heinrich

I think you're not far off the mark at all. For reference you can look at http://www.aluminumheads.com/.

Gary has a shop that happens to be next to his house. However, he is now the managing owner of Boyd Motorworks.

So today I was driving to work and suddenly notice that the temp is very high. After poking around under the hood I see that the hose from the thermostat to the rad has popped off. I walk down to the store to get a gallon of water, reconnect the hose and tighten the clamp down with a dime, fill the rad and start the car up. It's still running a bit warm, but not overheating. As I'm driving to work, it's clear that it's no longer in the normal temp range, and the temp fluctuates--heats up at idle, cools down a bit when driving. This is not normal for the car, which usually runs steadily at a bit under half temp. I stopped again, and let it cool down a bit. Then took off the rad cap with a big hiss. Put in some more water and kept driving. The temp is still eratic. Any suggestions? Possible air bubbles in the coolant system that need to get worked out?

Gary's Classic Bimmers Gary will get you hooked up.

If you're worried about parts availability for Solexes, but prefer to go that route, you might consider Mikunis. Mikuni bought the production license for the PHH carbs from Solex back in the 70s. The carbs you get now aren't the same as the Solexes, since they've gone through a couple decades of development/improvement. But they have the same reputation for being easier to keep in tune, and you can get all the parts you want. My Mikunis even say "Solex" on them.

I actually have a friend that has a box full of jets; he's been helping me with the tuning. However, I've also been referred to Wolf Creek Racing for parts. They're a Datsun racing crew, but are also "the north american distributor for Mikuni". They should have just about everything you'd need: Wolf Creek Racing

Most of my driving is around town, so it's usually fairly quick acceleration from idle, and then cruising in the low 3-4K rpm range once I'm up to speed. I think that a lot of the time I'm running off the idle jets and into the transition to the main circuit, and that the former may be a tad too rich. They are currently 55s (I have 40mm Mikuni's), and I'm going to try going down to 52.5s. In the main circuit I'm now running 120 fuels/280 air correctors.

These plugs are about a week old. I'm still trying to work a slight stumble out of a Mikuni 40s.

(nt)

I've been working on cleaning out my wheel wells. Most of both front wells and the undercarriage is covered in a fairly thick layer of some heinous black substance, which is either decayed undercoating or 30 years of accumulated groil. The stuff does dissolve slightly with degreaser and water--at least enough to turn the degreaser brown--but that doesn't really make a dent in the stuff. With a combination of heat, degreaser, brushes and a plastic scraper I cleaned off a 1' X 2' section. That took me approximately an hour. There has to be a better way. Any ideas? I also removed about 3 pounds of pure California dirt that had accumulated in that convenient little shelf BMW put way up in the nose in front of the turn signal (accessible by reaching up the front of the fender). BTW, thanks to Bill Williams for the replay article. I finally added relays to my 73 this week, and it went off without (to much of) a hitch.

