BMW pays tribute to an icon with 2002 Hommage
Turbocharging, a technology that is great for squeezing big power out of a smaller engine, is now ubiquitous across BMW’s product lineup worldwide. But back in 1973, it hadn’t even been done before on a mass-scale in Europe until the sporty little 2002 turbo came along.
To pay tribute to the trailblazing vehicle and the dawn of the turbocharged era, the automaker has created an appropriately named, one-off BMW 2002 Hommage model showing how a modern interpretation might look in 2016.
“The BMW 2002 Hommage celebrates the extraordinary feats of engineering on which BMW turbo technology is based and re-interprets them in the form of a design study,” said Karim Habib, Head of Design BMW Automobiles in a news release. “With its iconic orange black paintwork, the car has a colour scheme and livery synonymous in the minds of many motorsport fans with the triumphs of the 1970s.”
The Hommage features all the contemporary performance-inspired design cues you would expect from a BMW such as a low-to-the-ground appearance, long wheelbase and short overhangs. Big air intakes, front diffuser and matching integrated trunk wing add an air of aggressiveness.
Simultaneously, though, one gets a definite sense of heritage from looking at the car. There are those same dual round headlamps, tinted yellow as they commonly were back in the day to improve nighttime and inclement weather visibility. And like how the racing version of the 2002 had wide fender extensions attached, the Hommage comes with flared-out wheel arches. Same goes for the two-tone colour scheme, which in this case is created by leaving a section of carbon fibre unpainted thus separating the top half of the body from the bottom.
True enthusiasts might even notice that the front turn signals are separated from the headlight housing, just as they were on the original. A couple of other fun nods to the past include mirrored “turbo” lettering on the front apron and the asymmetric BMW logo to the right of the rear license plate.
The BMW 2002 Hommage could last be seen at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegancein September.
