60K Service - the good, the bad, the stuck...

[Don Plumley]

Finally started my 60K service today to get the Hippo ready for her first track event of the year, 4/28-29 at Thunderhill.

What went well:
- Oil drain, large oil filter
- Tranny fluid change
- Start pulling sparkplugs (pulled right side engine tin to get access to the #5 and #6 intake plugs.
- Fuel Filter

What didn't go so well:
- Tranny fill plug was installed by Conan the Barbarian. Took a 3' breaker bar, to discover there was no crush washer used by the moron.
- I've got a crack/bend in the #6 exhaust plug wire. But no budget for new wires this year. Gonna have to band aid that one for the season...

What's Stuck:
- The small oil filter is permanently attached the to car. Punching holes in it, impugning it's heritage, etc. I just have the mangled remains of an oil filter up in the engine. Tyson has some sort of special tool that might help.
- The distributor won't budge. It rocks, it rolls, but it won't eject.

What's left to do:
- Clutch master/slave
- Brake flush and bleed
- Fill the hole in the dash where the radio was
- RS Pulley and new belts
- Maybe flush the power steering

But it's time for a glass or three of wine, so no more progress until next Sunday...

If anyone has any ideas about the small filter or the distributor, suggest away!

Don

[AFJuvat]

Invest in some oil filter pliers - they really help. Also, the hard oil line right under the filter is easily removable - prepare for a rush of oil when you take it out - makes access to the filter MUCH easier.

Distributor - make sure you are at TDC #1. You may need to rotate the motor slightly (a couple of degrees max) to get it to free.

Also, if you have a small pry-bar, you can get it under the distributor mounting lug and get it to pop free. The reason it is so tight is because your O-ring is still good. Lube with silicone when re-installing.

If your steering system is using Pentosin, no flushing is necessary nor recommended.

Clean your spark plug wires really well. You can use electrical tape to seal the crack for the short term. Note that the cracks are usually caused by oil contamination. You may want to double check your upper valve covers for leaks.

[bigchillcar]

sounds like good advice..i have no idea. just know that when afjuvat speaks, bigchillcar listens! and you, too, don! i listen to you, buddy!

[Don Plumley]

Thanks AFJ - I'm sourcing that three prong wrench.

Just got the Disty out!! Lots 'o pulling - Tyson suggested soaking the base in WD-40, plus some prying.

I Rennlister is sending me the one wire, otherwise I clean and tape. Everything is dry, I think it's a heat issue.

Thanks again,

Don

[Bill Verburg]

The engine mounted filter is a RPIA. I've used pliers, strap wrench, 3 prong wrench, base cup wrench all have worked but none make it exactly easy.

Moving the oil line is a real good place to start, and not overtightening is a good place to finish

[Don Plumley]

Victory is mine! I'll post a new thread on the main board with pics.

[Don Plumley]

Last weekend I posted about my 60K service fun - The Good, The Bad, the Stuck.; in particular, my stuck small oil filter.

I tracked down the three prong oil filter wrench that closes in on the filter when you turn it with a 3/8" square drive wrench. No Joy. Three foot breaker bar, and all I was doing was crushing the filter. So I put a screw in the side of the filter to keep the wrench from moving. That had two effects: 1) I started crushing one side of the filter; and 2) I was bending the snot out of the wrench.

What to do now? I took a piece of scrap aluminum plate and drilled a bunch of holes in it. Screwed it to the bottom of the filter with some monster long screws. The torqued on the bad boy until it finally budged. Score: Porsche: 0; Don 1.

Here's a pic of the carnage:


Now for some real fun - spark plug #6 Intake. Following Tyson's advice, I pulled the right side muffler, tranny breather tube and engine tin. And after some very interesting use of vice grips, long handled bent nose pliers, universal joints and lubricant, I was successful in removing and replacing plug 6I. I then finished replacing the other 11 plugs, and replaced the engine tin. Score: Porsche 0; Don 2

Plug wire 6E had a big break in the insulation - instead of replacing the entire set (spendy and hard) or simply putting shrink wrap on the tear, a Rennlister sent me a used wire, so I replaced the wire. Well, mostly. Since two of the wire clamps are pretty much impossible to get at, I have 12.5 spark plug wires in my car. I just cut off as much of the old wire as I could get to. You won't do this for a precious daily driver, but for the Track Hippo, this will get me through the season. When I ultimately drop the engine for a new clutch and LWF, that will be a good time to replace the wires.

I also pulled the SAI cut-off valve to see if it gunked up - if oil clogging the SAI ports. Yeah, I know, you should replace the check valve, but that looks like monsterous work for a car that will get 5K miles a year (and a fair amount of that hitting redline). The cut-off valve was pretty clean, so I'm guessing that the check valve is doing its thing and my SAI system is okay so far. Knock on wood.

I finished the day replacing the Clutch slave and master cylinder. I ended up tearing the boot on the slave cylinder as it got trapped somehow, so I'll get to do this again sooner than later. One hint: you need to clamp the flexible line so fluid does not leak out. But you need to remember to unclamp the line before you try to seat the slave cylinder. That cost me 45 minutes and a lot of grunting. Then the master went in pretty easily.

Final Score: Porsche 0; Don 3

Next weekend: RS Pulley and belts, bleed brakes, ready for the season!

[bigchillcar]

good work, don...and nice score! i scored a 2 this weekend: 1 for removing my high pressure line coming off the a/c compressor to take to a tig guy and 1 for replacing my hood shocks. okay, maybe the last job was worth only 1/2 a point..

[Don Plumley]

Done! Dropped in a rebuilt distributor, and she fired right up.

Still need to do the RS Pulley, but got a track day weekend coming up, so she's good to go.

[bigchillcar]

[Britwrench]

With a new clutch slave cylinder the flexible line usually needs changing as well.

Sounds like the trans oil had never been changed, the crush washer was only on the drain plug from new.

[Jeff Mohrlock]

What size allen wrench is the @$#%^ gearbox drain/fill plug?

[mjshira]

sounds like the factory did the drain plug, you were probably the first to remove it!