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Tag: 318ti

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1999 BMW 318ti M Sport

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Almost 14 years after the re-introduction of the MINI brand in the US, BMW seems to have made a rather shrewd move in keeping this marque in their fold. It seems a distant memory, then, when BMW tried its hand at a small hatchback in the form of a shortened E36 3 series. The Compact, as it became known, would be the entry point for those seeking that BMW badge in the 1990s. The US market would only receive the 318ti, powered by the 1.9 liter inline-4 that also found a home in such cars as the 318i sedan and Z3 roadster. This 318ti for sale in Missouri is in fantastic shape, equipped with a 5-speed manual and the M Sport package and looks rather sharp in Alpine White.

Click for details: 1999 BMW 318ti M Sport on eBay

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Tuner Tuesday: 1995 BMW 318ti Club Sport Supercharged

What’s the perfect commuter car? Well, that varies by your definition of commuter, how far you need to drive and how much traffic you encounter, and what your goal is – do you want high mileage, or perhaps you want extreme comfort and isolation. But I’d like to think that a fair amount of our readership would love to have a dual purpose car. It would be something that wouldn’t be a collector-status car, but yet one that was unique and not often seen. It would combine comfort and affordability. While some would opt for automatics, I’m sure a larger percentage would choose to row-their-own boat. Fuel mileage, while gas is cheap now, would probably still be a consideration, as would maintenance. And finally, when the traffic cleared and there was a empty bit of road, most of us like to squeeze the pedal down that bit further and be rewarded by and entertaining push in the back. That’s a difficult grouping of characteristics to achieve in one package, but I’d like to suggest that this 318ti might just be the car.

The Club Sport was the answer to the question that effectively no one was asking in 1995; depending on the source, BMW sold a reported 200-300 of them in 1995 only. What the option 9530 got you was a 318ti hatchback that had been breathed upon by BMW Individual. Added were 16″ sport wheels, M3 front bumper, rocker trim and mirrors and a special rear bumper. But it was more than an appearance package, because it also received a M-tuned suspension, special steering wheel and shift knob and uniquely trimmed Millpoint M-cloth sport seats. The seller of this car has brought the performance up to M levels, though, with the addition of a PSS9 coilover suspension, double spoke M3 wheels and supercharger to the M42 inline-4:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1995 BMW 318ti Club Sport on eBay

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Not Quite As Good As the Renault 5: 1998 BMW 318ti M52

Okay, so maybe the Renault 5 isn’t your thing. I get it, it’s not mine either. I like the ideal and audacity of the Turbo models with their mid-engined lunacy, but pricing on good examples is pretty outrageous and if the videos of them driving are to be believed, they’re not the best hatch dynamically. No, I’ve pretty much always been a Golf fan, having owned a few of them now. But I must admit I had a soft spot when the E35/5 hatch popped up for sale. To me, it combined some luxury looks with practical performance. And when I say performance, honestly there wasn’t much available. The M44 engine that was fit to the 318ti was a decent performer, but it had only 138 horsepower, and at the price point you were much better off getting a GTi VR6, which oddly was more luxury oriented than most of the 318tis and offered more performance. However, the base of the 318ti was a good idea; a smart looking, light and nimble hatchback with a manual transmission and rear drive. And, of course, being an E36 platform, it was ripe for engine transplants. Today’s example is one of the more rare M-Sport equipped models, but this one has yanked the M44 in favor of an odd choice – the M52B25:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1998 BMW 318ti M52 on eBay

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1995 BMW 318ti

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After reading a Car Magazine long-term test review of the new Caterham 160, my interest in base model vehicles was rekindled. Much like the rather basic BMW 518 that Nate featured back in 2013, this 318ti has caught my attention for similar reasons. When the E36 hatchback made its debut, I wasn’t particular fond of it. But time has changed my view of it, not in the least because it wasn’t the most common E36 3 series on US shores. It’s rare you come across a good example, as these were the most affordable car in the BMW range at the time, but sometimes you’ll find a hidden gem. Such is the case with this example equipped with a 5-speed manual for sale in Oregon.

Click for details: 1995 BMW 318ti on eBay

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1997 BMW 318ti M-Sport

It seems like just yesterday I was writing up a clean 318ti M-sport. The condition was great on that particular example; miles were lower, it was all original and the color was nice. But there were several drawbacks, too – the California roof, while cool, was noted by one of our readers as a potential problem spot. Then there was the transmission; an automatic, it robbed a fair amount of the sport and fun out of the package. To top it off, there was the asking price – a staggering $13,000. As if to answer every single one of those points, another near-mint example of the rare to see M-Sport package has popped up this week; conventional sunroof, lower price and thank heavens a manual gearbox are the highlights here:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1997 BMW 318ti M-Sport on eBay

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