My 911 SC Engine Rebuild Thread
 

My girl crashed a valve yesterday, and now it is time for a rebuild! Borescope video of the carnage here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=de-RgeLJaCc&

I've ordered Wayne's book, and plan to drop the engine this weekend. I have the Bentley manual and notes from a rebuild 80K back (911SC WDP founder Leland Pate).
Right now I'm cleaning the garage and borrowing tall jackstands. I have a pretty good set of tools from a transmission rebuild and later CIS rebuild. My experience also includes a fuse box rebuild, new full-length fuel lines, CV's, and similar lesser tasks.

I would appreciate any input on steps, books, videos, pitfalls. And also a bit of encouragement - it is rather scary.

Update: Moved main content to an engine rebuild subforum thread: https://forums.pelicanparts.com/911-engine-rebuilding-forum/1179839-1979-sc-chewed-valve-total-rebuild.html

You got this!
Use Wayne's 101 book and the Bentley simultaneously. I found both have instructions the other doesn't.
Go slow and enjoy the process while triple checking everything.
Do you have a lift table?

No, when I dropped the engine in the past I put it on a furniture dolly. I lifted the transmission and put it on a sturdy table. Right now that's what I have. I have lumber and could fab something strong. Or maybe go to Harbor Freight and pick up something?

I've only ever used a lift and a hydraulic table so I can't offer any advice.

The steel motorcycle jack at harbor freight is good for 1,500lbs and is only around $120. If you take the handle off it’s fairly low profile and can hang on the wall.

The harbor freight motorcycle lift is ok. I have one and it’s just ok. That said, you’ll need to build some cribbing to help hold the engine on the lift and if you want to get the engine high enough to fit to a stand.

I’m getting rid of mine and getting a lift table.


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+1 on getting a lift table if you can swing it. Makes dropping and putting back solo a breeze. Spend the coin on a good engine stand. Buy or borrow a proper adapter to mount the engine to the stand. The one our host sells worked well for me after a bit of "fitting" to the block. A Stomski circlip tool makes that task a snap. Other than an accurate dial indicator and digital caliper, the rest of the tools for checking/setting intermediate shaft gear lash, timing chain depth and cam timing/valve lash can be fabricated or are readily available at your local FLAPS. The videos from Kurt at Klassic ATS are an excellent resource for the home mechanic. Finally, clean everything until you would lick it like it contains your last meal, take your time to double and triple check everything, and be prepared to do a "dry run" assembly before closing the case for good and again for fitting the entire top end to verify ALL measurements are kosher before final seal-up.

Looking forward to following your journey. Remember, at the end of the day another average human built it the first time.

Can you recommend a particular lift table?

Any recommendations on the engine stand?

I got mine at harbor freight, was about $50 in 2019. The yoke is the important part had to modify mine a bit (slight grinding enlargement) accept the exhaust parts.

Some of Stomski's tools are well worth the cost.

I used jack stands raised up high and the habor freight MC jack. Cutout ply wood to fit under the engine (cutout for the front where the exhaust is and the lip of the engine case so it sits flat on the cart. Also have a cart to hold up the tranny if you are removing both.

Used the method of raising the car then lowering the car to set the engine on my MCjack, then raising the car to get the engine out from under.


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1750852646.jpg

Lots of help available here when your ready to pull it apart, just take your time, and inspect everything methodically as your removing it, label things your not sure about, and take plenty of picks as you go along for your own reference, they will come in handy when asking questions, and help with re-assembly etc.
Good luck with it :)
Ant.

I've always used an ATV jack with some 2x4s across the top to support the headers. From there I lower the 2x4s onto stacks of wood, then pile enough wood on top of the ATV jack to get it up to the right height to get the engine on an engine stand. If you're splitting the case you really want the appropriate Porsche yoke.

This is an excellent time to convince yourself to buy a quickjack or other lift to get the engine in and out. It's sooooo much easier just going up and down precisely with a button while also keeping the body level.

Totally this!

Good to see you considering a lift table. Mine is 1500 lb. Be careful with the lower rated ones as they could be jerky when lowering. Pairing it with a lift even better.
Before cleaning, inspect and note the dirty spots so you can figure out why they are leaking later. Dirt means oil leak that attracted the dirt.
Pictures. So many pictures and videos. I have a hundred more engine shots than grandchildren shots. lol

Should I get the engine yoke to mate the HF stand to the engine? PP has one but it is out of stock. The engine stand seems to have some sort of generic one.

https://www.harborfreight.com/1000-lb-capacity-engine-stand-59201.html

You really need the proper yoke. I like the heavy duty stand for stability and you can put a tray under it.http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1750872858.JPG

I bought the 1000lb unit from HF and it worked great. One slight mod a friend helped me make is to re-mount the folding handle so that it folds away from the table deck instead of towards. This allows you to not have to worry about clearance under the rear bumper/chassis. It requires you to use two hands to activate the lowering lever when the handle is lowered (one to hold tension on the cable guide and one to squeeze the lever) Easily reversible if needed in the future.

I already had a geared head 1000lb folding engine stand I bought from JEGS 10 or 12 years ago when I needed to R&R the 5.0L in my 928 S4. The key is to get something with a very stable and wide leg structure to minimize the risk of tipping the whole thing over when rotating the engine. I have a washing machine drain pan that I toss on the legs when doing engine work to keep the mess off the floor.

