the time there was only 2 generations between my car and his, yet that 525D had more in common with the modern 5 series than it did with my car
It can’t be underestimated how much of a status symbol these were back in the day….even tho the modern ones are superior they still don’t have the iconic standout “you’ve made it’…back in the 1980s, owning a range topping 3 series was more akin to owning a range topping merc today.
And I agree the modern BMWs don’t look as good as these.
…personally I would choose the automatic over the manual.
I bought an E30 saloon about 14 years ago did a few jobs on it and then sold it, it should of been one to keep like a few others I have let go 😭
That tail-light arrangement is totally bonkers!
Matt you need one of these on your fleet ASAP. To hell with cost! life is to short we need a BMW in the furious garage.
318, 320, 325 all of them were amazing but beautiful design, perfect weight distribution, great ride, Sporty handling, strong engines, what's not to like?
Zero practicality that's what.
Step forward the Touring. Perfection.
always loved that era of BMW .
It is, have a manual 91' 325i Touring m-tech 2 ab fabrik :D
10.5 to 60? Probably the 316. 7.5 is nearer for the 325.
Hate to correct you there, but Canary Wharf didn't open until 91 and it was a White elephant for most of the 90s.
10.5 0-60 ?
Is that correct ?
If I remember correctly the saloon could do it in sub 8.5
Maybe my memory is playing tricks , it was a very long time ago 😱
Might be due to the auto gearbox - they were quite bad power sappers back then 🫣
There is a simple reason touch screens are bad. The majority of us are right handed but we drive on the left so your "wrong" hand has a finger waggling around as you rock about in the drivers seat trying to stab at icons whilst keeping your eyes on the road'. I put that to a left handed mate and he agreed he finds using a screen quite easy coz its on the "correct" side for him
loving E30's right now. just wish id have snapped a couple up when they were sensibly priced.
I was going to comment "peak BMW" & you went & said it in the first few minutes 😂
You should get this and do a manual swap, Matt! ❤️
Love your new sponsor reel, BTW. 💪🏻
Id need to get a cheaper one and manual swap it! And thanks, been meaning to sort that out
Hey Matt.... must point out that smaller steering wheels obscure the dials..
Hoffmiester kink is old, the 1950 USA Kaiser has it! Not German, who knows who had it it first. The '65 Dodge Coronet had a tiny one.
Great review. Lots of space for Snickers bars, Marathon bars surely?!
I do wish that BMW still made elegant, handsome, classy and well made cars like this.
I still have a 325i touring manual( its my avatar) with well over 200k on it , still growl's on b road blast's
£15k+ where did they get that price? Great vid as usual Matt .
The glue factory tour
Love the little icon with the max demist settings. My Alfa 33 had that too
They are so cool!
Never been a fan off bmw great cars but just too aragant for me I think oh and most bmw owners don't know what indicators are all the best donny
I'm a reformed automatic transmission-hater, but a beemer with an auto box has always seemed like an aberration. Handsome cars as an estate, even more so in the 5 series.
Wondering what has to be pixelated under the windscreen?
Trade plate
UGH! It's a PRNDL. Calling out for a 5 speed manual conversion. Knock 3 seconds off the 0 --- 60 and delete the slush to 30 mph.
Surprised it's so slow. That 0-60 is slower than a standard Rover P6 auto from 20 years before. Still these cars were "class" in their day.
the double tap is strong on this one skywalker 😂
The BMW 6 cylinder , best engine BMW engine ever made , my 2002 325 was so reliable .
Great cars though I'd go for a manual version.
This is the only car any family would ever need ,i wish they would bring them back instead off huge barges now days .
always thought these were gorgeous - same with the Rover 400 Tourer - neither sadly on my company car list grrrrrrr
Car was designed by one person in his shed.
...oh really? You'd never know!
Opens the boot
...oh I see
Estates actually my favourite after the coupe
Lancia HPE. Reliant Scimitar.... I grew up with both.....
This is such a great car, but the yuppie image has always put me off buying one. Now though, I think time has eroded the association with red braces and filofaxes, and these days the E30 makes a superb modern classic. Unfortunately, everyone else seems to think so too and prices have risen accordingly. Still, if the right car came up at the right price, I could see myself in one of these now. They're so much more desirable than pretty much anything BMW sells today.
Thanks ❤
How is it possible that a BMW 325i Touring, which cost a lot new, doesn't have electric opening of the rear windows? It's ironic that even a simple but refined Rover 213 SE from the mid-1980s had them.
When I bought a new Mercedes in 1993 even the radio was an extra let alone electric rear windows; I don’t remember yearning for a Rover.
@@malcolmlane-ley2044 I also don't remember wanting a Mercedes or a BMW. And lucky for me, the first time I wanted a Rover, they offered it to me and even in my favorite color - british racing green😁. It turned out so reliable that I still have it today. Unfortunately for the British brand, and for so many others with fond memories, fewer and fewer people wanted them. It is a pity that the German industry has a culture of selling cars that are not only expensive, but also force the consumer to pay for things that are normally included by other brands, because they are useful.
Electric rear windows were extra options back in the day that said mine has them but sadly no leather
Matt is correct the fabric disintegrated on the seats though
3:15..Yikes..🤨Panel gap?..or a trick of the camera
Shooting brake yuppies and the green wellie brigade drove these 🤓