[iamtheari]

Well, the time to drop the engine from my 964 Carrera 4 for the first time is here at last. I do not plan to rebuild the engine at this time as, other than some oil weeping, it is a phenomenal powerplant that does not need to be messed with. It still goes faster on the track than its driver is comfortable with, it idles well, etc. Maybe I can even fix the oil weeping while I'm at it, if it's something easy.

Right now I am researching, shopping, and budgeting. There are three basic questions here:

1. Which clutch setup should I get?
2. Should I replace the pressure plate and/or flywheel?
3. What else should I do while the engine is out?

My primary rule whenever I do something on the car is to keep it legal for its PCA Club Racing stock class. I don't race but this seems like a good rule to keep from sliding all the way down the slippery slope. Relating to the flywheel and clutch, rule 1.L says that I can replace the DMF with a single-mass flywheel and that the clutch disk must be the stock diameter (which appears to be 240mm, am I right?). It goes on to suggest a 964 RS flywheel as a suitable replacement.

Options abound. Some are easier to understand than others. The obvious choices are:

a. Stock clutch disk is $176. Pressure plate is $593. DMF is $920. It's possible to just do the clutch disk, but my car has 164,000 miles on it and likely has the original DMF and pressure plate. Dropping the engine is a major chore on the C4. So I'm disinclined to just replace the disk and have to drop it again.

b. Same as (a) but with a sportier clutch disk. Recommendations?

c. Carrera Cup conversion kit is $2,079 plus a $450 performance chip to keep the idle stable. A lot of people say that you lose street drivability going this way. But how much do you lose? Is it harder to drive than with a nearly worn-out clutch disk?

d. Centerforce clutch package from Pelican is $1,180.

e. Patrick Motorsports has all sorts of parts. It looks like the starting point is a LWF at $535 plus conversion kit at $523 plus clutch disk of your choice plus a pressure plate of your choice, either the $1,060 sport/race version or the $598 lightweight/cup version.


Then, the while I'm in there items. Here is my list so far:

i. Replace gaskets on oil temperature switches, breather lid, oil temperature sensor, oil pressure sender, remote temperature sensor, and their 'lid' (perelet's oil leaks & fixes thread recommended items underneath the intake assembly)
ii. Fuel injectors
iii. Clutch master and slave cylinders and slave cylinder hydraulic hose
iv. Ignition wires (anyone have experience with the $169 DIY kit sold by Pelican?)
v. Engine sound pad (or just leave it out?)
vi. Power steering belt (should have done it when I had the pump off to replace the seal where it meets the camshaft)
vii. Distributor belt
viii. A/C belt, which is nearly worn out and totally pointless since the A/C on the car doesn't really work; maybe just pull the A/C out of the car at this point?
ix. Rebuilt alternator
x. Rebuilt starter
xi. Valve adjustment
xii. Strip and refinish valve covers
xiii. Strip and refinish engine cooling fan
xiv. Engine carrier reinforcement
xv. Engine mounts (Euro RS or is there a better option?)
xvi. Transmission mounts (what exactly is required for this?)
xvii. Strip and refinish engine tin
xviii. Heater blower bypass
xix. Clean out the engine bay from all of the years of spilled oil from the times I've removed the filter without puncturing it first, leaked oil from the breather area, road dust, and so on

Anything inexpensive that I have forgotten?


I'm not going to start buying parts or doing any work for a couple of months, but I want to know what I'm in for before I begin. Thanks!