View Poll Results: What color were the original plastic 944 coolant tanks?
Bright white, just like the current Geiger replacements from Porsche
17
47.22%
They were clear plastic, but not white.
6
16.67%
I have no idea.
13
36.11%
Voters: 36. You may not vote on this poll
What color were the original 944 coolant tanks?
10-21-2009, 10:12 AM
#1
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
What color were the original 944 coolant tanks?
I've had 944 cars for 15 years now and strive to keep my cars in as near original condition as possible.
As with many 944s, the coolant expansion tank in my otherwise clean 951 was badly yellowed and I replaced it with a new unit from Porsche. However, it looks a bit too white when I look at old photos taken of these engines when new and my guess is that the OE manufacturer, Geiger, changed the kind of plastic used somewhere along the way and a NOS (new old-stock) tank might be the way to go, if I can find one.
I was hoping to reach some consensus on this in a parallel thread about a process for whitening yellowed expansion tanks, but the 'original tank color' topic was deemed irrelevant by a few, so I'm opening a separate thread instead.
If you knew these cars when new, your response is appreciated. TIA
As with many 944s, the coolant expansion tank in my otherwise clean 951 was badly yellowed and I replaced it with a new unit from Porsche. However, it looks a bit too white when I look at old photos taken of these engines when new and my guess is that the OE manufacturer, Geiger, changed the kind of plastic used somewhere along the way and a NOS (new old-stock) tank might be the way to go, if I can find one.
I was hoping to reach some consensus on this in a parallel thread about a process for whitening yellowed expansion tanks, but the 'original tank color' topic was deemed irrelevant by a few, so I'm opening a separate thread instead.
If you knew these cars when new, your response is appreciated. TIA
10-21-2009, 12:39 PM
#4
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
10-21-2009, 12:45 PM
#5
Drifting
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If you lightly scratch the surface of a yellowed tank, does the yellow appear to be on the surface or throughout? If it's on the surface then bleaching (by some means) might work. If it's throughout, then forget it.
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10-24-2009, 04:41 PM
#9
Rennlist Member
Here's a pic from the '87 full line catalog for the 944. Interestingly, they don't have many engine bay pictures of the 944 in the various catalogs -- they seemed to prefer picturing the whole motor outside the car (with no overflow tank) or using a cutaway illustration. FWIW, it's also white in the illustrations.
10-25-2009, 11:44 AM
#10
Racer
After looking at some old Car & Driver mags with pics of the 944/951 in them it looks like the expansion tank was white.
The other issue is that as the tanks yellow they also become weaker and more brittle. I replaced mine because it was expanding so much when hot that it was pushing the hood up.
Go with a new white tank for safety reasons and it will yellow over time anyway.
The other issue is that as the tanks yellow they also become weaker and more brittle. I replaced mine because it was expanding so much when hot that it was pushing the hood up.
Go with a new white tank for safety reasons and it will yellow over time anyway.
10-26-2009, 11:32 AM
#11
Rennlist Member
.... it looks a bit too white when I look at old photos taken of these engines when new and my guess is that the OE manufacturer, Geiger, changed the kind of plastic used somewhere along the way and a NOS (new old-stock) tank might be the way to go, if I can find one.
I was hoping to reach some consensus on this in a parallel thread about a process for whitening yellowed expansion tanks, but the 'original tank color' topic was deemed irrelevant by a few, so I'm opening a separate thread instead.
If you knew these cars when new, your response is appreciated. TIA
I was hoping to reach some consensus on this in a parallel thread about a process for whitening yellowed expansion tanks, but the 'original tank color' topic was deemed irrelevant by a few, so I'm opening a separate thread instead.
If you knew these cars when new, your response is appreciated. TIA
I don’t know when or whether Geiger actually/intentionally changed the formulation of the plastic used in these tanks over the years, or if tint may have varied batch to batch. There are original pictures that look like some of the tanks were white when new, and others show some color. I have read the explanation that they yellowed immediately upon use, and there are guys here that say their new/replacement white tanks have discolored and are now a similar yellow to the originals.
But that is not my experience. I think most those of us who were around these cars when new, remember the tanks being a semi opaque plastic. Not really yellow, not pure white, more like an uncolored/non-tinted raw plastic. [pic 1]
I have a couple underhood pics (in the day of 3"x5" 35mm photos) from the early 90's of my 89T, when it was still well below 20k miles, and the tank is nearly uniform in color, and only just starting to yellow/darken in a few areas, mostly below the liquid level. [pic 2]
Now, the original tank in the car (currently at 57k miles) still shows some of the original color around the edges and on the mounting tabs. But the body of the tank has discolored and clouded over the years. [pic 3 & 4]
When I bought a replacement tank for my other car over the winter of '05 (mfg date on the tank is 5/05) and it showed up pure white, I thought - what the f’ is this? Still not used to seeing a ghost white tank in there – and it has not started to discolor yet, 4 years later (which is the same age as the original tank was in the old pic 2 below). [pic 5]. Even with residue in the tank, the plastic is still very white. [pic 6]
A little hard to find/get good representative photos, as the lighting, flash, and contrast/brightness settings really affect the whites/off-whites. In the pics, I stuck a piece of white paper next to the bracket to show the contrast. W/o the white paper, its harder to tell that the original tank bracket is not as white as the newer one.
Last edited by Oddjob; 10-27-2009 at 10:37 AM.
