e30 Convertible price rises???

I've seen a couple of e30 convertibles advertised recently (in the classic dealers I hasten to add) at what I think, very strong prices. It got me thinking.....Are e30 Convertibles REALLY rising in price this much??

The following 2 cars are in the current months editions of classic magazines. What do you think?

In Classic & Sportscar, WLN Automotive have a Calypso red 320i Manual convertible, 91 'J', 53k FSH, power hood  and black leather all for £5750. 01253-304487

AND

In Classic Cars the well known Bocking Garage in W. Yorkshire has a Cirrus Blue 89 'F' 325i convertible, 47k from new, Blue hood, apparently stunning for an amazing £7750!!!. Not stated is if its a manual or auto. contact 01535-642085

I'd be REALLY interested to know what these are really like in the steel, so to speak, considering I paid only £2900 last year, for my 89 auto which I think is now nigh on mint and very original (ok it has 102k up but does that drop the price by 5 grand???). Can anyone in that area maybe pop along to have a look and let us know?

Regards

Trevor

Edited by whitey

My mate is opting out of his company car & I've persuaded him to go for an E30 325 auto conv instead of a wobbly Saab 900.

We have WLN sourcing him one for £6500 or less with similar miles.  He can afford to go for the best as a Saab (or tired E36 conv) would be more than double that.

"Mint" is a relative term. What's mint to one person is "spares or repair" to another. £2900 sounds a bargain which ever way you look at it & 102k is nothing.

There is a similar situation with Six series. You can get a ropey money pit for £3k, a mint one for £11k from Munich Legends or an outwardly good one for £6k which may go either way.

I took the line of least resistance & went to ML who still spent £3k on my 64k mile example bringing it up to scratch.

You pays your money . . .

At least bringing an E30 up to scratch is relatively affordable - wings aren't £520 each + fitting !!!

Hang onto yours & look after it - it could be money in the bank!

 Don't get excited boys! the sun is out (?) so ASKING prices are higher . Nice unmolested cars will always fetch a premium and as most e30 cabs have been 'co*ncilled' to death , nice ones are thin on the ground. A nice e30 M3 cab can be bought for less than 8 bags so i'd imagine you wouldn't want to hold your breath waiting for a victim on a 325 at the same price !.

I hear the arguments about an M3 for the same price but I don't think it's a straight comparison.

For a start, LHD is going to rule the M3 out for the majority and a rorty 4 cylinder appeals to a different market than a silky 6. Throw an auto box into the equation & you can see they're chalk & cheese.

The fact is, if you want a 4 seat convertible with a bit of class for under £10k there's not a lot of choice.  Nearly £8k is steep mind as WLN think £6.5k sufficient for a mintish example.

I agree an M3 would be more collectable but as an everyday car I would say the 325 is more useable.

All (non-collectable) cars depreciate - my own '98 Audi A6 2.4 lost £2.5k a year! The point of the 325 is that depreciation would be neglible. That was the attraction over a Saab etc.

WLN said £6250 give or take. Motorsports would be £1.5k - £2k more, an Alpina higher again. That's if you could find one.

For £6500 a "sensible" option would be a Ford Focus. Let's not go there!

As for looking at the pricey 325, my mate lives in Windsor hence the WLN scenario.  We'll see.

There were 250 Motorsports in Macau blue or Sebring grey.

Other than an M-tec body kit & "bubble" leather there wasn't much between them & a std 325. Power roof & an lsd options were standard fit too.

They fetch very strong money over standard which I'm not entirely convinced is justified. IMHO M3's are too cheap but then so are 6-series!

My own dearly beloved 635 is a Motorsport edition. Apart from M'sport only Misano Red all the other "extras" such as lsd, M-tec wheel etc were available as options.  There doesn't seem to be any price premium for them.

Thanks.  

I think it's the colour that makes it so eye catching.

all this talk makes me wonder what my 325i convertible is actually worth as im considering selling it.

 

1988 in diamond black - genuine 55k miles with fsh (95% of which is bmw main dealers)

totally unmolested (except for a set of genuine alpina rims)

heated black leather sports seats

good hood (new rear window being fitted in next week or so)

its a manual.

 

i took it to an e30zone meet and everyone said how quiet the engine is. 

It drives like a new car.

No rust

Paint is good but has a few small scratches in the lacquer - nothing deep or anything tho

Leather is really good, no rips or tears

The alpina rims wud not be going with the car, itd be on a nice set of 15" bbs x-spokes instead.

 

Ive seen sh***** with 150k on the clock up for £3500, which is what made me wonder what mine is worth with the condition and the mileage etc.

 

Theres an interesting story behind the car, it was owned from new by a uk business man who had a business here in uk and another in spain.
He took the car out to spain to use there and regd it out there etc (proper uk car tho) but used to bring it back for servicing to the uk !!!! Hence the fact the mileage is so low.
Ive bought it now and for a car of its age its amazing.
HOWEVER im still a kid at heart, and i wanted one i cud modify a touch - nothing chav, just lowered, zone chip, exhaust etc - but this one is simply too good and too original to do that too.
Apart from myself its only had one owner all its life.

Edited by chaos

First of all I've seen the other post and 2250 is not too high. That is "quick sale required" money.........if advertised in the right place. Try putting it in TOTAL BMW magazine. I believe it's free even with a photo and people looking for one are more likely to look there. Also the classic mags. Theres a couple of mags out there that are purely for selling and it's free to advertise there also.

Unfortunately, yours being the 2litre and an auto may make it more difficult to sell. People really go more for the 2.5's especially in manual as they have a lot more BHP for not a lot more fuel outlay.

Cheers

Trevor