Kuntacharlie

Teelinger, What are the pro tips you got from Patrick O'Neal? I need to replace mine.

I contacted Mike Howard about a year ago. Send me a PM and I will send his phone number. Please let me know how it went if you go that way. Charlie

JP02ti, Attached is a wiring diagram of the resistor bypass circuit in my 71 2002. It also has the 6 fuse electrical system. I think this is what you have. I could not find anything in the factory manual wiring diagrams that shows this circuit for 6 fuse cars. I think this is something BMW did prior to the switch to 12 fuses but never got into the wiring diagrams. Hope the attached file is readable. Resister bypas circuit018.pdf

Yes that would be Kingston Henry Hardware. I upgraded my alternator to a bigger one that I got from a junk yard 318. I needed one of those covers and found it at my local hardware.

Try your local hardware store. I found on of those covers at mine.

There is a ground behind the instrument cluster, at least on my 71.

The Pertronics Ignitor, for one, needs the same 3 ohms minimum resistance as the points distributor needs. I asked the Pertronics guy that question because I was not quite getting 3 ohms resistance thru my coil and ballast resistor. He told me that the ignitor wants to run on 4 amps max current and the 3 ohms at 12 volts gives that current. He reminded me that the resistance in the circuit would increase when the circuit got warm. What Stevenc22 said, get 3 ohms resistance thru your coil and resistor together and you be good.

This is a bit of a tangent, but this pump will not work as is on the early 2002s because the operating rod is longer on the early cars to suit a different pump. You will need to buy the shorter rod to make it work, There is also an interference issue between the pump and the coolant hose connecting the distribution block and the intake manifold. I purchased one of these pumps and ended up sending it back because of these issues. My car is a early 1971 , build date Oct 1970. I am not certain, but think this pump was introduced when BMW switched from one barrel carbs to two barrel.

Good post Mintgrun. Thanks for sharing your experience and taking the time to add all the sage advise. This is how we all learn a thing or two. I have had success using cold to free stuck fasteners. If the part will fit in a freezer then leave it there overnight and try again in the morning. Heat makes everything swell up. Cold shrinks the metal parts and my vision is that the fastener gets smaller and the threaded hole gets bigger. And it does not melt the rubber parts. It has worked for me.

Toby- I agree on the drag link. I ain't looking fwd to replacing that one. I did that job on a BMW Bavaria some years ago and had good luck smacking the joints on opposite sides with hammers. That method doesn't work so good for me on a 2002 because there isn't enuf room to get a good hit on both sides of many of the steering joints. The tie rod to Pitman arm joint is an exception, altho on my recent suspension rebuild the double hammer method did not work on that joint. I ended up putting a jack under the Pitman arm as close to the joint as possible and putting some upward pressure on the arm to keep it from flexing. Then I ran the castle nut up to the top of the tie rod pin and hit it with a hammer and the joint separated. The buster may have worked there but it came later. To all- Thanks for the replys and comments. Charlie

I recently overhauled the front suspension on my 71 2002. As part of the job I replaced both tie rods. No matter what I tried I could not break the joint on the passenger side inboard end. In frustration I took a generic pitman arm puller/buster that I already had, but could not use because it was too wide at the jaws, and modified it so that it resembled the joint buster sold by Bavauto. The tool I started with is a Cal Van 194 Pitman arm puller with hook opening of 1 1/8 in. These things are available at auto parts stores for around $15. I have seen them with the Performance tool brand name. The part I used to narrow the jaw opening is a 2 in OD X 13/16 in ID X 1/8 in thick steel washer from the hardware store. I ground flats on opposite sides of the washer so it would fit between the arms and sit flat on the jaws of the puller. Then I hack sawed a slot in the washer equal to the dia of the hole in the washer. The pics attached should help figure this out. One pic shows the puller and the modified washer side by side. The other shows the washer in place on the jaws. I slid the washer in the joint first the followed it with the puller and adjusted the puller so that the tapered tie rod pin lined up with the screw in the puller. I torqued down the screw and the joint came apart with a bang, sending parts flying in all directions. Next time I will leave the castle nut on the tie rod pin to help keep things together. Welding the washer to the puller would also help but might limit the adjustability of the combination. If you decide to use this idea be sure to protect yourself from flying objects. In terms of full disclosure, I have used this tool only once and the joint had been heavily massaged by other methods so it may have been ready to give up when I used the buster. However, it worked for me. Charlie

I ended up putting 150# in the drivers seat and 100# in the passenger seat and 50# in the trunk ( I also replaced my rear shocks ). I have not noticed/checked to see if the car is noticeably lower on the drivers side. I hate to think about doing that bolt tightening evolution again. It was a pain to get the bolts torqued and the cotter pin holes to line up, especially the lower control arm to sub frame joints. Thanks for the responses Dev02 and Peterschop. Charlie

Thanks 76mintgrun. I'll take your advise and add weight before torquing the joints. Charlie

Thanks Toby. I agree, the rubber bushing will take all of the flexing if the required torque is applied. That's what bothered me. Seems like an odd way to design a suspension joint. I have the car on its wheels ( ramps in front and jack stands in back ) and will torque all the rubber bushed joints that way. The manual says to load the car up with weight, presumably to simulate a full load condition. Is that necessary? I never drive this car with a load and am always alone in the car. Only load is me and fuel. Charlie Hansville,WA

I'm new here so I hope this the right way to ask for help. I am finishing a front suspension rebuild on a 71 2002. I am down to tightening the nuts on the rubber bushed joints. The lower control arm is attached to the sub frame by a large bolt and nut and the control arm pivots around the bolt when the suspension moves up and down. The BMW manual says the torque for the nut is 123 ft- lbs. My concern is that this is a bunch of torque (even for a half inch torque wrench) and I cannot see how the control arm can freely pivot around the bolt with that much squeeze on the steel bushing in the control arm pivot point. The nut didn't have a hugh torque on it when I took it apart. This doesn't make sense to me. Can someone help me out with this? Charlie