FS - 1989 Macau Blue E30 325i Motorsport Convertible £2995

Unexpectedly for sale because another car I have bought requires more work than I expected in order to make it saleable and while I'd love to keep them all, I can't.  It also means that I have two projects and no useable car of my own as opposed to the 1:1 ratio, I like to try to maintain.

Anyway, this was bought about a year ago because I thought it had potential.  It was bought for me to use and to improve, not to sell on. 

The V5 is here and in my name at my home address.

MoT until June IIRC, but it'll get another 12 months before sale.

Taxed until 31/10/2011, it's one of the second batch of Motorsport convertibles from 1989 in Macau Blue with silver grey leather.  Being the '89 model, it is very well specced and  it comes with extended leather, OBC, HLWW and power roof.

It has the printout from the dealers showing the Motorsport option and has covered only 103000 miles with the service history and old MoT certificates to verify the mileage.

The car was a Category C loss in 2007.  I bought it unrepaired and have the photographs and some correspondence with the history.  It needed a bonnet, one pair of lamps, a kidney grille and a headlamp grille.  I did the necessary work.  It did not need a VIC as I bought it from the owner who bought it from the insurers.  As it never left his possession, DVLA did not require a VIC, so while it shows up on HPi as Cat C, there's no VIC marker.

Bodywork is clean and straight and it looks great  - particularly after a wash and polish. It has an M-tech one rear valance. It is significantly rust free.  There is only one minor area on the near side rear arch that could do with attention this winter  before it gets any worse .

 The scuttles, wings, sills, doors and the offside rear arch are all good.  There is a tiny bit of bubbling in the number plate panel.  The marks on the sills here are just dirt.

The interior is complete and in overall quite good conditiion.  All the Motorsport items are there. 

The centre console has a hole where some ignorant, stupid muppet put an alarm LED.  The handbrake console fitted to the car is wrong and has been rather crudely covered in leather.  However, I will provide the new owner with a spare genuine Motorsport centre console and handbrake console that I was planning to refurb and fit. 

The driver's seat, though in good condition, is the wrong colour.  It has been recoloured badly.  Again, I have kept a good replacement to one side and I'll supply that - in pieces, but with bolsters repaired and needing assembled and finished only.  The tech one wheel is in good order and the OBC works.  There is no temp sensor fitted, but again, I've squirrelled away one with a loom and I'll supply that to the new owner.

The dashboard is unfortunately shockingly poor.  It is badly cracked and damaged.  However, you've guessed it, there's a good uncracked one that comes with the car.  The glovebox torch is there as is the bootlid liner and full complete  toolbox - both covered in real leather in the correct colour  rather than the original finish leather look  vinyl.  There's a decent relatively modern, but quite good looking CD\radio and the correct period antenna for the cars with the power roof option.

The OE blue roof is in superb condition and the rear screen, though a little cloudy is good too.  Best of all, the EH roof works.  I have to say that I think this level of sophistication from a  car in 1989 is pretty spectacular and a working power hood is, in my mind a real bonus when buying one of these.

The car even looks good with the roof up.

It's on the correct 15" BBS and has good tyres all round. The spare is a 15" BBS.

Mechanically, it is very good.  It runs and drives well, the switchable sports auto box is perfect and the car is a joy to drive.

It recently had a timing belt, hoses, drive belts and water pump and at the same time it benefitted from a new viscous and new radiator - for no reason other than that I had them for it.  In the past two weeks, it's had new rear springs (OEM) and Bilstein shocks together with E46 M3 top mounts.  The diff can be a little noisy - you only notice it with the roof up and it's not at the "jet engine" stage yet, but guess what will be included with the car?

So, ideally what this car needs is somebody to continue what I had planned for it and to use it and improve it as you go along. 

The E30 convertible is, in my opinion the best value car on the classic car market on a  fun to pound spent measurement.  The Motorsports - like it or not - are that little bit different and add a bit of an investment dimension into the mix.

I do think that this verified low mileage, 8 owner car, at this price, including delivery, and with the parts supplied represents a very rare opportunity to acquire a genuine Motorsport car in overall good condition at a reasonable price. 

There will be very few Motorsports for sale at this price just now and I'd wager that those that are will have something to hide. This car is here to see and is honestly described, warts and all.  What is  certain, in my view is that there will be no Motorsports advertised for sale at this price in two years time.

This car can be used all day every day all summer without the slightest concern and improved - or not - at your leisure.

Car is in the Glasgow are and delivery to mainland GB addresses is included for Board members responding to this advert.  Part exchange for any old BMW or other interesting classic considered.