Newb

Seabear · 04-17-2011, 10:35 AM

Greetings,
After lurking around for a couple of years, and learning so much from you guys it's time for an introduction. I bought this beautiful '88 CE in Seattle 2 years ago with absolutely no Porsche experience other than seeing my neighbor, John M, drive by in his '84 Guards Red 911 and wishing I was in the driver's seat. Well, after looking around for a while and trying to understand the different years/engines/advantages etc, John suggested looking on Craigs List and that's where I found my beautiful girl. JW did the PPI and we were good to go. She had 65K miles when I got her, and we are now up to 73K. JW put in a new clutch and replaced the fuel line, but I have since purchased a garage at Garagetown and put in a 2-post lift so I am starting to do some of my own work. Oil changes are easy, I've done 2 now, and I changed the CV axles with new from our host. That was a challenge as I really don't know *hit about wrenching. But I got the job done and just have to re-torque the bolts after my next drive.
I would like to do the brakes and refresh the suspension then do that cross-country trip that GirtAllerton did. Man, that got my attention. Even The Passenger (my long suffering bride) thinks that would be a good thing.

And after a couple of Driver Skills days I am starting to learn how to drive more competently. Not good, but better than before.
I am really impressed with the generosity of the members in this forum, the amount of help available is amazing. Thanks!

My '88

My neighbor, John M's '84 and my '88

Bjorne

DRACO A5OG · DRACO A5OG's Garage

Welcome Aboard!

Beautiful Cars!

craigyirush · 04-17-2011, 02:25 PM

Love the 3.2 coupes, especially in that colour.

Congrats on doing some wrenching and a DE day or two.

I've owned mine for five years and done neither

chgoburbs · 04-17-2011, 02:56 PM

Welcome, Great car!

Just be patient when you are wrenching, ask a lot of questions here......... I do!

pete3799 · pete3799's Garage

Nice ride.
Best of luck with it.

Seabear · 04-17-2011, 03:11 PM

Thanks, Guys. chgoburbs, you can count on lots of questions 'cuz most of this stuff is clear as mud. My biggest problem is getting in a hurry but enough do-overs have tempered that some.
Bjorne

Mia911 · Mia911's Garage

Welcome...Beautiful rides

BIGW · BIGW's Garage

Welcome! Love the pics of those beauties and the scenery is pretty fine too. Take a run down the coast with you honey! She will love a Pacific tour in the fall, and you can hit Rennsport Reunion too.

GaryR · GaryR's Garage

Absolutely LOVE the 88, to me nothing looks better than a tail-less original 911... great color too.

Seabear · 04-17-2011, 08:17 PM

Thanks for the welcome, Guys. BIGW, a run down the coast is in order! And I look forward to meeting some fellow Pelicans along the way.
bh

Gustyones · Gustyones's Garage

Beautiful car...

Geronimo '74 · 04-18-2011, 04:00 AM

Welcome Seabear!

I've always had a softspot for CE's.
Very nice car!

Grady Clay · 04-18-2011, 04:24 AM

Seabear,
Congratulations and welcome.

Nice coupe.

The real advantage of DIY is being able to stop mid-stream.
A good shop must have the system to start and finish all in one process.
DIY, you want to go in steps, asking questions, finding the correct and best parts, beg-buy-borrow tools and more.
Yes, it is advantageous to have everything planned, organized, purchased, etc. in advance but….
That seldom happens.
Is there an internet connection in your garage?

With your garage at Garagetown, it is fun and useful to share a 2-bay with another owner.
There are many times where two pairs of hands are useful.
In any case – BE CAREFUL.
Use every safety possible.

Again, welcome.

Best,
Grady

Seabear · 04-18-2011, 08:52 AM

Thanks, Gents.
And particularly, thanks Grady, I do have internet at the garage and will most definitely take your advice about going in steps. And my 30 years in the machine shop business (aerospace) taught me to be careful around things that can remove fingers or eyes.
Right after changing out the CV axles on my car a buddy came over with his mid-90s 3 Series BMW and we swapped out the control arms to eliminate a shimmy that had developed. He got all the parts from our host, but as expected we had to take a couple of trips to the local auto parts store for some accessories. The passenger side took 3 hours to do, the driver side 45 minutes. Learning curve, eh, but a lot of fun followed by a couple of beers to celebrate.
So, again, thanks for the welcome Gents, and I really look forward to learning about these special machines from all of you.
bh