E30 3 Series

Capturing the Zeitgeist of its era, the second generation 3 Series had crisp, teutonic styling, a solid cabin and the lusty 105kW six-cylinder engine 323i to its credit.

In comparison, the 75kW four-cylinder 318i felt underpowered and under-equipped. A Baur 318i Cabriolet arrived in late ’83, soon followed by the popular four-door variants.

Then BMW dropped the ball when it replaced the 323i with the unleaded petrol 90kW 325e in early ‘86. Using a new low-rev/high-economy “ETA” six-cylinder engine, it felt very un-BMW to drive.