Oskar's BMW E82
Photography & Words By Wynn
2013 BMW 128i
A few years back, I remember attending the Bimmercruise event hosted at what was then called Mosport International Raceway. I remember there was a little section for the Mini's; many of them being clean classics with a few newer gens tucked in between. I remember noticing a-what I believe was-a Pepper White newer gen Cooper S, sitting low on a set of what I believe were Rotiform BLQ's. Now at the time, this was one of my first encounters with the car culture, I hadn't been to many events and even my own E36 was still dead stock with no idea of what I wanted to do with it. So when I saw the way this Mini was sitting, I was in love. Now at this time, the whole "Stance" movement hadn't really taken off. Therefore this Mini was one of the first Stanced cars I encountered. Little did I know; that Mini I was so stunned by would end up being Oskars.
Fast forward a few years and Oskar has moved back into a BMW, having previously owned a E46 before his Mini which was news to me. He told me he was excited to get back into the Bavarian world. When it comes the the E82 chassis, it's one of those cars that came into BMW's life for a short amount of time and then suddenly sadly disappeared. Currently in North America the 1 series is no longer produced. Although its short life span may end up to be beneficial to the future of the E82, but I guess we'll have to wait and see. Although the 1 series sold fairly well in the American market, it's a rare sight in the car culture. If a 1 series does happen to make an appearance, it's more then likely to be the very sought after 1M.
This is where Oskar's 1 series comes in. Being one of the very few E82's that have been worked on at all, it's become a car that I look forward to seeing every season. Luckily working for BMW has it's benefits. Oskar was able to locate one of the last manual E82's in Canada. Located in Ottawa, Oskar quickly got in contact with the dealer and was able to claim the car for himself. He was even able to prevent the dealership from adding the license plate markings to the front. Leaving this E82 to be one of the few with the original front bumper with no license plate markings. Deciding to make the trip from Mississauga to Ottawa, when he saw it in person for the first time, he knew he had made the right decision. He then decided to connect more with the car and road trip it back with nothing but a dealer plate on. Having experience with low cars, Oskar quickly knew exactly what he wanted for the 1 series.
Starting it's life out with coilovers and a set of X5 wheels, Oskar recently decided to change it up. Going the air suspension route to have this 128i kiss the pavement at shows. Oskar installed Airrex struts with the Autopilot V2 digital air management system. Hiding everything underneath the floor, the set up looks very clean from inside.
He then decided to add Ultra Black Chrome face Work VS-XX wheels with Gold hardware and of course polished lips, which gives this car a fantastic contrast. He then added the Performance Black kidney grills with the Kerscher front splitter. This splitter only comes in Carbon Fiber but Oskar decided to have it painted black to match the rest of the E82's trim. Lastly he decided to go with full red taillights which is one of my favourite touches on this car. All these little attentions to details is what makes this car a fantastic head turning work of art.
Inside the E82 is pretty much stock, other then the sport pedals which is an impressive touch. Oskar also decided to paint match the engine cover which makes a huge difference when he pops the hood. Lastly Oskar went with a full 3" exhaust keeping the primary catalytic converter in there. The sound this car makes is amazing!
Future plans for the E82 may include an ESS Supercharger which would be impressive as many usually go the Turbo route. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Regardless, this E82 has become one of my favourite BMW's to see every year. The car is super clean and the attention to detail that Oskar has put into it leaves this car breaking necks all day. Things have changed very drastically from his Mini I saw what seems like so long ago, but throughout all the changes one thing has stayed the same. Oskar seems to be able to impress people (especially myself) with the attention to detail and taste he brings to his cars. I eagerly look forward to whats next.
