Top end rebuild?

[7783911]

I apologize for being long winded in advance...

I am at a crossroad at this moment. I started winter projects and one of them was to replace injector sleeves o rings and clean/balance injectors. Well that plan blew up when I started pulling sleeves and found 4 were so brittle that some small pieces may have fallen into the cylinders...to make matters worse,,my pulling tool lost a small tip of the end in # 6...

So lesson learnt...remove cis with engine out to do this job right, in situ is too full of risks.

It’s an 83sc engine and was running strong but horrid mileage (no vacuum leaks detected) and was consuming some higher then normal oil rate.

Last year the shop I take her to had some recommendations including valve guides ,new clutch and some other jobs all aimed at oil consumption issue (and droplet level leaks). I have several paths forward to decide on

Remove engine and tranny as a unit and attempt the find missing bits

Remove engine and tranny and take to shop

Take car to shop and let them do the necessary work


I am tempted to do the third because I am snake bitten at this point....what is usuall hours for a shop to drop engine using hoist and experience versus my attempting using Wayne’s book aNd every article I can locate.

It may be that paying an experienced shop that is doing the work the extra hours to remove and replace engine is well worth it given to total cost of the list of jobs will be 7k..give or take. And I get piece of mind that it’s being done right without risking another fubar from me.

I ve restored several car but never done a Porsche engine, I just sense that without proper tools and experience the aggravation I cause myself doing an engine removal in my unheated garage will be better served by the extra labor costs for them to do in 1/4 of the time it would take me.

If I did drop engine and tranny..the clutch is easy..but valve guides I don’t know what’s involved and what is needed to find the broken bits and be 100% confident I got all the bits out as well as did the valves correctly.

What would be typical things to get done along with guides etc to address oil consumption. Btw..leak down was almost 0 on all cylinders and compression was within a few psi across all 6...so rings appear to be fine. The car had sat for several years before I bought so I expect many seals need to be considered.?

What is the community thought on this dilemma...

Thanks for any and all insights

Bob

[7783911]

No comments anyone...?

[lvporschepilot]

Hey there. Not really any special tools required for this engine other than the appropriate camshaft holding tools and timing tools. Pretty straight forward job if you know your way around an engine in general. Drop the engine, remove the heads and rockers with shafts and send them to Craig. Cgarr (Craig) on the forum does absolutely fantastic head work and he's not too far from you being in Michigan. If nothing else it will be a great learning experience. it's not a terribly challenging job, just follow the books you have and you'll be set. Sounds like the bottom end is in good shape!

[Trackrash]

It can come down to your time and expertise, your budget, and how well you trust your mechanic.

If you have dropped your motor before and have time to do that, I would start there.

Sounds like you need to pull the heads. Consider that is a messy job and you will spend a lot of time cleaning parts. Probably should power wash before starting the dissasembly.

If you have Wayne's book, a good set of mechanics tools, and are mechanically experienced, you could do a lot of the work yourself. Heads and cylinders can be sent out for evaluation and repair.

Remember, it is a slippery slope and there will be a lot of WITs, either with a shop or yourself doing the work.

FWIW, Once upon a time a friend of mine worked in a reputable Porsche repair shop. I watched them pull a motor once. They used a floor jack directly on the motor, dropped the motor directly on the concrete, and slid it out on the head exchanges. Just sayn'.

[boyt911sc]

Originally Posted by 7783911

I apologize for being long winded in advance...

I am at a crossroad at this moment. I started winter projects and one of them was to replace injector sleeves o rings and clean/balance injectors. Well that plan blew up when I started pulling sleeves and found 4 were so brittle that some small pieces may have fallen into the cylinders...to make matters worse,,my pulling tool lost a small tip of the end in # 6...

So lesson learnt...remove cis with engine out to do this job right, in situ is too full of risks.

It’s an 83sc engine and was running strong but horrid mileage (no vacuum leaks detected) and was consuming some higher then normal oil rate.

Last year the shop I take her to had some recommendations including valve guides ,new clutch and some other jobs all aimed at oil consumption issue (and droplet level leaks). I have several paths forward to decide on

Remove engine and tranny as a unit and attempt the find missing bits

Remove engine and tranny and take to shop

Take car to shop and let them do the necessary work


I am tempted to do the third because I am snake bitten at this point....what is usuall hours for a shop to drop engine using hoist and experience versus my attempting using Wayne’s book aNd every article I can locate.

It may be that paying an experienced shop that is doing the work the extra hours to remove and replace engine is well worth it given to total cost of the list of jobs will be 7k..give or take. And I get piece of mind that it’s being done right without risking another fubar from me.

I ve restored several car but never done a Porsche engine, I just sense that without proper tools and experience the aggravation I cause myself doing an engine removal in my unheated garage will be better served by the extra labor costs for them to do in 1/4 of the time it would take me.

If I did drop engine and tranny..the clutch is easy..but valve guides I don’t know what’s involved and what is needed to find the broken bits and be 100% confident I got all the bits out as well as did the valves correctly.

What would be typical things to get done along with guides etc to address oil consumption. Btw..leak down was almost 0 on all cylinders and compression was within a few psi across all 6...so rings appear to be fine. The car had sat for several years before I bought so I expect many seals need to be considered.?

What is the community thought on this dilemma...

Thanks for any and all insights

Bob

Bob,

These are some of the questions you need to answer so people could help you find the right path to your goal or objective.
a). Do you have the time to do the job?
b). Do you have the desire to do it yourself or rather pay someone to do the job?
c). What is the biggest stumbling block you think you have now? Lack of experience?

If you have a strong desire to learn and do the rebuild of your beloved 911, the first thing you need to do is overcome your fear and anxiety. There is really nothing difficult to engine rebuilding if you just keep an open mind and believe in your ability to be successful.

You are not alone, many including myself was in similar frame of mind many years ago until I over came my fear of the unknown. Establish a buddy system. Find some people you think you could talk and seek advise. I have a long list of people I did not know but felt they could be good mentors or advisers. And I was right and lucky to have them at my side. This gave me confidence in what I was doing. Actually, I have not personally met any of my mentors as we speak. Only contacts were phone calls and emails. I am finishing my 15th motor this winter.

Tony

[al lkosmal]

Bob,
I am a total DIY advocate........but based on your questions and comments and a perceived lack of confidence/experience/enthusiasm related to the job at hand, I would recommend that you take it to the local professionals, if that is an option for you.

That's just me...I could be wrong..



regards,
al

[7783911]

Tx for input

I decided -20 in unheated garage does not let
Nd itself to success...after so much reading...the drop is doable but would need to invest in a better jack and some other pieces and still face a cold garage,
I ve started collecting parts and will bring to my trusted garage, especially for the valve guides and seats.. depending on weather improvements, I may drop and do all the seal work etc and leave valve work to a pro..

Qq