Is it worth trying to make a classic of my 480 Turbo?

[jonfrewin]

Thanks so much for taking thE time to read this. We've been thinking about replacing our Volvo with a BMW 1 series for a few months now. We'd have to borrow money for that though, and have been wondering whether it's worth restoring our 1989 480 to best possible condition. After all, it's only got 130k miles on the clock.

So, we made a list of all the car's problems, to try and figure out what it would cost to bring up to 'classic car' standards. I would really like to know whether people think it's worth doing this? Each year we say, 'let's see if the car makes it through the MoT', which it then does at relatively low cost..

Obviously I'd want to do lots of work myself, but when it comes to the long list of electrical problems, I figure I'll need an auto electrician. I reckon I' willing to spend about a grand in total, if I can get it through the MoT in January.



So, is there any major likely problem that will cost a lot to fix, and that I should be worrying about before throwing lots of money away? Here's the list of problems:

(apologies for the non-technical descriptions of some of these)
Make rear wells waterproof
Seal from wind noise around windscreen and sunroof
Restart when warmed up
Slow battery discharge problem
Horn when stationary problem
Reversing lights problem
Seat heaters - replace switch (poss why rev lights broken)
Rear wiper not connected
Rear demister
Intermittent wiper problem
Front broken fog light
Rear missing fog light
Overhaul sunroof mechanism
Grease seat sliders
Tailgate pneumatic rods
Hoses under bonnet
Clean out ventilation system
Electric mirror switches poss motors
Windscreen spray doesn't stay adjusted
Weak radio signal
Bulb behind computer
New engine control module
Paintwork one or two rust patches plus chips and lacquer problem
Spotlight lenses cracked
Front bumper bottom part damaged
Broken driver's pocket
Seatbelt retracting arms - one broken, one needs roller

[Yossarian]

Personally, as I absolutely loathe the BMW 1 series, and I really love seeing older classics in showroom condition, I would say that restoring the 480 turbo is the most satisfying route to take.

[bigdickbuster]

Restore of 480 is completely madness - if you look from the economical aspect...

But I agree with Yossarian - 480 ceases to be an ordinary car.

You have a lot of time in the future to buy BMW in relatively good technical condition.

[glasgowjim]

Costs

rear foglight £10
Replacement sunroof £40
Front foglight old style replacement glass £10
vent clean - use a vacuum cleaner and remove one dash vent for access £0 replacement vent if required £5
reversing lights switch £10
seat heater switch £10
silicon sealant £8
rear window replacement wiring loom (checked for continuity before despatch) £20
door pocket £10 to £20
seat belt arm (new from volvo) is about £15
seat belt arm roller £4
washer jets £8 the pair.

so its not as bad as it looks

wont waste time giving detailed suggestions how to sort up the rest of the list as you are as yet undecided.

A lot will depend not only on passing mot but the advisories given as well. Get under the car and have a good look round at the level or rust on the bodywork. Second hand spares for 480 are not hard to come by and not expensive. But you do need to do stuff yourself . As for autoelectricians wow avoid that if you can electrics are not that difficult and more recent cars have lots more.

just my thoughts


oh and one more thought get the engine problem sorted first then you can proceed with confidence.

[kev]

Yes its worth it ! I know it can run up a large bill but where can you get anything that compares ?
You have to put a limit on how far you want to take it. Even if you go the whole hog its still
cheaper than buying new.

[kev]

You might like to know my battery drain was a fault related to an after market Alpine head unit !
I removed the live terminal off the battery and bridged it with a test bulb.It showed a faint pulse effect.
So I pulled every fuse in turn and it still remained.I removed the head unit and it stopped !
On further inspection I found two permanent lives in the wiring harness.Now I think this must
be for a reason maybe for the original head units anyway I made one of them switched and my drain problem ended

[dubstep]

Personally, as I absolutely loathe the BMW 1 series, and I really love seeing older classics in showroom condition, I would say that restoring the 480 turbo is the most satisfying route to take.

Are you completely mad?!

There is absolutely NO way that a 480 turbo is ever going to be regarded a classic car that is worth spending multiple thousands of pounds restoring!

Please see sense financially and dont commit all that money to something that will never offer a return!

[glasgowjim]

the total costed by myself works out at about £160 + postage the ecu should be anywhere between £30 to £60 . Realistically looking at £300 to 350 to fix so only the cost of the engine sort to add. All the rest can be done with the advice of the forum members. but it is up to you.

[jonfrewin]

Hey - thanks everyone, particularly Glasgowjim - and apologies for the delay coming back about this. I will definitely wait until I've seen what the MoT advisories look like, but am inclined to bring the car up to a reasonable standard, and see if I can keep it going a while longer.

Could you expand a little though, jim, on how you vacuum out the vents? I've got years of leaf matter stuck in the main windscreen blowers. Oddly, the air pressure increases when you turn from hot to slightly cooler, and I wonder if there is somewhere I should be sticking my vacuum cleaner to help with that.

And do you think it would be worth replacing the ECU on spec, to see if that fixes the weird throttling problem?

Happy holidays!

[Murf]

There is absolutely NO way that a 480 turbo is ever going to be regarded a classic car that is worth spending multiple thousands of pounds restoring!

Please see sense financially and dont commit all that money to something that will never offer a return!

It actually makes much more sense than buying a new car. As soon as the BMW rools out of the showroom its value will drop like a stone.
Spend a grand on the 480 and you'll prob be able to sell it for a grand in a few years time.
For example, my S40 2 litre turbo was over £20k just 7 years ago. I paid £1200 for it. Say the BMW holds its value better and is worth £5k after 7 years, your still losing a fortune! Whereas the 480 has done all its depreciating and will prob still be worth what you spend on it even after a good few years

Keep the 480, the 1 series is a bland souless car, despite what BMW marketing would try and convince you of!

[glasgowjim]

Pop a vent cover off and ram the tube down the vent and just suck cover up the intakes and open one at a time to increase suction and clear the tubes