I mis-spoke about one item in my earlier post talking about special tools. You will need the large crowfoot wrench and cam holder to R&R the nuts securing the cam sprockets to the cams. A local enthusiast might have the set or perhaps a local shop would loan with a refundable deposit equal to replacement cost. Add your own 1/2" breaker bar and Bob's Ur Uncle.

Happy wrenching.

You can drill slots in the harbor freight engine mount to fit.


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Harbor freight lift table is great. You have to get the car higher than with most other options.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1750902922.jpg

I didn’t take a picture but I was able to lift the motor and transmission on the table without the wheeled stool.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1750902922.jpg

The manual from Wayne has arrived! A friend is bringing his mount/yoke over tomorrow, those should work.

Thinking about the lift table. I have previously dropped the engine for transmission, clutch, and CIS work using two lift jacks. But haven't had to lift it to a mount before.

No offence, but there is now way I would do this. You are now holding up the engine by the 4 holes in the case. When you use the proper yoke it presses against 2/3 of the case and spreads the weight out. The 4 bolts just keep it in position.
My 2 cents worth.

A generous friend brought over his engine mount, yoke, and extra-high jack stands.

His yoke is a generic HF adjustable one, and I'd be more comfortable with a solid Porsche one that has a larger contact surface. So I'm looking around to see if I can get one used.

The porsche yoke is definitely optimal and also has the advantage of being able to split or assemble the case on the stand, remove the flywheel etc.

Ordered a porsche yoke, drained the oil, and jacked it as high as my 3 ton floor jack will take it. Now time to unscrew, disconnect, and decouple things for an hour or two. Engine drop planned for Saturday.

I guess I need to revisit engine drop strategy videos, it has been a while. Last times I did it with two jacks under the engine, bringing it down onto a big piece of cardboard. Then slid it out and used a 2x4 to ratchet it up onto my furniture dolly.

Also repairing a bicycle tube for my daughter.

Picked up a HF motorcycle jack this morning, I've seen it recommended and used in various threads here. I think I'll need to fabricate a cradle from some wood I have around.

https://www.harborfreight.com/media/...0/60536_W3.jpg

Does the handle clear the bumper?

I don't have time to give it a try until Saturday. I'm already considering removing the bumper in order to save the 3-4 inches of extra drop distance.

So I'm not sure about the handle.

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Engine is out! Minor complication as I found the motorcyle lift was not great for the drop - couldn't slide far enough in to be under the center of gravity. So I swapped to the two-jack method.
It might work fine if you drop engine-only.

But now I've moved onto the pair of moto lift and small jack under the transmission, and after I split the case I think the moto jack will be fine for moving it around and getting onto the engine mount.

Next step - split of the transmission, and start into the Rebuild book.

Well done!
I see lots of cleaning in your future as well. If that’s your thing.

Definitely lots to clean. I cleared the transmission very well a few years ago, and the CIS when I rebuilt it. But the rest needs it badly.

Sorry if I missed this… but is this your first time dropping a 911 engine? The pace of progress makes me feel like a slacker for not dropping mine yet to do some stuff.

This is my 3rd or 4th drop (same car). I rebuilt the transmission some years back, as well as doing the clutch and rebuilding the CIS.

I need to figure out the best general purpose cleaners to use for external areas as I go. Just Simple Green and a bunch of paper towels? Much of this is very filthy from oil leaks accumulating dirt.

I use Simple Green Pro HD (purple) diluted 4:1 in my parts washer. It is safe for all metals (when used as directed) and breaks down grease really well.

Status so far!

• Engine dropped
• Transmission split
• Tools reorganized

Some other repairs I've found that I need to do, probably while waiting for the yoke which takes a week to arrive:

1. Repack CV joints (one large split boot, one small split)
2. Repair cold start injector wire
3. Repair thermotime switch wire

Other activities:

1. Clean engine
2. Bag and box the parts already removed
3. Better organize the removed spark plugs for analysis when engine is open
4. Remove CIS

That all starts with buying various tools and supplies today, such as a magnetic bowl and sturdy rubber gloves for cleaning.

Your first post you made it sound like you were a rookie :D

I am feeling rookie-ish. Opening the big box is going to be a challenge, and I don't know what sort of costs I'll find inside.

I discovered (rediscovered?) that you don't store your transmission on its end, because it will slowly leak out of the fill hole. Store it flat in the normal orientation as in the car. So that was a small mess, and now I have to remember to re-top it off.

I did begin removing the CIS. The EGR system is a big pain in the butt, but I was able to get it off and get to all the intake header bolts. So mechanically the CIS is separate.

I need to decide if I'm leaving all the electrical stuff on the engine, or taking half of up it with the CIS. I was going to keep it intertwined with CIS, but now I'm thinking I'd rather keep it below. Not sure.

I guess it all comes off eventually anyway, so I could just take it off now. Taking lots of videos!

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CIS Removal went along without any issues. I removed EGR and all the intake bolts, detached all wiring from it. Lifted it off solo with a little bit of wiggling.

Wiring came off along with the shroud, as the wire for the fan goes through the shroud. Noted a few of the shroud bolts are slightly longer, but all seemed the same thread/head. Not sure that matters.

The area behind the fan where the big oil tube comes up was quite messy, possibly a leak source. The fan itself was a bit hard as I couldn't rotate the belt off as normal with the engine unable to turn. I loosened the fan strap, tilted it forward, and was able to slide the belt off the engine's pulley instead of the fan's.

Valve covers came off next and looked pretty good except of course #3. Pictures in next post.

Side-note, several cylinders were flooded with oil, as seen when removing the intake manifold.
I think it was 2, 4, 5, and 6. Will double-check later.