My 1602

[bzuva]

Hi all, I come from Serbia and I'm 21-year old student, and this is my 1972. BMW 1602. Although it looks pretty much mint, it's not(mostly mechanically) and it's kept in original state with matching numbers engine and most original parts.

Looking forward to some quality time here!

[malagalaga]

Wow! I love it! I can't imagine '02s are common in Serbia...

[bzuva]

Thanks!

Well, there are like 50-70 still surviving around here, in various conditions, from totally rusty to mint examples! But bear in mind that our whole state is the size of Maine, with 7 million people living in it, so I guess that the number of 02's is pretty okay

Anyway, as for the car, I bought it from the third owner a year ago, and since then I've been trying to find the way to make him run on petrol instead of LPG/TNG which had been used for 3 years or more, completely ruining everything petrol-related, including the carburetor. The engine works smoothly(when the carb is working well) and it has around 105k miles, but nevertheless needs some love and refreshment.

It has been painted, the rear end was a bit jolly in the winter so the both rear side panels were crashed and later fixed by using epoxy. So it needs some bodywork and a new paint too.

The interior is fine, apart from one cigarette burn, cracked instrument cluster(yeah, it cracked my heart lol) and some minor details including radio hinges.

My bumpers are from a newer type, the front grille is okay, I have all the chrome parts I need to have, some of them need replacing too, and what bugs me the most is the fact that some junkies or dunno who tried to steal my stereo(30+ year old Blaupunkt with a single speaker) so they scratched most of the chrome from above and around the door, but somehow didn't make it and left the car scratched.

The plans? Since it's matching numbers, I'd like to keep the engine, and restore it to the same color of exterior, maybe replace the black/grey interior with the brown/tan, and add a set of fine rims in the appropriate size and color. I'll keep anyone interested up to date with the works! Don't expect much DIY work since I'm completely new to mechanics so I'm leaving it all out for the ones who know

[bzuva]

Anyway, I started the car today and it turned off after a couple of meters, I was driving it on petrol, so I urgently need to fix/replace the carburetor because I'm sick of this working/not working mode!

[malagalaga]

So that's the original color? Looks great. Is that Riviera? And I agree that the brown interior would be the way to go - I think it's such a unique combination.

Was it imported to Serbia from somewhere in Western Europe?

[bzuva]

Yup, that's the original one, and I think that it's Riviera. It has been repainted once, but in the same one. And when I do the repaint again(because it needs one) I'm gonna go with the same. On behalf of the interior, I still have to think about that since my current one is in very good condition, and I don't have money to spend on the things i don't need yet.

As far as I know, it has been regularly bought from an authorised dealer. Back in the days, when Tito was the president, before the wars which made us a third-world country, a lot of major companies had their authorised dealers across the former Yugoslavia and that even included American companies.

[bzuva]

Thinking of putting these on! Any oppinions?

http://www.polovniautomobili.com/oglas1387693/bwa_sportray_felne/

[malagalaga]

Thinking of putting these on! Any oppinions?

http://www.polovniautomobili.com/oglas1387693/bwa_sportray_felne/

I think they look a little too '80s for a car that looks more '60s.

But my 2002 came with 320i basket weave-style wheels and I put stock steel wheels with hubcaps on it, so what do I know? I love the simple '60s/'70s look.

[bzuva]

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing, these look much better on the E21, but on the other hand, they are quite a good deal... Since I saw a post of someone's 2002 which has the same colour as mine, golden BBS Mahle are the most appealing to me for now.

Anyway, finally fixing my carb in a couple of days, can't wait to drive it without fear of blowing up!

[FunElan]

With your grey interior your car may originally be Caribe, which is an uber rare 1600 only color. I recommend sending your VIN to andreas at BMW to make sure.

[bzuva]

Really don't know, I might check it out, but in Serbia it hardly makes any difference The interior has been refurnished once, but the previous owner said that he did the same color pattern.

[bzuva]

Update: Someone has broken my early type side mirror while I was parked overnight, there's something wrong with my wiring so i hear blasts from time to time, trying to fix that, God knows what will happen more...

[RayC911]

bzuva,

Can you send me an email? email button on top or rchau964@gmail dot com. I have a question. thanks

[bzuva]

Update and some pics: Thanks to Ray, I got the speedo and the side mirror, which I'll install as soon as I have some time, other than that, I got my front badge stolen. Have some transmission problems, but I hope the only problem is the oil. Waiting for the springtime to start the restoration, in the meantime trying to learn as much as I can so I can help out, not just let the mechanics do the dirty work

[jdm1602]

Buddy, I like your car. Looks a lot like my 1602.