1971 2002 M20... Added More Video

[Bobby_Digital]

Over the past year, I have put a lot of time and money into my 1971 BMW 2002 building it into what I wanted for some city driving and an occasional track day. I used to work on and race cars a bit when I was in college, but haven’t had the time to do any of that since having kids. I now am in a place where the kids are old enough to give me a little bit of time to spend on cars. I always loved the styling and simplicity of the 2002 and really caught the bug when a shop down the road from my house had a few touring models on the lot. I acquired this 2002 in early ’08 and set off on my journey to make it into what I wanted it to be.

The previous owner had done a few things to make the car more “sporty”, installing Bilstein Sport shocks with H&R springs, along with a larger carburetor and better ignition. I was enjoying driving the car around town but wanted a little more pep than I was getting out of the tired old motor. I spent a day at Buttonwillow raceway with the Audi club and really wanted to get the BMW in good enough shape to attend an occasional track day. This is how I came to decide which direction to take with the car. I will provide a list of changes made to the car over the past year.

The car is very solid, especially for nearing 40! I did not finish my project before coming to the decision to list it for sale. I am leaving the body and paint work for last, so the new owner would probably want to have the car painted to have a real looker. The car was not being driven for most of the last year as I was procuring parts and working on it. In that time, I had developed a vision that was to be my car when it was finished. I often daydreamed about what the car would look like and drive like as well as envisioning myself on weekend canyon runs with other local 2002’s. Now that the project is nearing the end, and has arrived at the point where all of the mechanicals are complete, I find myself wanting something different. I know, this may sound silly, but what I built is a fast, fun car that provides a very visceral driving experience, and has a bit of an edginess that I would have relished in in my younger days but don’t necessarily appreciate now. I think I may have let the college racer in me steer the direction of this build and ignored the older, more boring business professional that I have become. It also amuses me because I saw enthusiasts with stock or near-stock tii’s and 2002’s and wondered why they insist on keeping them stock when they could get so much more power out of the engines and performance out of the car, but now I get it. I am having a hard time deciding whether to track down a nice clean tii or older Porsche to focus on next, but I have come to the decision to let this car go to someone who will appreciate it more.

Here is the important list of good stuff:

Car came to me with fresh Bilstein Sport shocks, H&R springs, 15”x6” Panasport Minilites and new Hankook tires. It also has Euro flush turn signals. I added new strut top bearings and Ireland Engineering Negative Camber Plates. ($230)

I installed the Ireland Engineering front vented big brake kit with Volvo calipers, tii master cylinder and rear drum cylinders, and stainless steel lines. ($880)

I changed all bushings to polyurethane from Ireland Engineering. ($315)

I installed Ireland Engineering’s front and rear sway bars as well. ($370)

I enlisted the help of Ed and Mano at Groma Fabrications to swap in an M20b25 motor out of a 1989 325iC along with the ecu and Getrag 260 transmission. The motor had a little over 100,000 miles when we performed the swap and has a fresh head, timing belt, brand new IE clutch kit, IE windage tray, IE E30 short shift kit, Guibo, Custom driveshaft, Front and Rear Main seals, E28 Engine Mount, Custom transmission mount, all gaskets, and typical comprehensive tune-up items. Ed stitch welded the engine bay and added body to frame reinforcement to compensate for the increased torque. ($7,500)

We used a 3.91 LSD rear differential from a 320 mated to all new CV joints and half-shafts using Ireland Engineering’s adaptor kit. ($650)

Ed custom fabricated new front and rear strut bars (the rear with a battery tray) as well as custom headers leading into a complete custom 2.5” stainless steel exhaust. ($1,500)

Installed all new stering arms and bushings ($295)

Since the Getrag 260 doesn’t have a mechanical speedo output, we used a set of Haneline hot rod gauges that gets RPM information from the ecu and Speed/Odo information via GPS. There are also fuel, water temp, oil pressure, and amp gauges. They fit the look of the car well. ($1,200)

I opted to replace the stock hood with an Ireland Engineering fiberglass replica. ($275)

I changed out all of the door and side window gaskets with new BMW pieces that fit and perform well. I also replaced the chrome trim and window squeegees on both the inside and outside of both doors. ($1,160)

I fitted a new black carpet kit from Only02 along with a black stock rear bench seat that has good support and spring. ($200)

I currently have a set of black Recaro Profi SPG buckets with Schroth four-point harnesses ($1,900), but am thinking I might switch those out with a pair of “vintage” Recaro recliners that are in perfect shape that I have sitting in the warehouse. The Profis are a little overkill for street driving.

I purchased new door cards from Aardvarc and covered them with black material very similar to the Recaro fabric. ($100) I also covered the stereo console and rear deck cover in the same fabric. I opted to paint the roof of the car black instead of installing a new headliner.

I decided to go with a Suede Sparco 350mm steering wheel and absolutely love it. ($335)

I’ll add more to this list as I think of it.

As previously stated, I have not completed this project yet, so there are a few things to address:

The paint job is poorly done and the car needs a new one.

All of the lights work with the exception of the blinkers. There is a wiring issue with the front signals that I have not spent the time to straighten out.

There are some small rust bubbles at the base of the windshield gasket, under the paint.

There are some small surface rust spots on the rockers.

