Mutant_Tractor

Hi all,

My dad and I are planning on fixing up his 1989 930 Turbo Cabriolet, it has been sitting in our garage under a dust cover for around 8 years now and hasn't been started in that time.

We fired her up last week to be greeted by lots of brown sludge coming from the exhaust as well as lots of oil (stupid thing to do we know...).

Anyhow there is a plethora of things wrong with it, cosmetically it is 100%, mechanically... Well... Not so much.

With the car sitting for so long, what are the recommended things to be changed?

I had a few ideas such as oil and fuel filters, head gaskets, rocker cover gaskets, fuel system o-rings and gaskets... The usual.

Thing is I know nothing of how this engine works (I drive an 03 JCW Mini) and am used to EFI, ECUs and servo driven controls. So I really don't know exactly what to get.

We will be dropping the engine to get the valve seats done so we can run unleaded in it safely so while the engine is out for that what is the consensus on work to be done?

Thanks in advance!
Myles

Mark Houghton

I'll add just a few comments to get the pump primed.

First, your comment about getting the valve seats "done" to run unleaded. The '89 is designed to run on unleaded (note that it has a catalytic converter, for which leaded fuel would be the death of).

Every seal and hose is suspected of dry rotting over 8 years of sitting. And since some (hoses in particular) can be rather spendy, you may want to discover which are weeping first.

I would caution against pulling the heads to replace the head gaskets, unless you know they are bad. You'll need to be intimately in-tune and educated with the inner workings before attempted that level of disassembly.

I would suggest that you get rid of the goo inside the motor that was once called oil. Change the oil filter, flush the gas tank and change the fuel filter, clean the air cleaner and check for any mice living in the box....just basic stuff like that for ressurecting a car from the dead. Then clean all engine surfaces top and bottom with Gunk or similar degreaser, rinse off and let her dry. Now light her up, see if any leaks appear, drive around to get up to temperature, park and look again for leaks.

Then, pull the motor. Buy a gasket kit (complete engine rebuilt gasket/seal kits can be had for around $365). There are seals and gaskets in the kit that you won't use unless doing a complete rebuild, so an option would be to let the list of gaskets in the kit guide you as to what you may need to get individually.
Since you claim ignorance relative to these engines [that's OK...we all have to start somewhere :-)] I would suggest you do some preliminary reading. Here's a starting point you may find helpfull http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/...engine_rebuild. Although it seems a daunting task on the surface, don't let this scare you off. Take the time, do some research and learn about the engine first. Wayne's book on how to rebuild and modify Porsche 911 engines is an excellent resource.

Good luck.

Mutant_Tractor

Thanks for the input there Mark!

Dually noted on the valve seats, I was told it was to run on leaded, he even went to the point of buying an in line fuel leading device! Will skip that then.

Another problem, rather a biggy is the gearbox. We can start the car in or out of gear, however if we start out of gear it will not go into gear, not even grind, just feels like a wall.

Once we turn it off we can put it right in, we started it in first and got it rolling etc, tried stalling it to break the clutch plate free so the clutch pedal seems to work at least remotely now (as in we can start in first and come to a stop without stalling by holding the clutch in) but cannot take it out of gear, change gear or start out of gear and move into one.

The clutch slave cylinder needs bled we know that but this seems like a gear linkage or transmission problem now rather than being clutch related?

On an oil front, I use AMSoil Dominator 15w-50 in my mini and Millers CRX 75w-90 NT transmission fluid, these specs seem to match the 911 somewhat, is it okay to run a fully synthetic, high ZDDP race oil in the 930 or is something a little hardier required?

Mark Houghton

Well let's see, you're '89 of course has a 5 speed (the only 930 year it was offered in) with hydraulically operated clutch. If you're able to start and stop in first gear normally, then apparently your clutch is disengaging just fine. As to why you can't shift into any upper gears....hmmmmm. Linkage may need to be adjusted (go back to the transmission "tunnel" cover between the seats, open it up and look to see if the control rod and it's allen headed set screw is tight and secure).

