Well, I'm grinning like an idiot over here. Just bought my *first* 911 of my life. I purchased a beautiful black/black '88 Carrera 3.2 with front and rear spoilers. It's about the greatest thing I've ever seen!

And, I have some questions:
1) First off, being that this is my first 911, I'm not sure if the car is pulling as hard as it should be. I guess I could take a stopwatch out and make a couple runs to 60 on a country road... but anyone know of a dyno in the Pittsburgh area?

2) I've heard a lot of people talking about adjusting the lifters every 15,000 miles. Is this really necessary?

3) Along the lines of that, is there a list of "So, you just brought home your new 911, now check this, this, and this." anywhere? Sounds like it would be a great thing to have.

Sorry for the not too clear post. I'm still waaaaay too happy.

Thanks,
- Eric

 

Welcome to the fold! It's been about 2 yrs for me now and I still feel the same way! Wait until you do a DE. You will be hooked.

I havent seen a do this list, but have done a pretty good job at making my own. I suggest reading through Excellence and Pano and buy a few of the books out there. The new book at from the Pelican Parts guys is great! Also, the Bentley manual give you all the service items and in most cases a pretty good idea of what to get done.

Oh yeah, the valves need to be adjusted every year or 15k.

Enjoy!

Chris
81 SC

 

congrats. you got one of the best models (looks, quality, performance, yada, yada, yada . . . Enjoy!

 

Congrats. I got an '87 all black, with whale tail and all just this past July. There's nothing better. Definitely get the Bentley's Manual. I got a good parts reference manual on eBay too, which has a lot of good tech tips. Get on some catalogue mailing lists and don't forget to join the PCA. Next time I'm in the Burgh, I'll have to meet up with you so our cars can be photographed together.

 

Eric, congrats and welcome to the fold. I have had my black '88 targa for just over a year now and love it. Yep valves should be adjust regularly.
As far as first to do list. Do you have records from the Previous owner of his services? If so then you could see what has been done. Somethings that I have tried to do on all cars I've ever bought (always used cars) is change the oil and filter (cheap insurance), air filter, fuel filter (can't hurt right) In our cars it wouldn't be a bad idea to change the transmission fluid (should take about 30 minutes in your driveway use Mobil 1 synthetic for your G50, you don't know how old that fluid is), check the brake pads, rotors, and rubber hoses and flush the brake/clutch (all one thing) fluid with new ATE super blue (I'd probably replace the hoses anyway, you should be able to pick up OEM rubber for about $15 a piece), check all of the bulbs and fuses and make sure all of the electronic gizmos work (light's, windshield washer, seats, etc) anything that doesn't work goes on a to do list. Di you get a PPI? If not then check the compression jsut to be sure. Run a bottle of Chevron Techron fuel injector cleaner through the tank (it's recommended by Porsche) right now a bunch of people on the list are also talking about a top end lubricant (Marvel Mystery oil, Rislone, etc... that's subjective). Have the tires checked out. Depending upon your budget (you did just buy a car afterall) you may or may not want to take the car to a reputable Porsche suspension guy and have him align and check the corner balance and lower if necessary).
Check the shocks/struts for leaks (probably covered in a PPI if you had one).
Drive the car and Enjoy!! I guess I should have put that first.
How many miles on the car?
Oh, and you may want to pick up some of the parts for an emergency kit, most people recommend a spare belt, fuses, a standard relay like the red ones, and a DME relay. I know there's tons of other stuff in the emergency kit, but I can't remember right now.
Oh, and check to make sure you have the spare tire pump.

 

Welcome aboard. Ditto on the above. Drive the car until you can't grin no more! Don't forget to gas up

It's great to be in an 88.

 

That's a pretty comprehensive list.
In addition, if your car is equiped with A/C make sure there's an inline fuse attached to the front condenser blower motor (black plastic housing to the left of the battery). This motor is prone to burnout, and has the potential to catch your car on fire... IT's a cheap fix for a potentially devistating glitch.
Congrats. Do you know how to check your oil level? Do you know what all the guages correspond to? Any questions about the foolish ventilation levers on the dashboard?

 

Congrats!!! I guess one thing you can check is to make sure that no one added a speed governor the car. How would you check this? Simple, take her to the track and open her up! Seriously, congrats!

 

Everyone,
Thanks for the great replies!

Here's my list of things so far:

1) Schedule some time with a reliable (know anyone in Pittsburgh anyone? Besides Sewickley Porsche) mechanic to have the valves looked at.

2) Ordered the Bentley manual. I'm pretty handy mechanically, so I'm looking forward to getting dirty.

3) Fuses, electrical. Somebody installed a cell phone amplifier it looks like. There's RCA cables all underneath the dash, a microphone down there, and an amp in the boot. Need to rip all that out of there without disrupting the radio - as I'm sure it's hooked into there. Ugh! Cruise fuse is blown - I'll check them all.

4) Stephen, to your points (thanks!), I'll do a fluid check/flush/fill to everything wet in the car. And run a bottle of Techron through the tank.

5) JDaniel, I'll give that fuse a look-see as well. Thanks for the tip!

One last question, in the drivers side front wheel well, towards the back of the car, there's a chamber of some type. It's black (duh), about 2" in diameter, 9 or 10" long, and has a nozzle of some type about half-way up. There's a nasty yellow cap on the nozzle, and the nozzle itself is a little corroded. What is this do-hickey?

Thanks, everyone! Great stuff!

- Eric

 

Congrats, I am going on a road trip this weekend to look at a Black/Tan '88 Coupe. I am ready to buy it if everything checks out. I would rather have black interior, but...

The item in the front wheel well is part of the A/C system.

The above posts did not mention to make sure you check the antifreeze level and condition before it gets much colder.

 

ERIC,
YOU ARE LOOKING AT THE A/C RECEIVER/DRYER.
THE YELLOW "PLUG" IS ACTUALLY THE COVER FOR THE GLASS SIGHT PORT! WHEN YOU ARE RUNNING THE AC THE SMALL RED BALL IS SUPPOSTED TO BE AT THE TOP OF THE PORT. IF YOU HAVE CORROSION
AROUND IT JUST TAKE A BRASS PARTS CLEANING TOOTH BRUSH AND CLEAN IT, PUT ALLITLLE GREASE ON THE THREADS AND SCREW THE YELLOW PLASTIC COVER BACK ON.
KEITH

 

Before you drain the G50 fluid, make sure you
can remove the filler plug first
And have a 12-15 qt oil drain pan handy when
you go to drain the oil, you'll be amazed at
how quick the oil drains from the tank

 

Run the Techron through before you change the oil. That way the crud (technical term) removed by the Techron will be out of the engine when the oil is replaced.

 

Eric,

Welcome.

I had questions if my '86 Coupe was pulling as strong as it should since it is expected to be only about a half tick slower than my '94 Vette (sold) but had no "boot in the ***" effect.

I think it is a combination of the cars light weight and relatively gentle starts but I've found that the car very deceptive when it comes to speed.

Believe me, you are going faster than think sooner than you think.

 

Don,
I will do so. I assume the Techron needs a full tank of gas. I'm just hoping I can get the car out enough before the weather turns to do all the things I want. Good part about purchasing in November: No Spring price gouging. Bad part about purchasing in November: You have to watch your new toy ride out the winter in the garage.

gerry100, I think you may be correct. When row through the gears winding the car up to 4000-4500 rpm, I really don't get that boot. If I wind it up to 5500-6000, I'm at 60 before I know it. Next problem is that I'm too focused on the beautiful sound of that engine at 5500, than paying attention to where I'm going.

Thanks to everyone else for the tips,

- Eric