I walked away from a 1986 E30 325e today. I won't say what the owner wanted.
It's not running very well but there are no bad engine sounds (even with a stethescope). The car needs exhaust work, a steering rack (both boots shot, noticeable steering play), brakes, an oil leak fixed, valves adjusted (you could *hear* that they weren't happy), a window regulator, and assorted minor stuff, some of which needs to be fixed and some of which is fairly inconsequential. The owner does not know whether the timing belt and water pump are due (which means they are, to me).
186,000 miles.On the up side, the car came from California a couple of years ago and has *no* rust, good tires and glass, and a fairly new clutch. It seems otherwise fairly tight.
I can probably get a window regulator and steering rack for around $150. The oil leak is probably the half-moon seals and/or the valve cover gasket (which would need to be changed to adjust the valves anyway). Brake parts are probably in the $100 range but I've no clue what exhaust parts cost. There were no obvious vacuum leaks but the engine lopes when started cold and doesn't want to idle down when warm. Valve adjustments, cap, rotor, wires, and plugs will probably go a long way toward making it run right but I'm not certain they will fix all the driveability problems.
Kelly Blue Book value for Good condition (including some stuff the car doesn't have, like ABS) is $1360. Fair condition is valued at $1030. The good body condition makes the car really tempting, but...
What's actually a reasonable price for this car?
JRE