Here’s something you don’t see every day, especially on this side of the Atlantic: Eric Clem in the CC Cohort spotted this red BMW 2000 Touring, the rare three-door hatchback version of the BMW 2002. Although this one now wears a Washington license plate, it was never officially sold in the U.S., while the European model was a short-lived flop — an interesting concept too far ahead of its time.
Unless you’re congenitally allergic to older BMW cars, this face probably looks familiar: Between 1966 and 1977, BMW built 861,940 of the “02er Series,” which was a big success in Europe and really built BMW’s reputation in the United States. If you look more closely, though, it may look a little off even from this angle: The Touring had a different windshield and front vent windows, shared with the Baur BMW 2002 Cabriolet.
The Touring was inspired by the short-lived 1966–1968 Glas 1004 CL and 1304 CL, the three-door versions of the Glas Type 612. (BMW bought Glas in 1966.)
Although the CL was a rather dorky-looking thing, BMW sales director Paul Hanhemann thought it was a good concept, so BMW solicited Michelotti and Bertone to submit proposals for a similar “Kombi-Limousine” (“sedan wagon”) based on the BMW 02 sedan. The Michelotti proposal was selected, and the new model, dubbed “Touring,” was introduced at the Geneva International Motor Show in March 1971.
There were initially three Touring models. The base 1600 Touring had the 1,573 cc engine from the 1602 sedan, with 85 PS. The 2000 Touring, which is the version Eric Clem photographed, had the single-carburetor 1,990 cc engine from the 2002, with 100 PS; it would be the best-selling Touring model.
At the top of the line was the 2000tii Touring, which had fuel injection and 130 PS.
Starting in September 1971, there was also a carbureted 1800 Touring with the 1,766 cc engine, making 90 PS. Most of these cars had four-speed manual gearboxes, but from May 1971, the 2000 Touring also became available with a ZF three-speed automatic; it was extremely rare.
Although the Touring shared the same 98.4-inch wheelbase as the 02 sedans, it was 4.7 inches shorter overall, which made it look even stubbier than the 02 sedan on which it was based.
The interior was characteristically basic, with vinyl or cloth-and-vinyl upholstery and a well-planned but no-frills atmosphere, typical of early ’70s BMWs.
Cars with the optional Sport Pack had Recaro seats, which were supportive if you were built like a string bean, agonizing if you weren’t. Like the 02 sedans, the Touring had little provision for flow-through ventilation other than the swing-out vent and rear quarter windows, an annoyance in hotter climates.
The hatchback roof made the Touring a bit more versatile than the sedan, but liftover height was high.
With the seats up and the cargo cover in place, there wasn’t a lot of cargo space.
The wheelhouses and rear shock absorber mounts also intruded quite a bit into the cargo area, so only a narrow section in the middle was flat all the way to the rear seat backs.
If you lost or damaged the black rubber caps, you also had to be careful not to scrape your luggage (or yourself) on the protruding shock mounting bolts.
On top of that, the rear seats didn’t actually fold completely flat:
The Touring handled and drove just as well as the 02 sedans, but with stiffer rear springs and firmer damping, its ride was choppier, and there were apparently complaints that the shorter tail made it more susceptible to crosswinds at speed.
A 2000 Touring, lacking any of the emissions controls fitted to U.S. cars, was a good all-around performer, capable of 106 mph flat out and 0 to 60 mph in about 10 seconds, but fuel economy was nothing special. The 1600 Touring drank less fuel, but it couldn’t quite hit 100 mph; the 2000 tii was much faster, capable of 118 mph, but also a lot more expensive.
In 1973, the 1800 and 2000 Touring models were renamed “1802 Touring” and “2002 Touring” (or “2002tii Touring” as appropriate). It appears the slower-selling 1600 model was never rebadged “1602 Touring,” as it was dropped in April 1973.
The 1802 and 2002 models remained in production until April 1974, but they were dropped from West German price lists about two months later. Production for all models totaled 30,206 cars, split as follows:
- 1600 Touring: 4,379
- 1800/1802 Touring: 4,075
- 2000/2002 Touring: 14,980
- 2000 Touring Auto: 989
- 2000tii/2002tii Touring: 5,783
Just a few years later, hot hatches like the Volkswagen Golf GTI would become very popular in Europe, but BMW had been a little too far ahead of the curve with these cars. The Touring also looked a bit awkward, and it cost more than an equivalent sedan, so it never really caught on in Europe. As for the U.S., the reason it was never federalized apparently came down to importer Max Hoffman not liking the Touring and not wanting to have to stock additional parts for it.
