What does what - books suggestions for beginners ?

[Luc Bernier]

Any advices for a beginner like me, first time owner of a Porsche, looking for a book that will help me with what does what on a Porsche. (I know close to nothing in mechanics...)

(how to change things, the role of different parts of the engine and other mechanical parts)

I really want to explore this unknown world this winter, since the car will be in the garage !

thanks

[Barrpete]

Start with 101 projects for you Porsche by our host, and then the Bentley. I'm sure others will have some more recommendations.

You can also learn a lot just by searching on this board.

Now let's see some pics of your new ride.

[Oh Haha]

1 to what barrpete posted and I'll add-

An owner's manual for your year 911 as well.

[steely]

The Bentley repair manual is good - it has repair info (albeit with some errors), but it has some theory in there as well.

And there is a book on the DME / motronic system that I can't recall the name of unfortunately (and mine is packed away right now).

[Joe Bob]

Anderson's 911 Performance book as well...

[masterdave]

The haynes manual is also a good resource. But the best resource in my opinion is this forum. If you have a question, search it or ask it. You will get more answers here than any book can give you.

[Bob Kontak]

You have an SC. Get Charles Probsts book on Bosch fuel injection and buy CIS fuel pressure gauges. Not the Harbor Freight universal kit, the Pelican CIS pressure tester. A little over $100 but you have to have this to know what is going on.

Also, buy a decent $60 digital multi-meter for electronic testing.

The 1st edition Bentley manual can be purchased brand new for $50. Anderson's book, I think the third edition is out now, is very well written.

I would chill on the factory manuals given the price and the fact you have this forum. I have them and use them mostly to help folks out on this forum. They may be available on a CD which would be cheaper and also can be downloaded for free from:

Manuals

[Ronnie's.930]

Not trying to be your daddy, but this site frowns on posting links to the pirated, free manuals . . .

[kidrock]

I'm probably going to get flamed here, but here goes:

It sounds as if your mechanical knowledge is around zero. I personally believe that the 101 Project book and the Bentley manual are WAY too technical for someone who has zero experience working on vehicles.

I would recommend the book, "How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive" by Bob Muir. It has plenty of illustrations and his writing style literally takes your hands, puts them on the correct tools, and guides you towards the parts needing repair or replacement. It was my introduction to working on vehicles, and I believe it is HANDS DOWN the best guide for learning how to work on vehicles.

just my .02 cents, your mileage may vary.

[wildcat077]

Kidrock,

Come on,give the guy a break ... you can't knock him for trying to learn !
No flaming here, but ... "how to keep your Volkswagen alive " ... lol

Luc,don't be shy to ask questions on this forum,there are some very knowledgeable persons that will gladly help you out !

Cheers !
Phil

[kidrock]

Originally Posted by wildcat077

Kidrock,

Come on,give the guy a break ... you can't knock him for trying to learn !
No flaming here, but ... "how to keep your Volkswagen alive " ... lol

Luc,don't be shy to ask questions on this forum,there are some very knowledgeable persons that will gladly help you out !

Cheers !
Phil

Seriously, I wasn't trying to knock the OP. It just sounded as if he'd never even worked on a car before. I re-read the original post, maybe I misunderstood. I apologize if it appeared that I was taking a cheap shot, that's not my intention.

If Luc knows "the basics" and just wants to get more familiar with his SC, then you definitely can't beat the 101 Projects and Bentley. But this forum beats them both. Ask, and ye shall receive.

Good luck, Luc.

[RoninLB]

Originally Posted by kidrock

It just sounded as if he'd never even worked on a car before.

that's the impression I get from the OP 1st post

to stretch that thought it seems like he may not even have tools


and a few years ago a 911 beginner without any mechanical car experience or tools was rebuilding his tranny within 6 months with help from pelicanheads

[Luc Bernier]

thanks for the advices.

You are all right, I don't have all the tools to do it myself.
I just want to make sure that, until I can do more stuff myself, when I bring my car to the garage, I will know what the guy is talking about.
so I'm looking for pictures and graphics to understand what's going on under the metal.

for now, my project is to change the front targa bar seal, and this spring to paint the wheels.
I know that it sounds very basic to all of you out there !

I will certainly post for help and search this site.
cheers

[djcdmv]

I, like Luc, jumped into Porsche ownership with no knowledge of working on cars. The Haynes manual is useless for the less than technically proficient. I don't have the Bentley, so I can't speak to its usefulness. Wayne's book (101 projects for 911) has been the most helpful BOOK for me. That said, this forum and it's other resources Pelican Parts - 911 Technical Articles can't be beat. Some of the technical articles are so descriptive that they have specific size wrenches, etc. that you will need for each bolt listed in the step by step.

I've posted some pretty basic questions and get some responses way over my head. Luc, if you get that kind of answer, just flat out write "I don't know what that means." Most on this board will go through the trouble of explaining it step by step and provide some photos, too. With the help of Pelican and Wayne's book, you will be able to tackle anything you want to try. I'm certainly don't think I'll ever drop my tranny or the like. But I do know there are a ton of people here who will drop what they're doing to write up a post and check back often to make sure everything is going well.

Just know that anything you try to do to your car has been done here and was likely documented very well. Most people go through the trouble of photo documenting or providing videos of most repairs. If you try a search and can't find something, sometimes you might have luck just writing that you couldn't find it. Another forum I belong to for another car just gives 25 responses of "search." Most people here will know some better key words to search for and find you a link to a thread.

[RoninLB]

Originally Posted by Luc Bernier

You are all right, I don't have all the tools to do it myself.
I just want to make sure that, until I can do more stuff myself, when I bring my car to the garage, I will know what the guy is talking about.
so I'm looking for pictures and graphics to understand what's going on under the metal.

what I did in my early years was to completely involve myself with every aspect of a project as they came up

If I wanted to learn how to change brake pads I read everything and collected every book I could on the subject and buy every tool necessary to completely do just about any issue with brakes that may come up in the future. The mindset was that I was going to be doing my brakes forever. When I was in a parts shop I'd scan the tool section like a kid in a candy store.

[timmy2]

Luc,
Read and learn from books, forums and friends. Practice lots....
Pretty soon you'll have a list like mine of things you did for yourself on your '78
LIST:
Finally, back in the game!