[en] The cross sections for the electron impact excitation of the 2p/sub 1/2/ and 2p/sub 3/2/ states of the lithium-like ions C³⁺, Fe²³⁺, Mo³⁹⁺, and W⁷¹⁺ are calculated in the relativistic Coulomb--Born approximation. A range of incident electron energies from the 2p/sub 1/2/ threshold to (approximately) 10 times the 2p/sub 3/2/ threshold is considered. The most significant relativistic effects result from the spin--orbit splitting of the 2p states. An interpolation formula is presented which permits the estimation of these cross sections for similar ions of intermediate charges. 4 figures, 5 tables