1986 BMW 325i E30 - M3's Long Lost Cousin

Almost every M3 ever made has an inline 6, except the E92 and E30. So what would it have been like if the E30 also came with an inline 6? Behold the 325i.

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:11 Drivetrain
1:47 Interior
3:00 Driving Experience

Thanks for Watching!

[allanwilliams]

This is cool too.

Dad had a Facelift E30 325i SE manual in Glacier Blue for over 18 years... starting in my late teens. I drove it home from the Auckland dealer up to home in Whangarei for him, because he didn't want to drive an unfamilar car in Auckland traffic😎. Had lots of good times in that car - like getting pulled over with 7 people in it 🤣

I wish I'd kept it 😞

[Mantenner]

Love the M20, has it's quirks, but I've got a rebuilt 12:1 compression 2.9L stroker, with lots of headwork, forged internals, big cam, ITBs, sequential injection, coil on plug etc etc making 170-180kw at the wheels. Very cool, simple, small engine. Has lots of character.

[pugxsi]

Subscribed from UK, Channel deserves more subs, some great cars being reviewed, loving the content, short and covers all the bases with some amazing scenery to boot.

[Vikturus]

IMO still one of the most beautiful cars to have been made. My first car was a 89 320i ( with the 6 cylinder and a stick ) in Grey and it was an incredible car! slow as anything but fun to drive. I wish I still had that car ( I bought it in 2006 for $4000 and now it would be worth $30k )

[The_Noticer.]

Sreten from M539 Restorations also lowered his E30, despite being an OEM-only snob. The suspension has comically long travel.

[sasheendowlath]

These have a huge following in South Africa, even has it's own name - Gusheshe

[ti]

Owned 2x manual E30 325i, the steering and brakes are questionable, but I enjoyed those old cars, there is actually a rod going from the drivers side brake pedal to the passenger side, which ruins any brake feel

[thatguyben]

_considering a 1986 VL commodore with Nissan n/a 3.0 RB30(?) came with 114kw that lil 2.5 is punching hard….another cool review_

[mnbalfour]

There was a very good example of a BMW 325i E30 often parked outside my apartment complex in Bentley, Perth, Western Australia. The only downside with it was that it had the automatic transmission, rather than the manual transmission. I really don't like automatic transmissions, they detract from the driving experience, especially when you have a special engine like a V8 or V12.

[rossthomas]

Is this road close to wellington? looking for a nice spot for a sunday drive!~

[swarlz_jr]

Are you comin to Cars & Coffee sometime? 😁

[onequicksix_garage]

Hey just FYI the fuel send line in this car is super dry rotted and cracked!!

[Birmingham_racing]

6 cylinders is what bmw does best along with Porsche

[nigelvontunzelman]

Hmm, brakes shouldn't be that bad, might need a little work. Steering should also have decent feedback... clearly not a restored example you're reviewing. The suspension is supposed to be that way... body roll was an indicator as to how hard you were trying but the grip was always pretty good and progressive when it let go (hence their 'hoonability') Compare that to the contemporary Holdens & Fords of the day and the E30 had positively rigid suspension. These days my E30 M3 has softer suspension than my F21 125d. Just imagine how a motoring writer from 1989 would perceive today's godawful runflats and springs made from granite.