first drive since Dec. '06!!!!! Pelican made it possible! - Page 2

berettafan · 05-19-2008, 06:30 AM

i will admit there were times when i had 'impure thoughts'. i'd see a nice 993 and think 'i'll bet they drive that car all the time, even in a light drizzle!'. but now to hear this thing wind up through 2nd and 3rd gear on a fun road.......well it reminds me why i bought it.

Grady Clay · 05-19-2008, 08:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by berettafan

'. but now to hear this thing wind up through 2nd and 3rd gear on a fun road.......well it reminds me why i bought it.

Looks great! A 911 and 993 are totally different cars, aside from the almost 800# in weight.

Some will point out the very high ride-height setting. Much of that is from the long period of setting. Don’t adjust the suspension (other than alignment) for several thousand miles.

911s that have set for any long period typically have the brake master cylinder fail soon after it is back in service. The failure allows the brake fluid to leak into the pedal assembly causing the plastic bushings to swell and the brake pedal to not return fully. That is until there isn’t any fluid in the reservoir and suddenly NO BRAKES. Check your fluid level. I recommend you summarily replace the master cylinder and flex hoses. It is good preventative maintenance to cycle the pistons in the calipers.

Another issue may be the fuel tank. Look in the fuel level sender opening and swab the bottom of the tank. Any rust?

Enjoy!

Best,
Grady

berettafan · 05-19-2008, 09:53 AM

grady thanks for the tip on the master cylinder. i don't get in or walk away from the car without looking underneath for drips near brake and fuel lines. also keeping a keen eye on the webers. i think i shall put the MC on the project list just to be safe. cheap insurance right!

front passenger side does need to come down about 1/2" which i will do shortly after which i will drop the fronts in unison maybe 1/4" more. beyond that i am going to wait. ultimately i'd like to get the front and rear maybe 1/2" lower but i'm not ready to pull t-bars in the rear yet.

fuel tank was refurb'd by a 'Renu' shop near DC so it is nice and clean. also put in new fuel lines at front (rear compartment is all A-N stuff).

Rick V · 05-19-2008, 02:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by berettafan

how's your longhood project goin???

It is going, going to somebody elses garage. For reasons of personel matters I don't have time to do anything with the car. I refuse to just let it sit, so I am letting it go. It will be in much better hands elsewhere. But this is another thread.
Are you bringing your car down for this years Rally in the Valley? I won't accept no for an answer, so Beth and I will see ya this summer.

berettafan · 05-19-2008, 02:59 PM

sorry to hear that Rick. it's not like you don't already have a sweet arse 911 tho!

i will be at the Rally, no question. i think it's september?

Jim Garfield · 05-19-2008, 04:22 PM

The car looks great and you must feel that way too. It was nice to finally meet you at Hershey - hope to see you at WG or the Valley Rally.

Grady Clay · 05-19-2008, 08:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by berettafan

... i don't get in or walk away from the car without looking underneath for drips near brake ....

That is the problem with a leaking master cylinder – it doesn’t leak on the ground. It leaks into the pedal assembly and doesn’t show up anywhere you normally can see.

With a very slow leak (months-years) the brake fluid causes the pedal assembly plastic bushings to swell and cause the pedal operation to get stiff, most noticeable with the brake pedal ‘return’. This is a good indicator and one reason why I like the OE plastic bushings.

A car that has set or has had the brakes bled by the conventional method, can have a fairly rapid emptying of the reservoir with no indication other than sudden and complete failure. The pedal assembly can hold more fluid than the brake fluid reservoir.

I have had owners complain their 911s kept using fluid and it didn’t seem to go anywhere.

Best,
Grady

racemor · 05-20-2008, 04:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grady Clay

That is the problem with a leaking master cylinder – it doesn’t leak on the ground. It leaks into the pedal assembly and doesn’t show up anywhere you normally can see.

With a very slow leak (months-years) the brake fluid causes the pedal assembly plastic bushings to swell and cause the pedal operation to get stiff, most noticeable with the brake pedal ‘return’. This is a good indicator and one reason why I like the OE plastic bushings.

A car that has set or has had the brakes bled by the conventional method, can have a fairly rapid emptying of the reservoir with no indication other than sudden and complete failure. The pedal assembly can hold more fluid than the brake fluid reservoir.

I have had owners complain their 911s kept using fluid and it didn’t seem to go anywhere.

Best,
Grady

That sounds familiar.

That's one of the first repairs I had to make when I bought my car 7 years ago. I could not figure out where that fluid was going! It does a good job of disintegrating the rubber backing on your floor mats too.

Congrats Eric. Looking forward to having your own car at Brigers place this year I'll bet.

berettafan · 05-20-2008, 04:51 AM

you know i assumed the surface rust around my pedal box was from some a/c line dripping over the years but now it seems clear that it was probably an MC issue. i currently have the floor boards out to do some clean up (POR is going around the pedal assembly) so the MC will be a simple change out (i hope!).

Tom i am certainly looking forward to doing the blue ridge in my own ride. Chuck has made a few offhand comments about taking GT3's but i don't think my license can handle that kind of attention.

Grady Clay · 05-20-2008, 06:01 AM

When you replace the master cylinder, you will have the pedal assembly in your hand. It is convenient to replace the six plastic bushings. Much has been posted on this.

The reason for replacing the brake flex hoses at the suspension corners is not for exterior deterioration. The inner lining can fail from old age and long exposure to brake fluid, causing a ‘flap’ of lining to act as a one-way ‘check valve’. This allows fluid to the caliper piston but no return. This leaves the pads in contact with the rotor on one side even when no brake pressure is applied. Obviously this increases the pad and rotor wear but the real issue is heat. One side will get hotter (from the continued friction) than the other. This will change the effective breaking side-to-side causing the car to pull to the cool side on braking.

Best,
Grady