BMW E30 325 v Volvo 480 v Saab 900

[Grrrmachine]

I'm in the habit of driving old cars as daily drivers, because I don't need the car for work; just the trip to the shop and a weekend blat to visit friends in other towns. That, and the fact that I love working on the cars, means that they're usually the cheap end of classics. My current shed, a BMW E30 2.0, has just been given a pretty lengthy failure sheet from the MOT guy, so it's time to part with it and get a new runner/project. The list of suspects are:

BMW E30 325 Touring
Volvo 480 1.7 Turbo
Saab 900 (not sure which engine yet)

What's your choice, out of those three? PLEASE DON'T SUGGEST A FOURTH OPTION; it was hard enough limiting it to those three as it is.

[Doofus]

BMW for carrying stuff about
Saab (T16) for driving something competent and cool(ish)
Volvo for driving one of the world's ugliest cars

Edited by Doofus on Wednesday 29th September 18:16

[williamp]

Ignore the Volvo. At the time, Autocar asked why did the Brits and Dutch keep buying this car??

My choice would be the Saab. Back in the late 90s I chose a BMW over a 900, but now I could go the other way

[BMWChris]

325s are much faster than 320s (I've owned both), if not quite as smooth. I enjoyed it but a lot of people seem to struggle becuase they can be a bit tail happy and have slow steering. I sold mine to a motoring journalist form a top glossy magazine who wrote a few features about it and then crashed it before he had finished the series. Mind you, as he set off he did ask if the headlight switch was the choke so maybe I should have been prepared. tt.

900s are fun in a slightly weird way and mark you out as eccentric.

I don't remember the Volvo being highly thought of, even when new. And look stupid.

I'd probably go 900 but that is becuase I've owned 2 E30s.

[Grrrmachine]

Part of the appeal for me of the Volvo 480 is that it's such an odd vehicle; I don't mind the ugliness of it at all. And on paper it seems to be more sprightly than this old bus that I'm driving now (200+ kg lighter). The Saab, while looking cool, seems to be just as slow as the 320 I'm driving, unless I get the Turbo versions, while the 325 BMW has the most grunt of the lot but you have to pay for it at the pump.

I'm not convinced the Saab is the best, just because of the looks; it's certainly the most expensive of the three.

Edited by Grrrmachine on Wednesday 29th September 18:52

[Oelholm]

The SAAB is a classic in the making, while the BMW is a more competent driving machine - I would choose the Volvo

Just love the quirkiness... Not sure how nice it is to work on, however!

[Finlandese]

I understand the appeal of the quirky Volvo, but trust me the electrics of that car are utterly hopeless. If you want a rare Volvo from the eighties, import a 780. I had one, and I loved it.

-Jani

[soxboy]

Finlandese said:

If you want a rare Volvo from the eighties, import a 240 Turbo

EFA

[Royster]

I'd go for the Saab in T16s guise, depending on how much you want to spend - £1000 should get you a decent one. Not that quick off the line (about the same as the beemer), but proper mid-range shove for overtaking, bigger boot than the E30 touring and they make a lovely burbling noise (though not as nice as the straight six howl of the M20)

I'd say the Saabs rust less than the other two you've mentioned, too.

Oh, and they handle too, for a FWD.

I've had my 900 for years and would never sell it.

This one seems good;

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/SAAB-900-FULL-PRESSURE-TURBO...

Edited by Royster on Thursday 30th September 11:49

[MarkwG]

+1 for stay off the 480, unless you need something to keep goldfish in...spent a fortune on trying to keep one dry internally, never managed it.

[Grrrmachine]

All these motors have their faults: with Volvos it's the electrics, with the BMW it's the head (not the gasket), and with the Saabs they seem to blow their turbos. Finding a decent 900 turbo for a grand is looking highly unlikely (I'm looking at the pre-1993 ones). And ALL of them suffer from rust.

I'm now being drawn towards a Saab; it's just a case of finding one for reasonable money that's not an utter basket-case. Then again, it should keep its value, unlike the Volvo.

Decisions, decisions...

[Baby Huey]

I like all of your options, the Volvo may not be a great car but you have to love something so different. The 480 was built by DAF, and won't be as well made as proper Volvos of the same era.

I believe the 480 can be chipped to about 170bhp fairly easily.

[Nath88n]

I know you said not to but how about a Mercedes 190E 2.6?

[Grrrmachine]

The reason I said not to is that I've already owned a large number of cars, including Mercs (both W124 and W123.) The three I've mentioned were selected partially on the basis of "if I don't buy one now, when will I ever?" especially since the Volvo 480 is not considered a classic and therefore few good examples are likely to survive.

[pacoryan]

900 T16 anyday - I sold mine at 163k and then bought it back and ran it to 190k before selling it for the same money.

£300 of exhaust, Volvo intercooler and battery cables plus judicious use of a screwdriver on the APC unit and I had an easy 217 bhp, fantastic mid range boost and a great noise. By far the most practical for carrying stuff, and the handling will really surprise you (in a good way) once you get used to the upright driving position.

480 is small, leaky and the electrics are marginal, the Beemer is fun being rwd but rusty and prone to wear out. 900's go on on for ever, especially if you can swing a spanner, some of the last ones did rust a bit but there wasn't a spot on my 1990 one.

[Cecil]

The Saab 900 T16 is the best of the three IMHO. As long as you get a straight one, pay attention to rust around the transmission tunnels and inner wings in particular, also check for rust around screens. Buyers guide here http://www.saabscene.com/pdf/C900_Buyers_Guide_200... loads of info here http://www.saabscene.com/forum/index.php?s=d202f4d...

My misses wrote our one off in a very nasty accident and walked away without a scratch, it takes an awful lot to write one off.

Good luck with your purchase

[aeropilot]

If you can get a reasonable turbo version, definately the Saab 900. A T16S althoiugh the best one, will likely be a ropey one at that price, a nice late T8 could be on though...?

I'd have the BMW over a non-turbo 900 though.

Weak point on the Saab's isn't usually the turbos either, it's the gearbox..... and cosmetically, yes they can rust, and for that money the headlining will have undoubtably sagged at the rear as well.

[Grrrmachine]

That sums it up for me, aero. If I can get an absolutely MINT Volvo, I'll grab it just for the experience with no aims at keeping it. But if a Turbo 900 shows up, I'll spend my cash on that and get the bodywork tip-top for selling on (the benefit of Poland is the high-quality-but-cheap body shops here). But if neither of those two shows up, I'll grab a clean 325 touring and look after it.

[Royster]

I still think you can get a decent T16s for £1000, if you shop around, and I still think they rust less than the other two options. The mid to late 80s ones seem the most resilient.

Turbo's should last at least 150k, same for headgaskets and timing chains. Gearboxes are the weakest-point, but should last pretty well if not abused (flooring it in 1st, wheelspin etc). Mines coming-up to 200k on the original box and it had it's first clutch replacement at 190k.

Have a look at my profile; a lot of the costs are for upgrades/preventative work rather than maintenance.

Edited by Royster on Tuesday 5th October 09:30

[alfettagtv2000]

Having owned several old 900's, I love the cars but they're not quite bulletproof - they'll never leave you stranded but often have niggly faults. Most cheap turbos have the usual rusty door bottoms, suspension mounts and the gearboxes are often howling away.....

You really do have to baby the transmissions in the turbos (to last more than 100K or so), which frankly in a 'performance' car is a bore and the shift quality isn't the greatest either. Forget 0-60, if you give it some beans mid-range a T16S is pretty quick, probably quicker than a 325i.

Edited by alfettagtv2000 on Friday 15th October 01:44