This week, the team at Volks Affair talk about the BMW 2002, the car that helped BMW break America. The 2002 was taken out of production in 1975, but its legacy and lineage live on today. 3- and 4-Series models have connections to the BMW 2002, the sporty 2-door coupe with the 2L engine. Although the BMW 2002 is rarely seen on Australian roads, every day our BMW mechanics are servicing or repairing a vehicle connected to this game changing coupe.
BMW’s -02 Range
2018 is the 52nd anniversary of the BMW -02 range, the car that BMW used to break into America. The story goes, in the early 1960s, unbeknownst to the other, BMW’s head of product planning, Helmut Bonsch, and the designer of the M10 engine, Alex Falkenhausen, both had a 2-litre engine installed in their vehicle. Both men had a 1600-2 for their own private use.
One day, they brought in their, what they thought, unique vehicles, to the BMW headquarters. Excitedly, both men were raving about their special modified 2-doors. Finding the other had the same spark of invention, they teamed up, and suggested to the board that there be an official 2-litre 1600-2. In 1968, the car hit America as the sporty 2002. 400,000 were sold.
Watch the team from Everyday Driver review the 2002 here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QYrKVSPigM
And if you have a 2002, join the Australian 2002 Facebook group here!
Although they would continue producing the 1502 for two more years, BMW stopped making the rest of the -02 range, including the 2002, in 1975. From then on, the sporty 2-door was turned into the 3-Series.
The BMW 3-Series
Originally a 2-door, 4-cylinder vehicle, the first of the 3-Series was launched in 1975 as an entry-level sedan/ coupe. The 2013 versions of these coupes (F30/F31 and F34) became a part of the 4-Series, as they are still today. So we can trace the BMW 2002 from its origins in the -02 range through the 3-Series and into the 4-Series.
The 3-Series has expanded from the original 2-door coupe. It now includes 4-door sedans, 2-door convertibles, 5-door station wagons and hatchbacks and 3-door hatchbacks. Marked as BMW’s most successful model, sales of the 3-series count for 30% of BMW’s total worldwide sales. In 2011, the sixth generation models were released.
The BMW 4-Series
Spinning out from the BMW 3-Series, the 4-Series became what would have been the sixth-generation 3-Series 2-door coupe and convertibles. A lot has changed since the 2002 models; the 4-Series are turbo-charged, with 3-, 4- or 6-cylinder engines (the 2002s were 4-cylinder only). However, the series was launched in Detroit, at the North American International Auto Show, keeping the connection between BMWs sporty 2-door coupes, the 2002, and America alive.
Our BMW mechanics don’t see many original 2002s at our service and repair centre, but every day we see its direct descendents, in 3-Series and 4-Series models. For all your BMW repairs, and services, visit Volks Affair. We are the South Melbourne’s BMW experts.
While you’re here, why not read some of our other BMW blogs? Published weekly, we have blog posts on a range of topics related to the vehicles we service. Or if you would like to book in for a quote, service or repair, contact us today.