It was fun while it lasted
 

Well I don't think what I found today is a sign of good things to come my way. My daughter gave me 101 Projects for Your Porsche for Christmas. Today I decided to change the transmission fluid. Now, the last time I had the car out for a spirited drive it sounded like I had an exhaust leak. I really wish it was an exhaust leak. It appears that I have a leak between the heads and cylinders on 4 & 6. I pulled the valve covers off and all the studs are ok. What am I looking at here? Complete rebuild or just top end? I don't think of this as a slippery slope, I think of it more like a cliff. Everything is original to the car. Engine has never been apart from looking at the records that came with it going all the way back to the date it was purchased. 145k miles. I guess this is going to be the start of my engine rebuild thread :)
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1419907672.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1419907738.jpg

actually looks pretty clean for an original motor with that many miles, this must of just started?

The car is very clean. I noticed the change in engine note while accelerating hard . still runs great and pulls well but not as well as it did. The wife is not concerned with the cost, she just wants it back together for spring when we go for breakfast on Sunday mornings:)

Try torquing them gently.... Clean and observe...

Have you checked head stud nut torque and done a compression or leak down test?
If the nuts are a little loose then maybe torque them and gunk spray the gook while the motor is warm and hose it off.
If you want to overhaul it then maybe skip that task and have at it.

You have the best wife ever!

If the studs are good just leave it and enjoy :)


If you really really really want, do the gunk off degreaser thing and see if it comes back. Me, I'm a Kiwi and we tend not to worry about lil' things like that :D

Your instincts and senses are saying something is different. A leak down test might help determine if the head seal has been compromised.

I think a lot of engines blow oil past that seal, long before it is compromised. Probably when starting and the studs are near their lowest preload.

My engine looked far worse than yours for many, many years and miles. But it did not sound like an exhaust leak until this spring.

Leakdown test confirmed the #2 seal was shot.

#5 was starting to fail too.

So, if you think something has changed, it probably has. Bummer, I know.

Sometimes a loose valve will tap, and sound very close to an exhaust leak.

And I agree with the others. Clean it up, and just keep an eye on it. You may not need a rebuild just yet.

Mine ran like that for 8 years .. barely even left a drop on the floor ... This year i went to do my valve adjus and found a piece of a stud .. figure i had a good run too ... not a big deal . have the engine out now preparing for a top end ..http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1419953269.jpg

Something that is easy to check; are there old air lines going into the exhaust port area that may have rusted through. Or plugs (bolts) put in it's place after the airlines have been removed at some time. One fell out of my car and it sounded like a major exhaust problem.

The wife is a keeper. :)

Rotate the crankshaft until there is no pressure on the valve stems for the cylinder. Now gently pry the valve stem from side to side and see if you have excessive valve guide wear. You may have a valve seat/guide issue that is allowing more oil into the cylinder than normal.

If you are hearing a noise that sounds like exhaust leak then you probably have compression loss and the leak down test will tell you where.

good luck!

Well after a steady winter of work and a bit of snowboarding, I have finally gotten around to pulling off the valve covers. It looks like this is my engine rebuild thread . Now I just have to wait for my copy of Rebuilding and Modifying Porsche Engines to arrive. http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1425316156.jpg

bummer, gl with the rebuild, it could have been worse!!!!

Wow, that's too bad, but all good things slow down at some point. I am looking at my #2 spark plug fouling up - and I have similar external gunk visible. This afternoon my intention was to check the tightness of the studs. None of them fell out when I took the lower valve cover off yesterday, but I'll see if they are snug. Did yours fall out, or did it come loose when you attempted to turn it?

I'll be keeping track of your progress. Best of luck.

Sorry to read that. Always a fear of mine.

I'm just dreading the day...

Good Luck

Try to look at it in a positive fashion. Think how much your going to learn over the next couple months and what a cool tool collection you"ll accumulate.

Removed the lower valve cover and all the studs were in place. stuck a magnet in and pulled it out. The only thing I'm really wondering about is, how far do I go? Complete tear down or just top end? Stock? Where is the best place in Canada to get parts other than from Porsche? The only engine I have ever rebuilt was a Chevy, it was nothing like this.