oclvframe

From what I see on realoem they call them multifunction headrests...but I am not sure what they call the auburn color?

BTW....yes on the bolsters...they tend to be the weak link on other BMWs...I have an e46 with sport seats and the driver's side left bolster is in sad shape. That being said, the leather and construction of the comfort seats in my e61 are completely different. The leather is substantially thicker.

-r

phenryiv1

Same on my E61. The leather feels much better than any OE leather on any E30/36 that I have owned or parted out. At one point I had 14 seats NOT in vehicles. I was using them to build 4 GOOD seats, and I disassembled all of them. The seats in the E61 feel like much better leather than anything in any of those other vehicles.

phenryiv1

I don't care about the windows but the slicktop would be nice. And I'd really have to drive different versions before I said that one powerplant or another would be the best. I have heard so many amazing things about 318s with the DASC, but they are really hard ot come by. The S5X swap is so easy to do these days, but an LSX swap would be a totally different animal altogether. Maybe if I did not already have 4 cars I'd look for a clean chassis to swap into...

But having said that, clean E30 shells are getting very hard to find. I know that it is sacrilege to say this but there is some allure to just starting with an E36 M3/4/5 and supercharging that. I know that the parts for my E30 are getting tougher to find all the time, and while the E36 is heavier, the chassis has many advantages over the E30 for daily driving. How many of those would be retained in a swap are debatable.

I think that for the uniqueness and overall fun factor I'd want a DASC 318is. I still can't figure out why nobody has reverse engineered the DASC brackets...

At this stage in the market, even modifying a regular E30 is throwing away money. I look at how many clean (enough) E30s I have had in my possession and cringe at their current values. Because I just drive it, my work on the 325iC has been geared toward enjoyment, not value. I could NEVER get out of it what I have in it, so I better enjoy every mile.

KyleB

b803952

Alpine003

Yeah I agree. I had the urge to want to buy an e30 just to putz around in again and boy have they all gone up in price. I had sticker shock as the last time I was in the market was back in like 2008 timeframe.

phenryiv1

I bought my first one for $850, my second for $225 (head was pulled from the motor), and my third was $900 or $950, all bought 2008-10. I had another parts car that I got in trade for some wheels and I got the current convertible (in a sad state of affairs) in trade for the $900/50 one, though I had put about $3000 into making it a rallyX car.

The $850 & $900/50 cars were both what would now run $2500-3000 and the $225 was clean enough to have fetched ~$1000 these days. I had people fight me for the parts car shell and it was rusted and beat to hell.

KyleB

Wow, that is beautiful. It's crazy how E30 M3s can now double as a car / retirement fund.

phenryiv1

A couple developments...

First off, nice weather has hit the Mid-Atlantic so I took the opportunity to wash the car and to take some additional exterior shots:









After loooking over the car for a while i have decided that i hate the stock wheels in pictures but don't totally hate them in person. Still, the idea of stock wheels is hard for me to stomach, so I went on a bit of a hunt for some wheels. I actually put a deposit on some wheels that i love (Mille Migliw MM11 in 18x8, ET40) but they need refinishing, they are a couple hours from me, and I just don't know if the look is goignto be what I want for the E61.

I have black 17x8 TireRack TRM C4 wheels on my E36 and they also come in gunmetal, so I test-fit the TRM C4s that I have on the E61. The tires are really small (245/40/17) but even allowing for that, I still don't know if I like the wheels on the E61.









I had pretty much settled on 17s for the E61 but I was playing around on Discount Tire Direct and found some 245/40/18 tires on an unbelievable sale. I started looking around for 18" wheels on different sites and ended up finding some on ECS Tuning that I have liked for a while but I was not looking to go with 18s. The wheels are also on some crazy sale right now so I pulled the trigger on the package.

Ratings, reviews and specifications for Kumho Ecsta ASX tires

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-alzor-pa...xbUhoC3Bnw_wcB

Neither is some super-baller highbrow option but the car is a daily driver and I have plenty of other places to spend money.

phenryiv1

Almost forgot- I had bought some Koni struts for my TL last spring and I remembered that I had them and was still in my return window so I sent them back and exchanged them for a 19mm H&R 71460 rear swaybar. Since the sedan bars from the M5 are an upgrade for the Touring I am pretty sure that the 71460 will fit the E61. If not, I guess I'll have it up for sale. I really wanted the Dinan 21mm rear bar but the site where I bought the Konis would only issue store credit (fair, considering the time I had them) and they only had the H&R. I overpaid for it (as compared to the Dinan bar, which is actually a really good deal) but it was only $37 out of pocket since I had long since paid for the Konis.

Jerry1847

Just picked up an 08 E61 as well, super high miles but a manual. I love the seats! I didn't know wtf was going on when the side bolsters started moving, but ill take the warm leather hugs. I'm space grey on grey leather.

You have any go fast mods planned? Finding e61 335 tuning options limited. MHD and an intake/fmic seems to be it. Would love to find some downpipes.

The tint looks good, need to schedule that asap. Prob not going with coils ( want the clearance ) but looking at some bilsteins, sways and maybe slightly nicer wheels soon.
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