Top 10 unforgettable cars

[thereisnoyun]

e30

The e30 was the first mass produced vehicle. Whether they started thier slogan with the 2002 it doesnt really matter. The e30 was the first popularized bmw sports coupe, that was a mass seller. Its the most memorable, because unless you are enthusiasts like us, you really never even know what the 2002 is, nor any other car. But when you see an e30 you know its the old school beemer.

[homegrone30]

i think it was actaully the 700 that saved bmw and allowed them to buy the tooling for producing the 1500

i believe it was the isetta during WWI or WWII that saved bmw

the 2002 was the predecessor to the e30 it was technically the first 3 series

[silversleeper]

I wasn't born back then so I couldn't tell ya how the 2002 affected BMWs status or growth, but the E30 would appear to be the foundation of it's current reputation. Mainly due to its high rate of success and mass sales figures.

[Massive Lee]

The e30 was the first mass produced vehicle. Whether they started thier slogan with the 2002 it doesnt really matter. The e30 was the first popularized bmw sports coupe, that was a mass seller. Its the most memorable, because unless you are enthusiasts like us, you really never even know what the 2002 is, nor any other car. But when you see an e30 you know its the old school beemer.

The 2002 was produced with 400,000 units. I won't call that limited production. It is trully a mass produced car. And unless one is 12 year old, the 2002 is highly recognized on the street as being a true BMW. Put a 2002 and an e30 on the corner of street, and check which one will grab more attention. I own a 2002 racecar and e30 M3 as well as regular e30s. The regular e30 is quite good but will never get the charisma of the two other BMWs. Not to insult e30 owners, but having been in BMWs for the past 20 years and only having owned cars from this brand, I would not over rate the e30. It would be like kids bragging that nothing exists outside of Hondas...

And stating that the e30 is the "first popularized sport coupe" signifies a total lack of BMW's history. That was the 2002's monicker. Followed by the e21 and then the more comfortable and yuppi-esque e30.

Yes, there was life on earth before the days of Duran Duran and Depeche Mode.

[StereoInstaller1]

I think in terms of "Sporting Marquee", it would be the '02. I remember being kinda underwhelmed in the press' response to the E21/E28, but the E30 is really where the non-gearhead public took notice.

So, IMO, race car guys think the E9, then 2002, then M3.

Panache buyers think E30, E34 (most don't know it is an E34) then whatever, E36 and on....totally missing the E31.

In terms of sales numbers, it is undeniably the E30 that floated the BMW boat.

[blunttech]

there would be no e30 if it wernt for the 02.

[Ray Smoodiver]

Yes, there was life on earth before the days of Depeche Mode.

Bullshit :p

[mjg23bmw]

'Neue Klasse' cars of the early sixties (the 1600-2, 1600TI, 1800 TI-which won the German Championship in 1964 and the European touring car championship in I believe 1966--this car was BMW's front line racing machine, and the 2000CS) were the snowball you push from the top of the hill helping BMW out of financial hard times. That snowball got bigger when 2002 and later 2002tii came around at the end of the sixties and early seventies. Then maintained good numbers with the 3.0S and 3.0CSi then the 3.0CSL in the mid seventies. After the 1800 TI, the 2002tii and 3.0CSL were both successful on the track and in keeping the ball rolling for the E21. Which while the 2002 could be the first 3-Series, the E21 was the first called the 3-Series. Then numbers sort of ballooned with the sales of E28 and E30 cars....While the E30 is a huge part of BMW's success, there were cars that came before to help pave the way; then I think BMW put what it learned from the older cars into the E30 and that helped it greatly. And as said by others, the 2002, E21 and E30 all still have a cult like following today which is a tribute the the cars that started it all.

Edit: I forgot about the first M badged car. While it's not really a part of this 3 series discussion, The M535i E12 helped prove that BMW was capable of producing fast sedans. Which I think appealed to power hungry Americans and perhaps helped them look at other BMW models

[euroshark]

The e30 was the first popularized bmw sports coupe

Yeah, forget about those silly E9s and E24s...

[StereoInstaller1]

Yeah, forget about those silly E9s and E24s...

Those cars were great, certainly...but not by any means "popular".