June 03 2005   Story: Bryan Joslin

Tomorrow morning I'm flying from Chicago to Los Angeles. With any luck, I won't be flying back. You see, I did something that I've never done before. I bought a used car, sight unseen.

Waiting for me in Huntington Beach is a 1991 318is. I own it, though I've never touched it or sat in it, let alone driven it. The title came in the mail last week, and I stood in line at the DMV a couple days ago getting my new registration and plates. For better or worse, it's mine now. And it has to get me back to Chicago.

The circumstances were just too perfect. I called Chris, a long-time friend, to let him know I was putting my '84 VW Convertible up for sale, knowing he would try to talk me out of it. When he asked the inevitable "why?" I told him I was hoping to find a decent E30 3 Series to replace it. Specifically, a late-production 2-door, with the plastic bumpers and bigger taillights.

"Funny you should mention it," he said. "My brother is selling a '91 318is. It's in southern California though."

I put a call into his brother as soon as I could. Turns out he moved into a new apartment and parking is a major issue. With a new X3 in the driveway next to his F-350, the 318 was suddenly a nuisance. He bought it from a friend who had owned it originally in Seattle, then spent the better part of the last decade in Phoenix. He warned me that the paint was a little tired and the dash cracked from so many years in the desert Southwest. But with less than 108,000 miles, it was still in decent shape otherwise, and was returning close to 30 mpg on his daily commute.

The situation couldn't have been more perfect. I told him I'd take the car for the two grand asking price. Almost as an afterthought, I asked if he had any pictures of the car he could send me. When they finally showed up in my mailbox, I felt like I had won the lottery. I've been down the old-car/project-car path several times already, each time dealing with the usual Midwest nemesis- rust. Judging by the pictures, I won't have to worry about that on this car. Clean bodywork, I've discovered, is the most critical element to keeping an old car on the road. I almost feel bad dragging this car back to the rustbelt.

So now that I'm committed, I need to figure out just what to do with the car. My mind has been racing ever since that first phone call to California. The car seems too perfect to genuinely molest, but I'm not really in the mood to do a concours restoration either. I'll need to find a middle ground, keeping an eye on the budget as the birth of our first child draws near.

Since I roped Chris into making the journey west with me to collect the car, I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to discuss the project potential of this car on our marathon, non-stop return drive after the weekend. In the meantime, I'd love to get your thoughts and recommendations on just what to do with this blank canvas. I'm all ears.