Well,

After replacing rear pads and a rear rotor this weekend my little 88 NA decided to pop the timing belt. It happened right after start up so hopefully the damage will be minimal.

So at this point I am going to have to park the little NA.

The car now has 214,000 miles on it and has been my daily for the past 3 years with no problems.

However due to the increasing mileage on the car it has developed a vibration in the shifter at around 3,000 RPM.

I was already planning on a torque tube replacement/recondition soon so I am think about what all should go into this project:

1. Complete overhaul of the engine back to stock
a. with forced induction.
b. or engine swap with S2/968
2. Replace clutch as the mileage is unknown
3. Replace Torque Tube
4. Service rear transaxle.

I have a close friend of mine that is an ASE certified mechanic that is very good. He has discussed increasing performance and has the know how to do so....as he has an 800 HP Street 5.0 Stang in the works.

As this is not intended to start a flame war and I have read numerous threads on increasing performance on a NA. This will be a long term project that will require extensive sourcing of parts to find the best deals.

I wanted to see what any of you in this predicament would do.

 

1c. Rennegade V8 swap.

Since you need to do the clutch as well, it might not be a huge incremental expence.

 

Well, considering that I drive the car 40 + miles a day the V8 might not be a good consideration with fuel costing $3 a gallon. It would be nice no doubt.

 

No one has an opinion on this?

Another question is what type of damage to expect? The car was at idle when this happened.

 

Probably a couple of bent valves, but nothing terribly serious. Get the head off and have it refreshed (valve guides, seals and relap the valve faces) and put it back together. I put 300k on an '84 944 before I swapped the engine, you'll be fine for a good while yet. I wouldn't get silly about mods on it, especially if you want a daily driver.

Regards,

 

Thanks for the reply sh.

I am leaning more to that the more I think about it.

 

That vibration was your broken balance belt. Letting the belts go for too long will get you a $1,500 heart burn.

 

ummm..no.

Balance shaft belts are in tact. I puilled the timing cover back to take a peek.

Do not know what the deal is yet. I haven't torn it down.

 

I have a prediction about your 3,000 RPM shifter vibration. That is often a symptom of an NA clutch with a failed rubber center. It could be running on the limp-home tabs.

 

Hmmmm....haven't thought of that. Seeing how I have no clue how many miles are on the clutch that could be a viable answer.

I know for a fact that there are about 65,000 on the clutch that I put on it. I may end up reconditioning/replacing the torque tuba anyways since I will have to disconnect it to do the clutch job...

 

worn torque tube bearings have been known to cause a vibration in the drive train around 3000 to 3400 rpm. this is usually felt in the shift lever.

 

Truth be told, John, if you set out to inspect/replace the clutch you'll get a real good look at every piece of the car from the firewall back

 

Yea thats whats gonna suck. I haven't had a break from wrenching since my wifes car decided to blow the timing cover gasket and it broke during diassembly....


I finally got it back together then my car dies....

 

Well the news gets worse and worse.

While tearing down the top of the engine I find that I have ALOT of oil in my coolant. It is caked on the hose running from the top of my block. I have gotten the manifold off the engine and will be pulling the head.

What can cause this? There isnt any water in the crankcase.

Headgasket?
Oil Cooler?

 

If you are replacing the head or valves, you will be doing headgasket anyway. Do the oil cooler seals too sinc ethey are like 15 dollars. It's one of those causing oil to mix with coolant and you will have done both.