1987 BMW 325IS

Started by Jims5543, January 14, 2016, 06:49:27 AM

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Jims5543

I changed the thread title, maybe it will change?  I will know when I hit submit.

After getting a 2002 bug, some events unfolded where my son was looking for new seats, I found a 1987 BMW with the seats he wanted in good shape. So instead of spending 1K on front seats, we spent $1,400 for an entire car.

Turns out, after a carfax the car is indeed a 325is which is a pretty rare car and is worth saving. So we are in the process of obtaining parts to restore it and repair it. The plan is to turn it into a time capsule and keep it as bone stock as possible.



Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride! -Hunter S. Thompson

Jims5543

Came really close to buying this 2002, I looked it over really good and decided it was a $5,000 car, it was going to need some minor rust mitigation, new headliner and if I wanted concourse, a new dash since the dash was cracked.  It also needed some mechanical TLC but it seemed pretty sound. It may have been worth more, but since you cannot test drive it I felt comfortable at 5K and nothing more.  The bidding soared up to 7K I never even attempted to bid.






We saw this abortion for sale on the side of the road on our way to the Auction. We stopped on the way back, horrible paint job, horrific rims, and an outlandish asking price of $16K.



So no new car, but I did mess with Mrs5543 by texting her a pic of the 2002 telling her it was our new car. She said a 2002 is acceptable.  Oh no!! Green light for a 2002.    ;D


The shopping has begun.
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride! -Hunter S. Thompson

Jims5543

Seems my 2002 search took a detour.

1987 325is... or is it.

My son Mike needed new seats for his 318. After searching and searching he came up with 3 options.

1. buy some beat to shit seats for 400-500 and get them re-upholstered.

2. buy some re-upholstered seats good to go for $1000

3. Buy a car with a good interior and swap the seats.


Found 2 cars, one 3 hours away, another 20 minutes away, the one 20 minutes away claims it is a 325is, it has the seats and other styling ques to indicate this is true.

The black leather seats are in perfect condition, car cost $1400.

So we limped it home with a bad drive shaft and now Mike is swapping over the seats.

Now the dig decision, I want to run the vin and find out if it is a true 325is, if it is we are going to restore it back to OEM condition, yes we stole the seats, but we will invest in a new set if this is a true 325is.

If it is not, we are going to do some quick fixing and prettying up and sell it for a little profit.

Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride! -Hunter S. Thompson

Jims5543

My son swapped the seats this past weekend. I ran the vin last night and it turns out that this indeed a 325is which is pretty rare. So it is worth restoring.

We will begin shopping for parts this weekend.
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride! -Hunter S. Thompson

Mudhen

Quote from: Jims5543 on January 25, 2016, 06:28:01 AM
My son swapped the seats this past weekend. I ran the vin last night and it turns out that this indeed a 325is which is pretty rare. So it is worth restoring.

We will begin shopping for parts this weekend.

What makes it different than other 325s?

Looks like a fun project, though!   4.gif

Jims5543

Quote from: Mudhen on January 25, 2016, 07:16:41 AM
Quote from: Jims5543 on January 25, 2016, 06:28:01 AM
My son swapped the seats this past weekend. I ran the vin last night and it turns out that this indeed a 325is which is pretty rare. So it is worth restoring.

We will begin shopping for parts this weekend.

What makes it different than other 325s?

Looks like a fun project, though!   4.gif

Basic every day 325 models were the 325i, very common and pretty basic.

The 325is was a sport model that came with sport seats, tighter suspension some styling ques inside and out.

Good read here if you want to waste some time.  After I read this I have toyed with finding a 1.8 liter engine and transmission proper for my personal car and maybe one day swapping them back in to make it a real 318is again then finding a 325i to swap the fun stuff over to.

http://www.bimmer-mag.com/issues/113/articles/the-is-mystique#.VqaGgJo4FhE
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride! -Hunter S. Thompson

jedduh01

hahahah

Things BEE EM DOUBLEYOU Owners actually do!

"The BMW was tuned up and given some minor trim repainting. The final piece of the puzzle was locating the original window sticker.

"Most people throw them away," says O'Rourke. "However, I took a chance and contacted the original owner in Texas directly to see if he still had it. Turns out he did, and he mailed it to me."


Mom had a 87' 535IS - that was a fun sedan - I Was 16-18yrs old - i couldn't wait to drive it = Oh wait - That got a big NO from DAD!!! until Prom = Saw 136 on the speedo and she cut out started breaking up = limped it home- parked it... Uh ohh!..  ECU Didnt like it.. 800$ later - Fixed  Never mentioned another thing.

Had a Sport button tho that actually worked for the Automatic - Takes out of Overdrive and bumps up more pep... That was a fun sedan and not an M.

Respect for the IS's

Jims5543

jedduh01, cool story, the 535is was a super cool car. I was actually lookign for one for a while. I decided to stick with 3 series cars. Except if I find the right 1988 M5, I will be all over it. It is the only M5 I will own.


Well, not what I was looking for but I stumbled upon a 5 speed transmission and a rear end out of a E30 M3. I put a deposit on them, I think they may come in handy if I decide to return my 318is back to a 1.8 liter. Of course my 1.8 liter will probably be a 2.0 and worked over very nicely. ;D

This car shit... I need a sponsor to help me stop with this addiction, it is making a crack addiction look like a craving for something salty.
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride! -Hunter S. Thompson

jeff10049

Cool car I always liked the style. Is the paint super faded or did somebody spray some kind of flat black on it? Will you repaint it?

Jeff

Jims5543

It is supposed to be Red, it has been painted twice, under that black is some hideous Orange color. I will get some pics, the black is rattle can paint that is chalkboard, yes, you can write on the car with chalk.

We are planning on doing a lot of the sanding and prepping the car ourselves so we can save some money on the paint job which will be the stock color again.

I stumbled across a 1988 M5, the price was right, so right I think it was a scam.  Too bad they are getting to be out of reach price wise. I should have purchased back in 2012 when I had a line on 2 different cars and chickened out.
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride! -Hunter S. Thompson

Mudhen

Quote from: Jims5543 on February 01, 2016, 05:30:58 AM
It is supposed to be Red, it has been painted twice, under that black is some hideous Orange color. I will get some pics, the black is rattle can paint that is chalkboard, yes, you can write on the car with chalk.

:D