The Roundie - 1973 BMW 2002

[Fruttolo]

Yeah the rear bench was a total eyesore, can't see why anyone would want you to keep it green/brown. Much much better now.

Also I think that seat is really nice and that you should reconsider buying the second one and keeping them on (and only carry skinny passengers LOL)

[Quillhill36]

Don't ever apologize for making your car more comfortable for you, dude. We can all give you shit but at the end of the day, none of us are driving your car. I for one ***** the seats as they were. Much cleaner now.

[bwwaaaa]

Likely Unpopular

So far mostly everyone has not liked this choice at all. I'm certainly not expecting anyone here to like this decision either, but bare with me. I do have my reasons. I dyed my rear seats over the weekend. You may remember that they were this very odd green/brown combination. Let me start by stressing, this was not factory. Someone redid these seats at some point during the car's lifetime. They also never intended to rock the green vinyl, I'm not 100% sure what the story was but there are obvious signs that they used the green vinyl to reupholster the seat and then dyed it a matching saddle brown. Areas that did not get direct sunlight still had some of the brown dye showing.

Highlighted there you can see traces of brown dye, faded out over the years.


A lot of people moaned that this was "very 70s" and I should have kept it. It is also "very ugly".

In order to dye the rear bench, I did some research and discovered SEM marine vinyl dye would do the trick. I have found other 2002 owners who have done this with great results, and I figured if it's good enough to restore seats on a boat, it's good enough for a non-functional rear seat in a 2002. This is not spray paint, but specific product for this purpose. I do have to stress that the back seat in my 2002 will never have passengers. It's purely for aesthetics at this point, I have the seat belts tucked under the seat and any weight over the rear like that would likely cause the car to rub. There is also a chance the back seat will be removed entirely in the future, but more on that later.

Bad picture, but the vinyl prep was key in all this as well. Cleaned and softened the vinyl for dye.

I love the results. It actually needs another coat, but I ran out of dye before I could finish. It should be in today, so I'll be giving the whole rear bench another coat and that will finish off any light spots. The black doesn't rub off when you touch it, and shows very nicely.

You can see some light spots that need touch up here.

I **** pre-emptively defending my decision on this, but I have gotten a lot of shit for doing this. For some reason, a lot of people loved the green and brown. I really felt like I was sitting in a circus tent, and it was by far my least favorite part of the interior. Sahara Beige has grown on me quite a bit, but no amount of time would help me come to terms with the baby poop green rear seat. The next big step will be to replace the red carpet (which is actually much grosser then it looks) with a black carpet. I like black interiors, and that will drastically help my level of happiness when driving the car. Sounds stupid, but it is what it is. The black and red coco mats can stay though.

This leads me into part two of where I will likely catch more shit. Bare with me, I promise I'm not going crazy, there is a method to my madness. I purchased another driver's seat. I love the period correct look and feel of the Recaros I have, and I intend to have them reupholstered. Both of them. However I also need to refoam, and repair the drivers seat. In the meantime, I wanted to try a more canyon carving friendly approach.

I purchased a Car Make Corn's bucket seat, something normally intended for a Miata, and I intend to put it in the driver's position. I chose this particular seat for a few reasons. I love the Car Make Corn's shop in Japan, it's such a cool place in general, and they put out some quality products. I contacted Kadin from CMC USA and he helped me source this seat. I actually picked it up at this year's JCCS, pulling it from a car he sponsors. I also find the seat to be incredibly comfortable. I have a really bad lower back, and for whatever reason the CMC seat just fits me right.

This is just something I am experimenting with, the Recaro will make another appearance in the future when it is all reupholstered and ready to go in. I thought about just doing both seats, but I like having passengers with me and there is no real reason to subject them to a tight seat. The passenger Recaro is in good shape, and comfortable for everyone who rides along with me.

The seat in the Miata I removed it from at JCCS. Nothing like driving from Phoenix to Long Beach and back to Phoenix in the same day, just to buy a seat!


This gives you a very vague idea of how it might look in my 2002. Obviously pre-bench dye.

So there it is. A bucket seat so I don't flop around in the car, and a black rear bench. I'm looking at carpeting options right now, but I'll be pulling and trashing the red carpet soon. I'll be talking to another shop about the trunk rust repair this week, and hopefully getting the ball rolling on that soon. After that, suspension refresh, cooling system refresh and so on. Bare with me, because I know not all of these are popular decisions, buuuuut I promise I haven't lost sight of the end goal. Dying the seat and the CMC bucket are stop gaps, things to make me more comfortable and happy in the short term, while the long term plans flesh out. This is a bit of a low point after that video, but it'll all come together.

[bwwaaaa]

that rolling vid.... blew my mind

car is looking great too

It's so cool to see it rolling!

Thanks all!

I'm drooling over the camera equipment but mostly on the 2002

Looks so good

Yeah that camera rig was insane. When I saw the RED hanging off the back of the Land Cruiser, I knew they meant business haha.

[DawsonLiri]

I'm drooling over the camera equipment but mostly on the 2002

Looks so good

[Fruttolo]

It's so cool to see it rolling!

