jerry

you're right, i don't like that answer, but i am thankful for your experience and advice.

i have access to a hydralic press at work that won't take no for an answer but using it really makes my shfincter (sp?) pucker...

how the heck did the Bavarians do it?

i'm gonna try the heat/freeze combo and report back.

i did the obligatory forum search. nothing found in 7 pages of looking

i am fighting with my rubber bushings for the control arms. after mangling the PVC tool i had, i replaced it with galvanized pipe fittings. much better but still not getting it done.

i swab the hole with glycerine and am able to get the bushing 90% of the way but the outward edge just mashes up and makes it impossible to squeeze the rest of the way.

it's like a 'chinese puzzle' the more i push the harder it gets.

i've tried boiling the rubber to make it more pliable. no dice.

i'm thinking of putting the control arms in the oven at 300F and the bushings in the freezer.

What have you folks done? i do not want urethane bushings, btw

go to a welding supply store and buy about 20lbs of dry ice. crush it with a rubber mallet and pour it over one section at a time. cover with a bunch of towels or blanket to keep in the cold. in about 3 minutes you should hear popping noise. take a metal spatula and pry off large chunks.

move the crushed ice to another section and repeat. i've done 1 1/2 cars with 20 lbs. it'll cost around $1/lb.

note to self:

Never buy a used car from that driver.

WOW, that's truely amazing stuff.

i'd be scared to be a passenger in his car, let alone a cameraman on some of those curves.

i just got finished reassembling my front struts after rehab this afternoon. recently, i acquired a set of used spring compressors with a group of parts i bought. that allowed me to return the 'borrowed' set from a coworker.

.

.

.

i wish i hadn't returned the borrowed set so soon.

When choosing spring compressors for the 02 check for size of clamp arm. my new set were so small that they interfered with the spring supports on the strut. i've tried to convey the problem with the attached photos. what i've shown is only one permutation of how i tried to position these compressors.

as for my coworker's set: they were cheap, 'made in china' set that were infinitely easier to deal with. i'm gonna look for a new set soon.

working on these cars should be as painless as possible. choose your tools carefully.

hope this spares at least one person from the aggravation i just went through.

pry it off its two ball sockets that it pivots from at its base. then you can wrangle it off the lever at the top, or vice versa. no nuts, bolts etc involved if that's what you're worried about.

there's a guy on the northwest side of indy about one intersection past the 285 loop off of Layfayette Rd. turn left at the (i'm thinking it's a FORD dealership), big car dealership then proceed about 1/2 mile down road, turn right. he's an independent BMW mechanic who did some work on my tii when i lived there. name's Rick something or other and he knows his stuff.

And...the color chart with paint codes is available right here on the sight.

when i tried to get Malaga using the colorcode, 023, i was told it would only be available using single-stage paint.

if i wanted 2-stage paint (which i did), they'd have to color match it.

which they did a LOUSY job of, btw.

looking back, i wouldn't be surprised if those idiots were like me and didn't know their A$$ from a hole in the ground.

oh well. that was my recent experience with color matching.

before investing in a welder of that size for home use, make sure your electric panel is up to snuff.

i have a co-worker who got a great deal on a Miller Econo-Tig only to find that he required $2000 rewire of his garage.

personally, unless you are wanting to weld magnesium or aluminum i'd save my clam-cakes for a nifty Miller Maxstar. portable and doesn't take up a lot of real estate.

well, since you asked.

i don't like it. thought it was a dead fad from the 80's seen primarily on VW bugs. the "california look" as i recall.

didn't like it then, either

i have a 1600 badge

i'd be interested in your 1600 badge. i've got a '68 that started out as the 'little brother'. got a photo? and price?

jerryallsmanATyahooDOTcom

i've spent several hours color sanding this car. i spend the most time with 800 grit, then 1000 grit, 1200 grit and finally 2000 grit. the time spent with each sucessive grit decreases until i'm merely swiping it a few passes with the 2000 grit.

after the wet sand i hand-rub rubbing compound. that's where the real satisfaction comes out. it's a real joy to see all this effort come to fruition. so far i've been VERY pleased with how straight my panels have been. i'm typically my own worst critic and was wondering just whether all the blocking and feathersanding/bodywork was for nothing.

However, having said this, my one true regret is not putting down another 1-2 coats of base before clear-coat. the paint looks thin. oh well. i know better for next time. i am considering having the car professionally sprayed AFTER it's all put together. i just can't stomach the thought of doing it again myself. i figure it needs the clearcoat sanded down and resprayed with basecoat then clearcoat. i will, however, be willing to do this all over again, on a DIFFERENT car.

i have the passenger side, front and trunk lid yet to do. i'll probably work alittle in the engine bay as well.

click here:

www.bmw2002faq.com/component/option,com_forum/Itemid,50/page,viewtopic/t,276529/highlight,/

and here:

www.bmw2002faq.com/component/option,com_forum/Itemid,50/page,viewtopic/t,273112/highlight,/

Damn you're making me wish I was still stationed in Sacramento. When I was there in 98, every one of the 4 picknpull yards there would have at least 1 02 and a plethora of 320i's. Looking back, I really wish I would have nabbed all of the vin plates off of all the cars I saw go through the yards.

