JFT

Yep, brilliant. There are, what, six of them? The deal was something like each director had to do a 12-minute short with a $1 mil budget, or something like that. Clive Owen is The Driver. Some interesting stories resulted. I happen to like the one featuring the late, great James Brown. It might be called "Crossroad."

I don't know which Porsche board you looked at. Even though I sold my 911 last year, I still look at the Pelican Parts Porsche boards, both the Tech board and the Other Topics board. Both are very informative. Seems to me that a lot of those guys there work on their own cars. I did some work on mine, but it's true, those cars can be complex and difficult to fettle. Valve adjustments, required every 7,500 miles, are especially difficult. Or at least, would be for me. I had mine done, an expensive deal - $500 to $750, depending on the shop. And the fuel-injection systems can be complex and difficult for some of us to understand. For sure, the early Bimmers are much easier to work on. Mind you, I haven't had one in years; I'm a former 1602 owner. I aim to somehow resolve that problem. But, this: The Porsche guys drive their cars. The BMW guys drive their cars. From what I can tell, the Ferrari guys may not drive their cars quite as much because of the cost and complexity of running the things.

These days I mostly goof off for a living. After taking a Bachelor's degree in journalism and then almost 43 years as a journalist working in newspapers and magazines, I retired in November of 2013. I shoot a few photos, do a little fishing, shoot a little trap, do some cooking and read a lot of books. Life is good. But I'm feeling the need for a project, so life will become even better when I can figure out how to finance the purchase of a 2002, and then find one that's good enough to buy.

You might want to stop for breakfast or lunch at the Rock Store, which on weekends can get busy with lots of motorcycles and cars. Almost always fun. It's right on Mulholland Highway and it's not far from Stunt Road, another really interesting little bit of pavement. Please be careful up there.

At last you had a spare. My Mini Cooper Clubman S has runflats, no spare.

To use a 2002 as a DD, I should think you'd want to have at least basic mechanical skills, some basic tools, and the ability to trouble-shoot and fix anything that crops up as soon as it crops up - or at least take it to a specialist and have it fixed. I mean, these things are up to 45 years old and they will have issues from time to time. Parts availability is something to look into. Through vendors like Pelican Parts, you can get anything you need for an old Porsche, for instance, but that does not exactly appear to be the case for old Bimmers. Pelican, which has outstanding service, does have a few things for these cars, but their list doesn't seem to be nearly as extensive as their Porsche parts lists. Perhaps there are other vendors who do have extensive parts supplies? Keep in mind also, as others have mentioned, that you will not have air conditioning, or at least will not have a system that works satisfactorily. This is important - keep in mind that the safety stuff we take for granted in modern cars - air bags, door protection, crumple zones and all the rest - is totally absent in any car of this vintage. And they do not have the brake pad sensors that tell you when the pads are worn out. Ask me how I know - yes, I was young at the time and even dumber than I am now.... All that said, these are solid, reliable little cars that are quite easy to work on, fun to look at and even more fun to drive. You just have to have, or develop, some mechanical sympathy. My next old crock - I'm currently on hiatus from old cars - will be another one of these.

Not to hijack this thread, not at all. But this brings back memories of this car, which I built, with the help of specialists, in 1977 for the magazine I worked for. We called it the Volvo Road Sport, and as far as we know, was the first-ever turbocharged Volvo. Their engineers looked at it, liked at, and a year or two later, turbos started showing up on Volvos. Here it is at Turn 6 at Riverside International Raceway.

Momo Indy for sure. Nice.

This thread is incredibly discouraging. I'm in SoCal and badly in need of a 2002 - just because, having sold my '82 SC and now being newly retired and without something out in the garage to keep me off the streets (bought a car for my son with the proceeds of the P-car, so that money is gone). Prices reflected in this thread are many multiples what cars seem to be going for.

Place called Automotive Innovations, in Van Nuys, does really good work. I think the founder, Kevin, still runs the place. They do mostly Porsche work, but might just be willing to fix your car for you. I've used 'em and count myself as a satisfied customer. Good luck.

