Porsche 944 2.5L 4Cyl

[CKniht90]

I think the 944 I have is a Base? It has no turbo, basically all stock. I have a few questions though....

1.) My car gets hot easy. Seems like it gets really hot when im just sitting/parked/stopped. When I drive though the temp goes down but stays at 3/4. I took my car to a Porsche Expert and he said it might be the fan switch and the thermo gadge? The water pump and the radiator are fine. Just can't figure out why its over heating/getting really hott. If you could please direct me to the right fan switch? and the right thermo reader part? Not sure if thats correct. Also tips on how to keep my car cool like around 1/2 or 1/4 on the sensor gadge. Summer is coming up and I dont want my car overheating !! Point out the parts here (where I want to order parts from since its cheap here).... carpartswholesale.com . Thanks!

2.) Where can I find a cool air intake for my car? Like what model of other cars use the same cool air intake as my car? I looked on ebay and they have some decently cheap ones. I want to go from 30$-50$. Thx!

[Rasta Monsta]

Sounds like you have a lot of learning to do about your car. Instead of typing out hte lenghty answers to your questions here, I recommend you look over Clark's Garage Shop Manual Index, focusing on the sections dealing with the cooling system.

On a related note, do you know the belt history of this car? The 2.5 requires a somewhat complex belt service every three years, and if it is not done, you are in very real danger of losing your motor.

Good luck, to you and to the car.


rasta

P.S. Your car came from the factory with an effective cold air intake, and an air cleaner big enough for a much larger engine. Your money is better spent elsewhere, IMO.

[cwiert]

+1 on what ^ said. and also, don't forget to look at our host site for parts (pelicanparts.com). I just ordered (today in fact) a whole slew of stuff (belts, seals, etc) from PP and their price was cheaper than my local napa or on ebay. and their shipping free in 3 days. can't beat that!

[CKniht90]

Thanks for the link. I guess I have some learning to do.

Belt service? Never heard of it. What do they do when this is done? How much is it usually? Are there any other things I should worry about? Because I had no Idea about the belt thing. I just know basic things like, change oil, fluids, ect. How do you know if your motor is in good condition?

So your saying I dont need a new better looking Cool air intake? And this one is fine?




What are some cheap small things I can do to improve my engine and a little more performance?

[cwiert]

belt service is timing belt and balance shaft belt. yes, it can be quite costly to have that service done by a porsche mechanic. ballpark, 1000-2000 depending what else needs to be done. i'd guess most guys on this board do it themselves. there's a write up how on clarks-garage.com. look under "camshaft"

you're air filter set up is preferred by many over any "cold air intake" cone set up that sucks in hot engine air. I bought my car with a k&N cone filter on it and now its sitting in a box because i put the stock set up like you have back in. just check your air filter and replace if necessary.

[KevsPorsche944]

If you don't know when the last timing belt change was ,you need to take it and have the timing belt changed A.S.A.P.!!!

This will be a little costly. Change the belts (kevlar timing belt by Gates), pulleys, waterpump (AllZimms.com had a great rebuilt waterpiump for $100 plus core charge) and Id replace all the front seals and use a low temp thermostat and low temp fan switch.

Good luck and happy driving.

[Rasta Monsta]

Originally Posted by KevsPorsche944

If you don't know when the last timing belt change was ,you need to take it and have the timing belt changed A.S.A.P.!!!

+1, park it.

[ernie9944]

Agree with everyboby here timing & balance- shafts belts- seal & rollers ASAP, do you have any idea when the water pump was last replace peoples who sold you the car should know what they put on it let say for the last six months /thermostat & matching thermo fan switch, cooling system flush & rad cap with new anti-freeze ,make sure the expansion tank & all rubber hoses are good in shape you should clean them out & treat them with a rubber conditioner while your in there doing the timing belts. Then small stuff but not always cheap distributor cap - rotor-spark-plugs & wires, those you got on there look like the OE probably never been change ,disconnect the air boot from your AFS & clean Body Throttle & give it a good cleaning this is little stuff you can do by yourself after getting familiar with the link Rasta gave you. In the mean time I'll leave it park until the belts are done & try to learn a little bite more about the car I own & drive .

[CKniht90]

Alright if you would please make a list? Something i can print out with datails what I need for supplys? And What needs to be done in each order.

