want to buy a 3 series

[paul]

Hi guys, I am new to the forum, and am looking to buy a bmw 3 series. Besides the M3, which is the best or one of the better 3 series models in terms of suspension, power, and modifcation possibilities? I would use it as a street car, but also autocross it about every month. Hope you guys can help me out with some suggestions (model, year, options, etc.) on which model to buy. Thanks, paul.

[winfred]

i am partial to the e30 325i/is, easy to work on fun to drive lots of mods avalible and hard to kill. the e36 can be ok but it has some issues if it's not seen lots of care, it's multi link rear suspension sucks some of the fun out of corners by sticking a little too well, it's not as fun as a e30 to toss around. i work on bmws for a living so i've seen most of the annoying stuff. heres my 90 325is 5 speed
http://members.cox.net/kitlou/rf%20e30
http://members.cox.net/kitlou/rr%20e30
http://members.cox.net/kitlou/m20motor
http://members.cox.net/wdixon27/firex
http://members.cox.net/wdixon27/gauges
http://members.cox.net/wdixon27/325is%20tool%20kit

[94is]

I have a '94 325is and it is a great car to drive. Alot of fun to autox and way too many modification possibilities. I would say that this car is very easy to work on. A friend of mine and myself spent quite a bit of time over the winter doing a complete conversion on the car. Very straight forward and not too scary, gotta love OBDI :p The main issue for the M50 is the water pump and plastic impellar issue. Doesn't take much to swap one out, although most I've seen have already been changed.