'76mintgrün'02

I'd say Mark won the race. It's sort of like being first in line for a Craigslist ad. He won the green check! You've got to be quick! How did you wind up clocking the distributor body? Was there a part number stamped into the other side? Maybe I have more questions than you dou. Now's your chance to pull it out of the hole and check the axial play, by inserting a feeler gauge between the gear and body. If it's a large gap, you'll need a new fiber washer or two. Distributors require maintenance to keep them healthy and happy. Don't forget to add a couple drips of oil under the felt plug in the center post and a dab of grease under the points' rubbing block. If that's an #002, it might be fairly new, since they are/were a tii replacement distributor. I need to work on my starter. It's making funny whirring noises sometimes. I keep fussing with distributors instead.

It is typically stamped into the side of the body. It may be an IE offering. I don't think they mark theirs.

You can clock the body of the distributor to one of four positions before you do that. Typically, the body of our Bosch distributors is installed so the part number faces forward. That puts the points on the forward side of the distributor, for easy adjustment. Yours looks 'backwards' in those photos. It'd be nice to see distributor photos without the dust cover installed. The original distributor would have been vacuum retarded. Is that a Bosch #002?

Have you replaced the ball joints with torn boots? Have you tried adjusting the steering box?

Have you tried blowing backwards through the pump to see if the check valve is working? Some pumps don't hold the prime well and the fuel will run back to the tank. Any air leak in the pump feed line will also let it drain back. Sometimes adding a check valve to that line can help. There are a lot of threads discussing them. I see one in Rick's first photo, tucked in next to the wheel well. Tom

I like shopping at Blunttech. RealOEM is great for finding part numbers. No. Description Supp. Qty From Up To Part Number Price Notes 01 Headlining SSD 1 03/1966 07/1977 51441804085 $154.41 01 Headlining ESSD 1 03/1966 07/1977 51441804090 ENDED 01 Headlining 1 03/1966 07/1977 51447480140 $154.41 02 Wire-strap 5 03/1966 07/1977 51447480144 ENDED 03 Grommet 10 51447780135 $1.10 04 Clamp 4 51441805831 $1.56 05 Clamp 6 51441802141 $3.34 06 Cover 1 03/1966 07/1977 51441826395 ENDED 11 Recessed oval head sheet-metal screw ST2,9X13 2 07119902412 $1.30

The passenger side stays up on mine, but not the driver's side. That works okay, since I can flip one up and hold the other, while I use the squeegee on the windshield.

Don't forget to use the plastic insulating bushings on the fuel pump studs. They take up the slack in the otherwise sloppy holes; assuring that the push rod is properly aligned. Part #5. No. Description Supp. Qty From Up To Part Number Price Notes 01 Push rod KFST. PUMPE 1 13311250398 $12.93 02 Insulator AF 1 11111721614 $6.77 03 Set circlip 10 4,0 2 07509064292 ENDED 04 Pin 1 13310075773 $3.60 ENDED 05 Insulating bushing 2 13310075752 $1.57

That sucks. I've got one I bought 12 years ago that I have yet to install. I sure hope it fits. Thirty years ago, I replaced the windshield in my '69 Econoline van and the replacement was very flat looking, compared to the bulbous original glass. It fit the opening, but didn't look half as nice as the original shape. Tom

I took an 081 distributor apart and shared what I found here. https://www.bmw2002faq.com/forums/topic/178062-bosch-distributor-mechanical-advance-limiting-screws/page/8/#comment-1160196 That model uses little 'hairpin' clips to hold the weights and they wear out where the long leg on the clip rubs against the pin. I made up a batch of them and will send you a pair, if you're going to open yours up. More photos of clip making here. https://www.bmw2002faq.com/forums/topic/178062-bosch-distributor-mechanical-advance-limiting-screws/page/11/#comment-1403655 It must be driving season by now! I'd be interested to hear what you've done/learned. I learned that the pod I was using on the #164 was giving 14 degrees of advance, which gave me more than I wanted at idle, so I swapped it for one that gives 10. I've got 16 degrees of advance at idle now (thanks to manifold vacuum). What sort of numbers are you seeing with your 081? Hopefully, you have a white-capped vacuum switch to install, so you can witness the difference the vacuum pod makes first hand. People dismiss vacuum advance as unnecessary, but it allows for more advance during lean conditions, while taking it back out under load; so, what's not to like? Tom

Side note -- Make sure the flange on the divider that's shared with the intake manifold is the same thickness as the one on the manifold. Otherwise the thick washer that spans the joint will not clamp them evenly. You can either shorten the tall one, or put a step on the underside of a washer to make up the difference.

