JohnJ's 82 SC Coupe Ownership, Repair and Maintenance Experience

[jjeffries]

Greetings All,

I'd been reading the Pelican 911 Forum for years and submitting the odd comment, thinking I'd never be able to have one of my own. When I had back surgery back in the noughties, I'd even bought the buyer's guide and better yet, Wayne's 101 Projects to read during recuperation. A string of Alfas had been my focus to that point, remarkably fine and interesting cars, especially two 74 GTVs in which I did many miles and a number of trackdays. There was a first foray into Porsche-dom in the form of an 89 944S2, but I'd stretched the family budget too much for that (beautiful) ride, so after getting in some track days - without killing the rod bearings - I sold it to put the dosh back into my young family's account.

Sold in 2018 after a twenty year friendship, this delectable machine now lives in the SF Bay Area.


A purchase I made somewhat recklessly, but it was sweet while it lasted.

I work in the automotive industry, and in 2013 a car dealer friend bought an 82 SC coupe from a gentleman (whom we'll meet further in this thread) who had basically aged-out on manual transmissions. Those with long enough memories will recall that 2013 was just before what I'll call the First 911 Bubble - I'd submit we're in the Second Iteration right now - so my friend bought the car for what would seem like a ridiculously low sum, yet it was probably fair market at the time. The car had a dream maintenance history, but 180K miles nonetheless and had some iminent needs, as he discovered when a valve adjustment revealed some broken Dilavar head studs. One of the Boston-area dealerships with which he was affiliated had a former Porsche tech, who tore the motor down as far as removing the (Alusil) jugs. But then, the repair project came to a halt, my friend obviously disappointed that this car which he'd bought quite reasonably, would now need at least a similar sum expended to repair the engine, along with the inevitable while-you're-in-there's. I was watching, offering some thoughts here and there but in no way envisioning myself in this car's future ... indeed, I hadn't even seen it.

My first glimpse. I wasn't to sleep for a week in anticipation.

This stalemate extended into months. One day while we were shooting the breeze about business, I asked what was going on with the black SC. Thirty minutes later I'd agreed to buy it in its disassembled condition. I had not talked to my wife. It was a favorable deal for me, but still a big chunk of money and would worry her as much as what it could mean for my repaired lower back as for the family finances.

A neighbor was kind enough to tow it home. I didn't even know the fellow, just saw he had a trailer and walked up, asking if I could rent it. "Let's go together, and use my truck" he said. It's the friends we make through our interests that matters most.


I'd sort-of promised to sell whichever one I preferred less. The Alfa went, but it was like selling a kidney.

That was July 2014. Now in April 2021, the car has been on the road since September 2016 and I've put about 12K miles on it. In fact, it's become such a trusted member of the family that in the summer of 2019 I was ready to wrap my head and hands around another big project, the 87 924S I'm going through now and documenting with a thread here on Pelican (link attached, below):

https://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-924-944-968-technical-forum/1046846-johnjs-87-924s-rehabilitation.html

For reasons which seem goofy now, I didn't write a thread when I did the bulk of the work on the SC, and quite a lot of work there was. I've thoroughly enjoyed writing about the 924S and, as those who post their projects know, I received more back than I've invested, in the form of advice and tips but mostly, new friends.


I'd therefore like to share some of history and stories of my ownership of this SC, both retrospective and current. A couple of the repairs I made, I'd now do differently but overall it's been a successful ride thus far.

We'll look at the engine rebuild...


... and the way I put it back together.


There was some rust remediation and new paint here and there.

I put it away when there's salt on the roads, pretty much December to March, but the rest of time I drive it any time I can and have done a couple of 600 miles days in it. Best car I've ever owned.

Part of the family and three seasons daily life.

I hope you'll find this thread of interest. I'll do my best to make it a good read; feedback is always welcomed.

John

[GothingNC]

Awesome story, I enjoyed reading it !

Thanks for sharing :-)

[jjeffries]

Thanks for being the first reader. Much more to come.

John

[Glenfield]

Keep it coming, John. Love to hear about some of the road trips also

[jjeffries]

OK Glennfield, right you are.

