Quinn

I was wondering if there was a company that had a revolving door deal in regards to powder coating the intake. The PO on my car painted them this foul gold color that is chipping off anyway. So I was thinking I could buy some powder coated ones and when they arrive I could put mine into the same box and ship it back to be powder coated for someone else. If anyone else is interested in this, concept there is a place here in Utah that does High performance coatings, <a href="http://www.hpcoatings.com/motorsports.htm" target="_blank">http://www.hpcoatings.com/motorsports.htm</a>
If there is any interest I will look into pricing and perhaps do this myself.
Some pictures of there work, <a href="http://www.hpcoatings.com/appearance_coatings.htm" target="_blank">http://www.hpcoatings.com/appearance_coatings.htm</a>
<img src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" border="0" alt="[cheers]" />

Randy V

Ceramic coating is the way to go, rather than powder coating.

I just had a new honed intake for my 16 valver done for $125.

The finished result looks like this:

DR

Hey that looks like my engine ...

Oh , it is my engine isn't it :-)

FYI, concerning HPC I have had many converstions with the experts there and they will not do ceramnic coating on the 32 valve intakes or cam covers. The heat that they require for their process causes the magnisium in these parts to bubble.. Not very pretty, trust me they did a test on one of my cam covers.

However they do have a better process than ceramic called dry film coating. This process is direct from the space industry (HPC does a lot of that) and does not require excessive heat in the process and is much more durable. Downside is that there were limited color offerings. The last time I checked only olive drab, black (a possibility) and other military type colors were available.

I will touch base with Steve at HPC and see if more colors have been added.

BTW, I do have one set of GT Cam covers and Intakes already powdercoated silver that are available for "trade" but it has to be a trade with GT parts as the GT and S4 intake are different.

Randy V

Ya got me David! It is your engine, polished by Dave Schaffer.

But I did say mine looks 'like' this - hah!

Mine really does look similar though - including the red ignition wires and zinc plated clamps and fittings. I saw yours and really liked the way all the elements came together.

As they say, imitation is the highest form of flattery!

Good point on ceramic coating the magnesium intake of the 32 valve engines. As the 16 valve intake is aluminum, I overlooked that aspect.

Gotta get me a digital camera and post some pics of my revitalized chop-top.

Tom. M

Hey Dave,

So spill the beans...what is different between the GT and S4 intake? I thought only the brains and cams were different? x()


Later,
Tom 87 S4 AT

"man I learn something new about these cars every day..."

__________________________________________
BTW, I do have one set of GT Cam covers and Intakes already powdercoated silver that are available for "trade" but it has to be a trade with GT parts as the GT and S4 intake are different.[/QB][/QUOTE]

<img src="confused.gif" border="0">

Mike Schmidt

After having my valve covers and intake powder coated, I couldn't really recommend it to anyone. At least on the '87 and later cars, those parts are magnesium. I contacted several places about getting the intake ceramic coated, and everyone said they can't do magnesium. I got the intake powder coated this past winter, and the valve covers the winter before. The parts were done at different places, but there were problems with out gassing on all of them. This leaves pits and bubbles in the finish. The guy who did the valve covers did them three times before they looked at least reasonable. If I were to do it again, I'd have the parts done by Dave Schaefer. He paints them, so there's no problem with the high temperatures that occur with the curing of the powder coating.

When I had the valve covers powder coated, I asked the guy about whether to to the underside or not. He said that he usually teflon coats that sort of area, so I had him do that. He said that the teflon coating would seal porous metal, and helps oil draining from the surfaces coated with it. I took the valve covers off after a year. The teflon looks absolutely perfect. Nice and smooth, no pitting or bubbles, no color changing, and no peeling or flaking. The nicest part of all the coating I had done is now where nobody will ever see it. I was surprised at how well the oil drained off of the teflon too. The cams and everything under the valve covers had a nice coat of oil on it, but the teflon was absolutely dry.

Donald

Mike-
What color is the teflon coating? Same as a frying pan?

DR-
Is dry film coating the same (or one type)as Teflon?
TIA

Donald

Mike Schmidt

I guess there are different types and/or colors of the teflon. I know that he had some that was brown, gold, and black. The one he put on the underside of my valve covers is kind of a satin black I guess you could call it. He also did some other parts that I had off the car. They were originally plated and were starting to look kind of bad. The engine lift eyes were done in the gold, and the bolts and cupped washers that hold the valve covers on were done in black. It's been over a year and they still look the same as when he handed them to me.

