Porsche 944S engine rebuild

[dontlift]

james said:

I spoke to him yesterday, and let him know that the car was worth about £500 scrap value in its current state. I offered him £750 for it, but he said he was looking for more like £2,000 (just a wee bit unrealistic I think). I left it with him that he'll speak to his mechanic (who has looked after it for the last 10 or so years) and let me know what he wants to do. I told him that if it was my car, I'd rebuild it myself and keep it, but if he isn't going to do that, it's pretty uneconomical to repair it just to sell. If he wants to get rid of it (which he said he did), I would take it for £750, and put it back on the road. The alternative is to sell it to a breaker, who will destroy it. Personally, if I'd had a car for 15 years, I thionk I'd rather give it away to somebody who was going to fix it and use it than sell it to a breaker. From my point of view, I wasn't really looking to buy a car. It was just something that came along. So if it happens, great. If not, no problem. I think I'll just wait and see what he comes back with in a few days, or a couple of weeks when it's been sitting outside his house looking sorry for itself. I'm in no rush. James

2K I didnt pay much more than that for mine and mine was a runner, although I bought it knowing it would need new suspension and dampers, but it had just undergone a full body restoration (although not a very good one I have since found out)

>> Edited by dontlift on Saturday 23 August 15:31

[james]

Exactly. The problem is of course, he bought it new (admittedly 15 years ago), so he's got no idea that it's practically worthless.

Hopefully his mechanic will let him know that he's got a good offer.

[iguana]

James I consider my self pretty clued up on bangernomics & its a toughy on the price to be honest, as yes the car is worth naff all at the moment (I know of a 2.5 lux that was literealy given away & it was a good condition runner, however after a few odds & sods done & the lucky recipient made an easy £1k profit)

So even if you could pick the car up for even as high as a grand you could bung a 2nd hand engine in that you could get for naff all - say £300ish and if you put it in yourself- so no labour costs.

You could then punt the car on for an easy £3k- or perhaps if you've got ya lucky shoes on and find the lunatics who think a £5k S or lux is a bargain, which could leave you with a potential £1-3k profit or keep it and have one nice very cheap little porker.

You cant loose basicaly and if you dont buy it if its offerd at sub £1k I certainly would be very interested.

[james]

My thought exactly. Although I would probably rebuild the engine that it in there, unless it's been lunched. The idea would probably be to keep it, but the possibility of a quick profit would be a possibility .

[basil brush]

I would have thought you'd be lucky to get a 2nd hand S engine for a few hundred. I agree on price though. My S is in pretty good nick with all major work done and I was hoping to get 3.5k tops for it.

[james]

He finally decided that he wants £1500 for the car in its current state . Needless to say, I left it with him. His current plan is to get his mechanic to rebuild the engine, and then keep the car.

Anyway, if anybody hears of a 944 in decent bodywork condition, but in need of mechanical TLC, let me know.

Thanks for the help folks.

[dontlift]

try ebay, you can buy a good runner for that sort of money

[james]

Good news. The guy changed his mind, so I'm about to become the proud owner of a red 944S, with an engine in need of a rebuild

It's going to need a re-bore (not sure if it'll be a grade 1 or 2 rebore yet, probably a 1 though). Can anybody recommend an engineering shop (preferably in the South East) who could do the job.

One other question. What is the availability of oversized pistons like for the 944S. I see they come in 2 sizes, 100.5mm and 101mm. However, in the workshop manual it mentions that "availability of some sizes may be limited".

Thanks in advance (once again)

James

[dontlift]

james said:

Good news. The guy changed his mind, so I'm about to become the proud owner of a red 944S, with an engine in need of a rebuild It's going to need a re-bore (not sure if it'll be a grade 1 or 2 rebore yet, probably a 1 though). Can anybody recommend an engineering shop (preferably in the South East) who could do the job. One other question. What is the availability of oversized pistons like for the 944S. I see they come in 2 sizes, 100.5mm and 101mm. However, in the workshop manual it mentions that "availability of some sizes may be limited". Thanks in advance (once again) James

Talk to Kevin at EMC Motorsport 0121 3282225 about the pistons etc.

>> Edited by dontlift on Monday 6th October 10:14

[james]

Thanks. I'll give him a call.

[james]

I spoke to Kevin at EMC. He's a very helpful guy, and it looks like the engine may be fixable after all.

By the way Patrick. He told me to remind you about the set of calipers you owe him

[dontlift]

james said:

I spoke to Kevin at EMC. He's a very helpful guy, and it looks like the engine may be fixable after all. By the way Patrick. He told me to remind you about the set of calipers you owe him

Bloody hell, I forgot all about them - must get them sent back

He is a top bloke and i think he has forgotten more about these engines than the rest of us put together know....... the one he built for me is absolutely superb!

So what has he recommended?

And in return for the tip i reckon i deserve a roof rack

>> Edited by dontlift on Thursday 16th October 16:21

[james]

He said that he can rebore the engine and re-coat the bores. However, the pistons aren't available. He thinks that we might be able to get away with honing the bores (I'll know when I've got it stripped down), and then giving the pistons a bit of a tickle to clean them up.

Then it's bearings, gaskets, rings and seals. I'll need to have a look at the valves too, as the cam belt had gone (the original problem), although it was at tickover, so hopefully not too many of them met pistons

[williamp]

My S was written off very recently. Check with the usual suspects, but I bet someone like Simon Butterworth has got the engine- I had a top-end rebuild last year (10k miles ago) and the pistons were all fine. 9 new valves, new belts/tensioner etc etc.

Come to think of it, the whole engine was good- might be an easier process to engine swap...

[DontLift]

Both sound like good plans.


If you do it yourself, get Kevin to lighten and balance the crank as well before you put it back in

[james]

williamp said:

My S was written off very recently. Check with the usual suspects, but I bet someone like Simon Butterworth has got the engine- I had a top-end rebuild last year (10k miles ago) and the pistons were all fine. 9 new valves, new belts/tensioner etc etc. Come to think of it, the whole engine was good- might be an easier process to engine swap...

Have you still got the car, or did it go off to the insurance company?

I was wondering if I could use a short 2.5 8V engine, and put my 16V head on it. I'm not sure what the differences were to the block. If they're the same, it might be a possability, as the 2.5 16V engine isn't all that common by the sound of it. Anybody know if it's possible?

[dontlift]

James,

Another option for you Rover V8's will fit

[james]

I figured it would, as there's plenty of room in the engine bay. The thing is, I want to keep the car standard.

Oh, and the sort of Rover V8 I would think of dropping in there would end up costing about 7 grand, so the "budget run around" thing would be a bit out the wiondow

[dontlift]

Spoil sport James

[james]

The Rover V8 would spoil the much talked about perfect weight distribution of the 944 though don't you think?