H2

On 928s certain very difficult to replicate fuel lines are no longer available and there's a scramble to find reliable replacements. Why? Too many engine fires in 928s over the past few years as these cars age (heat is the big enemy).

Our 968s are newer..but the same dilemma may eventually face us. I would suggest replacing any questionable engine fuel hoses...or even stockpiling an extra set. I sure wish I'd done that for my 928s.

The problem with 928s is that there are some tight bends that modern, unshaped hoses can't replicate w/o caving in, restricting gas flow. Will this ever be a problem with 968s?

Are there other parts that we might want to keep extras of or pick up on eBay while the prices are reasonable?

On the 968, think about the lower cam chain pad and other parts that are NLA. In some cases there are replacements...in others maybe not. What about brains? When NLA happens the prices for these parts sky rocket.

Harvey

RajDatta

Harvey, the lower chain pad is the same as upper. For some reason Porsche only shows the upper pad but they are the exact same part. This is coming from doing atleast half a dozen chain/head jobs and walking a few friends through others.
Regards.
Raj

spieln

One that is getting harder to find is a windshield. Just had to replace mine and the only option now is to get it through the dealer. The dealer computer only indicated 2 in the country. Probably more from Germany if you can wait. Cost is something like $900. Luckily I have $100 deductible comp insurance so I was only out the $100.

BTW- all new windshield come with the antenna in the glass. Only option available.

PorscheDude1

I just repalced mine last month.
Got mine from the dealer. When I ordered it back december I was told it was being shipped from germany.
Lucky for me my friend is a GM at a dealer in NJ.
I paid $475 + $150 for install at safelite.

Window has antenna which was not to my liking.

rpm's S2

Rear hatch glass and assembly is also getting tricky to find. The 91 944S2 I believe is identical, but not too many of those either.

This is a critical problem as all of our hatch glass will eventually delaminate it seems. I have seen lots of discussion and some seemingly complex fixes, but nothing that seems definitive.

H2

Concerning hatch glass, mine was starting to delaminate a little over a year ago (at the top) and I carefully fixed it and I think it will never be a problem again. Tricky doing it though w/o breaking the glass. A new hatch is between $5K-$6K I've been told. I posted the "How To" at 968Forums.com in the DIY section. You can't buy the glass separately.

However, just in case, I picked up a 951 glass (in frame) with looks identical. I suspect it may bolt on but the spoiler would be wrong. It's also possible to remove and replace the glass but a very tedious and tricky project. I'll try that before paying $5K though!

Harvey

GeorgeNZ

Gearsets for the 6spd are also NLA - which is the primary reason I changed to the PHII short ratios - so careful with those changes and watch those syncro's.

Darth Coupe

MAF's are NLA.

H2

John Speake (of England) rebuilds MAFs for 928s. I wonder if he does 968s. Does anyone?

Harvey

RajDatta

The MAF is a Bosch item and one should be able to cross reference it. Also, most MAF's should be similar so if service is available for 928's, it should be available for 968's.
Harvey, its great to have people like yourself who bring a wealth of knowledge about other Porsche models. I am sure, some of the vendors that provide services for 928's could do the same for 968's. How about getting some of those folks to make products for our cars?
Regards.
Raj

H2

Raj,

Two things....you're right about the Bosch MAF..the challenge may be cross referencing them. I was lucky and bought a brand new one on eBay a couple of years ago for my 928 for less than $100. I've not seen a 968 equivalent yet. Rebuilts go for a lot more than $100.

Given the small number of 968s "out there" the 928 vendors may not be interested in making specialized parts. However, those that make custom parts, they could easily make 968 parts that are similar. For example, NLA gas hoses. There's quite a debate ("race between two vendors") to make the ultimate 928 hoses. Once they get the trick down, it would be a snap to make 968 hoses using one's fittings. The challenge is that the 32V 928 has a Horseshoe shaped hosed whose bend radius collapses with most available hoses so they're looking for a solution. Fuel hoses are something one does not take a chance with.

The market may be larger that 968s for parts that would fit 944s/951s...etc but that market is pretty well covered I suspect.

There are quite a few replacement parts for the Porsche from Bosch, VW, Audi, but no one has made a list of them that I know of. I do have a list of NLA parts for the 928. It's long. Hoses and frequently replaced parts seem to be NLA first.

Harvey

Renalicious

I wonder, how do cars like the 356 still keep going if they're more than 50 years old? Surely parts for those models would have been discontinued a long time ago. If the same will happen to our cars, what can we do about it? Pay a huge premium to have a part refabricated? Like the windshield for example, what will happen when there are no more in stock in Germany?

GeorgeNZ

I guess its all about finding what there is in the aftermarket world - we're sourcing non-genuine windscreens out of Australia for the race cars. Quite a number of transaxle parts are in fact Audi 01E parts.

H2

The Chinese are making 928 windshields....but there're not very good. Most report wavy glass. They're also making fuel pumps and selling them on eBay (be careful?) But much cheaper than Porsche. BTW, does the 951 or S2 or 944 wind screens fit the 968?

Harvey

GeorgeNZ

yup