Thanks for the request
I brought and shipped the car from CA about four years ago. I wanted a black plate car which was just in used condition (rust free, no fresh paint!). After looking around (by remote from London) I found a '66 three dial and then the long wait for the shipping - around 9 weeks and then 2 weeks to clear customs - the car turned up. I'm sure, like most cars, you always find something on closer inspection - especially when you buy the car from 4 photographs! but I had a few good years of a running, but tired, 912.
In the end, just when I made up my mind to take it off the road (how typical) I cracked a sleeve/cylinder. As I'm sure you'll all agree...when you start stripping things down, you sometimes don't know when to stop. I put the car on stands and dropped the engine. What a mess. It was totally caked in oil. When I got Andy involved (the engine builder) we started to find a few PO horrors (someone hand even painted the engine block!) along with the common crack where the oil cooler is. It also had a non counterbalanced 356 crank and whoever rebuilt it last did not install any of the oil seals on the crankcase through bolts which goes a long way to explain why it leaked so much.
So the plan of action was:
vapour blasting the case and heads.
keep (there are pro's for an non counterbalanced crank) and regrind the crankshaft to first under (0.25mm) on all eight journals then dynamically balanced with the flywheel.
Machine Flywheel
New main and Rod bearings
Norris 356S Camshaft
Competition spec flywheel nut
Sandblast and powder coat all tinware
Re-plate all of the fasteners
Heads reworked and a new set of valve springs
A set of Shasta Design 86mm pistons and barrels.
An Aluminium oil cooler
Full flow oil system – The case was machined and converted for a full flow filter.
New heat exchangers and rear silencer
Bosch 050 distributor
Weber 40IDF and fuel pump rebuild
K&N Air Filters
And 4 months to get it all together. So that's stage 1!
Running in instructions list 5 stages between start up and 1000 miles. I just want to go for it.
Stage 2 (the body) will commence when... the bank manager chills out!
I've attached two more pictures.
I must say a big thanks to Andy Prill who is an absolute perfectionist.
I send a post when I get it onto a rolling road.
David (aka Chickybok)
