BMW 2000/ 2002tii Touring Coupé (1971-74)

The BMW New Class (German: Neue Klasse) was a line of compact sedans and coupés produced by German automaker BMW between 1962 and 1977. The term New Class referred to the 1.5L to 2L class of automobiles from which BMW had been absent since World War II.

The New Class began with the four-door 1500 sedan which was powered by a 1,499 cc M10 OHC I4 engine that produced 80 hp (60 kW). Then came the 1800 sedan in 1963 and 1600 sedan in 1964. The shorter length and wheelbase and lighter weight of the two-door sedan turned out to be more suitable than the original New Class sedan for sporting applications. As a result, starting from the two door sedan 1600-2 (the "-2" meaning "2-door"), which was later renamed the 1602, became the basis of the new 02 Series.

From 1968 to 1976, the 2002, iconic ancestor to the popular BMW 3 Series car of today, was produced. In 1971, the high performance, fuel injected BMW 2002tii variant was produced in small quantities, ending in 1975. The 2002tii became BMW’s crowning achievement of the sports sedan concept to-date. "ti” simply denotes touring international, while the additional “i” refers to Kugelfischer fuel injection. It produced 130 hp (97 kW) at 5,800 revolutions per minute giving the car a 30 hp boost over its carbureted stable-mate. Besides the tii variant, the 2002 Turbo was also launched in 1973. 

From 1971 to 1974, a hatchback, developed from the 02 body and designed by Michelotti was available. This model, called the Touring model, was 12cm shorter than the “regular” 02 body and featured split folding rear seats, a large rear hatch and a windshield that had a steeper angle. The 1600 Touring models were produced from 1971-72, while 1800, 2000 and 2002 Tourings were produced from 1971-74. For the fuel injected "tii" version, it was initially sold only as a 2000tii Touring, but for the 1973 model year the “02” was added to the general BMW model designation, 2000tii Tourings then became the 2002tii models. By the end of 1974, 5,058 2000tii Touring and 723 2002tii Touring models, all with round tail lights, were made. The Touring variant was never officially imported to the U.S., which made it a rarity even during its time in production and today makes it among the most coveted of the tii lineup. (wikipedia, 2002tii.org, classicandvintagebmw.tumblr.com, boldride.com & bonhams.com)

BMW Alpina 2002 tii Touring 

Only a very few of the Tourings were then modified by Alpina, the famed Bavarian tuning haus. This 1974 BMW 2002tii Touring Alpina was previously owned by actor Paul Walker (The Fast and the Furious). Equipped with a 2000cc, inline four-cylinder engine with mechanical fuel-injection and a five-speed Gertrag Quick Shift manual transmission. It delivers 130 hp and it was only produced from 1971 to 1975. The car was upgraded after purchase by the dealer with an Alpina kit. This kit included foglights, graphics, minor mechanical upgrades, wheels and interior bits. The car features the Alpina script on its front fenders and rear valance and has a Bilstein Sportkit applique to the right of the driver’s side taillight. (bmwblog.com)

For an extra five thousand dollars, Alpina supplied such goodies as a limited slip differential, Alpina chassis setup with Bilstein suspension, larger Alpina wheels shroud in Pirelli tires, higher ratio steering box, ventilated rear disk brakes adjustable sway bars, and a lowered stance. (bonhams.com)

(Photos from petrolicious.com, bonhams.com, autowp.ru, 

bmwblog.com, ebay.com & photography.kinja.com)