In the summer of 2017 our younger son got a job at an old-time family summer camp on South Hero Island on Lake Champlain, Vermont. He didn't have his own set of wheels yet so I drove him up there, 270 miles from home. It was peak season, so no extra beds were available in the musty-smelling tents, and hotels rooms were too spendy for this tightwad, so I figured I'd do it as a day trip.

We left around 8am, having first jammed a whole lot more into a 911 than I'd thought possible. My car is in nice shape, but not pristine ... I think of it as perfectly imperfect, in that I can still use it like a real car. Meaning, I wasn't freaking out as we stuffed his bags, lawn chair and other young-guy detritus into the cabin and frunk.

From the Greater Hartford, Connecticut area, Vermont is reached by jumping on Interstate 91 and heading due north, along the Connecticut River Valley until you hit White River Junction, where you jump onto I-89 and head northwest. The boy napped for a good part of the time on I-91, until we stopped around Greenfield, MA for for gas, coffee and road/junk food. This was in June, so all the millions and millions of trees en route were all at maximum green, the air sweet.

By late morning we were past Burlington and crossing the causeway onto South Hero Island. The weather was pristine, people were doing summer-stuff everywhere and it was just an awesome day to a) live in these United States, b) drive through Vermont, c) in a black 911.

BTW, my speedo has always read about 20% low, still does.

I think that I took these on the way home, having dropped of the boy. It was idyllic, and reading the history notes just added to the sense of wonder.

[

Was this the coolest car at camp that day? Uhhh, yes.


Getting ready to head home; I had another 270 miles yet to go.


At a gas station somewhere off I-89, maybe near Montpelier, VT's capital. Super unleaded, Gatorade and Peanut M&M's.

That drive home was even better because I was loose and very much in the groove. The car was my ally and I felt totally at one with it. Closer to home I hit traffic in Springfield, MA; in my first year of driving the car (having done that engine rebuild and other work), it had run hot, so in the spring of 2017 I'd switched out the trombone cooler for a Carrera item ehich solved the problem, but in this traffic jam the temp was climbing again. The next week I scored a used SPAL fan from the Pelican Classifieds and quickly got it installed.

The cooler came from the always helpful Tom's Rennshop; the seal came from Porsche, a bit spendy at ca. $100, but well worth it.


Bracket I made to locate the bottom the cooler.


The SPAL fan and a simple bracket to mount it.

I added a relay for the fan, and having already added other relays for the headlights and a subwoofer, decided to congreate them on a separate subpanel, if you will.

So how was a 540 mile day in an SC? Fantastic; as I pulled into the driveway, I felt fresh as a daisy ... and that's a from a guy with a gimp back. What did the day teach me? That an air-cooled 911 is a magnficient tool for long drives. The secret, however, is to not bugger them up by trying too hard in the hot-rodding department. More on that, soon.

cheers,
John

[Glenfield]

Thank you for indulging us, John. Fantastic story. I echo your comments and experiences. I bought your car's brother in March of last year (black 80SC). My wife and I drove it from Chicago to Los Angeles for our 1 year wedding anniversary. She was blown away by what an incredible husband I'd been during our first trip around the sun. I was blown away by how capable the car was on its first trip across America.

[jjeffries]

Back to the Summer of 2014: When I first looked at the car, I took copious photos, as anyone would. The following image shows the underside, from front looking backwards. The front suspension pan was all rock solid, not even surface rust, but the fuel tank and had some nastiness nibbling away at it. (You can also see the disassembled engine, on a bench beneath the car.)

Once in my ownership and home, my approach to the car was fairly disciplinced, mostly due to a lack of cash. I'd decided to do everything except the engine first ... that would require some planning ... and to try to stick to one system at a time. It was the first 911 I'd worked on, save for some help I'd given my local bud Paul with his red 930. I started with the gas tank. Fortunately, it was in good shape internally and didn't require any professional cleaning (my 924S's gas tank, in comparison, was in dreadful condition internally and required professional help).