KFunk: I don't pretend to be able to give any conclusive answers on this subject, but I can at least tell you about my (very recent) experiences with converting from a 32/36 to dual sidedrafts. A long time ago I posted a question very similar to yours and received almost 100% responses along the lines of "No way. The 32/36 is a much better carb for a daily driver (like mine); sidedrafts are for 'garage queens' and racecars." I had heard a lot about the tempermentality of sidedrafts and how they are "too much carb" for these engines under normal driving situations. I liked the 32/36 a lot, and had decided to stick with it. But then I got to talking with two separate people who had sidedrafts on their drivers without any big problems. Their input was that, yes, you'll get a little popping when it's cold, but other than that they work fine. And you DO get a noticeable power increase. And one of them happened to have a set available at a good price. So I ended up getting a pair of 40mm Mikuni PHHs and all the necessary junk (linkage, fuel pump, etc.). My mechanic and I put them on during a Sunday and I drove away pretty happy. There was still a lot of tuning to do: they were running pretty rich and weren't as smooth down low as the Weber. But the power increase and throttle response was dramatic. I should add that my engine was a tired 170K mile stock unit with the stock cam. Changing the dynamics of the intake that drastically put a lot of stress on my old motor, and after about 5 days I blew the head gasket. I had the badly worn head rebuilt (3 exhaust valves replaced, all rocker arms and shafts replaced, new springs) and put a 292 Schrick cam in at the same time. I got the car back late last week and it's going well. A few points I would make about the performance now that it's basically worked out: (1) The intake noise is loud. If you're doing a lot of driving and don't like the sound of the engine being pretty prominent in the cabin, then it would probably bother you. (2) I still have a stumble at very low throttle openings and there is a bit of a miss at idle; but I expect that this is just a matter of jetting, and that I'll get the worked out very soon. (3) There IS an increase in power throughout the range, even down low. The increase is more noticeable at the high end though. (4) The engine starts very easily. (The Mikunis have manual enricheners that dump more fuel in when you want it Don't know what the choke situation is with the other carbs). (5) They look very, very cool. So when you ask whether it's worth it or not, it depends on your priorities. To get sidedrafts dialed in and working properly takes, I think, quite a bit of expertise and fiddling and time. Once they ARE dialed in though, they should work well, not be a whole lot more tempermental than the 32/36, and more noise and more power than that carb. On the other hand, the 32/36 works really well and you can slap it on there without much tuning needed. I would add that I haven't driven a "perfectly" tuned 32/36 with the C.Diesel prescription; so maybe the increase in power I noticed was more dramatic than it would be for you. Good luck,

Lots of PB Blaster...

Not that I want to discourage you from supporting the FAQ, but you can also go to any VW parts place and get the "billet mechanical fuel pump block off plate" for a beetle. Comes with the allen bolts and gasket. They are something like $12.

H&R Springs, Stock 2 dot pads, no front spacers. Bottlecaps with 195/60-14s No rubbing except at full steering lock.

I knew about the e21 turbines, but always thought the offset was incorrect. If I'm going to upgrade from my bottlecaps, I'd rather do it right, you know? How does the 13 offset work with the 02s usually? Should be about 10-15mm greater, right? Is there a way (spacers, machining) to convert these to a 23-29mm offset for the 02?

Does anyone know if there is a turbine type wheel in 14" with the correct offset out there? I know it's a long shot, but I thought I'd check.

Just FYI, I did a little digging and found that Turner Motorsport sells new 284, 292 and 304 Schrick cams for $369. The cheapest I'd found them elsewhere was about $450. I got my 292 today, and it is indeed a new Schrick piece. Here is the link: Schrick Cams

Got my set from http://www.suspension.com/bmw.htm

First of all, don't cut that console face! Try to find an already molested one. Second, a deck can work with the Frigiking A/C. See below for a pic of mine. My console face was already cut, so I didn't feel bad about it. The Alpine looks way too modern for the car, of course, but with just a pair of 5.5" infinity speakers in the hat shelf it sounds very good, within certain limitations.

You can get that cloth tape many places. It's also called "friction tape". I believe I got mine at a Schuck's/Kragen.

Okay, here are some pictures of what I'm talking about. Additional information on my setup: I'm running the Aardvark fixed camber plates and H&R springs with Bilstein HDs. My tie rod ends do have a bit of clearance: no rubbing of those on the tires.

I noticed yesterday that when my wheels are turned all the way to one side, the inside of the wheel rim touches the strut housing and the hard brake lines that run parallel to it. I also get some rubbing of the tire against the inside of the wheel well. I'm running bottlecaps with 195/60-14s. My question is this: is this problem caused by the incorrect offset of the bottlecaps, or do I just need the Ireland 1/8" spacers?

Also http://www.jaymic.com/shop/parts_02_products.asp?grp=02BD (in Britain)

I have a magnaflo 22" aluminized resonator and a magnaflo stainless muffler. Sounds pretty nice, but isn't exactly quiet, especially if you put your foot in it. I haven't heard an ansa system, so I don't know how it would compare. What I have is basically Ireland's setup but with a 22" instead of 11" resonator, which would make it a bit quieter. I have the 11" resonator still; you can have it for $30 if you want it. Personally, if I had it to do over again I would just go with a factory system. They are supposed to be about the quietest thing you can get. But then I don't have a highly tuned engine.

Those are sweet. If only they made them in saddle....