a few 1982 323i questions

[lowrida56]

i got the car a couple of months ago to do auto crosses in and i just have a couple of questions.

1. it over heats wen im racing, the temp normally sits in about the middle but wen i race it sometimes goes up to around 3/4. is this normal when your doing high revs at low speeds alot?

2. when i leave it idling for more then about 10 minutes the idle speed starts goin fast and slow, adjust around 200 rpm every 5secs. is this a common problem?

3. when the gear box is in any gear i can move the gear lever like it is in nuetral (sideways) which makes it hard to shift gears accuratly. did they come out like this or is something worn out?

4. what stud pattern is the same? ive been told gemini and camira rims fit but im not 100% sure

5. what sort of mods should i start doing to get some more power?

 

[Chesty Bonds]

Mate i don't see why the engine temp should go up towards the 3/4 mark when you do your autocross. You might have a faulty thermostat in which case that's a piece of cake to fix. You can buy a new one with a gasket for about $55 and chuck it in yourself.

The idling problem i'm not too sure about. Perhaps the changing idle speed could mean coolant fluid in your oil which would be a bad thing. If your engine oil has a white tinge to it then this will be the case.

The gearbox just sounds like its worn if its sloppy in gear like that. It is a 22 year old car, of course.

Mods? Not too sure on that but i don't think you will get much benefit from a cold-air intake, exhaust, chip etc. If you want to seriously increase the speed of your car over a lap then tyres, brakes, and suspension gives the most gain.

BTW, where do you autocross? I'm in Melb too with an E30 - wouldn't mind seeing how fast i am!

Hope this helps. Pete

 

[lowrida56]

i do it in pakenham... not on tar thow like alot of people on this forum seem to do.. where are you from?

 

[jrt67ss350]

Rising coolant temps in these cars almost always due to a faulty thermostat or fan clutch. Just go ahead and replace the t-stat - it's easy and cheap. The fan clutch is easy too - you just need a 32 mm "spanner" in order to change it out.

The sloppy gearshift is a common occurence - it's due to worn shifter linkage parts.

 

[Chesty Bonds]

i do it in pakenham... not on tar thow like alot of people on this forum seem to do.. where are you from?

Yeah Hawthorn mate. I guess that means you do the autocross on dirt...?

 

[lowrida56]

ye i do it on dirt. btw ive already dun exhaust suspension and intake
ill take sum pics 2nite and put em up

 

[Chesty Bonds]

Nice. Would love to see it. Let us know what hardware you used in the upgrade too!

 

[lowrida56]

alright well i have pedders springs and shockers (cost me around $400 for the lot) the exhaust is 2.5" then goes into 2 1.5" (i think) tail pipes (cost me nothing i did at at work) and its real loud and sounds nice... the cold air intake was on there when i bought the car and looks stock to me..

harness cost me around $150

the cage i done for free at work (not finished yet i need to buy a bolt in crossmember)

seats were my brother inlaws but all the fabric had been eaten away by rats so i got them retrimmed which cost me $250

ye i think thats about all ive done atm, im looking at gettin a 2nd set of rims and some rally tyres soon..

i tryed postin the pics the pics but it keeps timin out ill try again tomoz nite