I stripped the lower half with wire cup brushes on a 4.5" grinder. This, for the uninitiated, is an activity that begs for first-class personal protective gear. I WAS wearing eye protection but NOT enough protection on my torso and legs, and recall picking strands from the wire brush from belly and limb, many of them shockingly deeply embedded. (Thank science for tetanus shots.) The upper half - which obviously gets to live "indoors" - was in nice shape, so I just washed and prepped it thoroughly for some cosmetics.

Once the lower half was stripped bare, and satisfied that the seams joining the two halves of the tank were still ship-shape, I primed it. At that point in my restoration knowledge I tried POR15 for the first time; I don't use it today, but the tank has held up fine in the intervening years.

Once the POR15 was fully cured, I scuffed it with red ScotchBrite pads to provide a key for the following product. That was a grey, paintable rubberized texture coating to emulate the factory-applied Schutz. I used UPOL aerosols, which worked well, but probably wouldn't satisfy a concours judge (not my goal). Still, it was pretty good.

I can't find any phots of the final steps, which were, a) to paint the whole thing; I used "Machine Grey" Rust Oleum, applied with a small roller, and b) to install the tank with a new Genuine Porsche closed cell foam seal. That installation, however, happened some months later, after I'd R&R'd the steering rack for a clean, new bearings and regrease, and replaced the fuel tunnel lines. So it went into the basement, ready and awaiting its repatriation with the car.

John

[High Life]

I just love the Alfa GTVs.. one of the most beautiful styled cars.

thanks for sharing

[TxGerman]

Originally Posted by jjeffries

Back to the Summer of 2014: When I first looked at the car, I took copious photos, as anyone would. The following image shows the underside, from front looking backwards. The front suspension pan was all rock solid, not even surface rust, but the fuel tank and had some nastiness nibbling away at it. (You can also see the disassembled engine, on a bench beneath the car.)

Once in my ownership and home, my approach to the car was fairly disciplinced, mostly due to a lack of cash. I'd decided to do everything except the engine first ... that would require some planning ... and to try to stick to one system at a time. It was the first 911 I'd worked on, save for some help I'd given my local bud Paul with his red 930. I started with the gas tank. Fortunately, it was in good shape internally and didn't require any professional cleaning (my 924S's gas tank, in comparison, was in dreadful condition internally and required professional help).

I stripped the lower half with wire cup brushes on a 4.5" grinder. This, for the uninitiated, is an activity that begs for first-class personal protective gear. I WAS wearing eye protection but NOT enough protection on my torso and legs, and recall picking strands from the wire brush from belly and limb, many of them shockingly deeply embedded. (Thank science for tetanus shots.) The upper half - which obviously gets to live "indoors" - was in nice shape, so I just washed and prepped it thoroughly for some cosmetics.

Once the lower half was stripped bare, and satisfied that the seams joining the two halves of the tank were still ship-shape, I primed it. At that point in my restoration knowledge I tried POR15 for the first time; I don't use it today, but the tank has held up fine in the intervening years.

Once the POR15 was fully cured, I scuffed it with red ScotchBrite pads to provide a key for the following product. That was a grey, paintable rubberized texture coating to emulate the factory-applied Schutz. I used UPOL aerosols, which worked well, but probably wouldn't satisfy a concours judge (not my goal). Still, it was pretty good.

I can't find any phots of the final steps, which were, a) to paint the whole thing; I used "Machine Grey" Rust Oleum, applied with a small roller, and b) to install the tank with a new Genuine Porsche closed cell foam seal. That installation, however, happened some months later, after I'd R&R'd the steering rack for a clean, new bearings and regrease, and replaced the fuel tunnel lines. So it went into the basement, ready and awaiting its repatriation with the car.

John

You just described my experience, nearly identically, from my '82 SC fuel tank adventure.

Sub'd, looking forward to more of the story.

Dennis

[pete3799]

I'm liking this adventure.
Keep them coming.

[Flojo]

Very nice.

THIS:

Originally Posted by jjeffries

That drive home was even better because I was loose and very much in the groove. The car was my ally and I felt totally at one with it.

