Asking Price: $Best Offer
Location: Charleston, South Carolina
Mileage: 225000
Title Status: Clean
VIN: WBAA1306KEC64476
Seller’s Description: I saw this car while taking my dog to the park. Fast forward a few months and a guy at work says a lady at work is selling her BMW. Funny enough, this was the same car. I drove back out to her house, checked out the car and struck a deal. I paid more than I should’ve, as it didn’t run but I enjoyed ‘the hunt’ as they say and the fact that I had run across the car previously. The car is very original, has the police radar detector thing (with the instructions!), working power antenna, most of the toolkit, is rust free, and is an actual plastic bumper I.S. car (had it been an M3 I would’ve probably died of shock). Anyway, I enjoyed bringing her back to life. As is, she’s a driver with faded clear coat (I’m not calling it patina) and worn leather. With a respray and seat covers, she’d be a real beauty.
Body Condition: All original, vins/glass, bumpers, wheels, spare, everything… Clear coat is bad though, I tried to capture this in the pics and plan to do a walk around video tomorrow as well. No rust, not even in the trunk. Recaro sports are rough, kind of sucks because they’re original grey leather. I attached some pics, the leather is hard though, (should someone think they could just replace the worn pieces, I very much doubt it, if I don’t sell it, I’ll probably just get another set of covers made).
Mechanical Condition: When I got the car the fuel filter was clogged and the inside of the tank looked varnished and just disgusting. So the tank was replaced then all of the following was also done. The main goal was to make it as nice a driver as possible. There is no AC though, the belt was off so I’d guess the compressor is no bueno (blower motor and heat all work though). The radio also doesn’t work, it used to turn on and make a terrible screech, now it does not, BUT its original so…
Here’s a parts list of what’s been done, as you can see OEM or OEM supplier parts were used (no uro stuff :))
Timing belt/spring/pin (Contitech), thermostat (80 C), Water Pump (Graf), Distributor cap/rotor (Bremi (OEM)), Oil pan gasket, Spark Plugs and wire set, Power Steering Reservoir (Rein), Brake Pads (Bosch), Brake rotors (Meyle), Fuel Tank/pump/filter/lines, Brake Hoses (Meyle), Brake Sensors, Shocks (KYB), Struts (KYB), Rear Shock Mounts (Rein), Front Control Arms and Lollipops (Lemforder), (Power Steering Belt (Contitech), Alternator Belt (Contitech), Coolant Hoses (Meyle/Rein), Oil Change (Mahle filter),
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VVlobzUqK8&t=7s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttxtKUDRWFw&t=2s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGWPeAqMDx0&t=1s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6nZJbleoT0&t=1s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Atul8GvHz24&t=1s
Reader Gerard F clearly knows how to list a car for sale! He did such a great job presenting it that we wish it was on our side of the country so we could buy it. Given the mileage and condition, he isn’t exactly sure what to ask. All the required service and repair work to make it a runner has been done, which couldn’t have been cheap, so it should be good to go for a long time. Throw some covers on the seats, possibly fix the clear coat and you’d have a fun driver! Be sure to contact Gerard via the form below and don’t forget to watch his walkaround videos.
List your classified here on Barn Finds!
Small bumper IS cars will always be desirable, especially when left stock and rust-free like this one. The IS models also received the upgraded “Premium” sound system and your car has the desirable map light mirror as well (a once throwaway part now selling for $130 and up on eBay). I hope whoever buys it restores the “silber” leather interior back to original condition, as silver is hard color to find, esp when combined with the sport buckets.
Good on you for rescuing it, and good luck with the sale.
This ad should be used as a guide for how to properly list a car for sale.
This is one of my all time favorite cars. This is a classic for a very good reason, it is fun to drive, not expensive if cared for, and is very elegant to look at. Mine was shortened by a very large SUV that shoved me into traffic where I was hit by even bigger truck. Car was totaled and I needed replacement quickly and could not find another near by. Almost perfect compromise between city and highway car. Great ride but very small turning circle. Do have the door locks replaced as soon as you purchase as that is one of the very few weak points. Also put cover over that unbroken dash when in the sun almost all are badly cracked. Good luck to new owner.
I agree– these cars are such a pleasure to drive. I had an ’87 sedan, and even with the lowly 2.7 “eta” engine of my 325, it remains one of my favorite cars that I’ve owned. I’ve never driven another car in which I felt so connected to the steering and chassis.
I remember how cool those projector headlights were when they came out…and still popular today.
A bit of an aside, but why does the silver intake (?) of many BMW engines yellow over time?
This one looks great. Reminds me of a ‘91 318is a friend had in high school (far and away the nicest car in the lot). His parents restricted how often he could drive it, so he quickly figured out which fuse controlled the odometer.
Shipping cosmoline the dealer or owners never cleaned off.
@Dan
The yellowing on the intake is called Cosmoline. It is a rust preventative used by BMW for years. Here is a link to an article about removing it from the intake and valve cover.
https://blog.bavauto.com/20801/how-to-clean-cosmoline-from-bmw-engines-zymol-strik/