Mixed emotions.. ALL feedback welcome

[adamud]

I have been battling a personal demon of mine for quite some time and I finally feel that I need input from the people that love the ti as much as I do. I have owned my car now for 7 years. It has practically become a part of me.

I recently relocated from Kansas to Detroit for an engineering job in the automotive industry and am loving it. I now have the opportunity to purchase a newer car to help get around in all season conditions (aka AWD). My dilemma is spawning from the fact that I have been told by numerous older men that I will want my first car back some day... Turns out the ti is my first car which brings me here to this post today. I've asked basically everyone I know what they think.. All answers have just turned into me talking about not knowing what the hell I want to do.

Here is where I would like all of you to chime in at.
What do you think the chances of keeping a car for a very long period of time are? Do you think the ti would be worth keeping, I mean it handles soo well compared to the other cars I have test drove lately! If I do keep it, I probably won't drive it as often, more than likely turn into a hobby/track car (yay, money pit!). Would the ti I be a fun car to see in say 30 years??
Would keeping the same matching part number be worth it, i.e. rebuild the m44 and add a DASC?? or would a 6 pot be a better option.

Basically, I don't want to get rid of the car ever.. Not sure if I'm crazy/love sick or just plain stupid cause that is like 99% for sure not going to happen. I'm just curious as to what people who own and love the same car feel about it. I'd love to hear all sides and stories of your own.

-Adam

[geetarspaz]

i dont think i could ever give mine away. i practically sold everything i owned to buy mine in june 2011, and didn't even test drive it before buying it. just said i'm taking it! in 8 months i've put 12,000 miles on it and become more attached every day. sometimes i'll walk around and stare at it for hours at a time. i've been exhausted in repairs due to one simple mistake leading to another but i've done all the repairs and service myself so i can keep my car without having to pay for labor, and become even more attached. i wouldn't be this dedicated towards any other car whatsoever. i say keep it man. there won't be many left in the future!

[teetime4one]

Adam,
i sat in a prison cell after talking to my wife for 20 minutes on the phone one day...my car was seized and sold at auction...and she was totally out-bid.
i had pains in my chest...i was sad beyond comprehension. it was gone forever and someone else was enjoying it.
turn the pages forward 6 months and my car is for sale on craigslist. my wife grabbed a pocketful of money and bought it back for me...she was beside herself with joy. we had him home again.
my car is irreplaceable...the story of where i've been, and where he's been, is that of legend. i owe many thanks to my friends on the Org for their contributions towards repairs to warn out parts and basic maintenance. how could i ever give that up for someone else to enjoy? no chance!
stick with me...we'll both keep our cars forever...and if 6 pot motors find their way into them...so be it. value be damn...we're keeping them and could care less what they're worth!
who wants pie?

[cooljess76]

Well said Sean, well said. The 318ti is destined to be a timeless classic. It was the runt of the litter during it's entire generation. When they first came out and even still today, most people didn't/don't like them or even know they existed. However, they're just now starting to become cool. BMW took a wrong turn with the cars they're producing today. They look and feel like everything else on the road. E36's have came and went. They won't be cherished like the e30. I find comfort knowing that when that last e36 coupe, sedan or vert makes it's way into the junk yard, THE 318TI COMPACT WILL CONTINUE TO LIVE ON.

[GrandpaTuner]

Being one of the "older men" I can say this. I have let go of many a vehicle I loved for Women, Job etc...That I wish I had back....Many of them are worth some serious change. But that is alot of Shoulda-coulda-woulda....

I bought this car basically unseen...I researched and found it to be a unique style and in my opinion a sharp sportscar. I bought this expecting to be a daily driver but found it to have too much potential....The venues in which you can take these cars is limitless ( streeter-rally-track) I got lucky and found this one in clean shape not too many fingers in the pie, full service history, I love it..

It is fairly easy to modify and maintain in comparison.
I have no lein on it so it is costing me Insurance,maintenace and gas at this point..

So you have to ask yourself can I afford to keep it?
If I have a new car with a payment how much?
If I work on it myself, do I have a place to do that?
If I bought a cheaper-winter beater and put the difference into my TI how would that work out? (Even in Detriot they have one or two sunny days.)

I plan running mine on a track one day ( amatuer ) and giving mine to my grand daughter after my passing....

But having said all that.
Today is the only day we have.
Tommorrow is not promised
Yesterday is gone.

