question about parts for grey market 323i

[markt51]

Picked it up last Saturday. Got it for $1150(i feel like it was a fair price considering interior and exterior are excellent other than a few minor things and just needs an engine and it has the dogleg tranny). Bought it from the original owner who bought it in Spain when he was a student in 1983, and then imported it when he came back a few years later. He gave me a folder full of receipts since the day it was bought as well. Car was repainted 7 years ago so it has pretty nice paint but could use a wax and buff. Not a bit of rust on it and only one blemish on the drivers fender by the headlight where a dent was straightened out and the paint chipped.

He showed me a chunk of a piston head that was pulled out of it from when the timing belt broke, so i think the engine is done for unless the head and bottom end survived and just need machining and new internals. I want to keep it completely stock and hoping i can keep the 323i engine and it does indeed have the dogleg tranny like i thought. The is spoiler on the trunk is stock from the dealer, and the steelies are stock BMW as well. Anyways here are some quick pics for now till i take some better ones for a build thread.













leaves were in the engine bay from when hood was opened.

[Farbin Kaiber]

So, they pulled a chunk of piston out, then bolted it all back together?

[kronus]

it's a speed hole, doncha know?

op, nice, looks good. If you're after a complete b23 I might have one available in a few months, but you will probably have a much better time locating and building up a b25 with all the late-model conveniences.

[markt51]

it's a speed hole, doncha know?

op, nice, looks good. If you're after a complete b23 I might have one available in a few months, but you will probably have a much better time locating and building up a b25 with all the late-model conveniences.

awesome keep me in mind for that, im still weighing my options. i really like keeping things oem and stock, but in this case it might be better to do b25. but yea definately keep me in mind for the b23.

[markt51]

So, they pulled a chunk of piston out, then bolted it all back together?

yup. spark plug wires and belts arent in place. so it looks like they just had the shop pull the head, saw the damage. and haulted to repairs there and just bolted head and valvw covef and what not back.

[Court M3]

Nice find, keep the 323 not a bad little engine for getting around.

[Hooffenstein HD]

323i are not so bad once you swap out the 3.46 for a 4.10.

[downforce22]

very clean looking car. Mine got the same federalized sidemarkers :(

[Farbin Kaiber]

^The sidemarkers is the worst part. I know I've posted pictures before, but I lucked into this setup.

[Northern]

my early model 325iX had motronic 1.0 with a 35 pin ecu powering an 885 head. I have found that it is a rare ecu (073) and decided to swap the wiring harness out to upgrade to the motronic 1.3 ecu/ harness for the later toothed harmonic balancer/ cps and easily disconnectable fuel injection harness, and standalone plug and play ecu.

I thought my early '87 iX would be M1.0 when I bought it, but it is M1.1/1.3, although it does have the annoying permanently attached injector harness.