Highlights

Desirable two-door model
Manual 2.5-litre straight-six
Comprehensive history
MOT to March 2023

The Appeal

Iconic both as a road car and in terms of its motorsport pedigree, the E30 must surely rank as one of BMW’s most popular and successful cars.

This handsome example is a desirable two-door model, replete with the most sought after drivetrain combination - the revised 2.5-litre straight-six with a manual transmission. With a little time and work, this could soon be something very special indeed.

The History and Paperwork

First registered in 1989
Imported and UK registered in 1994
Four UK owners since import
Current MOT to March 2023
151,500 miles indicated at the last MOT
Comprehensive history file with old MOT certificates and numerous invoices for maintenance and servicing, many from main dealers
Haynes Workshop Manual

The Interior

Grey fabric upholstery with vinyl seat backs – all presents well, with surprisingly little in the way of wear to the seats both front and rear
Black vinyl and grey fabric door cards all look well, with no tears or conspicuous marks
Grey carpets and complementary BMW overmats look to be in good condition, with no significant damage or wear
Manual sunroof, electric windows and door mirrors
Pioneer CD/radio
All of the trim, controls and instruments look in good order for the age and mileage, although there’s some wear to the gear knob
Boot floor and wheel well looks nice and solid, with no notable corrosion we could identify
Full size spare wheel, factory toolkit present

The Exterior

Dark blue paintwork is in quite poor condition, with numerous scratches, marks, blemishes, bubbles and chips
The door shuts look nice and clean, with no signs of corrosion or damage
There are some small dents and bubbles to the front edge of the bonnet
All of the external trim looks to be present and correct, although the badges are faded and some of the rubbers look cracked and worn
At some point, a couple of the wheel arches have obviously seen some repairs, but the work has been poorly carried out and will need rectification
Although some welding was done to the sills in March 2022, there are signs of quite significant corrosion to both sills
Body colour boot lip spoiler is in nice condition, with no cracking or warping we could see
15-inch cross-spoke alloy wheels in average condition, with some fading to the centre caps and some corrosion and kerbing damage evident
Matched set of Nexen tyres look to be in fine condition, with good tread levels
There is notable surface corrosion to the underside of the car, with many drivetrain components appearing to be quite severely corroded

The Mechanics

2,494cc inline-six M20 engine, pushing just under 170bhp to the rear wheels
Five-speed manual Getrag transmission
Disc brakes front and rear
The engine bay is generally nice and tidy, but there is some evidence of a bottom end oil leak
The latest MOT notes corrosion to the front and rear brake discs, back plates, fuel lines and brake lines
We also noted that the differential casing appears to be quite heavily corroded

Summary

If you’re looking for a great basis for a restoration project this winter, this E30 has to be considered. The interior is really in very good condition for the age and mileage.

With some mechanical and cosmetic external refurbishment, this sought after and desirable little sports saloon would soon be a real charmer.

Notice to bidders

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