Canajet

Hi Guys,

I'm wondering if someone knows of a cheap(er) paint or fix to touch up the top of a 1991 928 GT engine...my silver paint has the usual cracking/flaking off, and just looking for a cheap fix.

Thanks very much!

Captain 928

dr bob

Cheaper than what?

By the time you pull the intake and cam covers, strip them, replace the hoses and gaskets, the knock sensors, clean and reseal the injection nozzles, new fuel hoses and all, going cheap on the paint seems kinda foolish. As a percentage of total cost (around $1k) a few cans of "better" paint will be a bargain.

Take a look at the 928 Specialists section on intake parts kits and you'll get a feel for all that's needed.

Canajet

Hi Dr. Bob,

Thanks for the reply...however, I am only looking to touch up the actual intake manifold. I would like to match the silver color as close as possible...the Porsche lettering on mine is silver, as well.

Thanks!

Captain 928

dr bob

There was a thread in the last year from an owner who did a LOT of masking after removing a lot of bolt-on stuff. He then used spray-cans to paint the intake and cam covers, albeit in separate sessions. At that point the choice of paints is again a small part of the process.

Your MY1991 car was built somewhere around 17-18 years ago. If the intake has never been removed, you still have the original rubber oil vent hoses, fuel hoses, knock sensors, crankcase vent line, vacuum hoses, etc, living under the intake. When would be a good time to PM all those hoses and other bits? If you don't do it now, when would be a good time? If that 'good time' is in the next few years, why not do it now and get it all done at once?


Back to your question...

The factory paint appears to be a two-step process that uses a yellow chromate primer, followed by a metallic silver top coat. The top coat wears with no clear protectant, allowing the chromate to peek through and give the finish that slightly gold tint. Most folks who see a factory original paint on the manifold say it's not correct because it doesn't match the gold tint they are used to. Nonetheless, the closest spray-can paint system I've found is the "Wheel Silver" color for German cars. Wurth lists a two-step paint but the silver component is not on shelves now (almost a year...) because of problems they were having with nozzle clogging on the cans. You may find other sources for a similar product. The Wurth product includes a clear top coat, something the factory manifold paint didn't include. Some listers have warned against using the clear in the engine bay, thinking it might yellow in the heat.

The key to any paint project is preparation, and this is where doing wet paint on onstalled parts gets tough. The intake is a mag alloy, and needs to be prepped carefully if you want the paint to stick. That bubbling paint that's on there now needs to come off. The metal itself needs to be degassed some in an oven to remove any oil that has become one with the metal, Then there's a metal-prep step to seal the metal and prevent oxidation (very fast process on the mag) before primer is applied. Once the metal i cleaned/primered/sealed, you can get to th fun part of painting with silver and possibly sealing with clear. Are you sure you want to try this with those parts still in the car?

Canajet

Hi Bob,

Thanks very much for the info. That sounds like a pretty serious job, though. I am really only looking to touch it up, as I might have to sell my baby. I love her and she has been outstanding, though, so I am still debating!

Captain 928

perrys4

Here are a couple of shots of mine. It is not stock but you can get the idea of what can be done leaving it on the car.

Canajet

Wow...that is sweet! How/what did you use?

Thanks!

perrys4

I e-mailed you the answer!! Its been me you were talking to. The other shot didn't show but it was a wide shot so I didn't try and put it up again.

cobalt

The factory used Zermatt Silver on the 928 intakes and 911 fans. It usually turns darker over time.

Charley B

Not appropriate to this discussion, where flaking is occuring, but as a point of interest. Bill Ball was telling me of a product that will return an intake, that has darkened with age, back to the factory silver. Not a paint but a cleaning agent. Perhaps he'll see this and share.

Tom in Austin

How would a power washer work to blow off the old paint (with the parts removed of course!) ... has anyone tried this?

928drvr86.5

I used a blaster with glass media to clean my intake parts this spring, it worked great.

IcemanG17

If the chips are really small.....then you can fill them in with hobby paint...I had Gerry come over and we custom blended a bunch of his Testors paints until we got (close) the right color...its been a couple years and its holding up well....not perfect, but good enough! Heres a pic

Bill Ball

BTW, we just cleaned the valve covers on Dennis's motor. They were the aged tan color. We applied a solvent called Histoclear, let stand for 20 minutes, then rinsed with Simple Green, then water. They returned to their original factory silver shade! I don't think the tan color is from wear exposing the primer. You would expect that to be uneven.

dr bob

Bill,

Where does one find Histoclear without raiding the entomology lab?