I was looking at what’s coming up at auction and came across this BMW 325i E30 Motorsport Cabriolet. I can’t remember the last time I saw a Motorsport version; they aren’t a common sight. Especially in right hand drive, they made somewhere in region of 590 of them. It turns out in 1991, the final year of E30 production like this one, there were only 50. 25 of those in Calypso Red.
Out of the 590 cars produced only 250 of them were in right hand drive, so the chances of coming across a survivor is relatively small. But here’s one that looks almost as good as new.
The Motorsport edition of the 325i came with a few nice additions to the standard offering. The full leather interior didn’t just mean the seats, it extended across the door cards, centre console, and handbrake too.
Mechanically it shares the engine and running gear as a normal 325i, but the suspension is the M-Technic sports variety. A limited slip differential could be ordered unlike on the Sport where it wasn’t available. Unfortunately, it was not fitted to this car.
A body kit is also part of the package, with this being a second generation type it has the larger plastic bumpers. Earlier cars came with metal ones, the M-Tech kit was a further option. The M-Tech 2 fitted to this car was a standard item by then.
So, it’s a rare and a good looking car. The Motorsport only coming as a Cabriolet may seem strange, but it suits the car rather well. This one with its automatic transmission might not seem fitting, but with the Cabriolet I think it’s ok. On a 325i coupe I’d pick the manual.
