strictly eta

What’s the history on the car?

Starting out as a base model, US-spec Arctic Blue 1986 325 with 2.7 liter eta engine and aluminum bumpers, it was delivered to East Bay BMW in Pleasanton, California in November 1985 and lived a mostly normal life in the San Francisco Bay Area with its first two owners until I acquired it in 1999.

The stock appearance was soon upgraded with a 325is front spoiler, Racing Dynamics side skirts and rear apron, and TSW Hockenheim R wheels. In late 2002 it went through a full piece-by-piece engine conversion to what is essentially a 2.8 liter M20 325i motor.

E30 M3 suspension and brakes were installed in 2005 and the wheels were replaced with BMW Style 5 16×7.5″ or Racing Dynamics RGQ 17×8.0″ wheels.

The Racing Dynamics aero kit was replaced with original ECE bumpers and M-Technic I aero kit. Projector ECE headlights were sourced new from Germany, while the original 156 Pearl Beige Leatherette interior was replaced with a 292 Silver Leather interior with sport seats in 2008.

Over the course of 35 years, over 80% of the original parts have been replaced due to age, wear and tear, or upgrade modifications. It currently has over 270,000 miles.

What happened to the old website?

It aged very well until it didn’t, and after 14 years without a single update I figured it was time for a change. Even the Mercedes G-Wagen had to finally modernize. But I wouldn’t consider this site new. And definitely not improved.

What happened to the technical articles?

Everything that could be done to the BMW E30 has been done by now and has been well-documented on YouTube and many of the E30 forums with information that is significantly updated and with slang that isn’t from the early 2000s. Hella tight, right? But a few of the key technical articles remain and have been updated.

What happened to the magazine articles?

Nobody reads magazines anymore.

Are you going to update this site/blog regularly?

I promise to update this site as often as Mercedes updates the G-Wagen.