Speedyellow993

I'm looking to buy a 1996 993 Targa with 60k miles on the clock.

There is a SAI issue I have been told that triggers a intermitant Ceck engine light.

The seller tells me there is no perfomance lost. Is there truth to this?

Does anyone know the cost of fixing this issue?

Thanks for the help guys!

1pcarnut

Probably a search will tell you what you want to know. Has no affect on performance this is true, but could be worn valve guides, a pretty expensive fix, and/or plugged SAI ports. There are several DIYs for unclogging the ports and if you are mechanically inclined, it is something you could tackle for minimal cost.

richardew

I threw an SAI CEL about 152,000 miles ago! There is no effect on performance, at least none that I have noticed. When it first happened I lived where there was no emission inspection, so I did a black tape repair. When I moved and needed to pass emissions the dealer did a flush of the SAI ports that cleared 5 of the 6. I bought a OBDII reader that allows me to reset the CEL and check the emission status. I can get ~1000 highway miles on the car before it throws the code again. The real fix is expensive - top end rebuild.
rich

g_murray

Here's a suggestion:

You agree to buy the car -- contingent on i) the seller going HALF on the cost of getting all 6 ports cleared out/flushed out (Techron) and ii) the car passing (OBDii) inspection.

My $0.02,
Gerry

Speedyellow993

Wow.... A top end rebuild seems extreme. Any idea on the cost of a top end rebuild?

MarkD

You need more info to know what the real issue is.
Excessive oil consumption triggers the need for a valve job. That can be hard info to get when shopping for a car...
SAI CEL can be a few things, as mentioned above.

If SAI ports are clogged, they can be cleaned out (not trivial but certainly can be done).
Valve guide wear leading to excessive oil consumption is where it gets pricey.
"Excessive" is somewhere around < 800 miles/qt of oil


Cost of a top end rebuild is anywhere from $5K-$10K (or more) depending on who you go to, what is included and what you do "while you are in there"
IMO, the price for a proper valve job should be $5-6K but this is often debated. A search will get you a mind boggling # of threads on this topic.


Hope that helps!

goofballdeluxe

Sorry, but this is incorrect.

A top-end rebuild is not necessary for a SAI CEL. The only thing that would require a top end rebuild is if the car is consuming an excessive amount of oil, say, more than 1 quart/600 miles, which would mean the valve guides are shot.

An SAI CEL however, in and of itself, may require only a flush of the clogged ports, which is much, much less expensive; I was quoted $750-$1000 to have it done; also it can be done by yourself if you have the know-how. Some here have cleaned the ports with bass guitar strings and solvents.

If oil consumption is low, there's no reason to do a top end rebuild for a SAI CEL.

vjd3

Nonetheless, it's a pretty good bet your exhaust guides are going to be worn at that mileage; mine were just about shot at 58k miles. However, the car will just run fine and dandy as long as you keep adding oil, at least until it gets so bad it fouls the plugs. That could be another 50k+ miles away.

I did the top end for about $3500 at a shop in NH that some other folks on this list have used. The car has not used a drop of oil 22k miles later. I could have had the passages reamed out, and even thought about having them bypassed with some tubing as a permanent fix, but I'm happy I did the guides and the car runs great. (I might not be so happy had it cost the $8-10k I've heard quoted, though.)

BTW, I told the mechanic (Mark Nadler at Exotech in Plaistow NH -- he builds mostly race engines and is a racer himself) to go ahead and replace anything that looked worn or suspect while he was at it, but he said everything else looked just fine. These are very robust engines; the Achilles heel seems to be the OEM valve guides, which are on the soft side.

tigerrat

Could be as simple as replacing the SAI valve which is what, a $40 part? Could you not get the valve guides examined as part of a PPI?

MarkD

exactly...

More info is needed before determining the cost
The approach suggested by Gerry above is a good one, assuming you really want that particular 993

Speedyellow993

Thanks guys!