I am SO bummed

syncroid · 06-20-2014, 05:33 PM

I just finished putting together a customer's 993 engine yesterday. (I have done many) I got it all reinstalled in the car, fired it up and it ran well. After about five minutes of run time I notice a couple drops of oil under the car. What!!!???
Turns out that one of the case through bolt orings must have gotten pinched during assembly.
Bottom line, I have to pull the power unit back out of the car and tear the motor down to the case to fix it. Why, why, why did Porsche ever change the way they did the case through bolt and washer set up they had up to 1989? It worked.
Grrrrrrrrrrr!

fastfredracing · 06-20-2014, 05:38 PM

20 years in the biz, and my cheeks still pucker every time I light a new motor. And this is exactly why. One simple little missed thing = 20+ hours of free labor to save your good name. Especially on a 911 motor.
It happens to the best of them. don't beat yourself up too bad. You are bound to get stung once in a while
Did I ever tell you the story of the 10mm nut that fell down the intake of a 5.4 triton motor I was putting head gaskets on ? Abstract art. I worked 15 some hours, and my reward was having to buy the customer a new motor, and replace it on my dime.

syncroid · 06-20-2014, 05:54 PM

I could swallow it a lot better if I were the shop owner, but I am not. I am not going to make my boss eat this. I am going to fix it on my time. Problem is, we are absolutely swamped with work and I am already working my ass off as it is. No rest for the wicked they say.

fastfredracing · 06-20-2014, 05:58 PM

It always happens at the worst possible moment, usually when you are swamped, or the day before you are leaving for vacation . Bad days in our biz can be really bad. Good on you for taking care of it.
One of my employees lunched an lt1 for the local police officers personal z28. I ate it. Came in nights and weekends to get it done. In hindsight, I should have made him re do it, but I was scared he would butcher it again. I considered it my fault for giving the job to the wrong guy, but we were busy....

Baz · Baz's Garage

I thought the expression was "No rest for the weary."

Sorry Dan - like Fred said....sometimes you get stung!

pavulon · 06-20-2014, 07:11 PM

Busy you say? That's the reward for good work!!

Hang in there Dan. Working on P-cars twice beats most work once every day. I'll be sending you a PM soon.

M.D. Holloway · 06-20-2014, 07:43 PM

Well, it could be worse...liverwurst... so they say. (Always wanted to meet 'they')

Actually I really like the fact that your all about getting it done right regardless. While its gonna be a bugger to do, and it will set you back, you know your commitment to detail and excellence is what makes you a top notch wrench, it shant go unnoticed...

wildthing · 06-20-2014, 10:11 PM

Best of luck to you on your second try...

herr_oberst · 06-20-2014, 10:46 PM

It's always easier and faster the second time. Good on you for being a stand-up guy. Maybe your boss shows you some love in return.

cmccuist · 06-21-2014, 01:00 AM

Dan, you're the kind of man who gives me hope for the human condition. Decent and honorable. You could have maybe covered up the leak with some silicon and pushed it out the door or some other trick, but chose to do the right thing.

Well done!

wdfifteen · wdfifteen's Garage

You are honest enough to take it down and do it right. I'll have a beer in your behalf this evening. Hope to meet you in person and shake your hand someday. Good man.

Por_sha911 · Por_sha911's Garage

I used to have a shop around here that had that attitude. They had to drop a motor to fix a minor mistake and didn't charge me a penny. Unfortunately, the owner retired and the new guy doesn't have the same ethic.

Next time we read about "all Porsche wrenches being overpriced ripoffs" I would love to point to this post to remind those whiners that there is a reason it costs more for quality. Shops take it on the chin when they have comeback work. Sometimes you make money, sometimes you don't.

I respect you not wanting to ask the owner to eat the work but maybe he'll give you some help?

john walker's workshop · 06-21-2014, 06:18 PM

Btdt.

9dreizig · 06-22-2014, 08:38 AM

Dan,
Good to hear there's such a stand up guy in the general neighborhood!!!

Seahawk · 06-22-2014, 09:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by syncroid

...I am not going to make my boss eat this. I am going to fix it on my time.

No surprise at all. I think sometimes we forget that some of us have been on this BBS for 9/10 or more years.

You get sense over time, through various threads, pictures shared, the responses to the loss of a friend, parent, pet, a relative measure of the people who post here.

No surprise at all. Well done.

As the SEALS say, the only easy day was yesterday.

FLYGEEZER · 06-22-2014, 09:55 AM

I left the O ring off on a cylinder change on a P&W R1830 aircraft engine many years ago. I was sooo sure it was all done right..... until I fired the thing up... lotsa black SAE 50 oil everywhere. I was in such a hurry that I had to do the job twice. Plus a messy clean up. I know that "bummed" feeling.

syncroid · 06-23-2014, 11:49 AM

Thank you all for the moral support. I was dreading coming to work this morning knowing what lay before me. The job is actually going pretty smooth. It is always easier going in a second time because everything is clean. Hopefully I will be reinstalling tomorrow.

wdfifteen · wdfifteen's Garage

From the days when I worked on VWs, I rebuilt an engine and put it back in the car and delivered it on Friday. The next Monday I came into the shop and saw a brand new VW connecting rod nut on my bench, kind of tucked up next to the vice. My partner strolled in at about 10:00 and I was in a cold sweat. Bastid broke out laughing. I was ready to kill him.
BTW rod nuts on an air cooled VW are staked in place so the difference between a used one and a new one is real obvious.

herr_oberst · 06-23-2014, 12:13 PM

I was reading a story today about a developer that has to demolish and rebuild a brand new million-dollar home because the surveyor made a mistake and the house was built on a neighboring property.

Don't know if this story will make you feel better or not, just thought I'd pass it along!

syncroid · 06-23-2014, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

From the days when I worked on VWs, I rebuilt an engine and put it back in the car and delivered it on Friday. The next Monday I came into the shop and saw a brand new VW connecting rod nut on my bench, kind of tucked up next to the vice. My partner strolled in at about 10:00 and I was in a cold sweat. Bastid broke out laughing. I was ready to kill him.
BTW rod nuts on an air cooled VW are staked in place so the difference between a used one and a new one is real obvious.

I had a similar experience when I first started out. I was working at a hot rod VW shop back in 1982. I was building the motor for my Karmann Ghia. (2176cc) One of the guys thought it would be funny to put a main bearing dowel pin on the work bench AFTER I had already assembled the motor. He said, "Did you forget one of the dowel pins?" I tore the entire motor back down only to find that all five were in place. He told me he was trying to teach me a valuable lesson. I told him he had about 5 seconds to run! It took a very long time to cool down from that one.