PbFoot

Okay, Mark, just checked and the engine sits like a rock, no noticeable rocking with rev. I have scheduled a visit to the mechanics next Monday for a radiator flush and now looks like an engine mount repair. How much is an engine mount replacement cost (I know speedmount is $15)? Also I noticed that there was no movement on the tach... aargh, it's the electrical gremlin!

Jersey Joe

Engine mount labor time is about 5 hours. Depending on the rate, in most cases at least $85.00 per hour plus parts. Figure $425.00 labor and $400.00 for parts. I am doing mine this weekend, and will take digital photos all the way.

jim912928

Jersey Joe...great, post the pics and procedure. Have an 83S and my mounts look cracked and flat!...Engine doesn't move when revving.

ErnestSw

Martin,
If you send them to me at newfie1@airmail.net I'll post them for you.

ErnestSw

Here are the pictures from Martin D of the various levels of the engine in the bay with different stages of mount wear.
<img src="http://web2.airmail.net/newfie1/Cameras/mounts.jpg" alt=" - " />

Quaz

I just got done doing my mounts last weekend and boy what a difference. I can find gears easier, the engine is smooth, and overall there are less squeaks and rattles in the car. Not too bad of a job to do on your own. On a difficulty scale of 1-10 I would give it a 6. (Timing belt being an 8) I did go with the Anchor mounts and they seem to be working just fine. I have to say for the $50 in mounts and 7 hours of on my back time it was well worth it.

Jersey Joe

Put the car up on the lift last night just to look around. First of all my belly pan shield is missing. Need to replaced it. I noticed that the oil pan is below the crossmember by about one inch. The oil pan is leaking and it's generally a mess. Will degrease first before pictures. You can see the collapsed mounts. Looks like they are over one inch lower than then should be. I am also going to cut the old one open to look and photo the inside. I was going to do the mounts and the timing belt at the same time, but I think that I will do the mounts and torture the car for a few weeks first.

Jersey Joe

Saturday night: almost completed the engine mount job today. Had to cut ot the job short for a birthday party. I have to say that anyone who attempts and completes this job on their back is a better man than I. I am fortunate enought to have a lift available, and it's not exactly an easy job. I found the hardest part was aligning the crossmember upper bolt the the reinforcement that bolts to the upper a arm mount. It's not that bad of a job, but after doing it I would not attempt it on the ground. Pictures to follow

John Struthers

Pb,
Do the flush yourself.
If you want to give money away give it to a local soup kitchen...
You need to get familiar/intimate with your sHARk.
Mechanical skills are learned, besides... even some of the simple things you may learn will probably get you home under power instead of a couple hour wait and a ride to the shop on a flatbed $$$$. It's a pisser to have a 'mechanic' push a vacuum line back in place or swap a fuse, wiggle a relay, jumper a fuel pump and charge you $45 - $75.00 an hour. Granted there are some things you won't be able to do but there is a heck of alot you can pick up on your own, or get an assist from the forum, or, Greg Nichol's site both which supply a suprising amount of detail.
A good example is this speed mount assist.
If the ride improves or the noises go on vacation you have just eliminated a worry about TT issues for a half hour of work and under $30.00.
Try it, you'll get a relatively cheap incremental mechanical intro to the 928's and save the buck's you earned on the job. You'll like it.
One last bit of unsoliceted advice; Try to find other sHARk owners in your area you can learn together or maybe they have BTDT. I have learned a heap about the 928 from the Rennlist 928 Forum and I hope to learn a little more on my next topic post.
Enjoy.

PbFoot

John, thank for your input. I just got back from the shop when I read your post (timing is everything, right? ). Anyway, here is the diagnosis: engine mounts are shot, transmission mounts are shot, radiator may be partially blocked, and the AC fan pressure switch may be bad. So it looks like I have to do the mounts and radiator pretty soon (the Florida heat doesn't help). Doing the 2 mounts is about $1500 and the radiator (thinking about a Devek) is about another $1000 (all with labor). I am still debating whether to go "cheap" and just do speedmounts or bite the bullet and replace mounts for added peace of mind. Any input is welcomed.

Jersey Joe

PB: if they have any rental shops in your area, you may want to consider renting a bay for the day to do the mounts yourself. It's way easier than doing it on your back. New mounts make an unreal difference. Most of my creaks and groans went away. The motor is so smooth now you can feel it running

Bill Ball

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">Originally posted by Jersey Joe:
<strong>Saturday night: almost completed the engine mount job today. Had to cut ot the job short for a birthday party. I have to say that anyone who attempts and completes this job on their back is a better man than I. I am fortunate enought to have a lift available, and it's not exactly an easy job. I found the hardest part was aligning the crossmember upper bolt the the reinforcement that bolts to the upper a arm mount. It's not that bad of a job, but after doing it I would not attempt it on the ground. Pictures to follow</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">After doing the motor mounts and pan gasket, my experince and sentiments are exactly like yours.

NYDolfan

JerseyJoe: How are you lifting the engine once its on the lift? I have to do the motor mounts soon and my brother in law has a lift in his shop. Got any suggestions for BTDT ?

Thanks

Quaz

I must admit doing mine on my back was a little tough, but it wasn't too bad. (READ put car up HIGH) I used all air tools so that takes a lot of stress off holding your arms above your head. Without them I don't think I would have done it. The worst part was putting the steering rack back up. That is quite a wrestling match.

If I did it again I could probably cut the job down to 4-5 hours just because I know what needs to come apart and what short cuts I could take. For the first time allow yourself 8-10 hours depending on your experience level and pain/tolerance limit.

Jersey Joe

With the car on the lift you need to have 2 tall adjustable jack stands. One for under the rear cross member, and the other to jack up the motor under the oil pan. The rear jack is A MUST since any lifting on the pan will result in the entire front of the car going up instead of just the motor. Most shops have these stands. I did not and had to borrow them. I have some great pictures that show the underside of the mounts and the resulting metal to metal contact that is the source of the nasty vibration that results from the sagging mounts. In addition to the directions found on the forum, I also removed the lower shock bolt to the control arm . This allowed me to swing the control arm 180 degrees out of the way. I did not disconnect the steering rack from the flex joint. I just removed the stiffener and dropped the rack as far as it would go. Other than that the directions were great.
Next week: Timing belt time!!!!!!!!!!!!