Techno Duck

Just a rant..

Spent the last few weeks working on this car trying to get it ready for a track day tomorrow. I gave up on trying to make the track day Wednesday because i kept finding more parts i wanted to replace 'while its apart'. So my plan was to get it done sunday and get an alignment monday so i can actually drive the car before i need to head back offshore. Was preparing for tomorrow morning where i was going to put the new rod bearings in. Took all the bearings out of the boxes to take a look at them and behold, 1 damaged bearing shell... its nicked in a few spots on the bearing surface, pretty deep aswell. Not sure what the heck happened and the only thing i can think of is the ****ty packaging Porsche uses for these bearings. You would think for such a fragile part they could have done a little better.



Of course its friday night at 7pm when i open the box up, so i cant do anything about getting a new bearing until monday...which leaves me with my car stuck in the air like this.



Not sure what i am going to do yet, going to call the 3x local dealers monday to see if any have a bearing set in stock (unlikely), i can get the full Glyco bearing set monday from a local supplier but that leaves me with 3x opened Porsche bearings..which i am not sure i can return. Option 3 is to exchange the bad bearing with the place i bought it from.. which leaves me waiting until wednesday probably for it be delivered via USPS.. ill be damned if ill have to get stuck paying the cost to overnight it so it gets here a day earlier on tuesday.

Ive had those bearings sitting in a box in my basement for almost a month now.. wish i had just opened the damn boxes and checked them when they were delivered! If this car had a LSx in it this wouldnt be a problem... i bet the rod bearing set is in stock at my local Napa, which happens to be open both saturday and sunday.. and i wouldnt even be worried bout changing rod bearings every few seasons!

I guess what really pisses me off is that i am stuck with nothing to do now basically because all the work left (putting on intake, crossover, reinstalling control arms, steering rack..etc) hinges on putting the oil pan back on!

refresh951

That stinks! Sorry man!

zerMATT951

I'm spoiled with several local parts options, including Zims Autotechnik just 20 minutes away, and the parts dept is open until noon on Saturdays. That, plus their prices are the same or a lot cheaper than eBay... for instance have you guys seen those nuts trying to sell coolant reservoirs for around $250? Holy crap, a new one from Zims sells for $142.

Anyway, sorry for the slight hijack. Maybe someone in your area has some spares sitting around? Good luck!

Techno Duck

I am lucky that i have a dealer account with WorldPac which is a pretty large nationwide part supplier. One of the distribution warehouses is about 5 minutes away from me and i can just log using there SpeedDial program and order whatever i need. 15-20 minutes after i put in the order i can pickup the parts at the warehouse. Saves alot of hassle not having to mail order everything, infact i got all the new power steering lines i decided to replace 'while its apart' over there, everything was instock also or available at the end of the day if its gotta come from the NJ warehouse. Cost is usually within a few dollars of the usual online places and in some cases is cheaper.. got a new LeigherReich turbo rad for $320.. no tax and no shipping so easily saved me about $25-30 over buying online.

It just sucks, i opted for the genuine Porsche bearings (i like the warm fuzzy feeling seeing the 'P' stamp on the bearings gives me ).. i have no problem putting in the Glyco bearings just WorldPac isnt open on the weekends and i found out about an hour and a half too late to order and pickup from them tonight.

Tedro951

Jon, I'm feeling your pain. I walked in to the shop thinking I'd be driving the car Sunday. Everything was going great. I installed the newly repaired trans cooler, new fuel lines, and two rotors. I heard the brown truck pull up and the feller handed me a box from RE full of caliper seals and another box with brake pads. Sweet timing. Except I need scrapers, not boots.

Walked out of the shop 5 minutes later, calipers on the bench, knowing it will probably be NEXT Friday before I get the correct seals....

I hate to say it, but I've learned to enjoy driving this thing even more when I have to go through hoops like this. My DD starts every morning and doesn't ever make a fuss, but not once have I ever sat on a 5 gallon bucket and stared at it.

Have a great weekend, anyway, Jon!

