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      04-19-2011, 11:24 AM   #82
JasonCSU
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Drives: '08 135i, '88 325is
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Denver, CO

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1988 BMW 325is  [0.00]
2008 BMW 135i  [0.00]
Quote:
Originally Posted by ENINTY View Post
This is the second post romancing the beloved 4-cylinder of the E30. Being a person who actually was of age during the rise of the E30 (and owned a '89 325i for 18 years), your admiration is highly unfounded. When the E21 came to America, it was only offered as a four cylinder and the car was slow and unreliable once the catalytic version debuted in 1980. It was so bad that BMW finally offered the E30 with an I6 all of 121 HP. The famous ETA M20. Not until BMW refitted the ETA with a decent cylinder head an created the 168HP M20 motor in the 325i was an E30 any good. BMW's only other 4-cylinder was the E30 M3, which had problems of its own. In '91 came the modern-engined E30 318 as a last gasp before the E36 debuted. I have a version of this motor in my Wife's Z3 1.9 L, and it in no way is anywhere as nice an engine as any BMW I6.

It will be soon that the only naturally aspriated I6 BMW vehicle sold as new will be the soon-to-be released BMW K1600 MOTORCYCLE! Pitty.
Well, I guess I didn't realize that the 4-cylinder engines in the E30's were that anemic. I've never driven one myself, only heard or read about them. The point I was really trying to make is that there is less of a power difference between a modern turbo I4 vs. an NA I6, compared to NA I4 vs. NA I6 of yore. Yes, there will be differences in sound and how the power is delivered, but that is to be expected. I do like the idea someone mentioned of working further to reduce weight, and possibly using smaller inline sixes.
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