[jjeffries]

Thanks guys for stopping by and saying hello ... all are welcome.

On the return visit to South Hero Island, Vermont (Green Mountains, en francais!) at the end of the summer of '17 to pick-up the boy - whom I call Little Buddy* - I left earlier on a late August Saturday. The sights and scents of summer coming to an end tweaked the sensations, as the deciduous trees prepared to stop feeding their leaves. Being by myself with no need to converse, I had the windows and sunroof open; I'm one of those guys who likes the fact my coupe has this feature.

Once onto I-89 the rhythm of the road changes slightly in that every couple of miles there are turarounds between the two directions for law enforcement's use. Some of these you can see from afar, but others can surprise an out-of-stater like me. I was euphorically "making time" when I crested a ridge, saw a turnaround just in front and to the left and ... boom... a Vermont State Police Ford Explorer. I drive a lot for my job and have developed a pretty good feel for when I'm going to get nailed, and sure enough he lit up his lights and ... didn't move. My kind of law enforcement: he was asking me to slow down, and I did, but no pursuit, no pulling me over or making an example of me.

I arrived at the camp to find the boy had made great friends over his summer at this most rustic of camps, where he'd washed dishes all summer, literally 100'/30m from the shores of Lake Champlain, water lapping gently against the rocks and gnarled pine trees. It's a camp where cell phones and laptops are tightly controlled and guests, many of whom have been coming for 3+ generations, all choose to slow down, read books and do wholesome stuff. That said, it would drive me nuts.

We packed up his stuff and headed home, not saying much and both happy, albeit for differing reasons. When we hit traffic, the SPAL fan did it's thing and the oil temp needle didn't cause consternation.

* Calling my younger son Little Buddy: after a classic Columbo episode where Johnny Cash plays the role of a murderous yet sympathetic country/western star; we the audience actually feel like we too would have disposed of the two women standing in his way (especially since the older one was a pious Bible-thumper). The villain's plan was almost perfect but, of course, Columbo finds the flaw and just keeps chipping away at him.

Just as with the best of these early Columbo's, the bad guys really aren't THAT bad, and they all develop respect for the ruffled and seemingly scatterbrained detective, as also played-out in the episode with Donald Pleasance as the perpetrator of fraticide in order to preserve the family winery. Johnny Cash plays the role beautifully and starts calling Columbo "Little Buddy". What else is a Dad, himself a kid of the 1970's, to do other than introduce his own offspring to classic TV shows?

Kind regards,
John

[jjeffries]

The work I did to my SC and the approximate order:

Basic chassis work:
Rebuilt brake calipers, new rotors, new brake hoses and a couple of steel pipes, clean/repack wheel bearings, steering rack refresh. The car already had relatively fresh Bilsteins in each corner. I also replaced the trailing arm bushings while there was no drivetrain in the car. I stripped and painted things like backing plates, the cover underneath the steering rack, etc. I like cleaning stuff.

Fuel system:
Knowing that the car had been running well and had already had a new WUR's, I left the whole CIS assembly alone. This proved to be a smart move. As already mentioned, I cleaned-up the tank and replaced the fuel lines using beautiful new lines, rated for e85 and will all new German fittings, from Len Cummings. I replaced all the evaporative and vacuum hoses throughout the car.

Body structure:
The car had never been completely repainted, but the majority of the car had been resprayed during a 2001 refresh, which also included a welded repair to the right side door jamb. This had apparently spread a little, so I removed both sides' rocker trims and discovered that right side had a hole at that (commonly-rotted) area where the jam, rocker and quarter panel come together. I did some welding here, smoothed it and repainted the rocker and entire rear quarter.

Engine:
I overhauled the engine using Wayne's book and the advice of a couple of guru's as my guides. I'll detail this in subsequent posts but suffice it to say, it was an incredibly cool experience, deeper than I'd ever gone before, having previously (only) done a number of Alfa top-end repairs along with reinstalling some of their peened aluminum crankshaft plugs (Alfa owners nod knowingly). I'd also done top-end work on a 74 Beetle and repairs that involved mostly stripping a 67 Triumph TR4A engine. But nothing like a full 911 engine.

