The E30’s cabin reminds us that luxury used to be engineered in rather than bolted on, so younger drivers may find the fixtures and fittings in this top-of-the-range 325i a trifle Spartan – but look at how they’ve survived the passing of 37 years and tell us that touch-screens and plastic veneer and chrome are a better solution.
You might also think the front seats, seats that are, you’ll recall, bolted into BMW’s fastest 3 Series bar the hyper-exotic M3, are a little flat and uninspiring. And yet, the side bolsters hold you firmly and we suspect you’d do nothing but praise their comfort and support after a ten-hour stint traversing Europe.
They, like just about everything else in there, have weathered the vicissitudes of four decades of use with impressive aplomb and show nothing more than the merest hint of softening to the outer bolster of the driver’s seat.
As for the rear seats, if we were to tell you they were only a handful of years old we think you’d believe us. The houndstooth fabric and black vinyl is all in an astonishingly good condition, including that used on the door cards.
While we are on the subject, the door cards feature manual window winders. Again, it’s hard to imagine a premium saloon leaving the factory with them now but at the time electric jobbies were still the preserve of far fancier cars - unless you were prepared to stump up for them from the options list.
Also, for our purposes manual windows and front seats mean there’s less to break and reduced weight, twin attributes that are the Holy Grail of running an older car as a daily driver.
And yes, you could run this as your daily driver – and if you can, you should.
The rest, the carpets and the headlining and the dashboard, are all excellent with no scuffs, rips, or other damage.
There are some nice period touches including the white BMW torch, a period Cobra alarm (untested), a StopLock steering wheel lock, a BMW umbrella, and an analogue sat-nav by way of an A-Z of London.
The boot still contains the BMW tool kit in its case in the boot lid. There’s also a full-size spare alloy wheel and lifting that out shows nothing but solid metal underneath. There is also what looks like a new Bosch battery as well as the factory wheel brace, jack, and wheel chock.
However, like the exterior, there is a little work to do: The gearknob has been taped in place; the cigar lighter has yellowed and the ashtray is rusty; the gearlever gaiter is ripped; and the driver’s overmat is wrinkled.
The seller also tells us that the clock has stopped working and some of the warning lights come on and off at random.
Oh, and the factory headunit has gone AWOL but y’all know where you could find a replacement, don’t you?
