Hey Guys,

So, my 323i is still on my hoist, where it's been since Saturday. Suspenion is all back in, swaybar, Alpina copy tie bar, bushings, tie rods, control arms, etc. All done, now the brakes.

Problem is, I can't put the hubs back on. Why? I ordered wheel bearing kits from Worldpac a couple months ago, but they're the wrong kits. The ones that arrived are VW rear wheel application, with a 50mm inner race. Our cars need a 60mm. Phoned Worldpac, and had them send me out 2 more kits. Still wrong. Long story short, I went through FAG, Ruville, Kyoto, and SKF catalogues. EVERY one of them crosses the E21 front bearing kits to the same VW applications. All wrong.

So, in short, if you ordert front bearing kits for an E21, order them for an E12 instead. Same bearing, same kit, no catalogue fuck ups.

Al

:mad

Did you send out any 'suggestions'? I suppose all the parts houses would only respond if they had tons of returns...
-J

:mad

Did you send out any 'suggestions'? I suppose all the parts houses would only respond if they had tons of returns...
-J

I spoke to the Worldpac rep, and they assured me they will make the catalogue change, or at least investigate it further. Remember, all my suppliers are wholesalers, and we spend 4 figures a month with each of them. They listen very, very well.

Al

I wonder if they are sending the non-vented brg. used on all E21's without the big brake hubs.
I have had that happen before and finaly ordered the tii brg. same as E12 and 323..

But still what a hassell for you to get your car off the lift, at least they are fond of you with all the $$ you spend Al...

Jeff

So, the vented '77 320i and 323i hubs ARE different than the non-vented later 320i hubs?? I have heard this but never tried to interchange my cars hubs so didn't know for sure.

ken

the 323 hubs have bigger wheel bearings maybe to cope with the extra weight of the six cylinder (everything on the front suspension of the 323 is bigger)
But if you want to do the vented disk upgrade on a 4 cyl. e21 you can use the regular 320 hubs. Sorry for the threadjack

so the E12 are the same? I had to take some bearings to a bearing shop and try to match by inner race diameter, outer diam, height, width, etc.....not an easy task...

And the 2002tii brg. are the same, A 320i/323i vented hub used with the vented rotor and E12 caliper on tii struts was the hot setup back when.
tii used a 3.5" caliper mounting so the E12 was bolt on.

Jeff

BMW/ETK says ALL E21, whether 4 or 6 cylinder are the same. The bearing companies agree, and they're right. I have in the shop from 320i, and also for my 323i. Same part.

That same bearing is also used in 2002tii, 2002 turbo, E12, E12 based E24, E9 and E3. Best part is, the inner bearing is a BR6, which is SUPER common in American cars. Nothing fancy here, and no difference between E21 vented or non vented, 4 or 6 cylinder. Just some part suppliers who got it all wrong.

Al

I bought some bearings from NAPA autoparts that were correct, last year. No wonder they had them in stock- their common to US cars.

Alright, little more research this morning has turned up what I believe is the absolute truth about E21 bearings.

320i from 77-79(vented or not) and all 323i are the same. They are the same as E3, E9, E12, early E24, tii, and 2002 turbo.

320i from 80-83 all use the smaller bearing, same as the VW rear application. Several suppliers are sending the smaller ones, even for the larger application.

My first bit of confusion came when I ordered the kits for my 323i. Mine is an 81, and most US suppliers don't list the 323i as an option. Therefore, without thinking, I ordered bearings for an 81 320i. Of course, they were not the same.

Anyway, all sorted out now, my car is nearly back on the ground again.

Al

Al, you are right to mention that all 6 cylinders e21s have the same hub/bearings as the early (pre-1980) e21. In 1980, BMW switched to the smaller wheel bearings. Which is why owners of regular 2002s need hubs from mthe late e21, and owners of Tiis need the bearings from either the early e21s, or early 5er or 6er.

BTW If you need monster brakes for your car, the group buy on 2002faq.com will end this coming Tuesday. The Tii 11.75" x 1.25" kit fits all e21s.

BMW/ETK says ALL E21, whether 4 or 6 cylinder are the same. The bearing companies agree, and they're right. I have in the shop from 320i, and also for my 323i. Same part.

That same bearing is also used in 2002tii, 2002 turbo, E12, E12 based E24, E9 and E3. Best part is, the inner bearing is a BR6, which is SUPER common in American cars. Nothing fancy here, and no difference between E21 vented or non vented, 4 or 6 cylinder. Just some part suppliers who got it all wrong.

Al

Al.
Do you have pics of the bearings??

