For myself and many other automotive enthusiasts, BMW’s 02 Series is a “bucket list” vehicle to own. While countless examples of the iconic sports car are projects that require significant time and cash, this 1974 BMW 2002Tii that’s available here on eBay is a well-sorted example.
This BMW is available in Bellingham, Massachusetts with a clean title. The seller mentions that the vehicle has plenty of service records detailing its history, and also notes that it is a turnkey specimen that is ready for daily driving.
The exterior of the vehicle still features the original Polaris Silver paint color, and it also has a factory sunroof. While the seller does not include photos of the vehicle’s undercarriage, the strut towers seem solid all around, and there’s no indication that this 2002Tii is hiding any serious problems.
This model year also represents the first year that BMW began using square-shaped tail lights for the 2002 in the United States, and it is also a final year Tii model, which includes various suspension and brake system upgrades over the standard 2002.
You’ll find a dark blue interior theme that is mostly original, with a slightly newer radio being the only noticeable update. Though there isn’t much to see in this simplistic cabin, it is very tidy.
Though both the regular 2002 and the 2002Tii use BMW’s 2.0-liter M10 4-cylinder engine, the Tii features a Kugelfischer mechanical fuel injection system and an exhaust manifold with a larger diameter. The engine has 117,601 miles on it, and it pairs to a 4-speed manual transmission to drive the rear wheels. Additionally, the seller notes that this little BMW recently received service, and ensures that it runs and drives well.
At the time of publication, bidding is at $18,000 with 23 bids. Would you bid on this final year 2002Tii?
Nice car but to much money for me. A rare car here in rural Wisconsin. Can someone tell me if the rear seat back folds down? Something going on with that back seat.
No, Germans in the 02’s, no folding. Seats are seats. From the looks it’ll sell for twice the 18k.
What’s wrong with the seats is that the seller was too cheap to have those non original looking seat covers upholstered properly.
The back seat does not fold down. It appears that the padding is shot, and the simple solution is to remove the seat, apply new padding and re-stretch what appears to be the original vinyl covers. A pretty easy fix on these.
Now, for the”snorkel”. You will see the round tube next to the radiator on the passenger side. This tube accepts the snorkel from the air cleaner on the carbureted cars. The injected Tii cars did not have this tube. SO, there appear to be 3 explanations these days when a snorkel shows up on a Tii: 1)The car isn’t a factory Tii, but rather a clone of some sort; 2) The front end of the car was damaged and a replacement radiator support was sourced from a carbureted car; or 3) BMW actually did use this snorkel sheet metal even on Tii cars.
The VIN on this car decodes to a genuine US spec tii built in July 1974. There is a lot of controversy around this in the 2002 hobby, but there is significant evidence to suggest that whenever the factory ran out of “non-snorkel” front panels for tii’s, they used the standard 2002 “snorkel” type panel. These were never sold as spares, so if a panel was replaced in in a collision, it was likely a standard panel.
BMW did not provide any non-snorkel replacement braces so if the car was tapped in the front, the only option was to install the standard replacement brace with the snorkel. Today, people cut out and weld over the snorkel Wasn’t worth it to do that a few years ago. The VIN provided to eBay does come up as a tii, built in July of 1974..among the last. This is a very honest example of a tii at a good price. It would take very little to make this car into an excellent 3- driver. The Polaris Silver is a great color, too. One of mine is that color.
I’m sure this is a nice enough car, well built and looks like reasonably maintained. My only issue with these 2002’s is they are the ugliest car ever produced by BMW. They look like a brick with wheels.
A lot of people say that, but keep in mind it is the brick that saved BMW. The same guy who designed it (Wilhelm Hofmeister) also came up with the original design for the first E9 coupe, which is arguably the most beautiful car BMW ever built. I think it was a case of form following function.
Right? But kind of part of the charm. My college roommate had an orange tii in absolutely perfect restored shape circa 82-83. He parked it in a field with long grass, and it caught fire. Massively burned. Insurance paid to have the whole thing redone. Lucky him. It was fun to ride in and he drove it like he stole it.
How many E21s and E30s can you buy for one of these? At this point, tii 2002s are as expensive as cheap Ferraris.
There is a BMW 1600 GT (Glas-Frua) on BAT right now that appears will reach $100K!! The slower the BMW, the more expensive…?
If I were fortunate enough to be the new owner of this beautiful car, the first thing I would do is to dump the bumpers and drive it! I would then try and source the earlier, thin chrome bumpers, and if I never managed to find them I would drive it without bumpers forever. What the US people were even thinking about by forcing all cars to have 5 mph bumpers fitted I can’t guess. I mean, 5 mph bumpers aren’t going to save any injuries in any crash over 30 mph anyway.
Ken they weren’t meant to save from injuries. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, IIHS, the US insurance industry lobby liked them for saving the costs of parking lot and low speed ding repairs. Money talks.
Agreed. You can’t change the ugly DOT required square tail-lights. But early 2002 steel bumpers are plentiful and it’s an easy retrofit. Certainly makes the the lines of the car much more graceful.
I don’t know if DOT required larger tail lights (look at how Beetle tail lights doubled in size every 5 years) but they did require the ugly side markers tacked on to this car, Mercedes, and others). I don’t understand why these are replaced during an expensive restoration. Not what Munich intended.
The BMW TII has always had a very distinct cult like following but I must add that to get the big money for them they must be numbers matching and documentation up to date and any questions better have a good appropriate answer!
I had a 74’ Tii that I enjoyed but the mechanical fuel injection was an ongoing issue. The dealer would say I needed new injectors and it wasn’t a cheap fix. I then found a mechanic who soaked them in alcohol overnight and then would reinstall. He said to put in a can of dry gas at each fillup. I paid $5600 new and sold 4 years later with 66k miles for $4800. I thought I was a bandit!
Ended:Jan 20, 2020 , 8:54AM
Winning bid:US $21,301.00
[ 32 bids ]
That was a score for the buyer at that price. It may not be a roundie, but an original tii in this condition with minimal rust in Polaris silver is only going to go up in value. In the meantime, it will be a gas to drive just as it always has been since new.
I bought a new 72 Tii in December and fell asleep at the wheel on the first night I owned it, drove off the freeway and i’m told rolled several times and then end over end.
I walked away, well 3 stitches in my shoulder, under 100 miles on the odometer.
Bought (ordered) a new identical 73 the next day. Drove it for 80,000 miles and sold it for $1200 more that it cost new.
Great car.
Insurance company depreciated the old one based on miles driven.