shamrock

European cars won't throw a cel with worn guides , so we can go on filling her with oil well after increased consumption (due to chocolate guides!) is noticeable ...But I wonder if there's other damage that would be done to the engine in the long run if this issue is ignored .. I suppose eventually she's going to drop a valve , but I wonder how far down the road would you be in terms of consumption before this became an issue ..
anyone care to guess??!

race911

Doing the actual machine work yourself, too? Only way you'll keep it at a 1980's price.

VNTGSPD

I wish!

I just went though a complete overhaul on my 2.4L motor last year and have a pretty good idea of the costs. I ended up with a VERY strong 2.4L motor for under $4K. All my machining is done by Ollies which is one of the best. Some things on the 3.6 are different but nothing of major significance.

Seals/gaskets run about $500
Headwork to replace guides and touch up valves/seats runs about $500
That leaves a $500 fudge factor in case there are unforseen issues such as broken studs, bad seats, or selected bad valves.

Of course, some will automatically replace all valves to the tune of $1200 when they do a top end but I don't see the need if they mic out within dimension (which is common - just reference North Coast Cab thread).

I suppose if I keep this car for a few more years, we'll find out if I'm right!

MarkD

Couple of other thoughts.
You will need the cam timing tools or convert to the "old" style cam gears to time with a dial indicator. Cam timing tools are... pricey (ask me how I know )
Other misc stuff (cleaners, required sealers, etc) will eat up that extra $500 quick. You probably already have much of this stuff.
Also, lifters will be pretty toasted by this time. If you find a good source a set will run about $400.

VNTGSPD

Oh yeah, lifters! Damn.

The other stuff is not an issue. So, less than $100 for "incidentals" plus 2 years of inflation before I ever get to this means that my budget might be challenged.

I stand corrected: $1550

MarkD

the tools... 993s are different... see above.
edit: sorry to be a downer...

VNTGSPD

No tool issues. Mine is an early build so is probably the old style but I am covered either way on that one.

However, the average Joe DIY'er may not be so lucky and would definitely have to budget for that. Fortunately, resale on such tools is really good so the net cost at the end of the job is small.

I've always wanted to start a "tool pool" with my local PCA so we can all take advantage of each others tools but that hasn't managed to take off yet.

Anyway, back on-topic...

vjd3

My car had the valve guides replaced, LWF and clutch installed, 60k service done and new suspension installed and aligned for $4995 by Mark Nadler at Exotech in NH -- this was not counting the cost of the LWF kit and suspension pieces. As I recall, price on the top end alone was about $3500 or so. FastFreddy and a few others on Rennlist have had their cars done there, I think one guy drove a long way to get the work done. Mark does a lot of racing engine builds, so teardowns and installing valve guides is routine for him. The car has run flawlessly for two years now and uses no oil. It had 59k miles at the time of the work.

Mark's shop is basically a barn outside his home, so his overhead is low, and you need to be patient about getting your car back as he is always swamped, even in the winter, and busy racing in the summer. If I had been in more of a hurry, I would have used someone like Jerry at EPE because his work is impeccable and he would have turned it around much more quickly, but I was putting the car down for the winter anyway and Mark has a good reputation here and with the local PCA racing crowd, and was closer to me to boot. I basically gave Mark carte blanche to do whatever the car needed, but valve guides and the passages were the only issues with my motor. My car spent a lot of time sitting out in the snow ;-)

My understanding is almost any 993 engine will have significantly worn exhaust valve guides that may or may not be causing a running issue; some folks have gone many miles without touching it, even though they may be tossing a quart in every 1000 miles or so. The SAI issue seems to prompt people to deal with it earlier, and they are finding worn guides. This is not uncommon throughout the 911 range, at least from the 3.2 Carrera on.

I've had a few 993s, every one of them ran great but used oil, even lower mileage examples I've had. This car will literally go the 7500 between changes without needing a drop. That's pretty good, I'd say.

Chuck W.

Same here. I have close to 90,000 miles and change the oil every 5,000 miles. There is no oil lost between oil changes. I read these post and consider myself lucky.