body and interior Difference between 2002 sedan and coupe.

[JimmyTheGreek]

I'm looking to buy my first 2002.  Can anyone explain to me what the difference is between the 2002 sedan and coupe?

[jrkoupe]

welcome.....

 

 

really?

 

 

 

ok.......no difference at all.......

 

 

sedan/coupe in this case are the same.

all......all.......all......2002 cars are 2 doors.

 

some have called it a 2 dr sedan as well.......such is life

 

 

also related to a non collapsible B pillar too.

Edited May 28, 2016 by jrkoupe

[Gordon]

I'm thinking you are getting the 2000 sedan which is known as a New Klasse (NK) mixed up with a 2002.  The NK was the predecessor to the 5 series and was sold from the mid 60's up until 71, same M10 motor as the 2002 .

[dlhoovler]

If you go to RealOEM and look for a 2002, you'll need to select "sedan," even though it's a 2-door. There used to be a distinction between a 2-door sedan and a 2-door coupe, dating back to the '30s at least--the sedan had a longer greenhouse and correspondingly larger rear seat area. For example, in 1941 Chevy offered both a coupe, with rear jump seats, and a 2-door sedan, with a back seat big enough to stretch your legs out and barely hit the front seatback. The nomenclature was still in use in the mid-'60s when the '02 was introduced, and it was described as a sedan, as distinct from a coupe like, say, a Porsche 911.

 

However, language changes. I recall that Car and Driver acknowledged the semantic shift about a decade ago, now referring to all 2-door, 3-box vehicles as coupes and all similar 4-door cars as sedans. 

 

And then BMW and others introduced the "4-door coupe," referring to a sedan with a more steeply sloped rear roofline that mimicked a 2-door's. Sometimes language evolves naturally, and sometimes it's genetically engineered by the marketing folks.

 

TL;DR: The 2002, 1602 and others using the same body are 2-door sedans, technically.

 

-Dave

[JohnH]

9 hours ago, Gordon said:

I'm thinking you are getting the 2000 sedan which is known as a New Klasse (NK) mixed up with a 2002.  The NK was the predecessor to the 5 series and was sold from the mid 60's up until 71, same M10 motor as the 2002 .

 

I'm just being a bit picky here (), but all BMW vehicles of that era were described by them, as Neue Klasse. The various models being distinguished by there individual model names, such as 1600, 1600-2 and finally 1602. Its only long after the event that we have rewritten history and started calling the the four door models, exclusively Neue Klasse.   

[TobyB]

The Sedan was for old guys who drove too slow, were hesitant to pull out into traffic, and wandered around between (and sometimes over) the lines.

 

The Coupe, prounounced CooPay, was for young thrusting execs who yearned to be driving E30's but were born too early.  They sped,

stuffed the cars into places and corners it didn't really fit, and who were to go on to provide the butt of most BMW jokes, many of which

still apply today, (but now may apply better to Audi and Tesla(tickle) drivers).  And who learned what 'trailing throttle oversteer' was

with their wallets...

 

t

 

 

[Otis]

CooPay - I agree.  It is phonetically derived from the original European term, "Coppe" (see below).  The bastardized American term, "Coupe," gained widespread usage when the aforesaid thrusting executives took various linguistic liberties.  Moreover, the error often is compounded -- for example, "Dian Coppe" becomes "Dinan Coupe" in non-Purist circles using the non-King's English.  Fortunately, however, evidence still exists of proper usage, even in late-model applications - see immediately below, for example, for the proper, precise, and technically correct late-model application of the historically correct terminology, "Coppe" (pronounced CooPay).

 

 

 

 

Often, the sedan/coupe (coppe) distinction is easily ascertained.  Typically for a "coupe" (coppe), you may expect to find a single pair of doors - "D's" for short - a lefty and a righty.  For a sedan, however, it is more reasonable to expect twice that amount - Double D's - four in total (that's two lefty's and two righties).  But it is not true in every case - and leave it to the Factory to confuse the Purists.  Thereupon, sometimes we might find a single pair of D's, where double D's were expected -- and vice versa (see previous photo).  Alas, "sedan" is probably correct in the following photo, since in all likelihood, there are more than two methods of entering this particular model.

 

 

 

Good luck in your search, for a Sedan or a Coppe.  A word of caution - on older S models, sometimes the double D's tend to sag.  Nothing that can't be fixed, of course.

 

 

 

 

Edited May 31, 2016 by Otis

[ray_]

Nice to see you, Otis!

 

Or, your posts, to be more specific!

 

 

Cheers,