New to Porsche already a problem!

emcdan · 01:06 PM

Hey all...I have been following this site for a while and decided to get a used 911. I got a 78 SC on Ebay. It was shipped to me and I recieved it yesterday. I drove about 15 miles. To the DMV, then toward my home. On my way, the alternator light (I think, red light with (G) below it) came on. I pulled over and turned it off immediately. Knowing that a broken belt can be the end of a motor. I looked at the motor no broken belt. I started it back up and it made a horrible screeching (metal to metal) kinda sound. Come back two hours later and started it up....same thing...runs about 30 seconds, then a loud metal howling sound. I have already had it towed to a Porsche mechanic. I hope it is something as simple as alternator bearings. Does anyone else have a clue? 78 SC 100K miles.

It sucks my very first post is troubleshooting.

Grady Clay · 09-16-2005, 01:18 PM

Sorry for your first post to be a problem, but welcome to the Forum.

Hopefully it is just something easy to do with the fan belt/alternator. Good for you recognizing the potential problem if you drove it with a broken belt.

I’ll ask the obvious question (before someone else does); did you do a PPI?

Best,
Grady

BTW, I grew up in Louisville.

Wayne 962 · Wayne 962's Garage

Sounds like you need a new alternator. Save yourself some $$$ and do it yourself!

-Wayne

livi · 09-16-2005, 01:42 PM

Sorry for your unfortunate first experience - but welcome to the forum. It will make your Porsche ownership a whole lot easier and interesting.

And, no I am not experienced enough to give you any advice on this particular issue, I´m afraid.

Por_sha911 · Por_sha911's Garage

You definately need to learn to fix it yourself. It becomes a bonding moment: the classic "Boy and his Porsche" story and you will save suitcases full of cash.

craigster59 · craigster59's Garage

Look at the bright side of Porsche ownership. You know it's not your water pump going south on ya.

efhughes3 · efhughes3's Garage

Sounds like an EXCELLENT first project. You'll find all of the info you need here and in Wayne's book. Not too deep of a project, but enough that you'll start to get familiar with the flat 6 in the back.

VaSteve · 09-16-2005, 04:31 PM

Welcome. Anything you fix yourself is something you know is done right (usually). It's good to know all the parts of your old car and how it works when driving 100 mph!

ZOA NOM · ZOA NOM's Garage

Check the fan clearance in the housing. It's pretty close, and your fan blades could be rubbing.

Jesset100 · Jesset100's Garage

Don't feel to bad I think my first post was troubleshooting. If you are near Mount Washington, I wouldn't mind looking/listening to your car. Good luck and welcome to the board.

jfw834 · jfw834's Garage

welcome to the forum, man.....i feel your pain. I had my car for about 2 days before the transmision died. that was fun! take care of your SC and it will treat you right....maybe it was just upset that it's previous owner dropped it on ebay.

M.D. Holloway · 09-16-2005, 08:50 PM

Welcome and condolences. Don't feel too bad, a broken bearing actualy changed the worlds ecomonic balence many years ago!

You will have to post some pics you know.

Hugh R · 09-16-2005, 09:17 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Jesset100
Don't feel to bad I think my first post was troubleshooting. If you are near Mount Washington, I wouldn't mind looking/listening to your car. Good luck and welcome to the board.

Take Jesset100 up on his offer if it makes sense! Getting help from other PP posters is what its all about. These guys/gals are a wealth of information, and the support is unbelievable. Check the board early and often. By the way, we want to see pics of the car.

SCOTITUDE · 09-16-2005, 09:23 PM

It so happens that your problem was my very first Porsche repair experience. The alternator bearing is shot and the fan blades are hitting the housing. I had the car maybe a week and when it happened it scared the s**t out of me. An ungodly sound. Being so Porsche uneducated at the time I thought I lunched the motor. Luckily I shut it off quick and didn't do any damage. Its a good first repair. Do it yourself and start learning your new addition to the family.

fuelie600 · 09-17-2005, 07:41 AM

Remove the belt and spin the alternator/fan by hand. You should be able to tell if the bearings are bad, or if the fan is rubbing. If the fan/alt doesn't make the noise when spinning by hand, you can start the engine with the belt removed to see if the sound is coming from something else. Just don't run it long. Since you had an alternator light, it's probably the alternator.

Good luck and welcome to the BBS....

RANDY P · RANDY P's Garage

Wow, you too? My car acted up right after I left the shop for the PPI - alternator failure 120 miles after I bought it. Same thing.

That's your car's way of protesting new ownership. Ever notice that when you get a new used car something goes wrong?

rjp

fastteo · 09-17-2005, 09:13 AM

THAT'S IT !!! I'm NOT buying another car.

Superman · 09-17-2005, 09:21 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by fuelie600
Remove the belt and spin the alternator/fan by hand. You should be able to tell if the bearings are bad, or if the fan is rubbing. If the fan/alt doesn't make the noise when spinning by hand, you can start the engine with the belt removed to see if the sound is coming from something else. Just don't run it long. Since you had an alternator light, it's probably the alternator.

Good luck and welcome to the BBS....

This is very good advice. Too bad it is at the mechanic's shop. Your car is specifically designed to be maintained and repaired by the owner. Relax. I had my alternator rebuilt for just over $100, but I did the R&R work myself and took it to an electric motor repair place. A new alternator, installed by a mechanic, is going to cost much more. Again, the troubleshooting advice just above is spot-on.

450knotOffice · 450knotOffice's Garage

Welcome to the board, emcdan. The noise sounds horrible but it should be an easy fix. It'll take a while, but won't be difficult. As said before, buy the book "101 Projects for your 911" by our host and read the tech article section on this board. Those resources will walk you right through the job.

Congrats on the purchase! You'll love the car. Show us some pics. That's a tradition on this board.

emcdan · 09-19-2005, 06:46 PM

Thanks guys for all the great support. The consensus is to work on the car yourself! Forgive me....I sent it to the local Porsche guru. I'm pretty mechanically inclined but I had the car only a few hours before it did this. I felt it was necessary to have an objective third party to determine the problem. My guess was the alternator....never heard one do this banshee screaming noise though. Scotitude nailed the problem as well as everyone else. I got a call today and the diagnosis was in fact broken bearings in the alternator which caused the fan to start scraping the shroud.

Now I have a bit of an ethical dilemma, should the guy I bought the car from pay for the broken alt. or is it my baby. His claimed description of the car was "great mechanical condition". I do know that this is one of those unpredictable part failures and I can accept that.

My bigger concern is this, I have no idea how the transmission is supposed to shift but it feels very notchy. It does not want to stay in second gear and the clutch seems to want to engage very close to the top. Believe me, I expected some problems and wore out parts but he did not mention any these problems even when I asked him directly. The mechanic is going to give me his opinion about these things. I hope I don't seem like an a**. I'm just worried about my new purpose. Thanks again for all the help.