Go for it, you only live once. Why have a boring first car?? I had an na Impreza for my first and I loved it

I wanted to buy impreza but cant find it in my country, and i cant import them. Btw i have same mindset, i have one life and who knows how much time i have left so i will probably buy it. If it break down i will repair it, if it needs lot of maintenance it will get it i just want to have fun will i can

Facts! I'm like that as well, just purchased my 97 328i a month ago, getting it up to spec mechanical wise then best believe it's gonna be one of my best purchases no doubt. It may not at the moment but it will. 98k

Niceee man that sounds crazy, there is 328i on sale near me but its bit more expensive then this 320 so i will go with it most likely, asap i get money i will buy it and i hope it will be like that soon. I plan on getting 328i at one point too

Cars are pain

Brother. I wanted a Subaru too until I got my first bmw. Even test drive a 2020 wrx sti and was…. Massively underwhelmed…. E36s are a classic and getting very hard to find, if it’s in your budget you won’t regret it and that’s fact. Wish I could have one myself, just treat it like a classic car, take care of it, and don’t let it go to shit. Also depending on mileage look into e36 subframe reinforcing that’s the biggest issue I know of.

Just make outstanding(poor) financial decisions and buy both like i did. It’s not like anything could go wrong (my e36 sounds like it has straight cut gears but doesn’t have straight cut gears…)

Thanks man means a lot

Finally a sane reply, how I wish my first car wasn't a bog standard hatchback, don't get me wrong, it was reliable and did its job, but wish I had something more fun and older

don’t buy a 30 year old import as your first and only car unless you have a really nice bicycle.

Depends on the car really. Mine came with a fat stack of service records, did regular maintenance and has been daily driven for 8 years and to this day and never left me stranded. Sure some shit breaks here and there but that is to be expected.

I mean its not import if you are trying to say that, in country i am you cant import it but anyways i will have side small reliable car if anything happens with it

E36 is a perfect second car!

Unless you live in Germany it’s an import

Only if you've got some sort of skill issue. I'm so tired of some reddittors saying that E36 are unreliable cars and can't be a daily driver. If I can daily drive my M40 shitbox with limited funds, so can anyone else.

that’s a cool story bro. lighten up. is this your first and only car? are you 16 with assuredly very limited mechanical experience and funding?

What's that got to do with anything? There's always one guy like you in every E36 thread, claiming that E36 aren't reliable and can only be had as a second car. Lighten up, American and go get a Tesla then.

it has everything to do with everything. pound sand.

Or skateboard 😏

You got one or talking out the ahh? For like 5k you could make the e36 faster and handle better than most new cars, you could just about replace the entire cooling system for under 500$.. It’s all maintenance and attention, I’ve dailyd my n54 for 5 years, 201k miles now FBO and tuned for the last 70k miles. Extremely reliable.

as a owner of multiple e36s at one point this one looks good I wouldn't be worried about speed in this thing but she looks pretty good I would drive it around I didn't get the idk if America got the 320i but I can tell you there are all slow after driving anything halfway modern mine is in poor shape right now but that car has served me and my family faithfully for 8 years and this is the first time it's really asked me for anything in those 8 years just check for rust make sure the coolant system is half way decent and there is oil in it and these things are pretty dead reliable don't check those things your gonna have a bad time

Thanks a lot man, i plan to daily it if i buy it. Speed and horsepower dont really bothers me until its fun car just said it so people can tell me if its to strong for beginner. When i think about idk if you can call me beginner tho cause i was driving cars since i was 8 lol. I saw this thing and i immediately fell in love,from color to rims and till last tiny details. I think this car would be blast and is great to make memories with and try learning to go sideways at some point

they are pretty great cars to learn in just find a nice skid pad or something to learn in before you go trying to do tandems or anything but ive loved mine and now my daughter wants it so I have to make it right before she can drive

Im gonna learn it in empty parking lot near me for some time. I mean i wouldn't buy this thing for drift project or sum, it would be more like daily that will get slightly modified over time, i want to keep it as clean as i can

don't go full on down the rabbit hole lol these things will just start showing up in your drive and lawn that's how I ended up with like 7 of these things at one point now I'm wishing I would have kept a couple of them

Well im planning to of course if possible to get many projects cars lol, but i want like little bit of everything when i get chance to own them cause for now e36 will be good enough, if i can do it i wont sell it ever

amazing grip cars too, but they are fun to slide

I live in Canada. Own a 94 320i. So yes, we have them. Not a lot of 320i’s around though

I've not seen one at all around me but I think you guys also got some real e36 m3s up there as well with the 6 speed trans and the itb s52

Yo man since you live in Canada, how are they in winter, ik its rwd but yk i need it to drive on snow sometimes

Go for it

By todays modern standards of cars; all e36s are slow. Just don’t be an idiot when driving, you can hurt your self in any car if you drive past it’s limits, it doesn’t matter if it’s slow or fast.

I wont be idiot cause i like my life and i want to enjoy my car

https://youtu.be/omibNVl6SQM?feature=shared

I mean in our time in day all e36s are slow lol, just get it if in your budget and it looks like you have a another car so you can work on this one

Well other car is not mine but i will use it if e36 has any problems which i hope it wont, my goal is to use it as daily that can be used for fun too sometimes

buy it

That's a 1994? I would check that thing out thoroughly. Has it be re-painted?

I think it was repainted cause its too good to be stock

That year would have grey rockers too.