High ZDDP is a good thing in these cars. I use Valvoline VR1 Race 20/50 for that purpose. If your car still has the catalytic converter, the zinc won't do it any good so beware. Full synthetic is of course good stuff as it won't coke-up the turbo like dinosaur melt will do, but it's also less viscous and may tend to spring new leaks all over the place. I would recommend staying with organic dinosaur squeezin's until such time that the entire engine is re-sealed.

As to tranny gear oil, most tend to use Swepco 201. There are others just as good, but damned if I can remember them. Do a search on this forum or over on Pelican and you'll find plenty of opinions.

930North

Mark is right on the money. But also remember brake fluid total change/flush, differential oil change/possible flush. Also relubricate all grease fittings before using. Belts need replacing also. What about the caliper pistons - would be a shame to get it all going then do 140 along the freeway and need brakes that are not there. There are many things to consider. So spending $1-2000 now will be good insurance. I am buying an 86 Euro and my friend that owns it had it towed on a flat deck this weekend to a Porsche guru in Calgary for a 100% checkover first. Did not start it at all. He is selling it to me at 100% condition for its age and mileage. Hope this inspires/helps.

Mutant_Tractor

Thanks guys,

930 - is the differential in a separate compartment to the gears? On my mini they are both in one so I just run 75w-90 with my LSD as it also has ther gears in there too, is the 911 the same?

I have a few litres of ATE Super Blue left over from my mini build so I can use that then.

Re the brakes, looked at a rebuild kit from pelican for the 89 Turbo and it is like $1200 surely the only thing that needs done is the caliper seals and pistons?

MUSSBERGER

This is not an undertaking for underfunded and/or inexperienced.You may want to rethink things.

Mutant_Tractor

I am building a 320+ whp stroked mini myself, no problem with experience here, I research everything extremely thoroughly before doing anything.

On a funds front I just think $1200 for a rebuild kit is expensive when for £1400 I can have a full set of Brembo brakes inc lines, pads and discs.

We have ordered Swepco 212 for the transmission, for the engine we went for millers classic performance fully synthetic 20w-50.

Also got ourselves a full gasket kit, belts, filters, plugs etc on that arrives we will sort out the clutch slave that needs bleeding as brake fluid needs dumped anyway, we will probably do a seal rebuild for the calipers at least.

Timspu

i am down in Devon with an 88 4 speed. Just had a full top end rebuild done on an 88k miles car. if you open you will find. This was the issue with mine. An engine oil leak revealled a broken head stud, which led to worn valve guides, clutch etc. The car was dynoed before the engine rebuild and pulled like a train, in fact i am short of quite a few thousand pounds and all i notice is no oil leaks, performance is exactly the same.

If you can do it yourself you will save at least 2k in labour.

Cheers

TIM

Mutant_Tractor

Thanks for the input there Tim,

I will be doing all the work myself - no point in having a car like this and not knowing how to fix it yourself.

Plus I don't trust any mechanic with my cars, if i'm putting a few k's worth of pistons, con-rods, ported heads and larger valves/whatever, I do it myself because in my mind the only person that will take the amount of time to do it properly is me and if it goes wrong I have no one to blame but myself.

Mark Houghton

Myles,

I noticed you're going with Swepco 212, vs. the standard 201 for the gearbox. That's some really viscous stuff suited for very high temperatures and severe duty. You must live somewhere in a hot climate...or maybe that's what's recommended for a 5 speed (which you should have in you're '89 I presume).

Mutant_Tractor

Hi Mark,

Yep 212 because I have read some prefer it for a smoother 1st and second gear - makes them less choppy, just dont hammer the car until the trans if fully warmed up. The car also has a LSD so the higher weight is good for it.

Yes ours is a 5-speed 3.3L Cab - one of 250 or 300 or some such number.

Edit - just checked, some places say 200 others say 600.

Timspu

good on yer for doing the work yourself. If i had the time i would have done it myself as well. Good thing for me is that the one man independent in Devon is really good with the older generation of car. he has done a nice job.

cheers

Tim