911 Rebuild costs
 

I am curious at what the costs are for a DIY full and/or a top end rebuild for a pre-1989 911?

Also, what do shops charge?

I am looking into buying a pre-1989 911, and I was wondering if I got one needing a rebuild, what I would be looking at, and also can a novice do the work? I have heard good things about a couple of books that are available. But is that all hype to get you to buy the book, or can a novice really rebuild a 911 engine?

Thanks,

Jason

Jason,

Welcome to PP. I am doing a full rebuild with new P&C's, new clutch and cosmetics. This is on an 88 Carrera. I have not added everything up yet but will be less than $6000. If I used my old P&C's it would be about $2100 less than that. I have done everything except the machine work. Yes with Wayne's rebuild book and the help from everyone here you can rebuild your engine. The rebuild book covers 95% of what you need to know and the engine rebuild forum covers anything that you would need to know. By the time I started tearing the engine down I had read the rebuild book so many times I felt like I had done it before. The search button is a great tool to get ?'s answered, Wayne just upgraded the search engine. Will be posting the progress in the next several weeks, can't wait to get started reassembling the engine. :D

911 engine rebuilding costs are highly dependent on which engine you're rebuilding, and what's wrong with it. Take my engine: 2.2T, mag case, suffered water intrusion before I bought the car. But the engine itself had reasonable miles. So, after checking everything, it turns out that the case is straight (due to low stress T spec), the p/c's are good, and all of the rod and main journals are perfect. Everything in the engine is within spec, so I'm just going to get new rings, put in new valve guides since I'm there, and put it back together. Hopefully some of the oil leaks that it had when it was running will be cured as well. This is the best case senario. Then again, if you get a well beat 2.7 with Alusil jugs, a lot of machine work has to be done on the case to straighten it out, and then you have to get a new set of pistons and cylinders regardless. Not to mention rebuilding the heads and all of the other usual stuff. All of that work gets pricey. If you have a shop area, are patient, buy Wayne's book (it really is good), and have some mechanical ability, you should be able to rebuild a 911 engine. Do you change your own oil and maintain you vehicles?

Three years and one marriage.

$8500 with a two year / unlimited mile warranty.
Let a plumber unclog your toilet (who needs the *****), let a doctor remove that unsightly mole (too important to take chances ), let Amarni tailor your wedding tux (you should look your best at least one) and let Supertec build you engine. (no one does it better)
Could you DIY ? of course. With the same artistry ? maybe not.

"Be warned there is an incredible amount of drudgery in all the cleaning and painting"


I certainly agree with that. Due to its modular design, the 911 engine has so many oil tight gasket and sealing surfaces that must be very very clean before assembly. The only way to get many of them prepped is plain elbow grease and time.

Now I know why I had you build my engine, Thanks Henry Bob Shafer

Jason,
While I'm new to Porsche engines, I remember my first engine like it was yesterday (who doesn't?): you CAN do it yourself and it can be terrific fun and (relatively) inexpensive, but here are a ten REALLY important points:

1. Don't take short-cuts (at least, not as a novice)
2. Have someone you know, who knows engines (pref. Porsches) be available for ??s
3. Don't scrimp when you need to spend
4. Don't spend when you don't have to
5. Buy the right tools
6. Buy good tools
7. Borrow (if anyone will let you) anything you'll never use again
8. Take REALLY good notes as you go (at least the first time).
9. Budget for a minimum of 50% more cost (and 100% more time) than you expect.
10. Expect to screw something up and have to re-do it.

My first engine (5 or 6 vehicles ago) was a shot '86 civic engine (broken timing belt, spalled cam). On-the-cheap rebuild, no extraneous expenses, but bought about 60% of my good tools then: $400 in parts, $800 in tools.

Lot of great mechanics post here and still have problems....note the hundreds of posts. Unless it is a hobby you want to pursue...get a pro like Henry at Supertec to do the job and give you a warranty. A Porsche engine is a pretty expensive investment to "learn on." The price will be about the same...especially after you purchase special tools...and you can spend your energy on the myriad of other mods and repairs that are simpler and less costly if you screw up.

If your going to do it yourself--buckle-up! If you really like building motors, enjoy! If you're not sure, and you have the $$, take Henry's advise. Every time I see one of his motors, a part of me wishes I did. Maybe next time.

"Can a novice rebuild a 911 engine"?

That depends on the novice. Only you can decide what you are capable of. If you can understand the inner workings and carefully follow instructions and have patience, and take the time to read all you can about the job from several sources then you can do it. If you lose interest easily or aren't interested in the inner workings of the engine you might have problems.

-Andy

Jim says it best. That is what this is all about. Right now though I would take advanatge of the good value you can find in the market. Have Porsche wrench do PPI. Find one with low miles as you can afford. Stock Porsche bottom ends last for hundreds of thousands of miles so long as they are serviced by professionals. For example say Henry serviced the Porsche you are considering buying, the car may need an oil change and a wash. But if you bought a car from someone who was say third owner and the second owner nor the third owner ever had the car serviced, you would be looking at many service items, and if it failed because of lack of doing that service it will cost you 8500 all at once. The PPI will tell you leakdown/compression, and if it require any other part (ie service) you will be advised before you buy it how much you'll need to spend in the next month. You will easily find a good car.

Just ask yourself what it is that you want.

Regards,

I just had my 3.0 long block re-built. The heads were a mess and needed springs, valves, machining. New rings, bearings, gaskets. All cams were re-ground and crank magnafuxed. Other than the cams , pistons and crank and case, everything else was replaced with new.
My total cost was over $7,000. The head work and machining is what killed me.
Otherwise, $4000 to $5000 will get you a long block re-build here in Florida.
Do not buy a car unless you get a compression and leak down test. have the mechanic inspect all the studs and check for oil leaks. Do make a mistake like I did. I am spending thousands more on this car than it is worth.

I think your answer is from $1500 (replacing valve guides, all gaskets, that's it ) to $12,000 for new P&C's etc. The thing that gets you is all the "while you are in there" and performance mods...

Budget - then increase the time and cost x4, especially for a 1st timer.

Lots of gotchas on these engines... Oh - and measure EVERYTHING - even the stuff comming straight from the machine shop.

AMEN!
-Chris

Do yourself a HUGE favor a buy an excellent, well-loved car with a complete service record from a caring owner that does not need a rebuild. There are many available right now that will save you THOUSANDS of dollars and months (or even years) of looking at your disassembled car and wonder if you'll ever get it on the road again.

As i stated in my post above, I have spent way too much on my Targa. At this point, I could have bought a real low milage, cared for, 930 for the amount I spent restoring my Targa. This was my first Porsche and did not realize tyhe cost of paint and engine repair. Little did I know that a black script rear center lens would cost me $500! I tore out my original dash because it had a small crack. How much could a dash cost? Well, I found out; $900 for a reconditioned leather one! Sorry for the rant. In my opinion, if I do this again, I would buy a low milage, best of the breed with a good service record and a therough inspection.

BUY THE CORRECT CAR AT THE RIGHT PRICE AND YOU CAN NOT ONLY BREAK EVEN BUT YOU CAN EVEN PROFIT FROM YOUR PURCHASE
But I would have to agree that most cars are money pits not good investments.
Porsches must be driven to get your money out of it. Kind of like any other toy.

I do not want anyone to think that I am totaly discouraged with my re-build experience. It has been, in many ways, very rewarding and exciting. In the end, way after I stop whinning about the money, i will have a totaly restored Targa that i can have fun with for many years to come. The satisfaction of doing a lot of work yourself adds to the joy.