INDUCTION CEREMONY
Classic & Sports Car|August 2023
The BMW 2002 turbo was a poorly timed but appealing statement of intent that heralded a new wave of mid-'70s performance motoring
RICHARD HESELTINE
INDUCTION CEREMONY

The man with the mahogany suntan and pastel-hued Lycra cannot get enough of us the international language of hand signals speaks volumes. It helps that the word 'turbo' is universal, mind, as is the whooshing sound. And this is the third such tête-à-tête in the past five minutes. Sorry, it's time to leave for one more panning shot, time to enter a Vaseline-overthe-lens, soft-focus dreamscape. Driving along Estrada do Guincho, the road alongside the beach that appeared in the opening scene of James Bond movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service, makes it hard not to romanticise.

Portugal's Estoril Coast is a thing of wonder, as is the carnival of exotica that accompanies it. None, though, have quite the gravitational pull of a 1974 BMW 2002 turbo. This is the trailblazer that got burned, a non-homologation special that nevertheless had competition ancestry. It also looks achingly hip, in a screwed-on spats, lairy stripes sort of way. Looks-wise, nothing about this car is in the realms of the subtle. However, approach the turbo expecting all hell to break loose with each exploratory prod of the accelerator, and prepare to be disabused. There's brimstone in here for sure, but it's kept in check.

What impresses people is generational, and the turbocharger is a case in point. There was a time, say, four to five decades ago, when forced induction was the new big thing. And by 'new', we of course mean 'old', because the technology had been around for aeons. It's just that in the 1970s, and particularly the '80s, a car bearing the legend 'turbo' somewhere in its nomenclature suddenly represented bragging rights. It equated to a certain kind of cachet that went way beyond mere performance; it represented cutting-edge cool. Heck, there was even an aftershave called Turbo.

Denne historien er fra August 2023-utgaven av Classic & Sports Car.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra August 2023-utgaven av Classic & Sports Car.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA CLASSIC & SPORTS CARSe alt
A Breath of Fresh Air- Alfa Romeo's exotic, V8-powered Montreal was like nothing the marque had made before, but can it compare with a Porsche masterpiece, the 911S 2.4?
Classic & Sports Car

A Breath of Fresh Air- Alfa Romeo's exotic, V8-powered Montreal was like nothing the marque had made before, but can it compare with a Porsche masterpiece, the 911S 2.4?

The stereotype of the ItaloGermanic automotive rivalry is that the Latin car will be brilliant to drive, but poorly built and ergonomically flawed, while the Teutonic will be the opposite. Yet these 2+2 sports coupés both ran against orthodoxy. In the Montreal, Alfa Romeo created an outlandish-looking two-door more comfortable, more powerful and more refined than anything it had produced for decades. Meanwhile, Porsche continued to refine its back-to-front, austere and increasingly aged 911. Neither took a traditional development path, but both created thrilling and individual cars that have echoed through the decades.

time-read
9 mins  |
August 2024
Daring to be diminutive
Classic & Sports Car

Daring to be diminutive

AMC's Gremlin and Pacer, and Ford's much-derided Pinto, led America's response to the threat of imported European compacts

time-read
8 mins  |
August 2024
THE LONG WAY ROUND
Classic & Sports Car

THE LONG WAY ROUND

There is a great tradition of overland trips by Land-Rover, but the tale of this 70s Aussie epic and the car itself was discovered by chance

time-read
10 mins  |
August 2024
Handsome cab
Classic & Sports Car

Handsome cab

The Phantom V limousine marked the beginning of the end for coachbuilder James Young, but this Rolls-Royce represents the craft at its very best

time-read
7 mins  |
August 2024
DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES
Classic & Sports Car

DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES

Racing for their own F1 teams brought some drivers success and an enduring legacy. For others, it turned into a nightmare

time-read
8 mins  |
August 2024
20 30 LITRES CYLINDERS, 400BHP......AND MORE THAN A CENTURY OLD
Classic & Sports Car

20 30 LITRES CYLINDERS, 400BHP......AND MORE THAN A CENTURY OLD

Thunderous torque, flame-spitting stub-exhausts, white-knuckle thrills - and hopefully no spills - aboard a trio of Edwardian racing titans

time-read
10 mins  |
August 2024
ICON.
Classic & Sports Car

ICON.

The three top-selling vehicles in the USA in 2023 were pick-ups, topped by the Ford F-Series. This is the truck that started it all

time-read
7 mins  |
August 2024
Blurred Lines
Classic & Sports Car

Blurred Lines

lan 'Del' Lines blended the V8 burble of Triumph's open GT with real practicality in his Stag V8 saloons and estates

time-read
7 mins  |
August 2024
Home of the brave
Classic & Sports Car

Home of the brave

The innovative Silverstone proved a hit with keen amateur drivers. To mark its 75th, Healey's club racer returns to the circuit for which it is named

time-read
8 mins  |
August 2024
PLAYING ALL THE ANGLES
Classic & Sports Car

PLAYING ALL THE ANGLES

Alfa Romeo's wild RZ eschewed the jellymould styling of the period to offer a striking, wedge-shaped take on open-topped performance motoring

time-read
8 mins  |
August 2024