DR

Randy,
&gt;Ya got me David!
&gt;It is your engine, polished by Dave Schaffer.

Yes,DS polished the intakes for me while I did the rest of the engine and polishing (BTW, DS is a NUCH better polisher than I)

&gt;But I did say mine looks 'like' this - hah!
&gt;Mine really does look similar though - including &gt;the red ignition wires and zinc plated clamps &gt;and fittings. I saw yours and really liked the &gt;way all the elements came together.

Great, can't wait to see it. I know you said it looks like yours, I just couldn't resist the urge to fun with you a little.


&gt;As they say, imitation is the highest form of
&gt;flattery!

True and thanks. The main reason I did this on my engine was to show other how really nice and modern looking they could be. The whole excercise was in hopes of prompting others to do similar things with their engines.

&gt;Gotta get me a digital camera and post some pics &gt;of my revitalized chop-top.

Yes, please !!


Tom,
&gt;So spill the beans...what is different between the GT and S4 intake?
&gt;I thought only the brains and cams were different?

The GT intake was supposedly "port matched" a little to the GT heads. Other than that they seem to be the same. They have different part numbers so it is easy to tell the difference.


Donald,
&gt;Is dry film coating the same (or one type)as Teflon?

I don't think so, but it sounds similar. The dry film process is so high tech that it can be applied in different formulas. For example once version sheds oil like the teflon, there is another version that attracts oil and causes it to sheet on the coated surface. The can lead to some very interesting results when both are used properly inside an engine :-)

Thom1

There is really no problem with painting mag/al alloy forgings other than the time it takes. Of course, these cam and intake parts are rough forgings. The finish will never be perfectly smooth.

If you call Dave Schaeffer, he may be able to provide a quick turnaround. He is a great guy.

Painting Magnesium/Aluminum Alloy Intakes, Cam Covers, and Oil Filler - Thom’s Method:

High Pressure Car Wash - Hand Held Wand - Wash and Rinse
Dry
Kleen Strip – Aircraft Remover
High Pressure Car Wash - Hand Held Wand – Rinse (Rinse)
Note: Some scraping and wire brush work was done in steps above.
Bake in oven at 300 degrees for 30 minutes
Wipe clean
Bake in oven at 300 degrees for 30 minutes
Wipe clean
Dupont Aluminum Prefinishing System Step A 225S
Rinse
Dry
Within 5 hours
Plastikote Engine Enamel Primer
Bake in oven at 200 degrees for 30 minutes, repeat
Plastikote Engine Enamel
Bake in oven at 200 degrees for 30 minutes, repeat
Plastikote Engine Enamel Clear
Bake in oven at 200 degrees for 30 minutes, repeat

Here is how it looks after 6 months. Click on this link:
<a href="http://us.f1.yahoofs.com/users/a5080a5d/bc/My+Photos/Engine+Front+View.jpg?bcNMHK9AwwxjSSjv" target="_blank">http://us.f1.yahoofs.com/users/a5080a5d/bc/My+Photos/Engine+Front+View.jpg?bcNMHK9AwwxjSSjv</a>

If you want to have it done, check with Dave Schaeffer. I have heard nothing but good news about his work. See link:
<a href="http://members.rennlist.com/mechanic/index.html" target="_blank">http://members.rennlist.com/mechanic/index.html</a>

I don't know about factory paint availability. My impression is that Porsche will only release that to the dealers. I painted mine in gold and black with aerosol cans.

The job took many hours. I am a little unhappy with my lettering. I smudged some black onto the gold, repainted the gold with a brush. The repaint was not as smooth as the previous aerosol applications. Otherwise, it looks fantastic. Hard metal to metal impacts can scratch or chip this paint. But, that is true of almost all painted surfaces. After 9 months, and 2 installations, there are hardly any perceivable chips. Perhaps another type of paint (like aircraft) or process (like powdercoating) would yield a tougher surface.

HTH,
Good Luck, <img src="graemlins/burnout.gif" border="0" alt="[burnout]" />
<img src="graemlins/burnout.gif" border="0" alt="[burnout]" />

Dozman

The ceramic Looks great. With the chrome like finish, have you noticed an higher engine temps??

I know when I was a kid, I noticed higher engine temps on my car when I went the chrome engine look.

John D.
'85 928 Auto, Black

Randy V

Actually John, the ceramic coating has insulating properties - I'm seeing lower engine temps plus better performance as the intake air is cooler/denser and thus has a higher oxygen content.

A definite win-win upgrade.