After this, the car became roadworthy. Remember that I'd bought the car in pieces , so had no knowledge of how it would drive. I got it aligned by an old-time shop - nothing fancy, really just front and rear toe. Then I started driving it; this was fall 2016.

What did it reveal?
The fuel injection was perfect. I added an AEM air:fuel ratio gauge, thinking I'd need to dial-in the CIS, but all it needed was an idle tweak.
The engine was a beauty.
The transmission had an issue with 1-2 and 2-1 shifts. In the service history, within the prevous 10K miles it had the 1st and 2nd synchro rings and dog teeth replaced, but it was still far from correct. Much adjusting, oil changing and head scratching ensued, none successful. It substantially marred the driving experience.
The A/C worked surprisingly well. Godsend! The original owner had spent huge sums on the A/C system, most of which had been upgraded with Griffiths componenents, and it still remains one of the car's best points

December 2016 I took it off the road for the winter to address the rust visible on either side of the front frunk, and pulled the front bodywork to reveal the classic G-body bumper strut mount rust and some holes or frilliness on the inner fenders/tub. I sorted this out and replaced both bumper blades, which were powdery with corrosion. The I had both fenders, bumpers and the bumper trim panels repainted (off the car)

I drove the car for the season and in December 2017, I pulled the engine and trans so I could take the 915 transaxle out for repair, completed by Auto Associates of Canton, Conn. They replaced the same parts another shop had done for the original owner (already mentioned) but also the 1-2 slider. This yielded an absolutely superb 915 ... I'm not a guy with G50 envy.

You'll see a pattern here: drive all year and improve over the winter. So December 2018 I completed the last major round of improvements to date: adding a sweet used set of SSI's (and the associated plumbing), plus front and rear suspension refreshes using (superb!) Rebel Racing bushing-replacements. I also modified the spring plates (with a skilled welder's help) to allow easy rear height adjustement, and on this project I took things up a further notch and had the spring plates and all the fasteners replated in yellow zinc. I finished it off with my first home alignment and corner balance.

Since then, the car's been mostly "done", in terms of how I want it, trying to avoid repetitively messing with aspects of the car which are already A-OK. It had been such an incredible experience that I wanted to dive deep into another car, which is where the 924S came in.

I'll aim to describe the aforementioned work; it will all be in retrospective form, pointing out the lessons I learned along the way.

thanks,
John

[pgsandiego]

Enjoyable read, thank you!

[troutmaskreplca]

This is great reading. Thank you for sharing.

[jjeffries]

Originally Posted by troutmaskreplca

This is great reading. Thank you for sharing.

Thanks very much guys. It's always cool to make new connections in this forum, and I'll show how such folks saved my bacon with this project more than once.

You may also enjoy my 924S thread over in the 924/44/68 section. Air cooled, water cooled ... "it's all just nuts and bolts", as a great philosopher mechanic who worked with me once said when I asked him how he'd repaired a particularly obstreporous Rolls Silver Shadow.

1971 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow engine bay, replete with Citroen-based hydraulics. No thanks!

best,
John

[Discseven]

Great stuff John! Never mind that all your work is worldclass... my being into coatings at the moment means I'm recalling all your coat-work right now with the fuel tank above added to the menu. Dash from 24 build is also an amazing piece of refinishing that I'll never forget. This post... chances are the campers who witnessed the midnight911 in the hood... the car-peeps young & old among them won't forget that, perhaps ever. Looking forward to experience this journey.

[wjdunham]

Great story, thanks for sharing!
Where in CT are you located? I left the greater Hartford area when I went to college but still have great memories of it as a kid. Some great driving out on the Western part of the state, and many weekends spent watching events at Lime Rock.

Bill

[tirwin]

I feel like I’m reading lost chapters from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

[Quasimoto]

Great thread, thanks for sharing!

I’ve been on a similar journey (albeit a lite version) myself and can relate to the “fettle in winter, drive in summer” approach...