First rebuild and block price question

[JohnJL]

First of all, thanks for bearing with my newb question, I hope to be a "net contributor" rather than a "net consumer" before long.

I'm sizing up my first porsche rebuild (this will be my third engine build so I'm still a novice) and my goals are;

1. get acquinted with porsche internal designs
2. build a reliable, torquey, street-legal track car
3. work on an engine which can see other future uses (ie. can be further built into a higher-performance plant if my desires go there)

Other considerations;
1. must be adaptable to a left-hand or RHD car (not sure if the transplant will be in the US or OZ.
2. not ready for turbo or supercharging

I'd like to get 230HP and run on pump gass (9-10 c/r?)

So I think a good start is an 83 SC 3.0 N/A engine assembly. Since it runs already, I should be able to selectively upgrade (ie. 3.2 P/C, cams) while not having to replace everything (ie. crank, rods, head, CIS)

Is my choice sound?

A dismantler is offering a running 3.0 assembly for $4000. Is this a fair price? He says he'll provide compression/leakdown figs but I'll be buying remotely so not verifiable by me until after delivery.

Thanks,
John

[echrisconnor]

Naturally, you should start by getting and reading Wayne's book (if you haven't already).

My only comments would be that if you're buying an engine specifically to rebuild, you can probably get a 3.0 for a little less than that and not worry so much about how it is presently running, since you'll redo everything anyways. That said, a few thousand more and you can get a good 3.2, which might arugably be a better candidate, since if you want the type of power you've described, you'll probably be rebuilding the 3.0 to to a 3.2 and the new 98mm pistons and cylinders are not cheap.

The big question that I'll throw out and others will also ask is "what are you going to do with the engine?" If it's a daily driver vs a track car, you'll want do do differnent things. Also, what will you put it into?

Have fun!

[JohnJL]

Hi Chris, thanks for the response.

Yes, I'm reading Wayne's book for the 2nd time now, a great resource. Its his 1st or 3rd or 4th "Top Engine PicK" from the top on page 113 that I'm eyeing. I have more experience with carbs than injection, but I'm thinking I'll leave the CIS on initially.

It will be going in an earlier body (70-80) which I haven't acquired yet. My situation is that I am moving to Australia and will only have a small garage to work in. I don't know how long I'll stay in OZ, so I don't want to jump right into a body yet. I have a recurring habit of gutting an entire car/truck and spending 2 years putting it back together.

Since this will be the "heart" of my next long-term project, I'm willing to spend some time and a good deal of $ (10k?) which I know I won't recoup except in my own long-term enjoyment.

My goal is to initially have a pump-gas higher-performance engine with the emphasis on torque to be dropped into a mostly-track that MIGHT eventually go to full-time track duty (and so can be rebuilt into a more high-strung motor disregarding the street considerations.) For example, I'll probably start with 98mm p/c and 964 cams, but leave the CIS in place (but refurbished) until its full-track time when I might go to PMO or motronic.

thanks,

[mtelliott]

$4000 for a proven running engine is a good price. That way, you're not having to source things like wiring harness (or fixing), injectors, vacuum leaks, distributors, etc. If it doesn't run, the reason why can be very costly to diagnose. If it's running with good compression and leakdown, $4000 is a decent deal. In Colorado, cost is typically $4k - $5K depending on the mileage.

Good luck with your build.