Ok i was walking through our body shop today and i noticed a E46 323i was being prepped for paint with new front and rear bumpers. i took a quick peak and the bumpers are fixable as they have minor blemishes on them. After seeing the E36 bumpers on the E21 i figured i would ask the body shop manager to hold them and not throw them away because i think i am gonna try to get them on my car. now has anyone tryed to do a swap like this? i was thinking i will use my existing bumpers as my supports and just put the e46 bumpers over them anyone have any better ideas?

Also i see the DTM mirrors that were on the alpina that was for sale on ebay (the one with the gas door delete) i have seen those for sale for e30s will they bolt up to the 80 - 83 body style? - chris

I seen a british guy that put an E36 front bumper on his 320, and it fit. but you have to so custom mounts. and forgett about using the factory bumper as support, it sticks too far out.

im pretty sure you can mount an M3 style mirror on our E21's if you drill new holes for the mounting points. i think Attila, (turboE21) had tried this a few years ago. But, i have to ask, why would you want to put these E46 bumpers and mirrors on your E21? it will not look correct, and will look out of place. Stay period correct, and spend your efforts locating a set of euro bumpers and a front airdam of your choice. you will be much happier with the end result.

Its one thing to want to know if they fit, its another to actually do it. It would be waaaaaay out of place and would just not flow with the lines. Why not stick to something in good taste?

"Good taste" is entirely subjective, man. I hear ya, I wouldn't want to put an e46 front end on an e21 either. I do like the early e36 front end on the e21 for which I've posted a link or two...If I hadn't seen the picture, I would think I would hate it. Minus the Rieger lip pictured on the car (in Poland), it looks clean to my eyes. With the lip...not so much.

I think the e36 mirrors look...different, but not necessarily bad. Either way, each to his own! :stickoutt

From what I've read on e30.de, knockoffs of e36 m3 mirrors meant for an e30 will fit on an e21 with some drilling. The real Motorsport articles will not.

Well i do like the E36 bumpers on a E21 im not so sure about the E46 ones but considering all its gonna cost me is time im gonna just go for it. I looked at them a bit closer today and i noticed how they are very rounded bumpers versus the E36 which are much more angular. Worst comes to worst ill have learned how to or not to put plastic bumpers on a E21 which is bacicly what i want to eventually do. - chris

I'd measure the E46 bumper and the front end of the E21 before doing anything else. I can't seem to find a decent comparison of the width of the two cars on Google, but I'm pretty sure the E46 is quite a bit wider than the E21 (or the E30 or E36).
Nick

I just noticed you're actually after E30 DTM mirrors. That's what I'm after too :cool. They're simple and aerodynamic, even if I won't see a whole lot out of them. As long as I can use them for lane changes, I'll be happy, since my E21 isn't my daily driver. Anyway, a couple of people on e30.de have those cup-style mirrors on their E21s. Click this:

http://wp1016621.wp027.webpack.hosteurope.de/fotost/f01171/f01171.htm

Off the hook! :buttrock

They're simple and aerodynamic
aerodynamic is what i am going for here :buttrock - chris