hat a coincidence, i was driving a toyota seg as well, but stock la. From experience, i was a little more difficult to drive the BMW as the pedal is stiffer for some reason. Must go check, but it was WORTH it!!
Regarding the repair, CHASSIS RUST is a big problem for BMW E30, therefore it is advisable to check the car for rust, if it has major rust, forget it. It is preferable to get E30 which are year 1988 and above.
engines are the 2nd headache problem. BMW E30 tend to have overheat problems, therefore try to get all the repair records from the owner. If not, get a brand new engine for it XD
interior wise, dashboard is very very keen of breaking. almost 70% of E30 i;ve seen have cracked dashboard. TO change a good condition dashboard, you need to prepare around RM1k- RM1.3k depend on the seller.
exterior wise, try to look for RUST again as rust is a very very major headache. Look for signs of accident and also the chassis whether the car been through major accident or not.
bmw engine reliability compare to toyota engine? NO WAY! when i got my toyota, i just pump petrol and go! its a workhorse!! The bmw engine need lots of pampering.....guess what, its worth it!!!!
Lastly, that E30 which cost RM3.5k, dont expect the condition to be good, my recommendation would be get a RM10-RM15k BMW E30 which is in tip top condition. If you need any assistance in getting a E30, i have a friend selling his, 1984 320i 2 door.
Chris