Changed my own clutch, thanks are due to fellow Rennlisters
05-09-2009, 10:09 AM
#20
Thanks everybody. It was a fun project and I did learn quite a bit as I went along. It is a great feeling that after 5 years of ownership I still have never paid anybody to work on this car, except for a corner balance and alignment.
Michal - I used S100 motorcycle cleaner on the engine. It's from the same family as P21S products. Has always worked great removing oil and road mung from my motorcyle engines and wheels so I have been using it on car engines for some time now.
Cactus - From the time I put the car up on jackstands till the time I filled it back up with oil and started it was 2 weeks. One weekend was shot due to a DE. I worked on it in the evenings and all last weekend. Some of the time was involved with making my engine cleat which was well worth the effort. And then I spent time removing the sound padding and adhesive and some other details like repairing a damaged ground wire that a mouse had chewed as well as removing all of the sound padding pieces stashed behind the alternator that served as a mouse palace at one time. Other time was just spent studying how things worked. Overall, this could be done over the course of a weekend if one hustled or had help. I did have help arrive for the actual engine lowering and to remove and reinstall the transmission from the engine. I put the engine back in the car solo.
bpras - I put the Billy HDs and RoW M030 turbo springs in last fall. At the time, I thought that was my crowning achievement.
Michal - I used S100 motorcycle cleaner on the engine. It's from the same family as P21S products. Has always worked great removing oil and road mung from my motorcyle engines and wheels so I have been using it on car engines for some time now.
Cactus - From the time I put the car up on jackstands till the time I filled it back up with oil and started it was 2 weeks. One weekend was shot due to a DE. I worked on it in the evenings and all last weekend. Some of the time was involved with making my engine cleat which was well worth the effort. And then I spent time removing the sound padding and adhesive and some other details like repairing a damaged ground wire that a mouse had chewed as well as removing all of the sound padding pieces stashed behind the alternator that served as a mouse palace at one time. Other time was just spent studying how things worked. Overall, this could be done over the course of a weekend if one hustled or had help. I did have help arrive for the actual engine lowering and to remove and reinstall the transmission from the engine. I put the engine back in the car solo.
bpras - I put the Billy HDs and RoW M030 turbo springs in last fall. At the time, I thought that was my crowning achievement.
05-09-2009, 11:37 AM
#21
That is what separates most Porsche owners from Ferrari ones. We have a deep appreciation for all things mechanical and identify with all aspects of the car. I am determined to do all the work myself, and the money aspect is secondary. You are taking care of the very thing that gives you so much pleasure and in the process become that much more connected in a way that makes your car trully your own.
05-09-2009, 12:50 PM
#23
Seared
Rennlist Member
Rennlist Member
That is what separates most Porsche owners from Ferrari ones. We have a deep appreciation for all things mechanical and identify with all aspects of the car. I am determined to do all the work myself, and the money aspect is secondary. You are taking care of the very thing that gives you so much pleasure and in the process become that much more connected in a way that makes your car trully your own.
Andreas
05-09-2009, 12:53 PM
#24
Mucho appreciation. A one.
Ken
Ken
The amount of satisfaction one gets from doing a major task.
05-09-2009, 06:07 PM
#27
Speaking of Ferrari, I wonder if I would be able to tackle the cam belt change on a 348. I know that requires dropping the engine and I have already found a few good DIYs for doing that. I do want a Ferrari someday and 348s are very attractively priced right now.
05-09-2009, 07:07 PM
#28
Used to own an F355 and have admitted defeat early on; the amount of required maintenance was border line masochistic. The only thing to come close was my friend's Lotus Esprit S4. It is one thing to worship at the engineering altar, another to never get off your knees. Affording a Ferrari (at least pre-Luca de Montezemolo) is not a question of purchase price but of the myriad of parts to follow. Much like the human body, I expect you will have a brand new 348 every 7 years 
05-10-2009, 02:23 AM
#30
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Great work! A good DIY is always a good story, and I am glad this worked out great. How do you like the RS cluch?
Just as a reference for others, a engine drop procedure is at http://www.pcarworkshop.com/index.ph...ing_the_engine. I think there are a few shortcuts to the article, like you can drop the engine with the rear bumper in place, but it all depends on your ability to life the rear of the car over the engine.
Cheers,
Mike
Cheers,
Mike
Just as a reference for others, a engine drop procedure is at http://www.pcarworkshop.com/index.ph...ing_the_engine. I think there are a few shortcuts to the article, like you can drop the engine with the rear bumper in place, but it all depends on your ability to life the rear of the car over the engine.
Cheers,
Mike
Cheers,
Mike