The time has come

[InvaderGIR]

A lot of money for an S14.

Now this is mint, low mileage, cheap and close enough to warrant buying, converting to manual and still save over £1k on that £5k example.

Yes because it's a simple case of just swapping over the gearboxes. :/

 

[MikeHiow]

And centre console trim, ecu, pedal box and master cylinder.

I've already scoped it out, but like I say, I'm not really that interested in a 200sx.

 

[Smokey26]

EP3, the price of them has really plumeted recently, 5k should get you a decent one. Pretty good for kids.

I used mine with the mrs and 2 kids, and it was fine, suspension, etc.

 

[Lashout_UK]

E34 540i 6-speed. Get an immaculate one for about £2-£3k.

RWD: Check
V8: Check
Manual: Check
Fast: Check
Well equipped: Check
Relatively sane fuel economy: Check
Road presence: Check
Status: Check
Depreciation-proof: Check
Handle well: With M-Technics bits, ooooooh yes.

Next.

 

[[FnG]magnolia]

Are you actually going to buy any of these cars or is this another hypothetical thread?

 

[Gibbo]

Hi there

Am I reading this right, you can get 540i's and M3's these days for as little as 3k what looks in relative clean condition?

Damn that makes it seriously tempting to buy an M3 and just gut the thing and turn it into a track focused machine.

 

[Housey]

Turning an M3 into a track toy is when it goes from 3K to 13K, expensive car to track I am told.

 

[[TW]Fox]

Turning an M3 into a track toy is when it goes from 3K to 13K, expensive car to track I am told.

I was about to post the same thing.

 

[MikeHiow]

snip

Wow, that looks quite cool.

On that subject, is it worth considering the E34 M5?

 

[Lashout_UK]

No, go for the 540 6 speed. As fast in the real world with better fuel economy and considerably cheaper running costs. You won't get an M5 worth owning for under 5 grand either, for the most part (unless you're extremely lucky).

The M5 is only .4 of a second faster than the V8 (5.6 vs 6.0), and both are limited to 155.

Mine wasn't limited though. Hehehehe.........

 

[MikeHiow]

You've almost sold me on the 540, now that you mention it - I really fancy doing the V8 thing actually. What are these engines like in terms of reliability? I recall someone on here having constant issues with their E39 540?

 

[Lashout_UK]

Besides the Nikasil issue, which should be resolved or irrelevant by this point (although in some cases it can still raise its head) I've found E34 V8's to be pretty damn reliable, unless they've fallen into uncaring hand and have been thrashed, unserviced and generally abused - in which case you get the 'usual' issues that stem from cases like that such as headgaskets.

Don't buy one that's making funny noises.....makes it easy.

They can suffer oil leaks from the rocker covers too.

The V8 is harder to work on than it's six-cylinder brothers, too. There's a lot in that bay

Mine was chipped and considerably epic, it was hillariously quick and beautiful to drive - despite having done 180,000 miles. Had a few suspension knocks and the AC had packed up but you could forgive it that, as it wasn't the finest example by any stretch I loved it though.

They are evil sons-of-a-guns.

I was averaging something stupid like 28mpg in mine, commuting, too. Couldn't complain.

Had:

- Automatic stability control
- Sports steering wheel with airbag
- Leather seats
- Shadow line trim
- Electric tilt and slide sunroof
- Auto dimming interior mirror
- Myrtle wood trim
- Rear headrests
- Headlamp wash + intensive wash for windscreen
- Air conditioning
- Park ventilation
- Multi function steering wheel + cruise control
- Hi-Fi speaker system – BMW
- M-Sports suspension (now superseded by the AC Schnitzer sports suspension)
- Warning triangle & first-aid kit

As well as the usual stuff like ABS, PAS, remote central locking, electric one-touch windows, electric mirrors, cruise control, front and rear fogs, trip computer with numerous functions, dash display with bulb-out warnings, you name it.......

Even had auxiliary heating - petrol-fired heaters that ran on a timer to pre-warm the car when you needed to use it, i.e. before you left for work in the morning.

 

[[TW]Fox]

How does a V8 5 Series with recirculating ball steering fit ANY of your needs and wants

You think the M3 is a bit dated? The E34 came out in 1988! It's huge, it's a barge, it has recirc ball steering, etc etc.

It's my sort of car which leads me to think it really isnt your sort of car/.

 

[andi]

<3

</3

Until you come back and admit your failings to us.

 

[MikeHunt79]

A lot of money for an S14.

Now this is mint, low mileage, cheap and close enough to warrant buying, converting to manual and still save over £1k on that £5k example.

I must admit I didn't really search too hard for the cheapest one, but I can see why you'd choose a turbo'd MX5 over a 200sx... even if the MX5 has no rear seats.

EDIT: I know it's not a 540, but I saw a 1996 740 going on PH for less than £2k a few weeks back, it may be a little on the heavy side but I'd imagine there's a lot of stuff that could come out if you wanted to reduce weight.

 

[loltim]

Until you come back and admit your failings to us.

huh?

 

[InvaderGIR]

huh?

Not good enough so you've completely forgotten.

 

[Joshy]

I had issues with "my" 530i (A V8 one, closely related to the 540i). Not something I'd recommend running on a shoe string, but it was a bit of a beast (when it worked). Let's not get confused though, it is a fully fledged barge, and not the "Well, it's sort of alright on B Road" type of barge either. Actually, barge is perhaps the wrong word, oil tanker is slightly closer to the mark . Great cars, but perhaps not what you're after?

Whilst you're considering barges, could perhaps I tempt you with a Soarer? Very much so like a Supra, only more comfortable and without the scene tax .

Perhaps a bit dear, I want to make sweet, sweet love to this one:
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2017891.htm

Good chassis underneath them (99% of it's Supra stuff), good reliable (not to mention very tunable engine!) and not too bad around the track either. Think someone recently came 2nd in there class in a mechanically standard automatic in the Toyota Sprint Series.

Off the track they are a relatively spacious, quick (60 in around 6 seconds, Top speed of 160 - 170MPH depending on who you talk to) comfortable "barge". Doesn't really feel it's size though, think it's actually a tad larger than the e34 but feels far smaller. Cheap to run given the performance too .

 

[Lashout_UK]

How does a V8 5 Series with recirculating ball steering fit ANY of your needs and wants

You think the M3 is a bit dated? The E34 came out in 1988! It's huge, it's a barge, it has recirc ball steering, etc etc.

It's my sort of car which leads me to think it really isnt your sort of car/.

Ssssh Fox, he doesn't know what he wants in his mind

I never found the recirculating ball steering that bad, either, compared to others of it's ilk. Mind you, mine had AC Schnitzer sports suspension so it was a bit more settled than the standard one but it was still a very nice machine to drive, especially across country, really went some.

Even the boggo 525i had fairly good steering, not quite as sharp, or offering as much feedback as a rack-and-pinion, but still pretty good. 90% of people could probably never tell the difference, nor notice.

 

[MikeHiow]

Whatever I buy has to be capable of ripping up B-roads. Lashout appears to suggest the 540 would be fine for this with the Mtec stuff?