You're welcome. I learned that trick from @tzei back in 2015.

So the answer to Tom's question has to do with carburetor changes? Does a faster moving air stream improve atomization? Will smaller chokes speed up the charge? (I'm asking (in part) to confirm my suspicions, about the advantage(s) of progressive carbs at lower rpms). Tom

how far was it off and in which direction?

Take the e21 visors while you're at it. They'll clear an even bigger mirror.

I searched "rubber" in each of the threads bergie linked and nothing came up; so, I'll mention the rubber mounts/isolators for the air box. They're interchangeable with the 2002 late style air cleaner and much beefier. I saw a listing for the stock BMW 2002 isolator recently and they're asking $90 each. Cheaper generic ones are out there. I'd also take the wing nut off of the jack holder. The plastic nuts on the inside of the tail lights are the same as ours. The defroster switch fits into the dummy button hole in the console. Although it's a bit tight on my car. I'd have a hard time parting out cars, since I see value in so much of it. They used the same pretty braided washer hose and it's a long run from where they put the pump. I've grabbed relays that have BMW stamped in them, to have as spares. The early e21 distributors fit our cars, from before they changed the rotation direction and went to electronic ignition ('81?). I think they have the dual push/pull pods.

what are the tips?

A grease gun works well for pushing out stuck pistons. I had to do that with mine. The threads on the gun's hose fit the bleeder holes [edit- they fit the incoming supply line holes, not the bleeders]. The nice thing about using grease is that they don't POP when they come out, like they do with air. Then you'll need to clean the rust out of the bores. In mine, the rust was all in the last 1/4", outside of the seal. If you do buy remanufactured calipers, save the original bleeders because sometimes the new ones are too tall and will not clear the wheels.

+1 for the JB weld fix. I've had good luck with this product on similar fittings. It is compatible with antifreeze and it will not harden. Permatex® Super "300" Form-A-Gasket® Sealant, 4 OZ - Permatex WWW.PERMATEX.COM

It appears the CSB was recently replaced.

The cast iron distributors are a bit different than the later styles. They use that larger hard fiber washer in John's kit. It looks like phenolic, not waffled like the smaller ones. That kit was still $15 when I ordered one 12 years ago. Now, it's ten times that. (Hi Slavs!)

The VW distributors are driven with that little puck that has an offset key on the bottom; whereas the BMW distributors have a skewed gear. When the engine speeds up and slows down, that gear pushes up and pulls down, so the washers are getting compressed again and again. I think that has a lot to do with them failing. They are the first part of the distributor to fail. Another neat thing about the VW distributors is that the puck comes off with a pin that's held in with a spring keeper ring. So, no need to drill out the factory pin. I use a roll pin in place of the peened one, so I can get in easily and reuse it. Glen Ring does nice work. I'll bet he's not paying $8 per washer, but wouldn't be surprised if that's what he's asking. Can you prove me wrong?

maybe that was back when the washers were a buck? REPAIR SET DISTRIBUT by BMW 12-11-8-630-239 $156.11

Why do you think they used fiber washers? What characteristics would help them perform well? Do you think the waffle texture is important? .5" ID .820" OD .032" thick. OD could be slightly larger or smaller. They could also be modified to fit, if need be. They have a hard life. It's hot and oily. Not all fiber will tolerate that. Fiber that swells will make the shaft too tight and bad things will happen. Fragile fiber washers will fall apart and you're left with axial play which causes erratic timing. I'm all for finding cheaper alternatives, but I also understand that spending $16 for two new ones that are proven to work is not a large investment. It's just frustrating, since they used to be much cheaper (and I failed to stock up). Most of what's inside the Bosch rebuild kits does not fit our distributors and they only include one of the two fiber washers we need. The steel shim washers are the same ID/OD as the fiber washers. Having extras will allow you to dial in the proper axial clearance.