Al, you are right to mention that all 6 cylinders e21s have the same hub/bearings as the early (pre-1980) e21. In 1980, BMW switched to the smaller wheel bearings. Which is why owners of regular 2002s need hubs from mthe late e21, and owners of Tiis need the bearings from either the early e21s, or early 5er or 6er.

BTW If you need monster brakes for your car, the group buy on 2002faq.com will end this coming Tuesday. The Tii 11.75" x 1.25" kit fits all e21s.
Details on the monster brake kit- what are the front calipers and will they clear a 15 x 6.5 BBS rim?

Guys,

I recently upgraded the brakes and suspension on my '83 320i. I used the strut housing from a 323. As someone else had mentioned, I was able to get the front wheel bearings and seals from NAPA as they could source the bearings for a '77-79 320i with no problem.

The challenge was to find the 323 rear wheel bearings. If you guys know of a good source for the rear wheel bearings for the 323 please let me know.

Thanks.

Yohan

Alright, little more research this morning has turned up what I believe is the absolute truth about E21 bearings.

320i from 77-79(vented or not) and all 323i are the same. They are the same as E3, E9, E12, early E24, tii, and 2002 turbo.

320i from 80-83 all use the smaller bearing, same as the VW rear application. Several suppliers are sending the smaller ones, even for the larger application.

My first bit of confusion came when I ordered the kits for my 323i. Mine is an 81, and most US suppliers don't list the 323i as an option. Therefore, without thinking, I ordered bearings for an 81 320i. Of course, they were not the same.

Anyway, all sorted out now, my car is nearly back on the ground again.

Al

Al.
Do you have pics of the bearings??


Details on the monster brake kit- what are the front calipers and will they clear a 15 x 6.5 BBS rim?


Hi Al, I can't mention any commercial ad on the forum. For more detail go there (copy & paste the URL):
bmw2002faq.com/component/option,com_forum/Itemid,50/page,viewtopic/t,281299/

If you want me to send you a mock-up to test against your wheel, them email me at l.vuong@sympatico.ca and I will gladly send you a pdf file of the brakes. Print it on some 11" x 17" paper, stick it on some cardboard, cut it and apply it to the inner side of the wheel. Usually, those kits are easy to fit toan e21 as the car's offset is favorable. But as every wheel is different, it must carefully be checked first.

Guys,


The challenge was to find the 323 rear wheel bearings. If you guys know of a good source for the rear wheel bearings for the 323 please let me know.

Thanks.

Yohan

I found the rear wheel brg. to be a pain for 323.
One of the brg. is still a dealer only item as was 1 of the seals.
33 41 1 119 994 brg. 33 41 3 404 161 seal
The other I got from a brg. house,
SKF # 6206JEM for the brg. CR # 16616 for the seal
Don't remember which is inner or outter.

On another note, Lee's massive brakes do fit with Alpina 6" rims, but I could not use wheel weights at the center of the rim, as you would when trying not to put them on the outside.
His brake hubs are very nice, and if you use the 1.25 rotors with the Superlights.. well you are race track ready. :eek:
I used the Hubs with .810 rotors and Dynapro calipers for the dustboots, and made caliper brackets for them (they are radial mount)...SWEET!!!

Jeff

I found the rear wheel brg. to be a pain for 323.
One of the brg. is still a dealer only item as was 1 of the seals.
33 41 1 119 994 brg. 33 41 3 404 161 seal
The other I got from a brg. house,
SKF # 6206JEM for the brg. CR # 16616 for the seal
Don't remember which is inner or outter.

On another note, Lee's massive brakes do fit with Alpina 6" rims, but I could not use wheel weights at the center of the rim, as you would when trying not to put them on the outside.
His brake hubs are very nice, and if you use the 1.25 rotors with the Superlights.. well you are race track ready. :eek:
I used the Hubs with .810 rotors and Dynapro calipers for the dustboots, and made caliper brackets for them (they are radial mount)...SWEET!!!

Jeff
Jeff,
What is the difference between the .810 and 1.25 rotors - is there any advantage to going with a thicker rotor? And do you need a master cylinder for this kit.
I am wondering if i can get my 15 x 6.5 BBS Marhle rims to work with this 2002 kit.

Hi Jeff.

Good to hear from you and that you fitted the brakes in a different way. Your solution around a different set of calipers seems very interesting. Can we see pictures? I believe that the Dynalite calipers are about 1/4" narrower than the Superlite and have an overall radius of around 5mm lesser than a a Superlite. Every millimeter helps. I thought about going to these calipers but they are limited at using 1" thick discs. Anyway, shoot us some pictures.

Lee those brakes look very well built. $910 may seem like alot, but for what your getting, its a good deal. If I was in actual need of better brakes, I would seriously concider your set-up. Good luck with the sales.