other Cool POs

[saaron]

Hi -

 

Not sure I told this story.  The POs I bought my car from in '87 were really cool.  Long story short, they sold their car to me, a college student, over other folks that had plenty of money but were a little, I don't know, something they didn't like.  They were German, and that was in suburban Chicago.  I knew they were moving back to Germany - that is why they were selling.

 

A few years ago, I decided to see if I could track down the POs.  Through the internet, and knowing the name and profession, I got ahold of the fellow's email.  

 

About a year ago, I sent him an email w/a pic just saying "hey your car is still alive, I still have it, it's pretty much the same, I know other 02 people that I share it with, etc."  I didn't hear back.  Which I thought was a little weird, but I know the guy is probably about 80 and probably is not Mr Digital Communication.

 

For some reason a month ago, I decided to email him again.  He emailed me right back.  He said he was busy, and was sorry he hadn't gotten back to me.  He said he printed my email and had it on his desk - the pic of the car.  He said it was he and his wife's favorite car - "fast and comfortable".  He lives in Hamburg now and is loving retirement.  Pretty cool.  

 

Scott

[NYNick]

Cool story. Here's mine. 

 

I bought my car last February. While doing my homework, the experts here and elsewhere informed me that all Polaris Silver Tii's came with blue interiors. Crap, I thought, mine was light brown. It was generally accepted practice, I learned, to paint these cars because this color was a bad blend and peeled right from the get go. Since my car had been (horribly) re-painted black, I assumed a PO had installed light brown interior because a blue interior doesn't go with a black exterior.

 

While tearing down the interior, which seemed awfully original to me btw, I came across some parking tickets and receipts from the 70's. Sure enough, they had a guys name on them from NJ. I googled his name, discovered he was a partner in a law firm in Manhattan, found him (was I stalking?) on Linkdin and sent him a brief note. "Hey, I might own your old 2002 Tii. Please email me."

 

He emailed me a few days later excited to hear about his car, that it was being restored, that it played a really big part in his and his family's life and could he see it when it was finished? Could I send some pix, he asked? Of course I said, but would you mind answering a few questions first? 1)What color was the car when you owned it? 2)What color was the interior? 3)Did you go to Rutgers? (the parking ticket).

 

He answered it was silver (correct!), with a light brown interior (yes!) that he remembered distinctly because all the other ones he ever saw were blue and his was so unique! Awesome! I have a very unique color combo! And yes, he went to Rutgers.

 

And yes, I am staying in touch with him and will go visit when I'm done with 'our' car.

 

Nick

[saaron]

Great story, Nick.  I'm sure that guy was thrilled.  It is a little weird how easy it is to find people these days.

 

Scott

[gastephens]

My car's PO was an engineer in Tampa who had other BMWs. He clearly loved the 2002 since he drove it every day but it was suffering a bit from the daily Florida acid rain. He told my brother he was thinking of selling it but needed to find it a good home. My brother called me, brokered the deal, and delivered it to me in Atlanta. When I finished restoring the car 2 years later, my brother showed him pictures. He was ecstatic that someone cared enough about the car to invest so much time and effort to bring it back to life. Some day it would be cool to find the Tampa doctor who originally bought the car in '76 since I have his name. Since that was 40 years ago, he may no longer be with us. I might go do a Google search right now.

[gastephens]

1 hour ago, gastephens said:

Some day it would be cool to find the Tampa doctor who originally bought the car in '76 since I have his name.

Well I found him. He must be in his 80s by now but it looks like he is still practicing in the Tampa area. Should I try to call him?

 

One interesting note. Looking at all of his original records, it appears his ownership experience was not a happy one. He was constantly complaining about brakes and replacing visor clips. He did drive the snot out of the car. It had 112,000 miles by 1980 when he sold it to the second owner, a phD in engineering at University of South Florida.

 

The phD sold it to the engineer I bought it from who passed away from cancer just a couple of years ago.

 

 

 

 

Edited June 1, 2016 by gastephens

[69NEWCLASSNH]

The last owner of my car, when it was in California was an Anthony Pagano.  I tried tracking him down, but if he's still with us, he'd be very elderly.  Did some research, was a doctor who sued his place of employment in a landmark supreme court ruling.  Pretty cool.

[NYNick]

If you decide to contact any PO, treat them with extreme courtesy and politeness, as you would any stranger. You will find out quickly if they care or not.

Be polite and careful. You're a stranger out of the blue to them.

Good luck.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[hynrgee]

I appreciate the stories. Gotta say that with perhaps one exception I have bought all of my used cars from interesting people. Makes the buying experience more pleasurable. Thanks for sharing.

[Mike Self]

It's easy to track down the original owner of my '69...it's me!

 

mike

[gastephens]

It's easy to track down the original owner of my '69...it's me!

 

mike

Make sure you treat yourself with courtesy and respect. That guy clearly makes great decisions. [emoji6]

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[OriginalOwner]

+1 Mike !!

 

Cheers,

 

Carl

 

[roadhog0]

I called the second owner of my old Tii one day. Found his number online and he lived in the same place still! (1980 registrations). He was very nice and glad to see the car again. I know the original owner of my 2002 who is a good friend of mines Dad. He loves to see the car from time to time!

[jb]

P.O.???    (rolls eyes)

 

Mine sold me a practically rust-free roundie, then spent time sourcing many parts  (seats, console, tii booster, etc), then led the charge with mounting M10 and tranny to subframe funny-car style, helped rebuild the pedal box and clutch slave, then hooked me up with just about every other o2 owner in the tri-state. 

 

 

[jgerock]

1 hour ago, jb said:

P.O.???    (rolls eyes)

 

Mine sold me a practically rust-free roundie, then spent time sourcing many parts  (seats, console, tii booster, etc), then led the charge with mounting M10 and tranny to subframe funny-car style, helped rebuild the pedal box and clutch slave, then hooked me up with just about every other o2 owner in the tri-state. 

 

 

Wow- finally see a picture of your car!

[Gthielen]

I was driving my 74 2002 at Mid Ohio in 1988 when Mike Valentine  (of Valentine Research radar fame) came over and said that he and his wife had purchased one just like it, brand new, their first BMW,  and that once he was carrying a 914-6 Porsche muffler( the car in which he developed the g-analyst) and it had slightly dented the rear panel going around a corner...he reached in and showed me where and, lo and behold, the dent was there...it was their old car. Since then, I restored the 2002 and Mike has driven it again. Ironically, I just finished reassembling a 71 914-6 that had been sitting for 30 years.

George Thielen

Dayton OH