911-32, thanks very much for your insight. I am somewhat in agreement with you about your philosophy about bhp gains. I think everything has to be looked at and considered but don't think that everything has to be replaced. Something as simple as a good cleaning can make all the difference in the world and be good again for the next 25 years. I do believe that in order to see increases in output, things have to be done to compliment each other. Otherwise you don't really get the benefit of one item or upgrade. Your example of exhaust is perfect. One would be foolish to think that they can just bolt on a new muffler or headers and think they were going to gets gobs and gobs of horsepower without doing something to increase the amount of air and fuel that is passing through their engine. If I were going after a track motor that lived between 6-7000 rpms than I totally agree, I would be addressing everything. I'm not, this engine will also be used on the street in town and for long distance at highway speeds in 2500-4000rpm range and I need to maintain the reliability and useability of a stock 3.2l . So after many years of thinking about this, I have decided to take advantage of my car's engine being out while the chassis is being repaired and go with the route that I feel is best for my goals with what I have to spend.

Hi Mike - I wasn't suggesting you do anything different, I was just giving you another couple of data points within the world of the possible. I am not aware of anyone else building an engine to my eventual spec, so its very much a path less travelled. In hindsight, anyone looking for an easy 280hp would be better advised going the 3.6 transplant route, but like you, I wanted a rebuilt, "good as new" engine AND more hp.

If you have the budget, I would suggest you think about a spring centred clutch and aluminium pressure plate. Totally changes the character of the engine - no more lazy throttle response - and leaving the flywheel std means you still have a decent idle and don't stall all the time. The 930S clutch is too heavy for most people (though it is bullet proof for the type of tq 3.2s make), but I am sure there are other options to replace the heavy rubber centred std clutch.

HTH, $0.02 etc

Actually truth be told, already have purchased a spring center clutch and aluminum flywheel. Since the heads are at the machine shop and the engine is still on the stand haven't gotten any reassembly yet. Although it is right around the corner. The interesting part has yet to come...the reassembly and getting it back to the way I found it, only cleaner and stronger!!

3.2l rebuild, the quest for more power
 

Sorry about the lack of updates. Not much has been done on my engine the two weeks, vacation, getting up to speed at work, a couple of guys deciding to move on which has increased my client load...have all kept me away from my engine.
Not being too happy with the the results I was getting on my hard parts, I decided to try one more step, I found a shop in Walkersville that does ultrasonic cleaning on engine parts so before I went on vacation I dropped them off to be cleaned, I had my brother pick them up for me while I was away. I can't wait to see them, particularly the cam towers. If they come out as clean as I expect them to I'll take them another batch of parts. I will post pics later when I get them back.
I also sent out my fuel injectors to Mr. Injector, Bill Johnson. Pretty straight forward process, fill out the online pdf document, send it in with the injectors. He will then test, clean and replace the seals on the injectors and then retest them. I received an email mid week letting me know how they did and they showed up Friday. Eventhough they were in good shape to begin with, I'm glad I sent them. Here's the report:

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Here's the product:

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They are like brand new, totally worth the $96 to have them serviced in my opinion.

Not much has been done since my last update except the acquistion of some parts. The heads have returned from Anchor Atlantic with all new valves and I had EBS send Bob Hirst the valve springs. The freshly done heads are just like new jewelery, immaculate. The cam towers and a bunch of other parts have returned from another performance shop where I had them cleaned. I scrubbed & scrubbed but I just wasn't happy with the results I was getting so I started looking around for another option. Kudos to Gunther's Performance in Walkersville, MD. Now I'm trying to decide if I want to have them painted or just leave in their natural metal color. I also scored on a real nice set of SSI's that I watched and watched for a whole week on ebay. It came down to only a few seconds to go but I ultimately won the auction, real nice set that were built in 2006 and look practically brand new. The 964 cams have been back from Elgin being cleaned up and polished, so now I'm pretty much ready to start going back together. I have to admit, I'm really nervous about going back together. Eventhough I have taken an absolute ton of pics, have labeled everything, followed instructions to a Tee and have multiple manuals, I'm still hesitant to attempt at getting this thing back together for fear of missing a step or not doing it correctly. Any help, any advice or guidance in getting my engine back together will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Take your time. It's not rocket science. Don't stress over it. Have a helper when you mate the case halves. Other than that, a good torque wrench and common sense will get you there!

Heads have come back from Bob at Anchor Atlantic, patience has paid off with nearly new SSIs and an M&K that is in awesome condition. Lots and lots of cleaning and now I'm ready to start putting back together. Pics of progress coming, would appreciate any input in case I missed something before I bolt everything back together. Thanks for everyone's advice up to this point. It has been helpful in the decisions that I've made thus far.

Engine assembly
 

As mentioned above, either have someone help put the two case halves together or you can do as I did and use an engine hoist to gently lower the one case half onto the other. Just before the case halves come together, check to make certain that the oil pump seals are in place and properly seated. Also, make certain that the Locktite sealer is properly applied to the case edge for proper sealing. Have all of the case bolts, nuts and washers cleaned and laid out in a neat order to help speed up the case assembly. Be certain to get fasteners on all of the studs, even the little short ones that are partially inside the case. Good luck!