TK

ah nostalgia.

i was living out of state in the 90's and everytime i'd come home for a holiday i'd try to make time to go to the boneyard. it never failed to have an 02 available. prices were lower too. i'd pick through parts thinking it may never be available again. of course, back then Mobile Tradition wasn't formed yet and buying new parts was really a matter of hoping it was still available on a shelf somewhere.

i rarely see 02's in the boneyard anymore. 320i's are getting scarce as well. 318's and 325's are all over the place

John

very neat looking...

i really like that last photo. somehow the perspective and composition gives it a somewhat surreal quality.

is it me or does that car almost look like a radio-controlled car in that photo?

sorta 1/4 scale model...

yea, fess up. this is all a hoax. you bought one of those models on ebay didn't you?

a straight, virtually rust-free 02 is a car worth saving. i love my '75 02 for that reason. everything works for the most part and those big bumpers are good for parking lots.

about a year ago i bought a '76 02 that failed smog, thinking i'd just scavenge parts from it, i never bothered to title it. it was a $500 car with newish rebuilt engine AND transmission. PO put a bunch of goodies on it. i didn't have the heart to tear it up. i'd been looking for a '74-75 02 for awhile and found my solution for $200. a rusty POS '75 with clear title.

this "ahem" restored '75 02 will be my older brother's car, just as soon as i can find a drill bit and two rivets...

Need i say more??

one more thing: save that 69, you won't regret having both cars, each for their own qualities. i can't wait to join the ranks of the 'roundies'.

my brother's gonna be getting rid of his 735i with about 120K total miles on it. the body's rough, but everything else is good. i doubt it's worth $4k, so you could buy a plane ticket to SF and drive it home.

or.,

if you insist, i can sell you my $1000 Acura legend for $4000.

judging from the aircanister, those were originally from a Neue Klasse model (2000ti, i believe). more common than a true 02ti variant. the bid price is about double what i have into my identical set off ePay. aircanister will require indentation to clear the brake booster, ala tii canister.

1968 2002s vins go from 1660003 thru 1664491

Possible engine and nose transplant??

it'd have to be more than a nose transplant cuz it's got 12 fuses.

i think it's real. could be a mistaken VIN reading.

nice group of cars, but,

the steering wheels are all on the wrong side.

did you somehow reverse your film negatives before posting?????

the only other stamping in metal that i've ever seen is located on the rear bench seat support panel, behind the driver's seat. it does NOT match the VIN. have to remove the bottom pad and it's obscured by the vinyl trim of the carpet.

somehow, i recall that it had to do with some sort of factory code for a particular vehicle (color, interior, S/R, etc). i'm really not sure though.

other than the decal on the driver's door, tag on the upper steering pad, VIN plate and Inner Fender, i don't think there's any other location.

if you want to try to track down a set you'd better start perusing the german ebay. i got a set of plastic ones for the 74-76 cars about a year ago. the earlier ones are more expensive. i had to salvage the light brackets from a bavaria, but i really think alot of those lights are essentially the same across several models.

an alternative is to merely get the lights and brackets and cut your grills (plastic ones) accordingly. it would take some creativity, but the standard plastic grills are easy to get.

fitting the light brackets requires welding an additional set of screw tabs onto your nosepiece and fabbing an additional support bracket to mount the inward ends of the light assembly to the nosepiece.

it IS laughable.

i was in a desperate hurry to get this car painted before the temperature dropped. i thought about stopping before i put the clearcoat on (wish i had in hindsight), but i couldn't be sure i'd get another weekend of warmish weather. so the clearcoat was sprayed and that sealed my fate, so to speak/type.

i have yet to polish it out so there's still hope. it just looks more like i 'stained' the car in some places. kinda like a piece of furniture i tell myself.

at least this way i'll be much less inclined to pamper this car and can always try again some other time. my main concern is covered, and that is RUST protection.

I'd like to know more details, too. Mainly what kind of gun, and what kind of paint you used. I'm interested in doing the same thing eventually, so I'll take any advice I can get from anyone who's painted a car in their garage!

i can tell you what NOT to do.

it wasn't till AFTER i finished painting my car and being somewhat less than thrilled with the outcome that the guys in the paint department where i work SHOWED me how to tune a gun for spray pattern and volume and more importantly, how to glide the gun over the surface in a wonderfully smooth, predictable pattern, going both across and up and down.

after the demonstration, i threw my hands in the air exasperated and asked "WHY THE HELL DIDN'T YOU SHARE THIS WITH ME BEFORE?????"

Their Response:

"Well, you asked so many questions, but not this one, that we thought you knew....."

WTF.....

anyhow, it's really NOT rocket science, but in hindsight, i wish i had bought one of those "how to paint your car" videos. Even though i feel i'm quite literate when it comes to the english language. seeing would be better in this instance.

and yes, the prep work is 98% of the job. actually spraying is the last 2%

there was a listing for the OEM manual on ebay last Spring that went for about $40 dollars. it was miscategorized and i was watching it. i didn't think too much about it cuz i already have duplicate copies and figured it would just get sniped up to a typical $90+ range. boy was i surprised.

if i wasn't such a lazy-ass wrt to shipping obligations i'd love to unload some crap on ePay.