Re: Appeal of the e12 (archive)

I've owned Volvos, Saabs, Fiats, Audis, even a few Toyotas and Subarus. I've also owned an e28 as well as a few 2002's.
Nothing sounds or FEELS as right to me as a nice e12. It's a great size, it's solid, the greenhouse is tall and gives a bright interior, the engine (stock anyway) isn't overly powerful, but it's certainly adequate and completely smooth and rewarding to drive. The sound is almost musical. The six is a great design which I feel is the foundation for all modern BMWs.
Along with that, the car is just damn well made. For 21 years we've had one in our family and it's been perfectly reliable. Original engine and transmission. Keeping it up is very cheap.
It also still has more class, feels more solid and rides better than many new cars.
What's hard to understand about that?

Wow! Right you are Lee...

You've said it all..... I own many BMW's including two 2002's, a E30 325is and several E12's. Of them all, only the E12 feels right.

The 325is is nice and all... but a little boring to look at and feels more like a Honda to drive. Probably something to do with the thin sheet metal and the shear lightness of the car. The chassis is all BMW (per the great handling) and the 2.5l baby six is a sweet engine to rev which makes the car pretty quick and still gets very good mileage. But, really the car doesn't really have a soul...

The 2002? Well it feels like a BMW.... but needs a 5 speed and a six cylinder to be on the same page. The four cylinder is simply too buzzy for long distance trips....but it handles well. So it's a keeper.

The E12, What's not to like? Easy to maintain, mechanically robust,and reliable. The big six is silky smooth... has nice torque and makes the car as quick as most modern sedans. With a modest dollar outlay, it can be made to handle exceptionally, becoming very predicatble to drive fast, and a nice balance that is easy to correct if you get a little out of control....

The car has amazing visability, decent ergonomics (even by today's standards) which makes it feel like it's like it's a much newer car, like maybe 5-10 years old. Which in my book is amazing considering it's a near 30 year old design (first E12's came out in 1972).

So of all the cars I own.... the E12's get driven the most. And I chose to drive them many times over other interesting rides. Never mind I could buy a newer car or get something a bit more exotic....but I still keep driving the E12.

I hope my new BMW Mini will be as good.

1954 Austin Healey 100
1956 Austin Healey 100
1959 Chevy Apache pickup
1960 Austin Mini
1965 MG Midget
1968 Lotus 7
1968 MGC GT
1967 BMW 1600
1968 BMW 2002
1979 BMW euro 528i
1979 Alpina B7
1981 BMW M535i
1981 Alpina B7
1984 Audi quattro turbo coupe
1987 BMW 325is
1995 Dodge Ram

Follow Ups:

[ Follow Ups ] [ 5-series (E12) Message Board ] [ Msg. Board FAQ ]

Questions, comments, or problems, please visit the Roadfly help desk.