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gastephens

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Everything posted by gastephens

  1. gastephens
    Interesting story about the AC installations. I drove my BMW to a vintage race at Road Atlanta. At the time my AC system was stock with a working York compressor. A guy came over and wanted to see it. He was one of three installers at the port of Jacksonville FL in the mid 70s. They worked at the shipyard parking lot in 90+ degree heat. They had rolling carts of parts they would haul from one car to another installing AC systems before they were shipped to the US East coast dealers. He said there was a good chance he had installed my system because it was a Florida car and the firewall holes were cut in his preferred location!
  2. gastephens
    I think this is the thermostat that I used. The capillary is too long so you just make a loop under the blower and then route it into the evaporator. http://nostalgicac.com/controls-motors/ac-thermostats/rotary-thermostat-18-inch-capillary-probe.html
  3. gastephens
    ^^ +1
  4. gastephens
    Search and search some more. You can find the wiring diagrams and other info you will need posted somewhere on the FAQ or internet in general. I ended up replacing both the temperature and fan controller with units from nostalgic ac. I did have to add a ballast resistor to the temperature controller to get it to operate in the optimal range. http://nostalgicac.com/ I replaced the York compressor with a Sanden with hobiedave bracket (again, search is your friend). I also replaced the dryer, condenser, and lines when I converted to R134. If your system is currently inop then go straight to R134 using only the squirrel-cage fan and evaporator from your Behr console (assuming they are ok). FWIW, it is a big learning curve and lots of work but it is totally worth it. AC makes a car that you can use every day in hot weather and rain.
  5. gastephens
    And how do you get much lighter than 4 thin strips of steel? Now if you could make the hood open the other way...
  6. gastephens
    There is a discussion on the FAQ about them. They are around $65 brand new bmw e30 wheels. They fit perfectly. I got mine from blunt. Call or email them and they can set you up with the wheels, lug nuts, and center caps. Oh yeah, they come in black so you get to paint them! Sent from my XT1097 using Tapatalk
  7. gastephens
    Make sure you have a driver car until you have the 2002 in a reliable state. Trying to restore a car you need for transportation can really be a grind. I too started out with a Miata that morphed into a track car. Then I returned it to stockish and kept it. Then I bought my 2002 and restored it. Today I split daily driver duties between the two. Along the way I built a spec miata for the track. Life is good.
  8. gastephens
    Make sure you treat yourself with courtesy and respect. That guy clearly makes great decisions. [emoji6] Sent from my XT1097 using Tapatalk
  9. gastephens
    Well I found him. He must be in his 80s by now but it looks like he is still practicing in the Tampa area. Should I try to call him? One interesting note. Looking at all of his original records, it appears his ownership experience was not a happy one. He was constantly complaining about brakes and replacing visor clips. He did drive the snot out of the car. It had 112,000 miles by 1980 when he sold it to the second owner, a phD in engineering at University of South Florida. The phD sold it to the engineer I bought it from who passed away from cancer just a couple of years ago.
  10. gastephens
    My car's PO was an engineer in Tampa who had other BMWs. He clearly loved the 2002 since he drove it every day but it was suffering a bit from the daily Florida acid rain. He told my brother he was thinking of selling it but needed to find it a good home. My brother called me, brokered the deal, and delivered it to me in Atlanta. When I finished restoring the car 2 years later, my brother showed him pictures. He was ecstatic that someone cared enough about the car to invest so much time and effort to bring it back to life. Some day it would be cool to find the Tampa doctor who originally bought the car in '76 since I have his name. Since that was 40 years ago, he may no longer be with us. I might go do a Google search right now.
  11. gastephens
    Yes thanks to Scott and all the volunteers. It was a very good event, slightly dampened by rain. The enthusiasm from the participants was infectious and the social media for this event was amazing. Seeing the pictures of all the BMW caravans converging on Asheville made you want to jump in your car right then and join the madness. I think I am in the minority but the highlight for me is driving my car fast through the twisty (wet!) mountain roads. Parking on a field is great and seeing the other cars and meeting people is great too but I built my car to drive, not be seen. I agree with keeping Hot Springs but would vote for a Clarion replacement, if possible, mainly due to the bad location (traffic, construction, and general lack of character). Asheville is such a cool place it is a shame not to be nearer to the coolness. Having hosted large events, I will say it is really hard to find an affordable hotel with everything you want that is willing to put up with a rowdy car crowd. The Clarion may be the best of a limited set of choices.
  12. gastephens
    I've got 30 car-years on Pertronix in 3 different cars with no failures. There are differences with the igniter and igniter II. Don't mix parts from the two systems. Just buy the standard igniter, use it with a standard 3 ohm bosch coil, and it will still be working until the takeover by our robot overlords who will force us to drive autonomous Tesla Model 5s.
  13. gastephens
    Sunset at the horse farm.
  14. gastephens
    Wow, that's amazing. I've only had my '02 for 17 years so it's a slim chance at a golden anniversary.
  15. gastephens
    Next time we want to see some dronuts.
  16. gastephens
    02Anders, You have a sharp eye and a wealth of arcane '02 knowledge.
  17. gastephens
    Netflix DVD rental.
  18. gastephens
    I watched the French flick "The Lady in the Car with Glasses and a Gun" last week. A long-legged red head drives around late 60's France in a stolen T-bird turning heads and causing mayhem. At one point she needs her arm bandaged and the doctor arrives in a 2002. The roux actress gets 4 stars for looks, 3 stars for acting, but alas the movie gets only 2 stars.
  19. gastephens
    I would prefer OEM hard parts but I would be very suspicious of anything rubber. I got some perished OEM valve guide seals that turned out to be NOS but old and brittle. Plastic parts are a toss-up. Sometimes newer parts use inferior material or workmanship but sometimes old parts are brittle. You obviously have an appreciation for quality brands and parts. Apply your common sense, get the best parts you can get, examine them closely and you will be fine. Trust yourself. If a part looks bad it probably is. Send it back.
  20. gastephens
    You get the recycling award for December. I am working a some fiberglass for an old Lotus. I will try your idea. As an aside, "GF" is usually an abbreviation for "girlfriend". That would make your article even more interesting!
  21. gastephens
    The lettering on the Behr AC and the dash are not raised with the exception of of the BEHR logo text. Are you going to have 5 speed text? If so, how should we pay you?
  22. gastephens
    I think my squaretail tii dash has different text than some I have seen. No attempt was made to get accurate square images.
  23. gastephens

    Dash Lettering

    Images added to a gallery album owned by gastephens in Member's Albums

    Squaretail tii dash.
  24. gastephens
    LIGHTS and FRONT FOGLAMP

    From the album: Dash Lettering

  25. gastephens
    LIGHTER and REAR DEF

    From the album: Dash Lettering

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