How do you learn about your 944 (or cars in general)

Dave L · 05-30-2005, 04:30 PM

My dad didnt work on cars so I kind of lost that opportunity in learning. I have done the basics, sparkplugs, thermostat, oil changes, fuel filter, replaced a fender. With the exception of the fender its all been basic maintenance and its all been on a BMW. I have the haynes manual, I have a print out of the shop manual but both are kind of short on info and assume you know things to start out. EI; I am having a problem with my starter, I can diagnose it, but my next question when looking around is "hmmm... wheres the starter"

I brought the car in to a mechanic and he tells me the solenoid is cracked. Something that I should be able to see, so Im not happy about it. With 2 older cars in the garage I need to do these types of things.

Are there any good "basic" car books that anyone can recommend? The internet is great but hard to use when you are in MCDonalds for lunch.

ae1969 · 05-30-2005, 04:42 PM

READ READ READ lots of good basic engine books out there. Try the library or just go to COles/Chapters and buy a basic engine book. The days of carburaters was nice. Pretty simple stuff. Nowadays EFI's, chips and dip etc makes things a little more complex but pretty much the same...........

THe other way is to TAKE THINGS APART (more expensive this way)

I remember when I was young taking everything apart........ no joke. I needed to see what made them tick.

I took apart our tv. Took a couple of weeks for that to come back from the repair place...........a betamax was next.............. our old lawnmower was my first engine. I was around 10. My dad could not get it started so he had left it for dead. I took it apart........ Put it back together and she ran like a top.

gtroth · 05-30-2005, 04:57 PM

Read Bosch Fuel Injection & Engine Management by Probst. Best book by far for our cars that I have found.

scheistermeiste · 05-30-2005, 05:10 PM

my dad was never around to teach me anything so i learned mainly the expensive way, diving in head first, then not having the money to pay someone to fix it i was forced to figure it out myself. everyonce and a while id ask someone who knows something similar and that would give me an idea or point me in the general direction. reading is also your friend!

Taz's Master · 05-30-2005, 06:56 PM

Spending time with someone else who likes to turn wrenches isn't a bad thing either. But yeah, read. Even in magazines like Hot Rod and Car Craft the tech articles (and even the ads) can be pretty good. 9magazine has some pretty realistic projects and Q&A sections.

And ask here. Nobody knew what/where the starter was until somebody showed/told them.

legion · 05-30-2005, 07:26 PM

I took a basic auto shop class in high school. I was on the 'college' track, so I wasn't allowed to take the advanced classes... I read the textbook in that class from cover to cover, multiple times.

I drove a POS '85 Plymouth Turismo in high school. I had no money. I remember when the car started overheating, I pulled the radiator to check for leaks and blockage. I couldn't afford new coolant, so I strained the old coolant with my mom's splatter screens and refilled.

I also had a best friend (current 911 owner) who's father had a lift in his garage. I could always wrench over at their place...

scheistermeiste · 05-31-2005, 03:34 AM

lgeion, i had the same problem and did the same thing on my first car! only difference was it was a 65 mustang

legion · 05-31-2005, 06:04 AM

My problem ended up being the water pump. I took it to Pep Boys and they replaced the radiator. It started overheating again before I left the parking lot! They refused to refund my money or fix the real problem without charging me more. In retrospect, the water pump should have been the first thing they looked at!

scheistermeiste · 05-31-2005, 06:48 AM

mine ended up being that the original radiator wasnt big enough (and slightly clogged) to cool the 69 BOSS 302 that was in it on the summer florida days. easily fixed by a new radiator, but soon as i fixed it the car was sold

924Sman · 05-31-2005, 07:50 AM

Interesting thread! Many ways we learn here and can be a good source of encouragement for those who are new and don't know the difference between a box end and an open end wrench.

I got my mechanical skills through lack of money, the need to tear things apart and fix them and the natural talent I was born with to have mechanical skills. As a kid my brother in law did AX and was great about including me so I learned about racing cars and working on them with him. He owned a Austin Healy iirc. After awhile/divorce I bought my first mini bike which at that time was the new Honda Mini Trail 50. I bought one of the first ones available and at that time Rupp was the only thing around. I wrenched on it and I got older I started racing AMA MX at 13-22 y.o. then went to AMA mile dirt tracker. Most of my skills were obtained on scooters.

Once I got a car I had to work on them for the cost factor and I was good or better than a mechanic could do so I continue to this day DIY.

I found for me it is all "nuts and bolts" all you need is good recall of what you DID and a love to learn while you wrench and no better teacher than getting your hands dirty and learn as you repair. But FIRST you must read all you can so you can understand the process way before you even open the hood (or bonnet, for you Brits!). Having a good mental picture of the area involved is huge. And of course I have asked a ton of questions but you must be able to "weed out" the bad info you read so ask many the same question and compare info then use common sense.

bryanthompson · bryanthompson's Garage

Someday I'd like to go pro, but until then, I'm another amateur wrench.

You can learn a LOT from the chat room here. If you can catch one of the 944 geniuses that live here live, it's the best way to get info real quick. Plus, you can ask about some of the details and 'tricks' that usually don't get posted on the board.

I learned real quick that to keep a 944 running you either need to have a suitcase full of money and a good mechanic, or you learn as you go and become a mechanic.

I've made a few mistakes... i learn from them and move on. Usually I post and tell everyone what I did wrong, hopefully that helps other newbies. I've fixed more than i've broken, so that's good

Before taking on any project... read at least 15 threads about whatever you're doing, memorize the clarks-garage page, read the haynes, read the factory manual, twice.

