New member and rebuilt engine

[MattKellett]

Well like other posts I've read, I've been surfing around here a while finding answers to some problems I've encountered in other members posts etc. So I thought it was time to log in and say hi.

I recently bought my first Porsche, an 87 911 in Marine Blue, in January and have been enjoying it until the engine seized on me. I did some research here, and after reading great reports and comments about Tom Amon of Mobile Works West I decided to give him a call. I've never experienced the quality of service that Tom offers before. He arrives at your house on time and ready to go with all the neccessary tools and equipment in his well organised vehicle.
The engine was removed from the car within the first hour, and by the end of the day the engine was totally stripped and the parts organised for cleaning and machine work. The engine failed due to a spun bearing at the crank, the valve guides were also worn and the heads needed to be surfaced. The cams also needed to be ground to remove some damage, so we decide to replace them with new cams from the 964 model. So I was looking at a full rebuild.

As scheduled Tom returned two weeks later with all the machine work completed and the engine totally clean. My wife thinks Tom is an artist by the way he worked and the attention to detail he gave reassembling the engine. By the end of the day the engine had been reassembled minus sheet metal and the exhaust and it only required an afternoon the next day to finish up and install the engine. I cannot say enough about the quality of workmanship and service that Tom provided, he has been working on Porsches for something like 30 years and I doubt there is anything that he has not experienced. I recommend him to everyone in the bay area, try him once and you'll never take your car to a shop again. He can be reached at (408) 429 0545. I now have to improve on my coffee making skills for his next visit.

It's good to now be a Pelicanite and I look forward to meeting some of you in the near future.
Cheers Matt

1987 911 Carrera Coupe
1988 Mercedes Benz 560SL
1966 Jaguar MKII
1996 Land Rover Discovery

Here are a few photos of the 75 that I took of the rebuild. EnjoyEngine drop Dismantling The failed bearing Ready for reassembly Dialing in the cams Fan assembly painted Ready for installation Started up first attemptBack on the road again

[Zeke]

Sorry about the seizure, but you really had some good fortune finding Tom. And that is some fast work. I'm sure you got an incredible deal.

Very nice pics and welcome to the board.

[M.D. Holloway]

Sweeetttt. She is stunning. Pretty engine and a great flavor. Welcome! (Nice plug for Tom as well - heck, smoke'm if ya gots em!)

[AntiCHP]

Nice motor!

And you gotta love that picture of Tom: smiling like he has secretly added an extra 30hp...

[bigchillcar]

sweet job, tom..sure wish you had a cousin in arkansas!
ryan

[gerard vaglio]

Tom is the best.

In about ten days he's coming over to my house with a rebuilt 915 tranny with a faster ring and pinion for my 79.

The car should shift better and be a little faster too. I can't wait.

If you live in the Bay Area I highly recommend Tom, best mech. I've worked with.

Ever.

[bigchillcar]

going for the 7:31 eh, gerard? get ready for the fun.. it ought to be a lot quicker..it's what i love about my stock '74.
ryan

[MichiganMat]

Looks great, but now time to AutoX that little beastie. July 9th @ Alameda with the PCA-GGR? I'll be the kid with the hacked-up Gruppe-B Targa.

[MattKellett]

Thanks for all your comments.

Zeke - Tom coundn't believe how fast he was able to put the engine together, he expected only to have the short block finished on day 1. He put it down to the fact that now without his shop there were no interuptions, dealing with clients on the phone etc. I guess it helped that his cell was out of range at my house. As for his rate, right now he's working @ $50 per hour, but his talent is worth 3 times that. I basically had a whole engine rebuild for the price of your average head rebuild.

AntiCHP - I know what you mean, a couple of minutes later we went out for a test drive, the new cams have made a difference and the car now runs soon much smoother.

gerard - No doubt you'll have a great day while he's there, I took time off work to be there for the rebuild, it was one of the best vactions I've had in my life.