Opening days blues...

[vancouver86/911]

I took my Carrera cab out for the first time today after reinstalling the engine, new clutch package, and having the transmission rebuilt. I should have stayed in bed. I got temporary insurance and was on my way to the Aircare station to get the pollution test so I could register my car for the road. Everything was going great, the car ran beautifully and shifted great. Then after about 10 miles I engaged the clutch, felt a pop and the pedal went to the floor. I ended up getting towed home. If only it ended there with just a $100 towing bill. While I waited for the tow truck I figured I could fix what ever was wrong with the clutch so I was more anxious of what the tow truck driver had in store for my car. He loaded it up, secured it to the flat bed with no snapped body parts and then unloaded it. When I got it in my car port I noticed that the rear wheels were sitting up inside the wheel wells. The rear end of the car was sitting too low and now the back end of the car bounces like a baby buggy when I push on the rear bumper. Tow truck driver says he didn't do anything wrong even though the car was rock solid before the tow. Oh, but it gets even better..I jacked up the car to readjust my clutch cable and snap! goes the clutch cable support bracket. Immediate psychiatric committal was averted when I realized this bracket was not part of the transmission case. This was after forgetting to unzip my rear window and learning the lesson of what cold does to a plastic window. Lovely.
Anyway...could securing my car to the flatbed have ruined my rear shocks?

[robhamster]

I cant answer you question about the rear shocks, but I had the clutch cable support bracket break on my 84 3.2 a few months ago while I was trying to adjust the clutch, which had been performing in very bizarre ways. I ended up taking it to the local top wrench who diagnosed in about three minutes. It turned out the my engine was separating from the transmission as the four bolts had come loose. Go figure. It had been 5 years since my last engine drop. Once they tightened those up, and I replaced the support bracket, all was good with the world.

Good luck with the shocks.

[vancouver86/911]

I inspected my Carrera cabriolet today after receiving it yesterday off the flatbed truck. I noticed that the driver's side appears like it has sprung back to its original height but the passenger side, the side that was secured by the trailing arm to the flatbed, is now 1/2" lower at the wheel well than the driver's side. The two sides were roughly equal prior to the tow truck driver securing my passenger side trailing arm down to the flatbed. The only thing bent that I could find was the brake line but it does not appear to be leaking. This was my first time driving the car so I have little to go on but the ride height does appear to be different now. Anyone have any thoughts?

[Craig_D]

Man, I'm sorry about your day. A note on towing, since I recently lost a starter and had to flatbed my 911 to the shop: my tow guy used heavy duty tie down straps through the wheels to secure the rear. There was no damage to the wheels at all, and the suspension was never compressed. He had the front secured through the lower control arms, and that worked out just fine.

In the future (hoping there isn't one), you might recommend the straps through the rear wheel method of securing the back of the car.

Just an idea...

Hope that's your last snag and the rest of your season goes well!

Cheers,

- CraigD

[Canada Kev]

Yeah, that all sounds like a pretty crappy day. Sorry to hear about it.

I can't offer any suggestions regarding your shocks, but can regarding the tow. I have the Rennline tow hooks mounted on the front to the control arm pivot area. These offer a good place to winch the car up on a deck as well as additional skid points. The strap through the rear wheels is a good idea, too. Cinch them up and tighten with ratchets if available, or just get them close and tighten the winch a bit more to snug them up. Additional ratchet straps through the front wheels will ensure that end is also secure.

Or just drive the thing home in second gear and forgo the tow.

Good luck and I hope it all turns out to be a small issue.

[UrQuattro]

One thought. On the rear shocks, are your bump stops intact? If not, it's possible that when it was cinched down that the shocks were moved beyond the allowed range of motion, an that would cause immediate shock absorber failure.

Jist a thought

Michael

[vancouver86/911]

"One thought. On the rear shocks, are your bump stops intact?"
How do I check if they are intact?

[UrQuattro]

If you are able to see the top mounts of the rear shocks, there should be some rubber sleeves on the shock's shaft.

If you can't see em, you might have to reach in somehow and feel around for the rubber donuts/spacers/etc that are the bump stops.

I'm sure that someone else will be able to describe it better than me.

I hope I've helped a little.

Michael

[Craig_D]

Just found a picture of the rear wheel tie down method my tow guy used. It worked great.

Good luck finding and fixing the problem with your car. Maybe you can work an upgraded part or two into your fix.

Cheers, - CraigD

[vancouver86/911]

Thank you all for the responses to my post. In case anyone is interested, I have just received unexpected and good news. I explained my situation to the manager of the tow truck company and he has taken complete responsibility for the damage. He said his driver never should have cinched down the trailing arm and that the resulting alteration to the suspension is to be expected from this securing method. He said he had just bought $500 wheel securing straps for his drivers to use on cars like ours and he couldn't understand why his driver didn't use them. All that being said, the fat lady hasn't sung yet until the work is completed and they pay the bill. I have located a shop that does Porsche racing suspension set ups so hopefully they can fix up my cab good as new. Now I just have to get my clutch cable operating again.

[dshepp806]

THAT is good news !!!!!!!!!!!

Best of luck.

Doyle