tbt

Opinion on the Motorsports aluminum coolant tanks....anyone???
I gotta get a replacement tank
TBT
Black '87
Cardinal red interior

Kevin in Atlanta

Have one in my 91S4. Only wish it were round and had a sight glass to check the coolant level.

Another RL'r had an issue trying to get the coolant level sensor in and spent a couple of hours grinding off the weld to the point the sensor would slide in.

Kevin

928Myles

I have had one in my RHD 1990 for 5 years now. No issues with it. Fitted perfectly.
As with Kevin above I would have preferred a sight glass.

Myles

James Bailey

The original lasted how many years ???? rather hard to fault that And as noted you can see the fluid level and the circulation not bad things in my opinion.

Mark Anderson

The only fault is they got stupid expensive at $388

nosnow

i have installed 3 over the years and they are great. They are less expensive than OEM and should never have to be replaced. I rely on the coolant level sensor and verify coolant level/clarity at my annual oil change.

The Forgotten On

I thought it was bad when they were around $200. Nearly $400 just sounds like price gouging at this point.

Brett Jenkins

I had the same issue with the level sensor not fitting and had to grind it a bit to get it to work. Other than that, decent product.

SeanR

Just get the factory tank and dont' worry about it for 20+ years.

jpitman2

You should check out the price of the RHD version - been upwards of $600 for years now! I fitted an Oz made alloy version when mine showed signs of age - round, easy to fit in, and has a sight tube provision, low $200s. However, using vinyl for the sight tube (user fitted), it slowly stains inside and becomes unusable - I have to remove the cap when cold to dip the tank.
jp 83 Euro S AT 57k

NoVector

One new on e-bay for $314. Used are $70-$100. I see some on-line Porsche dealers are <$300. Not like that's a bargain either imho. I guess Behr has us by the *****--like their 200% increase in our radiators.

FredR

Yet another subject matter that there are diverse opinions about [a good thing!]. Personally I prioritise function above form and if I can find something that does the task at hand for half the price then as a general statement I would take that route any day of the week but I also appreciate some folks want OEM spec for originality reasons and ultimately investment reasons. My GTS with an S4 motor is never going to have investment grade potential no matter what I do to it so I would not hesitate to go for Carl's offering when needed as not only is it functional, it looks better, could possibly last even longer than the stock item and it also merits consideration as an upgrade IMHO. To top up coolant one has to remove the cap so if there is a leak somewhere the bit about "not being able to see the level externally" is a bit of a moot point, especially if the level alarm works. I dare say Carl could add a level sight glass- at another $100 or whatever but that defeats the object of the exercise somewhat.

Bottom line- Carl's tank seems to work fine- down to the OP.

Regarding fitment of the sender as with any product user feedback is important- if Carl is aware of the occasional issue with sender fitment he can easily instruct his fabricator to make a gauge to stick down the level sender aperture to test for dimensional conformity but as such is relatively easy for us types to fix I dare say those that have had this issue probably just took the bull by the horns and fixed it with a Dremel of whatever to take out any burrs- that being the case Carl may have had no feedback of such issue- 928 owners are a pretty pragmatic bunch - we have to be! The more units Carl moves the better the chances he can keep his costs reasonable.

The OEM parts situation is not likely to improve, our cherished suppliers are doing their best to keep things reasonable but the bottom line is the chances of Porsche parts going down in price is about as likely as a chocolate fireguard surviving 5 minutes of exposure. For those of us that have dismantled a 928 the scary bit is when you see just how many bits there are in these things - we are fighting a losing battle or at least a very expensive rearguard action!

Carl Fausett

We now stock the OEM fluid level sensor so we can supply it when needed should yours prove to be swollen. I have also informed our machinist to make the hole for the sensor a little larger to also prevent this.

Our tank is warranted for 2 years, comes with all the nipples needed for every configuration/model, and sells for $164 in both RHD and LHD versions. Much less $$ than OEM Porsche.

https://928motorsports.com/parts/coolant_reservoir.php

bureau13

I'm guessing this is a royal PITA to replace? I was looking at mine the other day...looks pretty nasty, but doesn't seem to leak. Yet. It's so dark now, however, that it might as well be made of aluminum...there's no seeing the level from the outside of that thing...

Carl Fausett

It is. Very tight fit, but it is do-able. The original is held in with 3 M6 bolts, and everybody installs the new one with just 2 bolts as the 3rd one is such a PITA to get at.

The other good time to replace this reservoir is when the engine is out.