Oil leak.... opinions wanted...

[tlarocque]

Pretty PO'd today. I dropped my car off at local indie for valve adjustment and a few other odds and ends. I asked them to look at an oil leak that I thought was coming from the lower valve cover. The leak has been present almost since I had the top end rebuilt 5 years and 15k miles ago.

Well... they told me that the leak is from the cam towers to the cylinder heads and severe enough that valve adjustment alone won't fix.
They recommend a full reseal of the motor to the tune of >$6k.

Needless to say, I didn't expect this after dropping $10k on the top end rebuild 15k miles ago. Any hopes I had for hanging onto my GT3 RS are now gone, too many other things right now.

A little background.... my father bought the car brand new in 1988. I bought it from him about 8 years ago and the car has always been maintained. I plan to keep the car forever (despite my wife wanting it gone).

So would you guys....

1) Screw the oil leak, just keep it filled with oil and drive as is
2) Drop the engine and get it fixed to stock
3) If going track car route, consider upgrades while motor is out (3.4, twin plug, $$$ stuff)
4) Consider pickling the 3.2 and swapping in a 3.6
5) Listen to wife, do #2, sell car
6) Other suggestions

Currently I daily drive the car but plan to pick up something more suitable for winter weather in the coming months.

[RedCoupe]

Before you make any life changing decisions, I'd get a second opinion. It could be something that wouldn't take a whole disassembly to fix such as a leaking rocker shaft. John Walker's shop is just up the road in Seattle, and he sure could tell you what's wrong.

[simsalabim]

+ 1 on Red Coupe !

[simsalabim]

Actually, I think that anyone who suggests $6k worth of motor work without doing what most believe to be the best oil leak test currently recommended is suspect.

I am referring to a "dye test", was it performed before the cam tower/head interface was named ?

[Walt Fricke]

With a set of snow tires, 911s make pretty good snow cars. I used to use mine to go skiing. A bit of a problem in really deep snow, as the floor pan can keep the tires from reaching pavement.

But take Red's advice.

I think the cam towers almost never leak. You follow the factory procedures to seal them on reassembly, or use any one of the other sealants folks seem to like and have experience with to back that up, and you don't get leaks there. You can put a dye in the oil which shows up under a black light to really hunt down a leak.

[tlarocque]

Appreciate the suggestions and will seek another opinion. Definitely worth the effort.

I am also trying to get the heating system back to working order. The biggest problem with winter driving up here isn't the snow (only a couple days/year) but that it rains so much. Hard to keep the windshield clear (inside or out) and car takes so long to warm up that I shiver! I feel a little bad about the idea of the car being wet for 7 months too. Otherwise, I'd love to drive it year round.

[Steam Driver]

911's/914's are great snow cars! I drove Corvairs, a 356C, a 914, and a 914-6 as my daily drivers back then in Kansas City winters and never had any issues getting around. And I never had snow tires on any of them. Steering was another issue; you had to be careful there. As for heat, only the 356 was lacking, in spades. All the rest had more than adequate heat. Can't see an issue there!

[tlarocque]

It has been done... but it wasn't fun with no heat...

[RedCoupe]

I lived in the Puget Sound area for many years and one of the best purchases I made for my garage was a big dehumidifier. Without it in the winter my garage was always a swamp!

[304065]

First, decide whether you want to be a 1988 owner, or not. Arguably the best shorthood EVER made.

Second: John Walker. Get the straight story. Leak between heads and cam tower? Not very common and the response "valve adjustment won't fix" does not make sense. Valve adjustment is checking and modifying if out of spec the clearance between the tip of the valve and the adjustable elephant foot on the rocker. It has NOTHING to do with whether the engine leaks oil or not.

Good luck!