New & Old

It has been almost a year since my last post, and with time comes change. I sold the '75 BMW that was in my previous posts to a very excited gentleman from the Seattle area last January. The money went towards putting a bigger down payment on the house we built, and ever since I have wanted to get into another 2002. Fast forward to last month, and with the "ok" from the boss my 2002 search was back to fruition. Only three weeks into my search I found the perfect car across the water from Seattle. It was a 1973 BMW 2002, which has only been through two owners, and was very well maintained, documented, and most importantly 5-speed swapped (trans sourced from an e21). We picked it up on a Friday night and rode the ferry back to Seattle to rest up so we could drive her home the following day.

Here we are on the ferry ride back (pregnant wife was nice enough to come support me):




The car rides pretty nice for missing a sway bar end link, and having tired suspension. The trip over the mountain reminded me how crucial it's to have a 5-speed in such an underpowered car. The steep mountain passes were no challenge for the 2002, but I did not forget how difficult they were on the 2002 when I was driving my '75 equipped with a 3-speed automatic transmission. The interior was redone in '95 and has excellent carpet and seats. Furthermore, the second owner had a Kenwood deck and four speakers installed in the car. The stereo components are obviously outdated since they were installed 18 years ago, but they still function just fine for my current goals for the car. If you have ever been in a 2002 or have owned one, you would know that the original sound system only had a radio with one speaker directly below it.

There are a few issues that need to be addressed. The clutch sticks once in a while and can be tricky to operate during rush hour when traffic stops and goes consistently, the front sway bar is missing an endlink on the passenger side (which causes it to clunk around and the car does not handle as well as it should), and the car desperately needs a paint job. But, with time and some extra income these issues will be handled one by one. It's easy when you purchase a new (to you) car to throw money at it and get carried away. The only money I have put into the 2002 so far has been new gaskets and labor at an exhaust shop to fix a leak, registration, and gas.

Here are a few pictures of the car:










Direction to take the car under consideration for the future:

Full Ireland Engineering suspension or Air Bags
M20 or M3 Swap
More Aggressive Wheels and Tires

If you are a BMW purist, you most likely won't agree with the direction this car will eventually go, but I enjoy being different and can handle the criticism. Unfortunately, upgrading and being different costs money; a lot of money. This car will not be changing any time soon...

Please feel free to comment and let me know your opinions or ideas!



-Scott