[Neil Harvey]

Rebuilding an engine.

Its all about the planning.

The most important task in rebuilding and engine needs to be completed before you even remove the first nut or bolt.

What is the objective? What is my maximum budget and what are my performance requirements? Is the engine going to remain stock or is it going to tickle my back side some more?

Remember, most if not all air-cooled engines need a restoration not just rebuilding.

Take pen to paper and plan!! I cannot stress the importance of this!

To remove the engine from the car, do I have the room to do this safely. Can I leave the car in the same place while the engine is been rebuilt? Do I have all the right equipment? If not, what will this cost? Can I borrow it? Will I make a mess (yes), and be able to keep the workplace clean? What am I going to do with all the disposal oil and trash?

Once the engine is apart, what am I going to do myself, what am I going to send out to have done, etc. Getting a base line cost for any machine repairs ahead of time, the lead time to receive back, is very important. This is a huge part of the budget planning. Am I going to have the parts powder coated, CAD plated, painted etc.? All this needs to be decided before doing anything. These costs are well known as they are a common restoration upgrade.

If you have a magnesium engine case, plan on head stud inserts, oil by-pass mod, line bore, cylinder decks skimmed parallel, some thread repairs, and some additional cleaning. Plan on having to rebuild the heads, new guides, maybe seat inserts, broken Exhaust stud removal, new valve springs and some or all, new valves. Plan for the worse, hope for the best. Remember to include parts like, new Clutch assy, oil hoses, filters, fuel lines and maybe some electrical upgrades and or repairs. The Alternator may need rebuilding, at the vey least, checking, the wiring probably needs some repair work as well. A lot of this can be established by a close inspection before the engine is even removed.

What basic rebuilding parts and consumables will I need? Will I replace all the standard hardware and fasteners? I will need new bearing shells, timing chains, chain support rails etc. Where am I going to buy these from? Will I go cheap and buy from the aftermarket and risk buying out of spec parts or will I buy direct from Porsche agencies. My advice is to do both. Buy the most critical parts like bearing shells from the dealer and the less critical parts like chain guide rails from the aftermarket.

Get answers to all of this before you even start. Planning is so important. Make up a schedule of work to be done and in what order. I am going to remove the engine on day X. I will remove the gearbox and clean it on the same day. Another day I will disassemble the exhaust system and intake. I will inspect each part and note any repairs required and add these to my rebuild plan and make sure these are covered in my budget. Included in the preplanning should be, what can I do to help lower the outside labor costs?

Once I have the parts back and the assembly starts, do I know what I am doing? Do I understand how to measure the case main housing, can I measure bearing clearances, do I understand how to check the piston to valve clearances, do I understand how to time the cams? Now is the time to understand all of this. Too many “jump” into this with excitement about rebuilding their engines without any clue of what they are doing or about to embark on.

Now, the engine and gearbox are removed from the chassis, the disassembly part begins. What tools are required, and do I have all of the tools required? Can I store the gearbox somewhere? Do I have the correct engine stand? Do I have an area to store all the Intake, sheet metal, exhaust system? Do I have a clean work bench space?

Keep the workplace clean. Clean after yourself especially after removing the exhaust system and Intake. Keep the floor clean. Keep the tools clean. As you make a mess, clean it. You will feel so much better working in a clean environment. I have seen pictures of tools left lying over the floor, an oiling mess on the floor, such a toxic place to work. Keep it clean and clean as you go. Only have the tools required to perform each job out, clean and put them away as you finish each job.

Now you have the top end apart, inspect the parts. Now is the time to collate the schedule and budget you have made to see if you are under or above what you have planned for. Do as much cleaning as you can yourself and do it as you remove the parts. Storing clean parts is way easier than dirty oily parts. In your planned budget you will have some timeline on when you will send out parts for cleaning and any finishing.

The major parts now under inspection will be the Camshafts, rockers, and cylinder heads. Probably most DIY’s will send out the heads for repair. The camshafts should be carefully inspected now for pitting on the lobes. If they are to be reused, and in great shape, clean them, oil them and put away in a safe place. Do not drop them as they will break into two pieces very easily. Inspect the rocker arms for wear. The bushings will probably show wear, especially on the thrust side of the rocker arm. Do the rocker arm pads show signs of wear? How do the timing chain gears look? Often these shows signs of chain misalignment and needs replacing. Now is the time to check your budget for these parts or add to it. A running total will be easier to budget than a hefty unknown amount at the end.

You should know what camshaft you are going to replace your’ s with before starting this rebuild. This is part of the performance planning. Making sure your cam can either be reground with the new profile or you will be buying new billets.

Pack the heads ready for shipping. Inspect the cam housings for wear and plan on removing the oiling spray tubes for cleaning. Now you can turn the engine over and visually inspect the cylinder bores for wear and any damage. It’s a good idea to do this before you remove so you at least have an idea of what is ahead of you. Again, this can add to the budget, so now is the time to make additions. Removing the cylinders and pistons can now be done with careful attention not to damage or beak anything. Be patient here. Expect the pin clips to go into space, Use some eye protection here. Don’t worry about losing any clips, these will be replaced with new ones. Be careful not to break any Piston rings either. You want to know if they were broken before so any oil consumption issues can be confirmed.