That said, the 87 has a different body shell with
smaller tail lights, larger rear fender openings,
and it lacked the lower front and rear aprons that
the 88-90 had. The 87 had the large aluminum
bumpers that stick way out and a large "cow-
catcher" style front airdam that costs a fortune
to replace if damaged, and the mounting clips
are no longer available if it's knocked off.

The 88 body shell had larger rear tail lights,
smaller rear fender openings, and had the newer
style lower front and rear aprons. The front
spoiler was the newer style with the added clip-on
stepped lip running along the bottom. The 88 still
had the big aluminum bumpers they had shorter
mounting shocks that pulled them inward a little
more than on the 87. The 88 was also the first
year to come with ellipsoid headlights.

The 89 was almost exactly like the 88, only it
came with the smaller body-colored wrap-around
bumpers that are so popular. The 88 can be made
to look exactly like an 89 if you simply add these
89 bumpers. The 89 still had ellipsoid headlights.
The 89 was the last year to not have an airbag.

The '90 325is was a virtual clone of the 89, but
they added the airbag steering wheel and installed
regular sealed beam headlights instead of the more
expensive ellipsoids. These are the only two
differences between the '89 and '90.

Mechanically, the engine, transmission, and
suspension is the same on all 325is models,
but the 88-90 had a different radiator setup
and hose setup which prevented the power steering
pulley from cutting into the lower hose like it
does on the '87 model. Also, the motronics were
improved on the '89 (or was it the '88?) which
reportedly solves an idle problem found on the
'87.

Randy Walters
89 325is (RIP)