Dude, where's my oil?

Slam · 06-08-2005, 10:21 PM

Okay, time to consult the gang.

Here's the scoop. R&R'ed the OPRV with seal update and alignment tool. I've got an early '44 with the 3-pce OPRV. Job done per Clark's Garage notes and Tech Bulletin. Checked crank bolt torque - certainly 155lbs - I can't get it off and it checked out at more than 155 when I put a torque wrench on it. Last guy in there gorilla-ed it, I guess.

Here's the puzzlement. One day the oil pressure's fine. Next morning I've got none. Not low pressure. None. And so far the motor's been run about four or five minutes off and on (mere seconds at a time) while I try to troubleshoot the pressure problem. How much more of this dry running can the poor engine take?

And, dudes, where's my oil? I primed the oil pump properly (oil down hole, rotate engine couner-clockwise) and nothing. It's not the sending unit or the idiot light - the clatter from the valve train tells me that much. I may have had mixing (small word-terrible thing) but I figured I caught it in time.

Likely suspects (votes?):

Oil pickup's come off. Or, gulp, clogged with coolant/oil slime.
Rod bearings (maybe more) shot
Oil pump shot.

Seems to me the pan'll have to come off so I can check this stuff, but if there's something I've missed could you let me know? And if there's someone out there who's done the bearings with the engine in the car, have you got pointers for me? The Porsche shop I chatted with quoted $1,000 in labor alone! Nope. I'll do it myself and get $1,000 worth of education instead.

Sorry this is long-winded, but it's driving me crazy. I've got so many hours into this car!

AFJuvat · 06-09-2005, 06:00 AM

The first thing I would do is double check your OPRV. It may be jammed open. Per yet another TSB, you are really supposed to update the OPRV with the newer style one.

After that, I would have a look in the oil pan and see if the oil pickup tube is still intact. If you have a shop that has a borescope, you can check with the oil pan still on the car. When the oil pickup tube (and\or return tube) break, they tend to smash themselves into the crank - making one hell of a racket.

Bearings are a symptom of low oil pressure, not a cause, your bearings should still be fine.

I would replace the OPRV with the new style and go from there.

AFJuvat

Slam · 06-09-2005, 11:15 AM

AF, thanks for the input. The OPRV isn't sticking as far as I know. It was the first thing I checked after firing gthe car up to find I had no pressure. I took out the retaining bolt and the valve slid out easily. Does this necessarily mean it's not sticking? I've got a couple other valves here I can put in and maybe I'll get lucky. BTW, the engine is fairly high mileage but I've had no major problems in the ten or eleven years I've owned the car. What are the idependent tests I can perform on the oil pump? What I'll do is yank the OPRV and see if I can get the pump to shoot oil out the hole. Anything else?

Slam · 06-09-2005, 06:54 PM

Well, tonight I yanked out the OPRV only to find it was relatively dry (lubed it when it went in). Cranked the engine - no oil out the hole. That says to me that no oil is even getting as far as the OPRV. Suspect pump or crank bolt, so I got the crank bolt off. Guys, should the crank sprocket sit slightly proud of the end of the crankshaft, flush with it, or should the end of the crankshaft sit proud of the balance shaft belt sprocket? This may be the clue I've been looking for...

Zero10 · 06-10-2005, 10:52 PM

Hey, you're in alberta?... Don't suppose you're in Cowtown?

The power steering pulley should sit pretty much flush with the end of the crank, give or take a little bit. The washer behind the bolt should be installed concave-side in, so that it puts pressure on the power steering pulley. Make sure this is correct. IIRC, my crankshaft protrudes slightly past the power steering pulley, but since yours is an 83, it may not have power steering, and my knowledge may not apply.

As for how much of this it can take, not much. Try to take it easy.

AFJuvat · 06-11-2005, 07:01 AM

Not quite sure what you mean by proud. US and Canada, two countries, separated by a common language...

In any case, the crankshaft pulley - the flanged end (the wide side) goes towards the balance shaft pulley.

Or to put it another way, the flat side goes towards the block.

AFJuvat

Slam · 06-12-2005, 05:00 PM

AFJuvat - separated by a common language. Don't get me started - I work for three weekly newspapers as copyeditor. It's like working on the high school paper; some of these jokers don't even know what a sentence is. (I do. It's not being able to drive your 944 for six months!)

Zero, I'm from Wainwright, about five or six hours northeast of Cowtown. Liked Calgary, though. Lived in Edmonchuk for ten years off and on but preferred your neck of the woods. In fact, I bought my 944 in Calgary about ten or eleven years ago. Tell me about ZR Auto. I see their cars advertised all the time. Who are they? And what's with used 944 prices in Canada? My car is worth what? I think they're outrageously inflated right now. Why?

Zero10 · 06-12-2005, 07:28 PM

Hahaha, please don't buy a car from ZR auto!!!
I looked at a car there for a Rennlister, and it was the worst example of a 951 I had ever seen. Had been in several accidents, kinked floor pans, terrible repaint, etc. 275k km's, and they wanted $14.5k for it. Insane. Prices up here are pretty high, which is why I bought my 951 in NYC. If yours is a good example, an 83 can easily fetch $5k-ish around here. Probably similar up there.

Back to ZR auto. Unfortunately, they're about the only place to get Ferrari's and Lotus's and such around here. Once you get into their very high end cars, Diablo's, Countach's, etc, they're pretty reasonable, both on quality and price, but not for most of their Porsche's.

I thought maybe if you were in Calgary I could pop in and give you a hand. Might help to have a second set of eyes.

Slam · 06-12-2005, 08:09 PM

Zero, I'm not looking to buy. I just look to look, if you can dig it. But thanks for the offer. Edmonton's got Norden, and now Eurasia again, and I was the guy getting chased off the lot 'cause all he did was hang out to look at Porsches. ZR does have a Ferrari 308 I'd like to see. 14.5K for a clapped-out 951? Tut, tut. BTW, I read about your engine fire with some sympathy. How's the next car project coming? Me and the girl have a 931 engine to yank out and rebuild...

Zero10 · 06-13-2005, 07:28 PM

Haha, the 951 is going terribly. I think I managed to install a ring upside down, because it smokes like hell, but the compression is excellent. Losing my 86 really was terrible, the only thing that made it easier, is that I had just made the decision to put it up for sale, so I knew I was going to have to part with it, although seeing it burn was about 100x worse than selling it would have been.

I am now getting the funds together to build a second motor for the 951, so that I can just swap it out on a weekend, instead of losing my car for another 2-3 weeks to rebuild the one that's in there.
I stopped by ZR a few times, the salesman there was trying to sell my G/F's dad, who came with me a time or two, a really nice countach. The only catch was it had just hit a major maintenance anniversary, and none of the work had been done. Nice cars, but it's run by really slimy people.