APRIL 2019 35ME AND MY CAR
well as being markedly cheaper than the
2002 saloons and, thus, dropping itself
neatly into Paul’s budget range. It also had
twin carbs, and everyone knows that twin
carbs are for winners, as well as natty front
foglights and E21 ‘turbine’ alloy wheels.
“It seemed presentable and drove well,”
Paul recalls. “The guy who’d restored
it had done so by himself, and was an
active member of the forum – so I took
the plunge, much to my wife’s dismay.
Although she now loves it, of course.”
Well, naturally... who wouldn’t? The 2002
Touring is such a charming thing, both to
drive and to behold as a hunk of sculpture,
and the rakish fastback ticks all sorts of
practicality boxes. There’s very little here
not to love.A PROMISING START
Having firmly ticked the ‘buy a 2002’ box
in late 2013, Paul’s initial impressions of
his new purchase were exactly as rosy as
you’d hope. Sure, it wasn’t quite as fast or
refined as some of the cars he’d previously
owned, but it wasn’t meant to be; it wasbought for its character, its design, and for
that intangible reason common to all of us
when we buy a random car that we can’t
quite rationally explain – the heart wants
what it wants. If the car’s right, it’s right.
The new arrival wasn’t just splendid
to look at either, Paul found it engaging,
playful and fun, and was having a whale
of a time with it... right up until it started
falling to bits.
“It has proper spirit and feedback, it
looks awesome, and you get out of it
buzzing, and smelling of unburnt fuel,”
he grins. “It certainly made the commute
more fun!
“But then, after about two months,
things started to go wrong, and I really
started making use of the breakdown
cover on my insurance. First of all the
front, left wheel bearing seized – I thought
the suspension had collapsed. It turned
out that someone had only bothered to
replace the outer bearing, as the inner was
seized into place. Then, a few weeks later,
it lost all power and it cut out. I limped
into work and got towed home again.The 2002 Touring’s proportions
do annoy Paul sometimes; he
believes it just needs an inch
or two shaved off the roof!
Paul believes that the 2002
Touring is such a charming
thing, both to drive and to
behold as a hunk of sculpture.