GringoEJS

OK...I bought this 944 n/a over 8 months ago needing an engine. Within 2 weeks I had pulled the engine and put another in, but I misaligned the clutch disc and put the car on the back burner...So now I bought and installed a new clutch and put everything back together (as best as I could figure out). Anyway, when I turn the key to crank the car, there is just a humming sound. When I ran a remote starter to see if the starter works, it turns the flywheel. I have checked my grounds. My only guess is that maybe one of the two different wires I attached at the (13mm) solonoid post was supposed to be bolted down somewhere else. I have looked over my Haynes again and again and I wonder if anyone knows what I've done wrong. It seems as though all is correct. This is my first Porsche and I have not even been able to drive it yet. I think this is something simple, I am just used to imports and have no prior experience with German engineering. Any advice is very welcome... Thanks

kevin Dubois

my brother and i had a very similiar situation when we were installing his 3.0L into the the car. the flywheel was turning when the starter was running, and you could hear a really quick turnover. next, we tried doing a compression check and we got zeros across the board. first we assumed we were doing the test wrong, but very quickly we realized that it was infact 16 smashed valves. the belt was still on, although not aligned properly, and that was the reason for it. check your compression, and if you have zeros on any of the cylinders, you know that you have problems. the reason for the whine instead oft he regular starter sound is because there is no compression being built in the cylinders, and therefor the starter can turn the engine over super fast, causing a whine.

p.s. the valves are smashed because it is a interference engine in case you are new to the 944. oh and i hope this isn't your problem because it is expensive to fix most of the time.

GringoEJS

No, in this case, the engine is not turning. Just a "hummmmm" sound. The engine did turn with the remote starter, so that's why I think something is hooked up wrong. Again, are there supposed to be two different wires on the 13mm post on the starter? I checked my fuses...I feel so close, just lost with no experience with these cars

sm

By the brake booster, there's a white connector with two wires leading from it: 1 red (thicker), 1 blue.

The red one is supposed to go to the solenoid on the starter, the blue going to the alternator. (someone please confirm this - or search one of my old posts). Make sure you didn't mix up the two wires.

kevin Dubois

ok, i guess i thought your starter was turning the flywheel, but nothing was happening (i.e. no spark and detonation).

as for the starter wiring: there are two cables, one going directly to the positive terminal of the battery and the other going to the alternator. the third wire is the solenoid turn on wire. my wiring diagrams show that some of the cars have a third wire to the main terminal (the 13mm) on the starter going to the ABS control unit. the main lines to the starter are easy to follow because they are a heavy guage cable. start with those. if your not even getting a clicking sound then use a DMM to check and see if you have 12V at the solenoid turn on lead when you are starting it. if you have 12V at the solenoid when starting, and the car is still not doing anything, your starter is most likely bad.

GringoEJS

Thanks guys...after finding no power at the ignition solonoid post, I realized the wire was blue/black. Then reading the post by sm, I found that I had put the alt. wires on the starter and vice versa. After swapping them, the engine turned over. Now I just need to put in some fresh gas (hopefully) to be able to drive her.
THANKS AGAIN!!!!!!
Gene