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Posted by: RoadGlue Jan 14 2013, 03:32 PM

Some of you may have caught wind from a previous post in which I was trying to decide whether or not to keep my 914s or sell one or both to fund the purchase of another car. Well I ended up trading in blue as a down-payment for the purchase of car for my friend, and then got my friend's '96 BMW 318ti. Mods include a Dinan stage 1 exhaust, chip and suspension upgrade. They're supposed to be the #1 U.S. BMW tuners. Otherwise it's stock and extremely clean. It has some miles, but it's been impeccably taken care of and has all of the service history. With the mods, it's about 150 hp (not a rocket ship, but that's what the motorcycle is for) and it weighs in at 2,600 lbs. Not bad for a mid-90s front-engine, rear-wheel drive hatch back.

Pretty stoked. It's by far the newest car I've ever owned. I think I had a 90's pickup for a few months (I've owned a lot of cars...). Heat, air, leather, sticky tires, lots of cool options. Makes a boy feel spoiled!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pixelrandy/sets/72157632519686368/with/8379884622/



Really glad I kept the Yellow 914 too! So my engine build continues... it's going to be a number of months, but hopefully it'll be back on the road by or during summer.

Thanks everyone for your advice and help, and I'm glad to still be part of this awesome community.

Randy

Posted by: biosurfer1 Jan 14 2013, 03:35 PM

I looked at the ti's when I was buying a commuter car. Good gas mileage for a BMW and not many complaints. Keep up on the maintenance and it should keep you happy. Good choice!

Posted by: billh1963 Jan 14 2013, 03:42 PM

So...did you delete your thread documenting your earlier indecision?

Posted by: RoadGlue Jan 14 2013, 03:48 PM

I did... There was a lot of personal stuff going on, and it felt more like baggage leaving that thread up. Just want to move forward. Upward and onwards.

Posted by: RoadGlue Jan 14 2013, 03:50 PM

Thanks!

31 freeway. The trip computer was showing 24 mpg yesterday while I lead-footed us back from Pt Reyes Station to Santa Rosa via Hwy 1. Just as good as the wife's 2002 Sentra. Happy happy.

Posted by: Tom_T Jan 14 2013, 04:19 PM

32-35 freeway in my 85 325e & 42 on the flat with no AC & cruisin' at 65-70 - once I had to eek it to a gas station in the desert on I-10 & got 51 while really super-miling it!

That eta I-6 engine isn't the most powerful BMW inline 6 out there, but the gas mileage rocks, & it's power-to-weight ratio is about the same as my 73 914-2.0 + sway-bars F & R, 5-spd, Recaro seats, etc. in the 85 2DR Coupe version (essentially the same as the 325ES for 86).

Posted by: Krieger Jan 14 2013, 05:38 PM

Yea Randy!

Posted by: jeeperjohn56 Jan 14 2013, 06:19 PM

Clean looking car Randy,might be a little more comfy. Thanks for the many great road trips and keep in touch. John

Posted by: Cap'n Krusty Jan 14 2013, 06:26 PM

Pretty nice cars, if you're into BMWs. One word of caution. Use it regularly for trips of some distance. That engine doesn't do well as an around town grocery getter. They have carbon problems, leading to a no start condition. It'll act like it has a broken timing belt. I've seen it several times, and it's NOT cheap to resolve. As with nearly all chip tuning, they mess with the timing map, so there can be issues with too much advance at times when it could be harmful.

The Cap'n

Posted by: RoadGlue Jan 14 2013, 06:54 PM

Thanks Cap'n. It's been running the tune/chip for a 100k. I did mention this car has a 185k on it, right? It's like new too. Amazing. Always passes smog, has always been serviced correctly.

Also has the M44 motor, which has a timing chain, not belt...

It's a CARB legal map (sticker and all), and the Dinan guys are supposed to be "the shizzle." I expect I'll have to do motor work at some point, but hopefully not for at least 60k. I drive total, between three vehicles, around 8k a year. Shouldn't be a problem for sometime.

It's my commute car, but my commute is 7 minutes, 10 with lights. The poor 914 never had time to even warm up.

Posted by: RoadGlue Jan 14 2013, 06:55 PM

Thanks John!

Posted by: kg6dxn Jan 14 2013, 07:03 PM

Posted by: Krieger Jan 14 2013, 09:53 PM

First Redwood AX is March 9...

Posted by: jbyron Jan 15 2013, 08:51 AM

Randy, keep it maintained and you should have no trouble. I've been driving bmw's the last dozen years, and been very pleased. I just rolled 200k on my '99 540 last month, and it still runs like a champ.

And the Dinan guys really are good. Their work is almost like OEM.

Posted by: Gint Jan 15 2013, 10:24 PM

That'll be fun! Looks good.

Posted by: strawman Jan 16 2013, 02:21 AM

Nice choice on the "compact." I've got a '97 328i auto (115k) and a '96 318ti manual (185k). I like the solid feel of the 328i for longer trips, but my bone stock ti with a sloppy worn-out suspension is funner in the twisties. Check out 318ti.org for info. The ti is a great platform for a six swap, since everything literally bolts in ('cept for the aft-header exhaust) if you ever get the urge for more power. But I actually like the free-revving M44 -- once I fixed all the oil leaks. As with every BMW, you need to replace the cooling system every 50k miles or so -- especially the plastic pipes on the M44.