How much of a ****

[Leeum]

How 'reliable' is the gearbox and rear beam setup on the 306? With a 106/ Saxo, I'd say those are the things which (perhaps not straight away, but in time) will need attention. The engines are fairly bulletproof providing they're well maintained, unfortunately, the majority of them aren't. Replacement parts are readily available and they are a doddle to work on, depends how much patience you have I suppose.

Personally, that Saxo would want a better spring/ damper combo for track use. I use Bilstein Group Ns and 155lb springs on my daily driver. For a dedicated track car, I'd probably go for 170+lb springs and 21+mm torsion bars. Semi-slicks would also be a good investment.

 

[InvaderGIR]

You don't tend to see them with a 'kitchen sink' spec list, but if your willing to forgo the full cage and other such bells and whistles I don't think you'd struggle to find a decently preped car for around £2,500. After all, look what just £1k could get:
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2499016.htm

A VTS/GTI will obviously be cheaper to run, but I don't think the running costs are really that bad on an E36. Parts are still relatively cheap and plentiful

How is £1k for a high miles 328i Coupe with loads of interior missing a good buy?

He could spend the same on one with all the interior still, strip, flog parts and install new ones if he so wished, for example, something like this would be a lot better, the half leather can flog for £100, as I'm sure can some of the other bits.

£2.5k does not get you a sorted e36 track car, try £5k+ for a 325i or 328i and then you're looking at £7k for track M3s.

 

[Joshy]

How is £1k for a high miles 328i Coupe with loads of interior missing a good buy?

I take it that you missed the suspension work, M3 diff, M3 wheels, pads, buckets and M50 inlet conversion then? And I suppose you've completely over looked the fact that he is after a track day car so having 'loads of interior missing' isn't exactly the end of the world.

He could spend the same on one with all the interior still, strip, flog parts and install new ones if he so wished, for example, something like this would be a lot better, the half leather can flog for £100, as I'm sure can some of the other bits.

I don't think I am seeing your logic here. He wants a car that has already had work done, so what purpose does a 176,000 £650 325i serve when the only notable work has been done is a M3 diff?

£2.5k does not get you a sorted e36 track car, try £5k+ for a 325i or 328i and then you're looking at £7k for track M3s.

It depends entirely on what your definition of 'sorted' is. £2,500 will buy a stripped 325i/328i with most/all the basics for a track day car covered. Hell, I've just shown that you could get one for a grand.

 

[InvaderGIR]

I take it that you missed the suspension work, M3 diff, M3 wheels, pads, buckets and M50 inlet conversion then? And I suppose you've completely over looked the fact that he is after a track day car so having 'loads of interior missing' isn't exactly the end of the world.

I don't think I am seeing your logic here. He wants a car that has already had work done, so what purpose does a 176,000 £650 325i serve when the only notable work has been done is a M3 diff?

THAT'S THE SAME THING. The two cars are basically the same, he can flog the interior of the one with the M3 diff and recoupe some of that £1k...you even said yourself, he can spend £1k then do up to a total of spending £2.5k yet you snub a arguably better car that someone else says about. For the record, I think an e36 like these is a waste of time, he'd spend a lot more in running costs and even more so if he had a 328i.

It depends entirely on what your definition of 'sorted' is. £2,500 will buy a stripped 325i/328i with most/all the basics for a track day car covered. Hell, I've just shown that you could get one for a grand.

You showed a shoddy high miles (so high it's not even listed) 328i (again, great choice, fun engine, but unreliable)...great choice that one.

I also showed what you can get for £1k, what is your point?

Sorted, as in what berger is after, stripped, caged, bucketed, uprated suspension (Not just springs/dampers - and with decent ones, not budget), track wheels.

 

[Joshy]

THAT'S THE SAME THING.
The two cars are basically the same

But they are not? One has nearly all of the bases covered for a budget track car and the other is very, very nearly standard with the only modification not worth throwing in a skip is the diff.

he can flog the interior of the one with the M3 diff and recoupe some of that £1k...you even said yourself, he can spend £1k then do up to a total of spending £2.5k yet you snub a arguably better car that someone else says about.

Because your suggestion requires time and effort and money and dedication and hours of research and hours swearing on your back with a spanner in your hands and a whole bunch of other stuff that the OP seems to want avoid by buying something with the work already done.

Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to sound like a **** or anything but I really do not understand the relevance of your suggestion. You can get ropey standard/near standard E36 325i's for £600? Awesome. It is good to be back in 2007...

For the record, I think an e36 like these is a waste of time, he'd spend a lot more in running costs and even more so if he had a 328i.

