Let's face it. Most classic cars are gems, but very few come close to the 1972 BMW 2002. Jay Leno has a soft spot for this canyon carver. In his college days selling foreign cars at a dealership in Boston, he marveled at its exquisiteness. Recently, he stumbled upon a restored version at a local bookshop and quickly salvaged the opportunity to have it featured on his show.
Like all good things, the birth of this classic gem starts with an exciting story. In the early 70s, BMW hadn't built a strong reputation in automotive handling or pure driving aesthetics. If anything, they were hurdled with financial struggles.
Two executives forwarded a proposal to the Bavarian automaker's board about modifications they'd done on their BMW 1600-2. For their personal use, Helmut Werner Bönsch, BMW's director of product planning, and Alex von Falkenhausen, designer of the M10 engine, installed 2-liter engines on their cars, and the result was nothing short of remarkable.
Coincidentally, an American importer was looking for a sports version of BMW's 02 series for the U.S. market. As fate would have it – the rest was history.
The BMW 2002 model was an evolution of the BMW 1600-2 model, based on the shortened platform of the "New Class Sedans." The "-2" stood for a two-door car, while the "2002" meant it was a 2-liter engine with a two-door body design.
Leno's guest, Dorian Hicklin, the owner of the restomodded 1972 BMW 2002, had always wanted to get his hands on the car. It initially belonged to a friend, who sold it to him after lengthy back and forth negotiations.
"It was in a kind of sad, worn state. So this has a full frame-off rotisserie restoration," he revealed. "This actually has a five-speed from a 320 BMW, and also a 390 limited diff from a 320," Dorian Hicklin tells.
Hicklin hasn't added much to his restomod, except for a few nonces and touches from the interior to the suspension.
"This was considered so fast and so good handling back in the day," Jay Leno says.
Hicklin explains everything in detail and even lets Leno take it out for a spin. We'll let you enjoy that awesome cruise experience and conversations in the video below.
Humphrey is a car enthusiast whose love and passion for automobiles extended into collecting, writing, driving, and working on cars. He got his passion for cars from his Dad, who spent thousands of hours working on his old junky 1970 E20 Toyota Corolla. Years later, he would end up doing the same with a series of lemons he’s owned throughout his adult life. Full profile
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