Make sure the points are set correctly, then make sure it is timed perfectly. Timing, it seems to me, could be the reason for a reluctance to start.

If you have two days, I'd avoid I-5 as much as possible and stay on the Oregon coastal route. Good driver's roads, gorgeous scenery. Long stretches with not much civilization. You won't regret it.

Probably it's worth looking at the tire comparison feature at Tire Rack's Web site. One thing I do know about the Avid is that it typically has a soft sidewall, which helps greatly improve a car's ride at the expense of just a little steering crispness.

Love the Grammar Cat photo!

Love the Grammar Cat photo!

Pretty tempting, particularly on the left (exhaust) side; but might this not also be accomplished, and somewhat more easily, but installing installation on the firewall inside the car?

If the gasket is compromised, it must be replaced. Next question?

Uh, a modification here - five quarts total should do it; but fill it until the dipstick registers full, then carefully start the car (I crank the thing over with the coil disconnected so that I can be sure that the fresh oil has found its way into the engine's vital parts, then reconnect the coil and start it). Let it run for a minute or two. Shut it off, check the dipstick again, and fill as needed. What you probably will find is that the level is down a bit due to the volume required to fill the filter.

I second the vote for Yamabond. There is something that you can get at your local Honda motorcycle shop that's worth having, though - uh, I mean other than a sportbike that will rip off hot laps. It's Honda Spray Polish - great stuff. Haven't bought any foR A while, but last time I looked it was 5/6 bucks a can and worth every penny.

I'm looking at what seems to be a pretty nice car - but I've got a couple of big questions about it. I wonder if you folks would care to chime in, here. Someone has transplanted a 320i engine into it, complete with the Bosch K-Jetronic fuel-injection system. Seems to run pretty well. But I'd have thought that such a swap is a bit like swapping an LS1 crate motor into an otherwise pristine tri-year Chevy. It seems a resto-mod sort of thing to do. And I wonder if it compromises the car's overall value and long-term desirability. Thoughts? Thanks in advance -

If I recall correctly, a throwout bearing would continue to howl when you depress the clutch pedal but would have no effect on shifting difficulties. I think that perhaps you have a clutch adjustment problem - among, perhaps, other things. I have to wonder how much slack the pedal movement has, when you depress it, before it begins to encounter resistance. Should be at least an inch and not a lot more than that, I should think.

So if I'm reading this correctly, a number of you who are longtime 2002ers seem to think that an E30 coupe is a better deal for all-round use - those of you, at least, who wouldn't rather drive a pickup. This has been a very helpful string because I continue to wrestle with this question. Certainly seems to me that in some ways, an E30 is an improved 02. Howls of protest, maybe, but about the same size, better motors, standard 5-speed transmission, better interior, better HVAC. Quieter, more comfortable. Ah, but electronics that are a pain in the butt. But not as visceral. And for all their visual similarities, not nearly as cool looking. My wife, who is incredibly patient with me and who puts up with my mechanical whims, including a long string of motorcycles, this time is urging me toward "something we would actually use." That's sounding a lot like an E30. I'm well into codgerhood now, and don't relish being uncomfortable.

One gathers from reading here that a number of folks run E30s. Interesting, handsome cars, says I, and I'm more than a little interested. So here are a couple of questions for anyone who might care to respond: How do the E30s compare to '02s in terms of maintenance and upkeep? Ease of owner tuning and servicing? Thanks in advance.

When bearings of any kind go bad, as far as I know, one of the symptoms is that the surfaces of the races - the inner-and-outer surfaces around which the balls or rollers circulate - erode. Which is why it's critically important to keep them properly adjusted and lubricated. When they go bad, the bearings begin making a low-frequency rumbling, or grumbling, sound. When you pull the bearings apart, you'll be able to see this erosion with your, how you say, "nekkid eye." I should think that El Strange-O tire wear would indicate some other problem. Like an alignment problem. Or worse. But hey, what do I know? Free advice like this is worth exactly what you're paying for it.

She stood on the car's roof? In HEELS? Yikes!