Although I have not split the case halves I'm now wondering if I should. The thing that makes me hesitant to do that is the engine was running so smoothly prior to me having to take it out so the body could be repaired. With it out of the body, it gave me a chance to see what 25 years of grime looked like so I started cleaning, one component led to another which turned into maybe cams & an exhaust would give me some help against the 996 & Boxster guys which led to sending the heads out. Well it's very easy to get carried away. After going through the little bit that I've done thus far, I can see why the labor costs on a rebuild can really get away from you if you're not careful and stay focused on your objective. All the cleaning involved alone can kill someone if they are trying to stay within a certain budget.

I'm about to start the confusing part to me, putting the cams in and setting the timing. I followed Wayne's book in disassembly especially with making sure I was at TDC. Now that I am going back together I am a little confused about how things go back together in the cam tower and the cams. Do I insert the cam so the lobes are in a certain position into the cam tower or am I over thinking this? The other thing I'm curious about is the heads and the cam towers. I was told not to torque down the heads until after I torqued the cam towers. The idea being that as if I torqued the heads first the cam towers would not seat tightly against the heads as they were being torqued. Does that make sense to anyone?

Mike,
Put the cams in with the dots facing up towards the sky. It is not a bad idea to assemble the heads to the cam towers on the bench as a sub-assembly and then bolt all of it to the short block at the same time. Much easier in my opinion.
Don't forget to put the cylinder cooling tins on before you put the heads on!!!

Thank you JB, I thought I might be able to do the same thing but all the rebuilds that I've seen on the forum and in the rebuild manuals show putting the cam tower on and then installing the cams. I guess there really isn't that much of a difference in which way it is done, it just seems that would be easier to slide the cams through the holes with the tower on the bench than if it were bolted to the block.

In rereading the chapter for reassembly I see that Wayne talks about that very subject of torqueing the cam tower before torqueing down the heads. I'm curious about something else, he talks premeasuring the valve clearance to the pistons during reassembly of a rebuild before applying any sealants. The book indicates this should be done with any radical modification. When I sent the heads to Anchor Atlantic I told Bob Hirst that I was putting in 964 cams but was keeping the pistons and cylinders as stock. I also told Dema Elgin that the cams that I sent him were claimed to be stock 964 cams and that all I was interested in was having him thoroughly inspect them for trueness and measured correctly and do a complete reconditioning on them. I also told that I was not looking for anything extreme in the way of a race engine and that I preferred them to stay as close to stock lift as possible. I got exactly what I asked for, both of those guys were really nice to work with. Having said all that, am I wise to put this engine together for premeasuring of the clearance only to have to take it apart again so I can put it all back together again, or will that be a waste of time because I'm not really doing anything that special?

Mocking up the long block takes more time certainly, but it is always good practice. You only need to install the rockers for 1 & 4 when you do it so that saves a ton of time. You're just looking to make sure you have sufficient valve to piston clearance. Here's an upside for you, since you don't time cams all the time, this will give you very valuable practice before you put it together for real!

I've found that the series of videos by Nick Fulljames to be very good and informative. I haven't seen the others, but the more you see, the better informed you'll be. Be that as it may, instead of assembling by the numbers, which will probably get you there, you should get a better overview of the process first before tackling this headfirst.

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This and many other rebuild videos should be one of many sources including published reference manuals. Forums such as this, while more personal than a printed page, can be valuable. It can also lead to confusion due to the wide variety of well-intentioned owners and others offering their version of facts, some valid, some heresay, some wive's tales. E.g. If someone tells you the oil clearance is 0.XXX mm (in.), I'd double check it before committing $$ and/or man-power in making it happen.

As for installing the cams. It can be done on or off the engine. I'd check and verify lobe wear and overall straightness first.

Sherwood

3.2l rebuild, the quest for more power
 

Sherwood, thank you for your comments. I have had some guys steer me in the wrong direction, although not on purpose but if I hadn't verified the information I would be taking apart only to have to put it back together again.
I have made some progress and since I'm off this week I plan to make some real headway on getting this motor back together. My friend Chuck at Chuck's Frame Shop in Richmond VA is doing real well with my car's body so I really need to get my ass in gear and be ready for him.
I had my first experience with polishing and here's how it turned out. I was looking at the fuel rails after the were cleaned up and really looked bad so I figured I'd try my hand at polishing.

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As you can see there is just a lot of crud and discoloration on the metal piping so I got out the brass brush and liquid metal polish. From there I found that it started cleaning up but not really giving any shine.

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At this point I wasn't satisfied so I started really rubbing hard but the effort I was putting forth wasn't giving me any results other than frustration. It was not time to introduce some electricity

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Now I was making some progress, with a little patience and some sticktoitness I was able to turn those beat up crusty fuel rails into something presentable in about an hour for each fuel rail.

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It really wasn't that bad of a job but it was a tedious exercise. I'm happy that I did it because the way it looks now will totally compliment how they will work once reinstalled now that they have been cleaned out from the inside

Now you will have to paint them or they will rust.
Or you can send them away to be recoated.

This is one of many YouTube videos on removing corrosion using electrolysis. Fully within the reach of a DIYer.
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Wire brushing is possible, but when you have a threshold number to refurbish, you'll want to explore options.

Yes, replate with zinc or cad after removing surface oxidation/rust.

Sherwood

Sherwood and Magnus, based on those last comments, does that mean that the fuel rails are going to rust since all I did was clean off the oxidation and put a simple polishing on the fuel rails?

If the factory protective coating (zinc or cad plating) was removed when cleaned (wire brush, abrasion, polishing), corrosion will begin on the base metal. Your options to protect include coating with paint, then spray the interior with light oil to preserve prior to installation or replate.

MHO,
Sherwood