John,
Again, great thread.
OEM / Porsche fuel lines are ridiculously expensive. I replaced the entire fuel line system on my 924S with Porsche lines other than the big fill hose / tube which I sourced for a low cost. It's just not cheap to restore the fuel lines on these cars. So, I applaud having your lines redone by a local craftsman.
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Took my 924S out for it's maiden voyage on Saturday. Maybe 20 degrees out, but with zero salt due to sufficient rain earlier in the week. To recap, this winter I replaced the entire front suspension including the steering rack (Maval Manufacturing rebuilt unit - couldn't pay the $1600 from Porsche), strut inserts, strut mount bearings and a fresh set of rotors and pads (Textar). I stripped the car bare down to the fenders and included removal of the front cross member. Also, I did the motor mounts with Porsche sourced mounts. So, I have essentially a new car as far as the front end goes.
What a transformation. Everything feels fantastic. Ride quality is sublime, steering feels is great with tight control. My car, with 186k on the clock, had newer Koni adjustable strut inserts, but still has it's original tie rod ends, ball joints and control arm bushings. All the old stuff was still tight, but the new components are that much more improved. I used Porsche ball joints - Meyle items stamped Germany, Lemforder control arms, Lemforder tie rod ends [stamped Germany] and German made control arm bushings.
Rubber components do indeed age and degrade with time and its very apparent that 32 year old rubber stuff does not deflect and move as nicely as brand new stuff.
However, the biggest improvement was in the motor mounts. Engine NVH is greatly improved and the motor is just that much more smooth in operation. The biggest issue on my car that has been solved with new mounts is the feel of the motor above about 4,200 rpms. With the old mounts (Porsche, but 12 years old and nearly 100k on them), the vibrations were severe enough that I just didn't want to rev the car much past that 4,000-4,500 rev range. Now, the car feels much better above that "wall" of prior vibration. If that makes sense. The $400 was worth it.
I put about 70 miles on the car on Saturday on lightly traveled back roads in farm country near my home and it was enjoyable (and safe!). It was a great stress reliever for me based on the terrible week I had prior as we, the exec team, plan our business into these odd and stressful times. I work for a small manufacturer that does not have work for our 275 employees as of Friday...and don't know exactly when we'll fire back up.
Stay safe everyone.
Jay
'87 924S
'84 911