[Miroteknik]

that rolling vid.... blew my mind

car is looking great too

[bwwaaaa]

More Small Updates

I realize that it has been quiet lately. Progress has been pretty slow on the car, mainly because I've been swamped with school. I have also been waiting for my fabricator to clear some space in his garage to tackle the projects I have coming up. However parts have been steadily trickling in, and I'm hoping to get cracking in the next few weeks. As always, maybe the next post will be more eventful, but here's what I have for you now.

I purchased a right rear shock tower from Restoration Design. After some probing, it looks like this is the only full piece that needs to be replaced in the rear. The rest can be safely patched. At least that's the hope, as with any rust there is always more than you think. So I may be ordering even more sheet metal here shortly if things go wrong. But regardless, this is in and will be grafted into the car soon.

I also noted that I have been having cooling issues. Well, this should solve that. I purchased a Scirocco style radiator from JEGS that has a considerably thicker core. It has about the same dimensions as the current radiator otherwise, but there will be some minor duct work, a considerably larger/more powerful fan, and obviously the added... girth. I also picked up a Mishimoto oil cooler, as well as the stock E30 325is oil filter housing/cooler lines. This is more of an insurance policy, but I figure this car needs all the help it can get. After speaking to @tonytony002, he gave me some valuable advice on how to properly cool the M20 down. I'll be running a 13 inch pusher fan, a lower temperature thermostat, and the fan will be triggered at the thermostat housing. That should do the trick.

This will all be tied into a new tube front end. 2002s require bracing up front when they are cut for M20 swaps. This was never done, so the car lacks some structural rigidity. The new tube front end will add the rigidity back in, as well as give cleaner mounting points for the radiator and oil cooler.

Finally, some damage report. I had an RS hex cap fly off on the freeway the other day. Somehow, beyond all human understanding, the waffle stuck on the wheel for 30 miles. I also had the passenger side knee trim fall off. I still have the trim, but it looks like the clips are just old and failed. So I have to order some new clips to get that on now. Neither of these are huge deals, but it's a bummer to have the car suddenly look so shabby. The above is the last known photo of that hex cap, before it peaced out.

I also ordered some vinyl dye for the rear seat. I'm determined to get rid of the green. So that'll be a project I tackle here shortly, now that the weather is getting better. I also want to try to dye the carpet black, as I ****, ****, **** the red carpet. While I'd like to replace it down the line, dying it black is a good budget option while I tackle more important issues. I'm also debating running a fixed back bucket seat for the driver's seat, but more details on that later.

route vers inconnu from The Reelbros on Vimeo.

Also, I wanted to share a video an old friend of mine shot of my 2002 and another friend's 912. They needed to test out a new camera rig, and hit me up to use the Roundie as a test subject. I had a blast bombing around some quiet desert roads, and the footage really turned out incredible. Gives me some motivation to get this car ready for the Arizona driving season. It's a riot.

[bwwaaaa]

Sad about the bad luck with your car but good thing you decided to do it well once, you're gonna enjoy it better in the years to come

That "patina" 2002 is so cool but after at least 12 years I am passioned with rat culture I still can't get why everyone (especially in the euro side of things) have to put on roof racks and load them with every piece of crap they can find in their property. It ruins the whole look of the car IMO and I wish they would stop

That's the idea, I'd like to hold on to this car for a long time. I kind of mapped out the different ways to tackle the problems with the car and the best solution I could think of was to essentially redo the swap. Fortunately the way it's mounted is solid, but I need to redo all the wiring and plumbing, which is the crappy part of any engine swap haha. The goal is to have a nice little street cruiser by the time I'm done

Also I agree with you on the rat look. While the green car was very well executed, the look isn't for me at all. I appreciate him applying a unique style though, and nothing he's done isn't reversible if he ever changes his mind. I'm certainly no purist, but I like subtle touches. Either way, his M20 swap was considerably better executed than mine, so props to him for that.

Looking great. I love it

Thanks!

[Fruttolo]

Sad about the bad luck with your car but good thing you decided to do it well once, you're gonna enjoy it better in the years to come

That "patina" 2002 is so cool but after at least 12 years I am passioned with rat culture I still can't get why everyone (especially in the euro side of things) have to put on roof racks and load them with every piece of crap they can find in their property. It ruins the whole look of the car IMO and I wish they would stop

[bwwaaaa]

When It Rains, It Pours

Fair warning in advance, this post is just a wall of text, more to document this part of the build for myself. But let me catch you up to speed. If you follow my Instagram, you'll know that I did not get to road trip the 2002 over the Labor Day weekend. Unfortunately it seemed like everything went wrong with the brakes. I was unable to finish the big brake swap, as I realized I was missing parts for the rear disc conversion. Also, per the scolding of numerous veteran 2002 owners, I discovered that I really should have sent my Volvo calipers off to be properly modified before installing. They were absolutely right, but this was not something I knew needed to be done. While the Volvo calipers do just "bolt on" to a 2002, it's an exercise in shimming and swearing.