It would seem that many people would disagree with you on that. It does seem that the E36 is quickly becoming the go to car for a budget RWD track car.

You showed a shoddy high miles (so high it's not even listed) 328i (again, great choice, fun engine, but unreliable)...great choice that one.

I also showed what you can get for £1k, what is your point?

Again, I showed that a car with pretty much all of the bases required for a track day car covered. You showed a nearly standard ropey high mileage 325i.

I'm not even sure why we are getting at this anyway. My link wasn't a suggestion for him to go out and buy it, rather a 'Look, if you can get a semi decently speced car for £1,000, a 'properly' done car should not be a problem for more than twice the budget'.

Sorted, as in what berger is after, stripped, caged, bucketed, uprated suspension (Not just springs/dampers - and with decent ones, not budget), track wheels.

You might be hard pressed to get one with a cage as I haven't seen too many of those on the market for some reason, but I have no reason to believe that Stripped, bucketed, semi decent (M3 spec+) suspension and light brake work is an impossible dream for £2,500.

 

[InvaderGIR]

But they are not? One has nearly all of the bases covered for a budget track car and the other is very, very nearly standard with the only modification not worth throwing in a skip is the diff.

Same with what you linked, only real difference in the cars is it had been stripped.

Because your suggestion requires time and effort and money and dedication and hours of research and hours swearing on your back with a spanner in your hands and a whole bunch of other stuff that the OP seems to want avoid by buying something with the work already done.

And he'd have to do loads of work on the one you linked too.

Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to sound like a **** or anything but I really do not understand the relevance of your suggestion. You can get ropey standard/near standard E36 325i's for £600? Awesome. It is good to be back in 2007...

What is your point here? You've shown the point too, you can get a ropey old e36 for £1k, big woop.

It would seem that many people would disagree with you on that. It does seem that the E36 is quickly becoming the go to car for a budget RWD track car.

In this context, ie, what the OP is after, it is wrong.

Again, I showed that a car with pretty much all of the bases required for a track day car covered. You showed a nearly standard ropey high mileage 325i.

No, you showed a ropey old e36 that needs loads of work with high miles. I showed exactly the same, but with parts that could be sold to lessen the blow of setting it up for track.

I'm not even sure why we are getting at this anyway. My link wasn't a suggestion for him to go out and buy it, rather a 'Look, if you can get a semi decently speced car for £1,000, a 'properly' done car should not be a problem for more than twice the budget'.

IT ISN'T A DECENTLY SPECCED £1K TRACK CAR! It's a shoddy car with massive miles (which aren't listed it is so high). I provided exactly the same in a link but one that it'd be possible to regain some money if it were to be put on track.

You might be hard pressed to get one with a cage as I haven't seen too many of those on the market for some reason, but I have no reason to believe that Stripped, bucketed, semi decent (M3 spec+) suspension and light brake work is an impossible dream for £2,500.

You don't know the e36 market well at all then.

 

[Berger]

How 'reliable' is the gearbox and rear beam setup on the 306? With a 106/ Saxo, I'd say those are the things which (perhaps not straight away, but in time) will need attention. The engines are fairly bulletproof providing they're well maintained, unfortunately, the majority of them aren't. Replacement parts are readily available and they are a doddle to work on, depends how much patience you have I suppose.

Personally, that Saxo would want a better spring/ damper combo for track use. I use Bilstein Group Ns and 155lb springs on my daily driver. For a dedicated track car, I'd probably go for 170+lb springs and 21+mm torsion bars. Semi-slicks would also be a good investment.

The 306 rear beam tends to be quite good, just needs a lot of money putting into it to make it play a bit more as its fairly conservative (imo) as standard.

The gearbox is decent, its the engine which has a habit of just breaking sensors fairly regularly which are £50+ a go.

Thanks for the advice, I have read that the Group N dampers are a fair bit better than the B8's for track use. Worth checking up on.

The TB's come up quite regularly as group buys or are available custom made for ~£200ish on ebay.

Plan to run semi-slicks as the difference is huge, and you go through road tyres twice as fast so its daft to use them, false economy.




As for the BMW's I don't want one as they all seem to be rusty and sheddy. "Track" prepped to me doesn't equal no interior and some budget coilovers.

Plus I think running costs will be a lot higher, double what a smaller car would be, just the tyres are a lot more alone, at least £50-60 a corner more each. Brake discs, BMW's terrible coolant system that will need replacing, etc etc.

