greenjt

Curious to know how many of you guys do your own valve adjustment. Other than it sounds tedious, is there any good reason not to?

edit[ I would answe the poll myself if i had valves to adjust...]

springer3

I do my own. It is a chore on a 964.

greenjt

So 47 views and only 1 affirmative DIY valve adjustment??? 2%???


Hey Springer, how long does this chore take you? Should i assume it's not difficult but just time consuming? Is it also safe to assume that not all valves will need to be adjusted every time based on the clearance at the time?

I am just about brave enough to try this on my own, unless someone can talk me out of it...

Eric Kessel

I have also done a valve adjustment on my C2. After Arjan's write up, I gave it a try.

Tom W

I'm considering learning how. It's being done this week as part of a bunch of other work with the engine out so I won't have to worry about it until next year (but then I will probably do new valves and guides next year...)

greenjt

Eric - Where could one find Arjan's write up? About how long did it take you?

Eric Kessel

Kevin (warmfuzzies?) has a web site where he put Arjan's complete 100k mile tune up, which includes Arjan's battle with the valve adjustment, look on the bottom left link on this page: http://www.964kevin.dsl.pipex.com/

I drained my oil on Friday night when it was hot, let it drain overnight, and then spent most of saturday (morning, and afternoon) taking my time adjusting the valves that needed to be adjusted, and replacing the belts. I don't have the secondary muffler, so that saved a little time. It was a messy job, but not terrible. The hardest part is getting the feel for an adjusted/too loose/too tight valve using the feeler gauge. I'm thinking for next time i'm going to get the bolt on micrometer type gauge to measure for me (I don't remember the exact name of the device, but you bolt this gauge on, and it shows the measurement, instead of doing it by feel).

Take a look at Arjan's write up, it was very very helpful.

Dunasso

I do everything myself. I have a fully adequate shop to do it in, and so should everyone else too.

Duncan

bhensarl

You know, Duncan, you're right. Everyone should have a fully adequate shop to do valve adjustments, and other DIYs, in. And that's why I'm now accepting donations for the "Let's get Brian the shop that he should have so he can work on his P-car" fund. All interested parties can PM me and I'll give you the info so you can wire me the money.

Brian

garrett376

I do mine - it's quite fun and relaxing work. I enjoy it

ckkrause

Well....it's not quite fun and relaxing....but, if you don't have the sound cover on and if the side vertical plastic panels are off...it's really not that bad. I've done it twice on this car. With the oil change and new gaskets, I think it took about 6 hours...if I remember right...

-CKKrause

JasonAndreas

For some sick reason I also enjoy doing my own valve adjustments. If you've never used a feeler gauge the process can be a little unnerving at first; are the valves too tight, are they too loose, did I tighten the adjusting nut too little, etc. If you have dial gauge indicator to check your work or a micrometer to get yourself comfortable using a feeler gauge beforehand you'll be a lot better off. There is no reason not to DIY. There is nothing hard about it, it just takes a little while to dismantle everything. If you have a secondary muffler bypass, no power-steering and no AC then it goes real quick. Porsche has a Z-block (it was around $38USD a couple years ago) that is used for setting cam-timing that comes in handy if you check your work with a dial gauge
EricK, you're more than welcome to borrow these

greenjt

Duncan - You better watch out or i might just drive over to Greenville from Raleigh and park in your garage to adjustmy valves. I am sure your set-up is much better than mine. Of course, this assumes i actually follow through on the threat to become a 964 owner...

PPI is tomorrow!

Dunasso

greenjt,

You are welcome at any time to work on your P-car at my place. Just let me know.

JasonAndreas,

What no Starret precission measuring tools? Come on, it's aPorsche. Just kidding.

Duncan

springer3

Go for it. It is not difficult and not unpleasant, but it does take a lot of time. The chore comment was mostly related to the time required - the 6 hour estimate is lean for a first timer. I think I could do it in half the time next time. Arjan's post will give you a good feel for the degree of difficulty. He is man enough to admit a mistake on his first attempt. Thanks to him, other first-timers will be able to avoid the same mistake.

I could not locate my feeler gage and did all the valves with the same dial indicator set up the JanonAndreas shows. The power steering pump makes it very difficult to mount the dial on the valve nearest it. Next time I will have the feeler gage. I did valves many times on my previous 911, and I cross-checked the feeler gage with the dial indicator. The methods are equally accurate once you get the hang of it. The feeler gage is much quicker (you need to remove the dial gage to make an adjustment, and then reinstall it each try).

On my recent service, I found all the valves needed some adjustment. That is high relative to esperience on my 911T, where usually only two or three would need a tweak. The PO's receipts show the valves were adjusted 12,000 miles ago, but by a dealer with a terrible reputation. I don't know if or how well the work was done. I suspect the valves were left alone like most of the other items charged for. One advantage of DIY work is you know for sure the work is done properly.