[931GT]

If the car is getting hot when idling, try turning on the AC... this will force the fans to spin and cool the radiator. If that keeps it cool than you probably need a new thermo-switch.

[banana944]

Let me grab my silver platter for you....

1- Timing Belts
2 - Balanace Shaft belts
3 - Roller kit
4 - Waterpump
5 - Cap
6 - Rotor
7 - Wires
8 - Plugs
9 - Thermofan switch

Do some shopping, instead of spending 60$ on an intake you'll be spending 600$ on all the things needed above. Plus the money you'll be spending to have it all installed.

And you drive and NA 944, there is no more power to be made. (short of spending thousands)I guess you can add things to make it look "cool" in your mind, but may as well save your money to fix things that are broken or are going to break. Hopefully you didnt buy the wrong car, these cars just are not modifiable like imports.

[CKniht90]

Alright thanks for the list! So your saying theres nothing more to be added on to my car to make it faster, or more HP? How about a Turbo? What do those usually go for? Also it possible to put one in this car? NA 944? Not a base 944? What the difference between BASE, S, Turbo, and NA?

[krystar]

yer gonna need to save all your money to maintain the car. forget about getting upgrade parts. as the saying goes, if u wanted a turbo, u should have bought one in the first place. if you're going to swap over all the turbo parts onto your car, it'd cost upwards of 2-3 grand just in parts plus labor. in other words, more than what your car is worth.

there is no designation called a base. there's 944 NA 8valve 2.5L, 944 Turbo, 944S 16v, 944S2 16v 3.0L

you sound like you come from jdm import side. these engines are not ka24 nor b18's. the oem intake is already a cold air. the oem header is already a 4-2-1 long runner header. there's not much u can drop in that'll make HP. unless you want to spend a grand or two on a custom valve job and bottom end build.

[Endat]

No, they come pretty much tuned to the engine's capabilities. Adding a turbo to a base will cost more than actually buying the turbo, the cone filter will only attract hotter air, and a chip is probably the best you can do to up the horsepower (5-10hp) aside from getting a performance head. The turbo is the only one you can really modify to make significantly faster.

944 Range:
Base - 143hp
1989 Base - 163hp
S - 190hp
S2 - 211hp
Turbo - 216hp
Turbo S - 250hp

The belt and roller kit is about $250, I would get that first and have it installed.

[krystar]

oh yea forgot about the turbo S.

as for chipping, u can only chip an ECU that's later than '85. so if yer car is 83-84, there's nothing u can do.

[Endat]

I've just noticed the "15k service" written on your fuse box.. that might be evidence of recent belts, I cant tell.

If you're wondering why the other N/A 944's have more power, its because they all have different engines. If you want more power, you can upgrade the engine..

[krystar]

i think that date is in 1999....

when yer timing belt fails cause of old age or mileage, yer valves will bend and u'll need to reservice the entire head. costing thousands instead of hundred of dollars

[ernie9944]

Originally Posted by krystar

i think that date is in 1999....

when yer timing belt fails cause of old age or mileage, yer valves will bend and u'll need to reservice the entire head. costing thousands instead of hundred of dollars

Yup!! 1999 eleven years ago they are sure due for replacement & agree for the power forget it just concentrate on the maintenance for now, once done you'll be surprise at what a well tune humble 944 NA with the rigth suspension set up can do once you learn to drive it properly.Like peoples said take your time shop around for parts there is a large aftermarket for 944, by doing so you will save yourself a lot of $$$$$. If your stuck with something just ask as you can see great bunch of guys here & very helpful. And if you could let us know where your from that will be even better then guys you guide you in as far as repair shop & parts supplies in your area is concern. Oh! forgot Krystar where does my 968 fits among all those cars mention after all I believe it's water cool.

[Rasta Monsta]

Good advice here. . .do the maintainence, then come back and get some advice on suspension mods. . .they are cheap and produce great results.

[CKniht90]

Where would you get a chip? Give me a link please! I sheduled a Belt maintenance.


Edit:

http://www.9tuning.com/944.asp
All I know is I bought this car recently and want to fix it up. It's a Porsche 944 2.5L 4Cyl 1988 Non-Turbo. Its silver as you can tell by the picture.