 |
BMW wasn't above building a stripped-out special - witness the 1502 introduced in 1974 to combat the oil crisis. Fitted with a low-compression, 1572 cc, 75 bhp engine, it was easily spotted by its lack of waistline trim and basic hubcaps without rim embellishments. The 1502 lived on two years after the introduction of the 3-Series as a popular entry-level model. Many were owned by older people who tended to look after them, so 1502s are popular as relatively rust-free donor shells for restorations of more exciting '02 variants.
The 2500CS was a povo' BMW we didn't get: this was the classic, square-jawed, pillarless coupe fitted with the smallest 2.5-litre straight-six and stripped of its electric windows and alloy wheels. The rear side windows were even fixed. In the States, BMW offered the Bavaria, the big 2800 six-cylinder saloon with the equipment of the cheaper 2500. It was an attempt to shift unsold stocks and must be the only occasion BMW has given a car a name rather than a number. Much later, in the '90s, BMW turned its poverty model into a whole separate entry-level genre - the Compact. But that's another tale, for Top 10 Cynical Marketing Ploys.
|
