5 Reasons Why I Love The BMW E36

5 Reasons Why I Love The BMW E36

I do own a BMW E36 Coupe 316i since 6 years. It was my first car, not because i liked BMW’s or something like that, it was a very reasonable choice..
When I got my license i realised that i wanted a RWD car(for obvious reasons), so i searched for a cheap car with RWD.
Nearly every car with RWD was a possible choice, I dont gave a sh*t about looks or anything like that.
I live in Europe so there were no Japanese Cars that I could afford, Mercedes was never an option for me. So after a while i realised that the only car with RWD and nice handling, that I could afford was a BMW. At first i wanted to buy a E34 525i(which I did twice later on), but I realised that I could not pay the taxes and insurance for a car with neraly 200hp.
So one day i saw a E36 316i Coupe with 128tkm, which I bought..
I know the 316i with it’s “enourmous” power of 102bhp is more like a joke..but it’s still an E36..and I learned to love the E36.

And because the E36 is not one of the more loved cars from BMW I wanted to tell you why I like it so much..

It has a special character

I’ve driven quite a lot of cars, for example the E46 330Ci of a friend of mine. Yeah it is quite fast, looks good, has a nice interiour and so on.
But it doesn’t have that feeling of an E36..
Whenever I’m in a E36 my driving style goes nuts. The car just makes me want to drive fast. My friend with the E46 also expierenced that when he had a 320i Coupe as a winter beater.
It just feels different, the E46 is more like a small E39 while the E36 feels very light and easy to get it sideways. It wants to be pushed hard. Even the 316i does make quite a lot fun when its wet.
I’ve driven a lot of E36 and every time i get this feeling, and i don’t get that in my E34 525i, or the E46.

It looks stunning

I really like the looks of the E36.
Every time i park mine i must watch back. And when i come back i have a smile in my face.
It just has that nice 90’s styling. Aggressive but with a nice Flow.
You don’t need any modifications. Just the M-Package, little bit lower, nice wheels…perfect..
Also the Interiour is pretty nice for a 90’s car as well(but it has no cupholders :D)

The sixpacks sound incredible

Ever driven a 328i without the cold air intake and a nice catback, or a M3?
That sound is awsome, every tunnel or bridge you pass is a pleasure.
You just want to rev it all the time till the limiter.
The old BMW’s just sound so much better than the new ones..

It’s reliability

The six cylinder engines are so damn relaible!
I’ve you maintain them well and let them warm up they just wont die.
I owned a E34 525i with the M50 engine thats also in the E36, with 370tkm on the odometer.
I beated the hell out of that car every day, and a compression test showed it was just fine.
Ok they do have a little rust problem, and the electronics like to fail, but the Engine and the Transmission is really reliable(I know a guy who had 2 Engine failures in 2 Years on his Subaru, never heard that from a BMW that was well cared for)

It’s practical

Yeah, even if it’s a Coupe it’s very practical.
It fit’s 5 people, it has a nice boot.
So your every day transportation is no problem.
It even has enough space to have fun on the back seats..

I could possible write a lot more about the E36 but i think thats the most important things, and i don’t understand why it is not that much loved like the E46 or E30.