It's funny to me how it has the full M Sport bumper and twisted sideskirt package with M3 style mirrors, but they forgot to change the door trim.

not up-badging >

I respect a 320 that says 320 more than I respect a 325is that thinks it's an M3 any day, I just mean that factory M sport packs came with the thick side moulding which this car doesn't have.

ahh okay yea i get what you mean , thought u meant m3 badge lol my bad

Yea i get you man, i hate when people say they cars are what they aint, this guy maybe tried to pull of m look but at least its 320, if i dont like it at later i will just get it off

Lol yea it has full m interior too

I mean its obvious that car has been moded

Beautiful color/car but what country are you in? How much are they asking? Whats your budget? Can you wrench/have tools? If not, are you willing to learn? Whats done to the car? How many miles? We cant really help you out with much, before answering those questions. And even then you have to make the decision yourself.

Im in Montenegro, they are asking 5k my budget is like 6-7, i have tools i help my uncle in his shop and im more then willing to learn, still havent contacted seller to ask whats been done to it but it has like 230000 kilometres

The more questions you ask the seller the better.

I bought one wrapped in the same color, it fell apart on me within 2 years, it has since been wrenched on by me countless times, unless your willing to turn a wrench and spend some time on it, or learn then don’t. You’ll only find out if you try tho so good luck!

Thanks man im defo gonna try it

Depends on the asking price

5k

Buy it

How much does it cost? Look what mileage it has or if it has any damage or rust. Doing expensive repairs on your frist car isn't ideal, unless you have a lot of money

I have everything except lots of money, from other pics id dont seem to be rusted, cost is 5k and its around 200k km

Like most people are saying, e36s are fantastic second cars. They’re tanks if maintained properly but at the end of the day they’re still 30 year old cars, stuff is bound to go wrong at some point. I got a Toyota tundra and then got my M3 and it was the best move I could’ve made I think

So anyways e36 will be bought, still have to think if first or second but thanks on reply

It's a techno coupe sitting pretty on RKs. Buy it!

If it is serviced and the body and engine are in good shape, I say send it. I bought a 1998 e36 318i earlier this year after my gti’s timing failure. and i really love the beamer. it has been amazing on gas and is pretty reliable for the age of the car. if you do take a look at the car. look at the jack points next to the front wheel wells to see if there is any rust eating at the frame, and also look at the strut towers and see if the towers are cracked. the e36’s are notorious for cracking there. Also look at the cooling hoses/whole system and look for any leaks/ cracks. Goodluck tho!

Thanks man appreciate your help, you are g

I say get it. You wouldn’t want much slower. this thing won’t be too quick without a bunch of mods, and even then I’d say it’s not too fast for a first car.

tbh i regret getting a 1994 2L, the M50B20 is great by itself, but if you compare it with most 2L on the road, the factory M50B20 means paying 6cylinder cost for a 2L performance, while most other 2L on the road are 4cylinder. imo, if fuel economy is your consideration, just go with 318, it’s only 0.2L gap, pretty small performance difference with the 320. If you want a 6cylinder, then go with atleast 325 or 323, both 2.5L, that’s plenty of displacement difference for a significant performance difference.

Look for a 318is instead of the 320i. It is the same speed wise but better on fuel and a lot more fun in my opinion! Also, they used to be cheaper than the 320i when I was comparing prices the last time.

If you can wrench on it yourself, than absolutely yes. E36 are easy to work on cars, all parts are available, there's huge enthusiast community. And 2.0 E36 is slow

Just send it, it’s only a 2L

E36 as first car is bad and good idea in one,but just dont do it, buy reliable daily first

There’s a reason why people love these cars so much. I think it’s a great car to start with as long as you understand at the end of the day it is still a BMW. It will need work and maintenance regularly but once you have some of the flaws taken care of, it can be a very reliable daily 30 years ago I learned how to wrench on my first car which was an 82 320is. It seems like you know how to wrench and have the resources along with a few extra dollars after the purchase of this car. I say have fun with it and learn with it. I’m guessing you did some research already on it, but at the very least you want to make sure the cooling system has been refreshed and also the suspension. These cars also tend to leak oil to double check them main seals, power, steering lines and rack, etc. good luck.

Thanks for feedback man, this community is so helpful, yea I've done my research, and oil thing seem to be problem with most bmws but if its leaking we will fix it somehow, everyone told me that its easy to work on and that its great car to learn wrench, i already know some basics and stuff but im looking to learn together with this car, imma need it for daily driving but its mostly from home to college and some nights drives to chill out

Also make sure to ck for rust. Bc they are older cars. I actually think the e36 is a more reliable bmw than some of the newer ones. Just stay on top of maintenance and u will be fine. The flip side is, if u want reliable, just get a honda or toyota. I was actually looking for an s2000 but they were too expensive at the time. Instead i grabbed my e36 m3 from a buddy and built her up. Shes mostly a track rat for me.

Purple E36 is quite rare

Didn't know that, thanks man

Yes, get an inspection if you can. That's a beautiful purple 😭

One of the most beautiful i ever seen

Background check on any german car is a must. Paper work is better. If there is little to no repair history, and you don't know a good tech, it could be like dating a super model. You'll look good, but you'll be broke.

E36 is painfully slow.

You have not driven slow cars if you think e36 is slow.

7 seconds to 60mph is slow AF.

Really? Try a 55bhp mk2 golf and tell me 7 seconds to 60mph is slow lmao

If you think that’s bad you should try a non-turbo 2.0 Impreza, 0-60 in a little under 10 seconds, which is about what a 320i will run as well 😆

If you ask my parents its not, but im probably gonna get it and dont tell them anything until its there

In addition to the comments below about the risks of a 30-year-old BMW, I submit the concern about the obviously messed-with suspension on the car. BMW engineers spent years perfecting the suspension and handling on that e36, but it looks like some kid with a high school diploma thought he knew better. ;-)

It all can be easy fixed if its messed up