Dropping for rebuild tomorrow!

[wente]

Tom Amon of Mobile Works West is coming to my house tomorrow to remove my tired 3.2 and do a top end and clutch replacement! I'm planning to do a bunch of maintenance while he has my heads for machining, such as replace the rubber brake hoses, brake pads, flush/fill fluids, service my recently chattering parking brake....
Is there anything else I should consider replacing during this opportunity? Should I change my engine mounts while I have the chance? The car has 139k... just wondering what "while yer in there's" I should be considering??? I'll try to remember to take a bunch of pics tomorrow if I can. I'm probably going to wake up with the flu tomorrow morning so I can stay home and watch!

[wente]

I've updated my location - Tom probably doesn't service Colorado!!!

[scottb]

I'm sure you'll want to detail the engine compartment. Also, what kind of shape is your engine pad in? If it's starting to disintegrate or come down, this would be the time to replace it. This would also be a good time to polish and powdercoat the fan and shroud.

[JeremyD]

Just depends on how crazy you want to get - I would recommend replacing the rear shocks...

3.4 Progress

Before


After

[Spud]

Its a good time to clean/inspect/repack your CV joints, and take a good look at your rear shocks, you'll have great access with the motor out. You can certainly upgrade to the OE ClubSport motor mounts (easy!), what about your exhaust? Also, now's a good time to look into replacing a worn clutch etc.

It's easy to go way overboard here

Oh, and Tom is top notch, you'll have good results.

Enjoy!

[wente]

hmmm - have about 45k on the shocks. good idea!

[Lorenfb]

"This would also be a good time to polish and powdercoat the fan and shroud." - scottb -

It's really not a good idea to powdercoat the fan or alternator housing:

1. It generally doesn't holdup well on the magnesium.
2. The clearance between the fan & housing is very very close and will surely
rub after the powdercoating. This will require either filing or sanding the fan to
make an adequate clearance, which will now cause a void in the powercoat
resulting in the entry of moisture into the magnesium. The final result is potential
faking of the powdercoating.

[scottb]

Originally posted by Lorenfb
It's really not a good idea to powdercoat the fan or alternator housing:

1. It generally doesn't holdup well on the magnesium.
2. The clearance between the fan & housing is very very close and will surely
rub after the powdercoating. This will require either filing or sanding the fan to
make an adequate clearance, which will now cause a void in the powercoat
resulting in the entry of moisture into the magnesium. The final result is potential
faking of the powdercoating.

Loren: You're wrong on this one. Stick to electronics.

There are dozens, if not hundreds, of people on this board who have polished and powdercoating fans and housings. They look great, and hold up well. I had my fan polished and clear powdercoated by Al Reed, and it looks as good today as it did two years ago when I had it done. True, sometimes you have to lightly sand off the powdercoating on the end of the blades, but this hasn't been a problem for me.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Scott, Al Reed has a minor amount of metal machined off the fan to compensate for the tiny dimensional difference the powder coating adds.

[scottb]

Originally posted by Dan in Pasadena
Scott, Al Reed has a minor amount of metal machined off the fan to compensate for the tiny dimensional difference the powder coating adds.

That being the case, then Loren's post is complete nonsense.

[Lorenfb]

"That being the case, then Loren's post is complete nonsense." - scottb -

Please re-read my post again more slowly this time.

[scottb]

Unlike you, Loren, I don't have to read with my lips moving. I read your post correctly the first time. Since Al Reed trims a bit of metal, there's no breach of the powdercoating. Thus, the issue you've identified (and you're the first that I know of to do so) is nonexistent when you remove a bit of metal before the PC is applied.

Wente: While you have the engine out, and if you're interested in polishing and powdercoating the fan and housing, send them to Al Reed in Anaheim. He'll make them look great. Don't worry about Loren's nonsense. Apparently he woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Originally posted by scottb
Unlike you, Loren, I don't have to read with my lips moving. I read your post correctly the first time. .....Apparently he woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.

Uh Scott.....a little harsh, no? Do you and Loren have history or something? Not trying to add fuel to a fire, but we're all entitled to our opinions...about Porsches anyway!

Maybe.............YOU.......woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?

[JeremyD]

Funny - I had mine powdercoated to ward of corrosion. (I live on saltwater) especially since the housings are no longer being made.

[wente]

ok - wow - this bbs moves so quickly these days I didn't see all these fan posts until now - Tom includes red powdercoating in his rebuilds, as well as a full cleanup etc. So, I'll be having it done, but I don't have to worry about it since Tom's done it for so long, he will know how to file the blades if necessary.

Anyway - for a quick update - Tom Amon of Mobile Works West and Jimmy of Mobile Works East both showed up last Tues at around 8:30am.
By 12pm my engine was packed up and gone - out for machining and cleaning. Amazing. They dropped it and did the teardown all the way to the bottom end right in front of me. Even did all the hard things (to most mortals) like remove all the head studs without snapping a single one.
We found two bad cam lobes, two really sick looking exhaust valves, and two cracked intake manifold gaskets. As well as a bad throwout fork bearings (we'll be doing the upgrade) and a really scary looking fork which was amazingly still working.

I promise, I'll add my pics to the thread shortly - just late for work this morning. I've ordered my shocks and plan to replace those this weekend. Tom is scheduled to install the new shiney rebuild next tues if all goes well.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Ellsworth,
If it isn't too nosy, could you either tell us here or drop me a PM of Tom's charge for a (what sounds like) complete top end rebuild?

I'm wondering how much more his price would be for a complete rebuild and since I have heard so many positive things about Tom...I am wondering if he would entertain doing mine down here in SoCal? I know he was down here a month or two ago (longer?).

Maybe the distance would be a logisitics problem for him or not worth it finanically to him... Anyway, inquiring minds want to know. Thanks, Dan

[wente]

Dan, Tom's price all depends on the while yer in there's. That's the beauty of having him doing the teardown right in front of you. It was nice to see all the things that needed to be replaced as it came apart. He then writes the estimate and of course you can add optional things... He has base prices for a top end rebuild which included the new clutch, machining heads, powder coating, bead blasting, rings, re-surfacing, gaskets, and replacing the guides. But in my case, we added things like g50 upgrade, rod bearings and bolts, higher end studs etc. So the best bet would be for you to call Tom for pricing. I am, however, comfortable in saying that the pricing was very acceptable and reasonable for my work. Especially given Tom's reputation and his blinding speed. He does charge $50 for travel time, and perhaps he would do so-cal for more. I do know he is a very busy man... I think he was 6 weeks out when I called him.
The other interesting advantage is that my car is still here sans engine. So I'm doing shocks and brakes and other fun DIY tasks while I have the clearance. Pretty cool!