There would be other BMW hatchback models later, like the 3-Series Compact, but when BMW revived the Touring label in the ’80s, they applied it only to conventional five-door wagons.
Thanks to Eric for capturing this rare car!
Related Reading
Vintage R&T Road Test: 1967 BMW 1600 and 2000 Tilux – A Brilliant New Smaller BMW And An Excellent Older One (by Paul N)
Vintage R&T Road Test: 1968 BMW 2002 – “But Where Did The Extra Horsepower Go?” (by Paul N)
Vintage Review: 1968 BMW 2002 – Car and Driver’s David E. Davis Picks Favorites (by GN)
Vintage Review: BMW 1600 & 2002 (by yohai71)
Curbside Classic: 1972 BMW 2002 Tii – Fifty Years Of Unbeatable Success (by Paul N)
CC Design: How E12 Spelled The End For Michelotti And Bertone At BMW (by Don Andreina)
This WAS something I saw every day, but that was long ago, at university. I didn’t like it then, and time – despite altering everything else about me – has not changed that. I guess it doesn’t help that I’m not over-keen on the looks of the rather dour and knife-edged 2002 itself.
Later, I loved the E36 – hell, I had one. But my lord, that Compact! A manxed mutt if ever they bred one, so the Touring line endured, for all the world to avoid.
A trivial detail: The red feature car could be an Italian version. The design of the front indicators suggests this.
Looks plebeian to me .
-Nate
Agree with you 100 percent. The typical European standard of the late 1960s/early 1970s. Plebeian.
Perhaps this makes it easier to understand why “Murrican cars” always had their admirers in the old countries. It wasn’t just about torque.
As for the BMW Touring in particular:
The design of the luggage compartment, in particular, has a somewhat cobbled-together feel. An outrage, considering the amount of money they charged customers for it. Fortunately, there weren’t too many fools.
Addendum: Spend a few thousand less on an Opel Ascona Voyage, and you have a nice little station wagon that even can be used as one.
That being said, Opel blundered by building the Voyage only as a 3-door, as German “tradesman’s” wagons like the Kadett Caravan had always been. It would’ve been both a more successful competitor to the Ford Taunus TC Turnier and a more convincing proto-“lifestyle” wagon with five doors.
I like it that I can still be presented with a car that I had no idea ever existed. Thanks to Eric for the fine capture and to you for filling in the blanks!
As an admirer of wagons and old(er) BMWs, the Touring variant of the 2002 is something that I should like, but this car has just never done it for me. Up close and in the metal – there’s an Inka Orange one that lives somewhere near me – they just look (to me) like a 2002 with a poorly realized rear end. I kind of feel the same way about the equally un-loved Fiat 128 3P which the 2000 Touring kind of resembles. Sometimes, boxy is best.
They do though go for crazy money and always seem to be a hit/draw a crowd at the car shows.
I see one or two a year in California. Maybe the same one(s). A little awkward looking but not bad. They should have called it the 1603/1803/2003. Three doors after all 😀.
I can see why they did this, as the hatchback concept did offer practical advantages, especially in Europe where small cars were the norm. But it just didn’t come off right; it looked decidedly inorganic to the original car. And the RWD format compromised the potential cargo area.
My gen-1 Escort also seemed overly vulnerable to crosswinds; my amateur theory is, its max height in profile was too far forward, possibly the BMW’s problem too. Otherwise, the Escort seemed under-engineered, as if Ford couldn’t be bothered to make it more competitive in its class. Last domestic car I owned.
Not so bad in Polaris Silver and more interior pics here… a little Canadian history too https://www.classicgarage.ca/listing/1972-bmw-2000tii-touring/
BMW changed the shape and kept the badge, later models are more attractive and are an actual wagon. The uninspiring slab sided sharp edges design like caught more air in crosswinds, it appears to have less cargo space than my Xsara hatch, but ofcourse that had under floor suspension beam in back.
I wonder why it was badged 2000, and not 2002 since the single headlights and the “sports” dash layout make it a 2002 ahead of the B pillar. A 2000 sedan had quad headlights and a different interior. I know because my father had a BMW 2000 sedan and seeing an ad for the 2000 Touring was one of my first experiences with models we didn’t get in the US.I thought these were a cool idea at the time although as an 8 year old, having a sedan was better.
BMW did try this again with the 1994-2000 E36 3 series Compact, which was E36 ahead of the B pillar and a hatchback with E30 rear suspension aft. These weren’t hot sellers and their E46 successor wasn’t even sold in the US.
“I wonder why it was badged 2000, and not 2002 … ”
Well, maybe they realized they wouldn’t use up all the 2000 emblems by 1972. So why not stick them on the Touring now?