Tom M'Guinn

Sorry about that -- I know how frustrating that can be. I went through many sets of bearings when assembling my motor. The rod bearings weren't as bad, but the main bearings from Porsche were all like this -- I had to pick and choose among sets to make a matched set without scratches. See these threads:

https://rennlist.com/forums/944-turb...arings-be.html

https://rennlist.com/forums/944-turb...-bearings.html

Techno Duck

I thought of those exact threads after i saw what the bearing looked like. I am just really surprised they would not package these better, i mean they are separated by a small flap of cardboard but still loose in this practically paperthin box. They could atleast wrap them in paper or something.



Infact i am questioning this other bearing that was in one of the boxes.. it has a fairly large area which is discolored on the bearing surface. The bearing is perfectly smooth as far as i can tell with my finger, just looks 'different'. Tried to see if it would wipe off with brake cleaner but it would not. Ive only ever handled rod bearings three times, twice on a 944 and once on a big EMD645 diesel main engine (dont think that counts ) and the bearings were Glyco (Same as the Porsche i know) and never saw one that looked like that.

I looked at the product picture of the Glyco bearings through Worldpac and they appear to be packaged nicely in a vacuum sealed pack all separated. I think i may just go with these non Porsche branded Glyco's and hope i can return these Porsche bearings. Geez i thought i was going a little overboard paying double for the Porsche bearings too..

Tom M'Guinn

For rod bearings, the Glyco bearings are packaged much better -- they are shrink wrapped to a piece of cardboard so they can't move around. And, you should be able to dig up a set on Saturday. For the rod bearings, I'd have zero hesitation about using the glyco branded bearings over the PCNA versions.

Techno Duck

You know mid week i didnt think i was going to get it running. It was thursday afternoon when i decided to replace the motor mounts and all of the steering lines also. I was able to get all but one of the steering lines through the local supplier. They had the motor mounts also but i wasnt sure if they were the Rein Auto ones which are the same as the Porsche branded mounts. I called up LR to order the mounts and the steering line. Usually UPS ground from LR takes about a week to get to me, so i always ask them to ship USPS which takes 2 days usually. I was not expecting for it to arrive until saturday or monday. I woke up the next morning and it was on my door step.. the parts were drop shipped from a place in CA and overnighted to me. So things were looking up up until i opened up those damn bearings...... .grrr

Techno Duck

Good info, thanks. I wasnt sure from the picture. Not sure if ill be able to find a set on a saturday though. Maybe its better i take a break from this car anyhow.. ive been working on it almost every day for the last 2 weeks. I just hope i can return the other rod bearing sets.. would hate to be stuck with these. If i got a replacement set from them i would specifically ask them to inspect them to make sure they are ok, and to also repackage them better!

I went with the Porsche bearings just because i figured whoever drops the pan in the future will know i didnt cheap out on this car when they see that little P stamp on the bearing .

choinga

ah, that'll buff right out.

That sucks man - I always open stuff now as soon as I get it just to CYA instead of waiting to install. That way if it is f'd up and you call them they don't think you've been jacking around with it for a month and are returning it after you damaged it (and most places have time limits on returns).

Techno Duck

Ahh.. good old WorldPac, open till 3pm on saturday .

Tom M'Guinn

That's what I'm talk'n about! Compare those to the PCNA versions and let us know if they are still identical, with the same glyco stamp, other than the lack of scratches on the better-packaged glycos.

gregeast

Sorry to hear about this, a PITA for sure. I'm just impressed you could find the dang things after 30 days. I seem to be particularly talented at ordering parts (or buying used on a good deal from a RL'er) in advance of some project and then not having any idea where in the heck I put them when it comes time to do the project.

I always find them eventually, and typically stumble on a a few other lost parts in the process, but it's always sketchy.

Glad you found a local solution.

Techno Duck

Tom, the bearings looked exactly the same to me with the exception of the lack of Porsche part # stamped on them. Infact the Glyco boxed bearings looked like they were in way better condition than the Porsche ones overall due to the packaging. I will take a few close up pictures tomorrow when i am back down at the garage.

Greg, believe me i have been real bad about ordering things over again. Ever since i stopped driving the car daily and its been more of a project car with a pile of parts building up i keep forgetting what i actually have at home. I ended up ordering two fuel lines for the fuel filter and two oil cooler reseal kits that i forgot about.. ive been double checking everything now!