In a panic, I overnighted stock calipers from Ireland Engineering. I just wanted something on the car that would get the job done. Once those calipers got in, I threw all the stock parts back on the car, only to find out one of the new calipers was defective. This is by no fault of Ireland, and they were really helpful in processing the return, but unfortunately I was down to the wire and could not drive to San Diego on the sticky caliper that I had left. So I limped my poor Roundie home from my friend's garage. The upshot is, Ireland Engineering worked with me to also modify my Volvo calipers. I definitely did this the wrong way around, and should have had this done before powder coating obviously. But you live and you learn, at least they will fit properly now.

Big SoCal Euro was actually a pretty solid learning opportunity for me, and confirmed some worries that have been bouncing around my head for a while. Ever since I picked up the car, I haven't been exactly stoked on the wiring job of the car. While it's functional, the car does run, it's ugly and impossible to diagnose anything in the rats nest. Additionally, elements like the radiator and fluids plumbing have really not been done to the standard I would have liked. I spotted a few M20 swapped 2002s at Big Euro, and spent a ridiculous amount of time looking through their engine bays to get a better sense of how things should be done. For reference:

My messy engine bay.

This is my engine bay. It's crowded, messy and I'm scared to even show the wiring. What you're looking at is the entire E30 system, shoe-horned in a way where it simply doesn't fit. The wiring harness lays over the intake manifold, it's difficult to access the brake master under the intake boot, and the radiator is just not cutting it in the Arizona heat. Side note, I believe this to be a Mk2 Jetta radiator, so I guess it matches my seats... There are also a number of 2002 pieces just sitting in the bay that were never removed. Now look at the below, a car I spotted at the show.

I noticed that the owner of this car routed the wires much better, put in a significantly larger radiator that does away with the coolant tank, and had a remote reservoir for their master cylinder. While these might seem like small changes overall, it not only significantly cleans up the engine bay, but likely makes the car significantly safer. I'm worried wires or hoses are going to rub through in my current setup. I'm still determined to save this car, but the reality is quickly settling in that there is no real easy fixes left. It's time to redo things right.

So here's the tentative gameplan. I'm waiting for the '41 Chevy in my garage to be picked up, once that space is clear the 2002 is going in. I'm going to pull the M20, and redo elements of the swap I am unhappy with. That means getting an appropriately sized radiator (with a support welded in), replumbing the fuel, coolant and brake lines, removing any unneeded systems, as well as getting the rust repaired. While I could ignore a lot of this, it's in my best interests to make sure everything is done right. The last thing I need is for the car to go up in flames because a fuel hose burst on some frayed wires. This is the risk you run when purchasing someone else's project, sometimes you have to dive in a redo things to your standards.

While that is out, I'll do bushings, reinforcements, any chassis bits that I can tackle. I'm also hoping to get the engine bay painted at that time. While full paint is a while off, I may as well tackle the bay while the engine is out. So I'll have to make some definitive decisions about color soon. This is all pretty standard build stuff to be sure, but part of me figures by putting this out there, it helps hold me accountable . I don't have a time frame, but I also don't really want the 2002 to be off the road all that long. So here's hoping to a relatively quick turn around time. With any luck, this time next year the car will be good to make a cross country trip. So I guess the point of this post is, things will be getting a little more serious then just bolting parts on. I hope...

Because I like ending on positive notes, here are a couple pictures I took this weekend. I should really take the time to take better photos of my 2002.

My ride to Big Euro, my friend's Mk3 GLX. Swapped into another car briefly to get this shot.


These twins were stunning. If I had a square tail car, I'd be ordering turbo flares and wats right now.


This is the car that has the clean M20 swap above. Not my style, but well done. Owner: @visualsbyjoshvaldez

[SebastienPeek]

Definitely watching this thread! Looks like a great base, can't wait to see what you do with it!

[bwwaaaa]

Glad you're not too shook up about the rust. All 02s have it somewhere. Might not be a bad idea to throw a bead across the tear.

Yeah, if you plan to swap out the complete strut tower just weld a strip of metal covering the crack so that it will keep it from spreading with the load

Oh yeah, I'm not too stressed about it. I knew the car had some rust, it's just part of the game when playing with 45 year old cars. Especially ones known for rusting out. I've been going back and forth with my fabricator about how to do the repairs best. I also wanted to add some reinforcement in the towers since it's true rear coilover, so I have a few different options on the best way to clean this all up. Once it's done, the car will be better than ever.

Very sad for the rust but I can relate very well, unfortunately...
I'm very interested in this BBK upgrade since I want to do on mine, maybe I shoot you some questions


And those Sharks, I want them soooooo bad

Sure, fire away. I've learned more about these Volvo brakes than I really wanted to in the last few days, so I'm happy to pass on whatever information you need!

[DawsonLiri]

Very sad for the rust but I can relate very well, unfortunately...
I'm very interested in this BBK upgrade since I want to do on mine, maybe I shoot you some questions


And those Sharks, I want them soooooo bad

[Fruttolo]

Yeah, if you plan to swap out the complete strut tower just weld a strip of metal covering the crack so that it will keep it from spreading with the load