Couple of auto to manual parts requirement questions

[mrLEE30]

Ok guys i have finally found a manual 325 pre-facelift, which is a rear as rocking horse sh1t out here. I plan to fit the box to my 1987 325 "Sport". I use the word sport as it has mtech 1 kit, all the sport interior/exterior bits (car on the left below) but auto box and i am not sure if it has an LSD (it was a BMW Japan model) so please help me guys as i will be coming to uk in August and i need to make sure i get all the parts necessary.

1. The donor car is in bad shape but mechanically complete. So please let me know if i am on the right track. Both LHD if that makes any difference.

1. New clutch
2. New thrust bearing
3. Spigot bearing (any one got the part number or can explain what this is and why i would need it)
4. clutch master and slave cylinder seal/gasket kit
5. New gearshift bushing (its got a wobbly knob!!!) and the Z3 short shift bits.
6. Prop shaft donut thingies and centre bearing.
7. i plan on keeping the auto diff, but would i be correct in saying the ratio is different and auto is lower ratio i.e. more acceleration? And if mine is a real sport how can i tell if it is a LSD? Will i have any probs with auto diff?

8. now where you lot come in!!!!

what else do i need????

has anyone got a guide to perform the conversion? what ECU problems may i encounter, and what do i do with the inhibitor??

Any help would be much appriciated

mrlee

[Templ8e30]

Hi Lee, I've done an auto to manual conversion and you also need the following :

Manual flywheel
Manual propshaft
Manual ECU
Manual radiator
Manual pedal box

It's also best to change the engine loom and throttle switch over from the manual too.

The inhibitor switch does not need to be fitted, I kept the auto loom when I converted to manual with no gearbox or selector connected and it fired up and ran. But we had warm idling problems so we swapped the loom over from the manual and it ran fine.

The auto radiator has 2 pipes from the auto box to cool the ATF down, as you'll be removing these it's best to fit a manual rad.

The auto ECU gives a lower idle speed and can be a pain in a manual so swap that too.

The manual gearbox is shorter than an auto so you'll need the manual propshaft to suit. Make sure you mark both parts of the prop either side of the spline so you can refit it the same way, otherwise you'll be plagued with vibration problems.

Not sure about the diff, we changed ours as the auto diff was knackered.

The spigot bearing and associated parts you'll need are here
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do ... g=11&fg=20

Parts 1,2,3 & 4.

The spigot bearing centres the input shaft on the gearbox and stops it from bending out of shape or even snapping when you take up drive on the clutch.

Cheers,

Iain T

[mrLEE30]

Cheers Iain,

As i said i have a complete car with engine that runs rough but the body etc knackered. Cheers for the info on the loom and ECU, when you say engine loom what do you mean? is that the loom form the ECU into the engine somewhere?

I thought the inhibitor had to be removed as it stops the engine starting unless in park or neutral, just unsure where it is!

I also thought that the second radiator was a independant system to cool the ATF, i would be reluctant to change the rad as it is a different spec from UK in order to handle the 50 degree heat!

I read somewhere (i think Brian Moore) that the ECU didnt have to be changed, but guess if you had problems it should be.

Do i need any other new parts other then those mentioned above as i have no way of getting parts here for the manual.

cheers guys

mrlee

[tourer-dan]

the second 'rad' is for the air con. Dont undo any connections there!!!

[mrLEE30]

Nope the third rad is for the A/C! 325 autos have a small rectangular rad for ATF cooling, but this is not what i need help and advice with!!!

mrlee

[Brianmoooore]

I've never had any problems using the auto ECU or loom, but if you've got the complete car, you can change them over if you like, or suck it and see, and change them later if necessary.
Your auto diff will be a higher ratio than the manual, but the car won't be revving any higher with it than it was as an auto, so again it can be changed later if neccessary.
Not familiar with pre facelift wiring I'm afraid, but on post facelift, RH drive cars, there is a single pin plug and socket with a black/yellow wire which is above the right top side of the glovebox. On auto cars this plug and socket are split apart and plugged into a small sub loom with a relay, that is the inhibitor cicuit. If you have similar, then pull out the sub loom and connect the plug and socket together.

[Templ8e30]

Lee, the ATF rad is part of the main rad over here (atached to the AFM side of the rad) an has 2 pipes coming out of it. There will probably be a long narrow rectangular rad under the front valance for cooling the engine oil.

The only other rad I know of is for the A/C which is seperate from all the others.

The engine loom is the wiring harness with all the connectors for the engine sensors and leads through the bulkhead into the passenger compartment to the ECU.

The problem with the auto ECU is the lower idle speed, the manual ECU is designed for a manual so we used it

Looks like that's the complete list of parts.

Cheers,

Iain T

[mrLEE30]

Cheers Iain and Brian,

will get what bits i need in august and then would it be allright if i pm you when i get (if i get) stuck??!!

will investigate the radiator thing, yes the small one is in the front valance, but my 320 auto has same rad but no atf cooling rad so i assumed it was an independant radiator, that really sholdn't prove a problem, thought!

mrlee