The pictures show light surface rust in the spare tire well. I’ll take care of this prior to sale. (3/16 sanded and painted black, I'll post new pics)

The driveshaft center support bushing is too soft for the amount of power that the new engine transmits, resulting in an occasional vibration on hard starts. The Groma team is working on producing a urethane bushing and this car will get one as soon as they’re available.

The body is straight, but not perfect. There are small door dings, etc. from years spent on the road. There is also a small dent in the drivers rear under the tail light that comes with a funny story and will be easily fixed!

I know that I will be taking a loss. My ideal price range is $12,000 or best reasonable offer depending on seat choice and spare parts.

Here is a link to a slideshow of a bunch of pictures: http://s284.photobucket.com/albums/ll38/BobbyDigital080/2002/?albumview=slideshow

Here is a link to video of the car running: http://s284.photobucket.com/albums/ll38/BobbyDigital080/2002/2002%20Video/?action=view&current=2002.flv

Here is a link to a long video of a spirited drive (Blair Witch Style)

http://s284.photobucket.com/albums/ll38/BobbyDigital080/2002/2002%20Video/?action=view&current=2002LongDriveGP.flv

Email me with questions or for further details or pictures of any part of the car at rob at hksupplyco.com

Some people have asked similar questions so I will clarify a few things.

The final price will be based on a few variables like which seats you want with the car and if you want some or all of the spare parts that go along with it. I have receipts for everything I have spent on the car in the last year including all of the parts I have installed as well as the engine swap work.

The car runs awesome. It’s got a lot of power with the m20 and needs nothing mechanically. It would give you a full track day without issue or take you home from here to Canada with no problems. It has a completely fresh engine and drivetrain and every bushing and gasket has been replaced.

I’ll get the car up on a lift either today or tomorrow and get some good shots of the undercarriage.

The body needs a little love but is in no way “rough”. There is very little surface rust, the doors and trunk all line up well, and it has never been in an accident. There is no rust in the shock towers, floor pans, or undercarriage.

[emmodg]

It's a "Guess how much I want for my car!" ad.

You know what you payed for it. You know what you put into it. You should know what you need for it. Why make people guess?

[Bobby_Digital]

Sorry, I didn't look at it that way and did not mean to frustrate you. I edited the original post to include some of the costs and my target price, which is open to discussion.

Thanks for sharing your point of view.

Rob

[Nick]

Wow Rob....I almost didnt believe it when I saw this listed...I see where you're coming from though, the old soul in you is coming out. Good luck with the sale...my car was done at Groma Fabrication at the same time as this one, and it is a clean car with plenty of hours of work, this is a deal for that price!

[emmodg]

Yeah, didn't mean to be a dick. I just think in these economic times you need to make it as easy as possible for someone to buy something from you. Making people appraise your car and guess on a price isn't making it easy on them.

[DonutPrince]

Wow, I have actually seen you driving this car in Glendale!!! You passed me on the 134 and your car sounds awesome!

I wish I had the funds to buy this car. How much would you come down if I didn't want the racing buckets? What spare parts do you have? This car is sick, someone should jump on this unless I can get enough money together.

[Bobby_Digital]

I think there are a high concentration of 2002 enthusiasts here in LA. Thanks for the compliments! Thanks for the plug Nick! Let's still get together for a canyon run soon before this goes to a new owner.

The spare parts I'm talking about are an extra set of R compound tires for track use, a lot of small miscellaneous things like gaskets, door handles, ignition, trim pieces, etc... I have a few boxes of 2002 stuff that I'll sell individually if they don't go with the car. The seats are the biggest dollar variable. I guess I'll knock about $1000 off the final price if you want the vintage seats instead of the Profis. Everything is negotiable so don't be afraid to make me an offer. The best way to reach me is by email at rob @ hksupplyco.com

[JohnBarlow]

Hey! I second that drive idea.....We need to do an M20 only drive through the angeles crest ! [and soon....... BEFORE you sell that car!

[Bobby_Digital]

Added video, see it here: http://s284.photobucket.com/albums/ll38/BobbyDigital080/2002/2002%20Video/?action=view&current=2002.flv

I'll get some better video and in-car shots up soon!

[JohnBarlow]

I might have to put that M20 drive idea on hold for a bit......

My car [pictured above] was totaled on the freeway on Wednesday while being prep'd for the California Targa. SHIT. All that time and money, out the door, and with less than a thousand miles on it! EVERYTHING was new.

deeply depressed,

JB4

[-=Charley]

NOOO!!! sorry to hear that John. I thought I felt a disturbance in the force. I hope there's plenty to salvage.

[JohnBarlow]

Went to see her today...... not so good. The front frame rails are up about 4-5" higher than they used to be, the new, custom radiator has a bunch of steel pulleys stuck in it, and the butt.......

[Bobby_Digital]

John, that's terrible. Let's salvage the parts you can and put them in that rally car we've yet to build.

Up top, I added a long in-car spirited drive video to give those interested buyers an idea what driving the car is like.

[Frenchee]

Who bought this?

[dcmackintosh]

Who bought this?

 

Me!  Well, not directly.  It's on the way from a guy in FL now.  It looks like he replaced the dash and had it painted Inka.  I have the FL title, which shows it was registered in 2009.  The Haneline odometer only shows 3,300 miles, so it been mostly garaged since.  I can't wait to get it back on the road here in OR.  Maybe this weekend if I'm lucky.

This is what it looks like now.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/dcmackintosh/sets/72157642369046164/