My FSM/Clarks garage suppliment- Review and add info please.
02-28-2011, 02:24 AM
#1
Pro
Thread Starter
My FSM/Clarks garage suppliment- Review and add info please.
Here is what i have so far. I am working on other sections to help out people in need. Trying to add to the FSM and clarks garage to have a complete single source for service walk through. Pictures have been just attached and should be dispersed in the body of the guide.
Please tell me what you think. Anything that is missing? Any tips or tricks that you use when you do the cam tower? Note this is only removal and an assembly article is being made now.
The Timing and balance shaft belt replacement has been for many, including myself, the first major engine project on their 944s. I feel like there is many questions that are not answered with either the FSM or Clark’s garage(although this one is hard to beat, it lacks pictures and some of the intricacies of the job) and sorting through either Rennlist or reutterwerks is not very effective. I would like to aid the 944 community with a source for simple picture guided aid that is open to suggestions from the community. Many are put off by the job and will end up taking it to a shop for the work to be done and accruing a large tab for the work that can be done in a weekend. I am by no mean a fast wrencher or very good at it for that matter, so this project is well within the hands of a “shade-tree” mechanic. It will take time, patience, PB blaster, a big *** breaker bar, a good set of tools with some extensions/swivel bits, and beer. A friend helps some of the processes as well.
All of this work was done on an ‘88 Turbo S and some models differ in the way that they are assembled/reassembled. This would mainly apply to pre 88 turbo models without the auto tensioner. I decided to go without the measurement tool(Porsche special parts number____) because I had the auto tensioner and had been told by many that it is alright to do. The only other difference that I can think of would be the extra hose connection via banjo bolt on the intake manifold. This is guide is to be a “evolving” and changing thing, as other differences are noted, the guide will change accordingly.
I had to go the extra step of removing my cam tower due to a leaking gasket near the #4 cylinder exhaust that would cause oil to burn during warm up. It managed to make a mess on the back side of the engine and would drip onto the crossover. I also did not know the age of my belts so I decided to replace them as well as the gasket.
Cam Tower Removal-
Prior to this: Remove intake manifold/air filter box, Fuel rail, front timing belt cover and take tension off of timing belt.
6 and 8mm hex bit, extensions, a swivel bit(for a few of the harder to get bolts), socket wrench, 6mm allen key.
So this is not that hard to do. You will NEED a good set of hex bits(and not the one with the ball end) and the swivel bit is really helpful on some of the bolts. Be very careful not to strip any of the heads of the bolts. Some of the bolts have been heat cycled many times and may not have been removed for the life of the car. Leverage and a smooth pulling action typically sort out problems with stubborn bolts.
On my car there is a hard line that is for positive crank pressure(I think) that is attached to the cam assembly as well as another line(electrical for testing the ignition I think) that attaches itself to the rear cam tower cover. Both of these need to be removed prior to the removal of the tower. They are both 10mm bolts; the hard line is the hardest to get at and will require some working at to remove. The other line is easy to get to with a 10mm wrench.
Then remove with a 8mm hex bit the six(6) cam tower plugs.
This gives you access to the six(6) 6mm bolts that secure the cam assembly to the engine head. Be careful not to drop the washers or bolts into the cam assembly. You can get they out by removing the lifters if need be but I would assume it’s best to Macgyver the bolts out and not mess with the lifters(oil and position, might be wrong).
Finally remove the nine(9) 6mm bolts around the outside of the tower. This one is going to be a PITA for the procedure (or at least for me it was) because of this one back bolt. To remove and replace this bolt, I had to use an allen key which is a trying process in the cramped environment. This is also where my gasket was leaking.
When all of them are removed then pull the tower up and towards the passenger side of the car(this is to keep the lifters from falling out) and place somewhere clean on its side.
On a side note, one of previous owners(not joshb, I know he wouldn’t do something like this) or possibly a shop had decided to clean the tower off last time they were there with what looks to be a wire brush. So the surface has slight markings in the surface. Because of these indentions the gasket baked on some points and may have contributed to my gasket failure. The next picture shows some of the damage done with such harsh treatment on the aluminum surface.
To remove the gasket I used
and the not pictured elbow grease. You must have a clean surface in order to have a good mating between the gasket, head and the cam tower, and I had to go the extra step to try and fix the scratches which I think I did a good job of. The Razor should be used sparingly, as it too can scratch into the metal.
References:
www.clarks-garage.com (Cam assembly removal section)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqc0mm-7ukY - Thanks Van. Great video. 944 community needs more of them
Please tell me what you think. Anything that is missing? Any tips or tricks that you use when you do the cam tower? Note this is only removal and an assembly article is being made now.