Live in the moment....and drive that son of B&^^%

Life is too short! Have fun!

[cooljess76]

I see it like this, ask yourself how much you could get for it. Unless it's super clean or has an engine swap, you'll probably never get more than 5 grand for it if sold outright or used on a trade in. If you need that 5 grand to purchase a new car, but you like the ti and want to keep it, just drive the ti until you could save up that extra 5 grand. I mean what's a couple more months and it's nice to have a second vehicle anyway. A second vehicle only costs a couple extra bucks on your insurance and if you drive it under a certain amount of miles each year, it's even cheaper. My motorcycle insurance was only 60 bucks for the whole year. Registration won't be much to maintain and if you can't afford it, you can always register it as non-op. The only other issues to consider are storage and maintenance. Will you have a place to keep it. It's probably going to be sitting, so you could expect odd things to start giving out, but it's now a second vehicle so you have all the time in the world to work on it. That being said, some people truly love the 318ti. Others just see it as a cheap car. If you love it, keep it. If you don't sell it to someone who will.

[bmorekirby]

Originally Posted by teetime4one

Adam,
i sat in a prison cell after talking to my wife for 20 minutes on the phone one day...my car was seized and sold at auction...and she was totally out-bid.
i had pains in my chest...i was sad beyond comprehension. it was gone forever and someone else was enjoying it.
turn the pages forward 6 months and my car is for sale on craigslist. my wife grabbed a pocketful of money and bought it back for me...she was beside herself with joy. we had him home again.
my car is irreplaceable...the story of where i've been, and where he's been, is that of legend. i owe many thanks to my friends on the Org for their contributions towards repairs to warn out parts and basic maintenance. how could i ever give that up for someone else to enjoy? no chance!
stick with me...we'll both keep our cars forever...and if 6 pot motors find their way into them...so be it. value be damn...we're keeping them and could care less what they're worth!
who wants pie?

glad you got your ti back! not long after i got my ti, i had problems making the payments due to me losing my job. i sold all my bikes, my mac, and 2 camera's. and as a cyclist, i loved my bikes. it was a huge sacrifice. but hey, i still have my ti! the 318ti is a keeper!

[adamud]

Thanks for all the input guys. I know that today is not the same as tomorrow and you can never completely expect what will happen next. I honestly do not plan on selling this car to help furnish another one. I love the ti too much to do that.

Sean, I am all for keeping it forever now. As a random fyi about my life, I made a promise that no matter what is happening in my life 5 years from now, I will be uprooting myself and move to Colorado. That is if I am not already out there in 5 years. So I hope in less than 5 years we will be cruising around the mountain roads together.

Jess, this is an un-respected car. I feel many people have missed out, while we have gained much. I realize that this car would not bring much for a trade-in nor a private sell. I have recorded everything that I have done to this car since I've owned it. I purchased it for 5k and am almost at 5k in terms of maintenance. How can you argue about spending 10k on a car over a 7 year span.

Grandpa T, I have every tool I need to work on the car myself. Its only been taken to the dealer for an alignment. Nothing else since I've owned it. Thankfully Detroit has had a super mild winter. I know that summer will come and I can be fully happy driving the ti around, but I just am not a huge fan of winter in my baby. Call me what ever you want! She deserves the best.

Kirby, that is quite the sacrifice. But cars are sometime an important factor in peoples lives. I admire your faithfulness to the bimmer.

Overall, it sounds like we all have quite a history with our ti's and I'm glad I'm not the only person who wants to see this car live on. I don't know what it is about it, but it has this power (not hp, well not mine) that brings me a great deal of happiness.

[tiFreak]

I'm with you, my ti would have to be a complete write-off for me to ever consider getting rid of it

[Chigga]

Keep it, storage around Detroit area isn't expensive, so space shouldn't be a problem, and like others said, your first car will always be the one you wish you had kept.

[mtlblue]

should've kept my 86 325es, that thing had low end torque ;-) but I don't miss my 95 base ti, 97 sport now. and only got to drive it 6 days last year, and not too much the year before that, but I still got it, and it's paid for.

[jca]

I haven't put all that much money into my $5k ti in the 14 months that I have had it, but I have done a bunch of maintenance work myself on it and added what I like to think are tasteful mods. For those reasons, I don't think I will ever sell it. I'd like to think that one of my sons will get the ti one day and the other son get my wife's Z3. BMW's are way too much fun to part with easily.