I would love an M3 as they seem to be the cherished and looked after cars that people want to spend money on keeping them good. However they are £5k+ plus insurance is stupidly high, £1500+

 

[InvaderGIR]

As for the BMW's I don't want one as they all seem to be rusty and sheddy. "Track" prepped to me doesn't equal no interior and some budget coilovers.

Plus I think running costs will be a lot higher, double what a smaller car would be, just the tyres are a lot more alone, at least £50-60 a corner more each. Brake discs, BMW's terrible coolant system that will need replacing, etc etc.

Exactly why I said they aren't what you're after, no matter on how 'cheap' they are to buy.

 

[Joshy]

Same with what you linked, only real difference in the cars is it had been stripped.

Why do you seem to be unable to take into account the existence of the M50 inlet mod, M3 wheels (possibly with 'track day' tyres), top mounts, coilovers, buckets, pads and the other bits and pieces. How you think a car with all/nearly all of the basics covered for making a E36 a good budget track car is directly comparable to a nearly completely standard example is a little bit beyond me.

And he'd have to do loads of work on the one you linked too.

It is a good thing that I didn't suggest it to him then.

What is your point here? You've shown the point too, you can get a ropey old e36 for £1k, big woop.

You're right. A 200bhp+ RWD track car with all of the basic mods already covered for £1k is seriously a bad deal. It is a miracle that the seller managed to shift it at all

No, you showed a ropey old e36 that needs loads of work with high miles. I showed exactly the same, but with parts that could be sold to lessen the blow of setting it up for track.

Where on god's green earth are you getting that it needs loads of work, or even that it has high miles for that matter?

IT ISN'T A DECENTLY SPECCED £1K TRACK CAR! It's a shoddy car with massive miles (which aren't listed it is so high). I provided exactly the same in a link but one that it'd be possible to regain some money if it were to be put on track.

Right, and absoultely none of the parts of the 328i have any vaule whatsoever .

The 328i had the basics required for a track day car already done. The 325i did not.

They may not have been done to the absolute best standard on the 328i but sometimes that is difficult to do on a £1,000 TRACK CAR.

You don't know the e36 market well at all then.

Seemingly the same could be said for you and the track day car market...

 

[InvaderGIR]

I can't be bothered with the rest of the stuff as berger's thread is trashed enough as it is and I know e36s and the cost of parts, if the car is £1k, the 'mods' have been done extremely cheaply.

Seemingly the same could be said for you and the track day car market...

I know the e36 market both road and track. Track is generally the same if not more expensive than road.


Oh, I will cover the miles comment:

"Many miles of Bmw service history."

From the ad, and the fact miles haven't been listed shows that the car is a very high miler.

 

[Joshy]

I can't be bothered.

And finally we both agree with something .

Sorry Berger .

 

[InvaderGIR]

And finally we both agree with something .

 

[Joshy]

Or if you'd prefer we could sit here and continue having this ****ing contest knowing full well that neither of us are going to back down.

Alternately you can keep the sarcism to yourself, do the polite/lighthearted thing, back down with me and let berger get on with his thread.

Your call.

 

[spaz]

Don't listen to these idiots that are jabbering on, buy a proper wheel drive car like that saxo and have 99999999x more fun with it!

For what you want and your budget you can't go wrong with the idea imo.

 

[InvaderGIR]

Or if you'd prefer we could sit here and continue having this ****ing contest knowing full well that neither of us are going to back down.

Alternately you can keep the sarcism to yourself, do the polite/lighthearted thing, back down with me and let berger get on with his thread.

Your call.

lolwhat?

I pointed out how your suggestion of a BMW was rubbish and I agreed with him that the Saxo is a much better idea which he agreed with me about....all you've done is keep on at me that a £1k BMW is a good buy if you want a track car.

Quite what sarcasm you've picked up I don't understand.

Don't listen to these idiots that are jabbering on, buy a proper wheel drive car like that saxo and have 99999999x more fun with it!

For what you want and your budget you can't go wrong with the idea imo.

Agreed.

 

[loltim]

Don't listen to these idiots that are jabbering on, buy a proper wheel drive car like that saxo and have 99999999x more fun with it!

For what you want and your budget you can't go wrong with the idea imo.

this. Saxo will be loads more fun than an old E36.

 

[Leeum]

Some french car appreciation to get this thread back on topic.

 

[Berger]

this. Saxo will be loads more fun than an old E36.

<3

Frenchies ***. Mine doesn't like the wet, electrics seem to go wrong whenever it rains reasonable hard.

To make myself feel better I booked Cadwell Park for next Sunday. Need to get my track tyres swapped over (spare set of R888's at my dads) as the ones on the wheels are almost dead from Oulton and won't be much cop if it rains.