The Timing and balance shaft belt replacement has been for many, including myself, the first major engine project on their 944s. I feel like there is many questions that are not answered with either the FSM or Clark’s garage(although this one is hard to beat, it lacks pictures and some of the intricacies of the job) and sorting through either Rennlist or reutterwerks is not very effective. I would like to aid the 944 community with a source for simple picture guided aid that is open to suggestions from the community. Many are put off by the job and will end up taking it to a shop for the work to be done and accruing a large tab for the work that can be done in a weekend. I am by no mean a fast wrencher or very good at it for that matter, so this project is well within the hands of a “shade-tree” mechanic. It will take time, patience, PB blaster, a big *** breaker bar, a good set of tools with some extensions/swivel bits, and beer. A friend helps some of the processes as well.
All of this work was done on an ‘88 Turbo S and some models differ in the way that they are assembled/reassembled. This would mainly apply to pre 88 turbo models without the auto tensioner. I decided to go without the measurement tool(Porsche special parts number____) because I had the auto tensioner and had been told by many that it is alright to do. The only other difference that I can think of would be the extra hose connection via banjo bolt on the intake manifold. This is guide is to be a “evolving” and changing thing, as other differences are noted, the guide will change accordingly.
I had to go the extra step of removing my cam tower due to a leaking gasket near the #4 cylinder exhaust that would cause oil to burn during warm up. It managed to make a mess on the back side of the engine and would drip onto the crossover. I also did not know the age of my belts so I decided to replace them as well as the gasket.
Cam Tower Removal-
Prior to this: Remove intake manifold/air filter box, Fuel rail, front timing belt cover and take tension off of timing belt.
6 and 8mm hex bit, extensions, a swivel bit(for a few of the harder to get bolts), socket wrench, 6mm allen key.
So this is not that hard to do. You will NEED a good set of hex bits(and not the one with the ball end) and the swivel bit is really helpful on some of the bolts. Be very careful not to strip any of the heads of the bolts. Some of the bolts have been heat cycled many times and may not have been removed for the life of the car. Leverage and a smooth pulling action typically sort out problems with stubborn bolts.
On my car there is a hard line that is for positive crank pressure(I think) that is attached to the cam assembly as well as another line(electrical for testing the ignition I think) that attaches itself to the rear cam tower cover. Both of these need to be removed prior to the removal of the tower. They are both 10mm bolts; the hard line is the hardest to get at and will require some working at to remove. The other line is easy to get to with a 10mm wrench.
Then remove with a 8mm hex bit the six(6) cam tower plugs.
This gives you access to the six(6) 6mm bolts that secure the cam assembly to the engine head. Be careful not to drop the washers or bolts into the cam assembly. You can get they out by removing the lifters if need be but I would assume it’s best to Macgyver the bolts out and not mess with the lifters(oil and position, might be wrong).
Finally remove the nine(9) 6mm bolts around the outside of the tower. This one is going to be a PITA for the procedure (or at least for me it was) because of this one back bolt. To remove and replace this bolt, I had to use an allen key which is a trying process in the cramped environment. This is also where my gasket was leaking.
When all of them are removed then pull the tower up and towards the passenger side of the car(this is to keep the lifters from falling out) and place somewhere clean on its side.
On a side note, one of previous owners(not joshb, I know he wouldn’t do something like this) or possibly a shop had decided to clean the tower off last time they were there with what looks to be a wire brush. So the surface has slight markings in the surface. Because of these indentions the gasket baked on some points and may have contributed to my gasket failure. The next picture shows some of the damage done with such harsh treatment on the aluminum surface.
To remove the gasket I used
and the not pictured elbow grease. You must have a clean surface in order to have a good mating between the gasket, head and the cam tower, and I had to go the extra step to try and fix the scratches which I think I did a good job of. The Razor should be used sparingly, as it too can scratch into the metal.
References:
www.clarks-garage.com (Cam assembly removal section)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqc0mm-7ukY - Thanks Van. Great video. 944 community needs more of them
Last edited by slap929; 03-23-2011 at 05:29 PM.
02-28-2011, 01:36 PM
#5
Pro
Thread Starter
Thanks for the response. Glad that someone else appreciates Vans's videos. They are really helpful when going through this job(he has other good ones too, go to his channel). If pictures say a thousand words, the how many words are his videos worth?I wanted to add something that goes in between the video, the FSM, Clarks garage and what you could find on craigslist. So a one stop source for torque info, references, tips. The other major component to the idea would be that it is open to the community to change. This way, when people do complex jobs and find a way around a problem, they can save others the time and effort figuring out what they already have.
How to implement this is a different bird. I have not come up with an idea how to do it yet. Really was just fishing out there to see if this is wanted by people or if the idea is something that others are willing to contribute to. Any ideas on this would be greatly welcomed.
How to implement this is a different bird. I have not come up with an idea how to do it yet. Really was just fishing out there to see if this is wanted by people or if the idea is something that others are willing to contribute to. Any ideas on this would be greatly welcomed.
02-28-2011, 02:17 PM
#6
Race Car
I really appreciate folks like you who take the time and effort to document what you do so thoroughly. I rarely think about documenting stuff, and certainly don't think about editing. Maybe next project I try I'll give it a shot. There is a DIY forum down below somewhere, but last time I saw it, it was very sparely used. Perhaps that would be the best place to link/host stuff like this.
