engine and drivetrain That poor, poor bastard...

[Mike Self]

"One man's trash is another man's treasure."

Friends don't let friends drive structurally or mechanically dangerous cars...

mike

[Jim_75Sahara]

Looks aside rust can kill you. What if a frame rail breaks or the shock towers give out at 75 MPH? What if the tie rods & ball joints implode at speed? If that's worth $2000, I got one hell of a buy on my 02. Yes, have fun with it, but get it inspected for safety NOW. Kfunk knows how to get his money's worth on a less expensive 02. His took him cross-country, incl. Death Valley. That was cool.

[brad_c-ville_VA]

i spent $1500 on my first 02, a beat up '76 resprayed malaga. it was a rust heap but it ran. i drove it for a year before i got my slightly less rusty but far more hopped up verona '74.

however, that $1500 i spent has paid for itself in that i'm still best buddies with the guy i bought it from, the first friend we made after moving to VA. the parts from that car have saved numerous 02s including my other two '74s. the engine has gone back to my buddy i bought it from in the first place to be rebuilt for his '72. i learned more about 02s wrenching on that '76 and eventually parting it out than i ever would from a haynes manual. and parts from it are still stored in my garage just waiting to be used.

the friendship we made with the PO helped my wife get her current job. i joined the BMW CCA because of the car and now i'm the secretary for our chapter with more bimmerhead friends resulting from that. and on top of it all, i made numerous 02 friends across the U.S. in the 4 years since i purchased my first, rusty, dangerous 02. sure, i probably over paid for that car...but i'd do it again in a heartbeat.

brad.

P.S. - of course, all that said we do have a state safety inspection here in VA which the car passed (somehow) and i did regular maintenance and kept it as safe as possible. i rarely drove it more than 20 miles away from home. however, it did have some pretty rotten shock towers that eventually led to its final demise at the hands of my sawz-all.

[Londonwolfe]

Nice parts car, if it came with some extra parts....

[oh2fly]

I wanna see inside the trunk! Too scared to ask about the frame rails. Boy I don't miss New England when I see cars like this. We have grass growing out of our carpets here, really! Any PNW owners care to back me up?

[JayG]

Does he plan on fixing it fast?

[InkaSteve]

kick out of owning and driving it, well so what?

A kick out of driving it is one thing, but I'm worried about a ball joint seperating on him or one of the rear shocks punching through into the trunk while we's on the turnpike...

If you had bought this car, what are the fist things you'd do to make sure its "Safe"? Ball joints, shocks, brakes, radiator flush, brake system flush... anyone have a recommendation for a shop in Jersey that doesnt mind wrenching on rustbuckets?

Show him this pic and try to convince him to have it checked out...

[H_Krix]

kick out of owning and driving it, well so what?

A kick out of driving it is one thing, but I'm worried about a ball joint seperating on him or one of the rear shocks punching through into the trunk while we's on the turnpike...

If you had bought this car, what are the fist things you'd do to make sure its "Safe"? Ball joints, shocks, brakes, radiator flush, brake system flush... anyone have a recommendation for a shop in Jersey that doesnt mind wrenching on rustbuckets?

Show him this pic and try to convince him to have it checked out...

Will do...

...He'll proably ask "Whats the matter? I don't see anything..."