SoCal Driver · SoCal Driver's Garage

As far back as I can remember my grandfather (mothers father) had grease stained hands and smelled of transmission lube. He was a mechanic. Even worked on Bob Hopes car a few times when Hope was curousing inland California for land purchases. When ever we visited I would be crawling around cars with him.

Father did most of his car repairs but was really an electronics guy fixing TVs and radios. These had tubes in them then.

It was expected that you would pick up on these skills. Since there was no computer games and TV was mostly black and white a young mans focus was cars and girls. Still wish I had some of the cars that have gone through my hands.

bryanthompson · bryanthompson's Garage

Hugh, he must have had an awesome set of tools.

... I've got better

[edit for clarity: first line: reference to fast times at ridgemont high, second line reference to monty python... after I re-read my post, anyone who didn't know the references might think i'm an ass.]

Rot 911 · 05-31-2005, 11:20 AM

Assuming you are mechanically inclined reading this board and the Rennlist tech board will give you a good base for diagnosing and working on your 944. I don't mean just read the thread about your starter, read all the threads to see what tends to go wrong and how to fix it.

SoCal Driver · SoCal Driver's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by bryanthompson
Hugh, he must have had an awesome set of tools.

Not really. Just a lot of the basics. Didn't have the highly stressed and electronically controlled cars of today. Up till the middle 70's you could do most everything with just a moderate set of craftsman tools. He passed on in the late 60's in his 60's.

Dan in Pasadena · Dan in Pasadena's Garage

Dad- Did everything, swapped engines, rebuilt engines - all american stuff

Highschool and through my 20's - I did everything, ditto Dad and some V-Dub engines
Went through my 30's and even most of my 40's did less and less - kids, house, wife. Brakes and some odd stuff.
No wife after age 45 and guess what? I just turned 50 and am finding renewed interest in working on my own cars again.

By the way, just bought that book recommended above - the Bosch Fuel Injection Management book - used from Amazon. Hopefully it will be accessible, not too techy right off the bat!

SlowToady · 05-31-2005, 05:44 PM

Mostly from here for 944 specific stuff, or my dad for general knowledge and wrenching help. Thanks to the internet, information is easier to find although it is often rather sketchy. Taking things apart is the most fun, though. (Well, when it goes back together it is.)

I'm thinking about buying something like a 340 or 350 to take apart and rebuild to really see what it's all about. Any advice to the contrary? My mother is going to kill me:-D

Paul Glasson · Paul Glasson's Garage

In 1970 when I started learning to dismantle and reassemble 50CC motor cycles, 2 stroke engines especially were a lot more simple. Motor cars too as they did not have fuel injectin and electronic ignition just the good old carb, and there was space to work on rear wheel drive car engines. The good old ignition point system made learning easier. Overhauling a 44 Harley, resleeving it with new pistons, replacing timing gear bushes etc was a good learning curve. This 944 is the first fuel injection car I have done any work on. How ever it can also be expensive when one makes mistakes-I wrecked a torque converter on an Audi by misalligning the motor drive shaft, resleeved the resleeving on the Harley when I thought it was too little piston clearance that turned out to be a big end clearance problem tightening the engine.
Where I can afford it I pay now to have a lot of work done as I have to weigh up the time it will take to do a job myself (lot more than an experienced mechanic) and what my overtime would be for that same time at work- It will usually pay for the job.

McClintock16 · 06-01-2005, 10:16 PM

I bought my 944 a year ago at the age of 17 and didnt know the difference between a water pump and a stomach pump. If I did I wouldnt have bought THIS car

Well I started digging into it and ran across problems every now and then to which I would post to Rennlist, I then started hanging out with some guys here in KC called the Kansas City Wrenching Society, www.kcws.org and from then on I have read every damn Rennlist post involving a tech problem. I bookmarked clarks garage and have a cd copy of PET and the manuals. I have diagnosed MANY MANY problems on my car with the help of people like the ones on this board. I myself HAVE to know WHY, and HOW something is working and why it isnt working now before I can attempt to correct the problem. It HAS to play out in my head first, thus you will see me asking some very very odd questions on here when it comes to troubleshooting. If you can learn how to think like the DME, pick up a few pointers on suspension and the transmission, and learn how to put things back together there isnt too much that can stop you. The single BIGGEST thing I have learned in the past year and the RIGHT tool makes ALL the difference! I have literally spent HOURS trying to get certain bolts off and what not when all I needed would have been an adaptor of some sort and I would have had it off in minutes or less. Invest in quality tools!

- Aaron McClintock

pokey · 11:05 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by bryanthompson
Hugh, he must have had an awesome set of tools.

... I've got better

[edit for clarity: first line: reference to fast times at ridgemont high, second line reference to monty python... after I re-read my post, anyone who didn't know the references might think i'm an ass.]

LOL! I got it. Two of my favorites.
My brother's gonna s**t, my brother's gonna kill us!
Well, which is it? Is he going to s**t, or is he going to kill us?
First, He's gonna s**t, then he's gonna kill us!

As to wrenching. My first vehicle in high school was an '82 Toyota 4X4, I was broke, I drove off road, stuff broke. I had to fix it myself or not drive. Steep learning curve. The best book I've found for learning to work on a car, any car, is by John Muir, How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive, for the Complete Idiot. It takes a straight forward, almost zen approach to diagnoses, repair and prevention. Great book. If you want to learn about performance improvements, a good starter is How to Hotrod Volkswagens, from RPM Press. It's amazing how the stuff from the simplest of cars applies to just about all of them.