by John Glynn | Mar 10, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Project Cars
Nice surprise in the mail this morning, when a package of Porsche 911 backdate parts I was expecting from EB Motorsport turned out to be a pair of lightweight Porsche 911 rear lights instead.
I’ve been keen to check these light weight parts out for a while, and they do not disappoint. Finished to the usual excellent EB standards, the bodies feature brass inserts for the standard lens screws, and come with bulb holders, and bulbs.
Moulded in highly resilient composite materials, the units are a direct swap for the rust-prone originals. A set saves over three kilograms versus the factory parts. I think the boys use these on the race cars so they must be sturdy parts.
Most amazing was the closeness of each piece when weighed on the digital scales: within 10g of each other at 202g versus 212g. And that could well have been the bags.
When we think of fibreglass parts, we think of words like wobbly, flimsy and amateur. None of these words come to mind here: I might offer one up to the Orange and see how it fits (before they get ‘lost’ in my garage). The bodies are £280 a pair from EB direct, or similarly priced from European outlet, Twinspark Racing, or via EB Motorsport distributors Rothsport Racing in the USA.
by John Glynn | Mar 9, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Project Cars
Had a good email from friend of Ferdinand, Patrick, down in Christchurch, New Zealand. Patrick won a Jagermeister 934 print in one of our Porsche print giveaways a year or so ago and has kept in touch. Here’s his print hanging on the office wall:
He also sent some pics of a nice early car, recently unearthed close to home. It’s one of the last ’73 models, fitted with CIS: an efficient and economical set up that is easy to drive and maintain. WEVO Hayden has a similar car in San Francisco, cherished mainly for its fuel efficiency. I’ll let Patrick take up the story:
“Thought you might be interested in my latest acquisition which joins the 944 Turbo race car in my garage. This 1973 911T was sold new in California, USA and was brought into NZ in the mid 90’s. Done 120,000 miles but runs very strongly as it it is a 73.5 with CIS fuel injection.
“This car had been hiding undercover in a quiet street only a few blocks from my home. Having been without a 911 since I sold my 964 C4 two years ago, when my mate Charles phoned me to say the owner was thinking of selling, I didn’t hang around too long.
“The car is very sound & is a keeper. I intend making a few subtle mods, but will keep the narrow body look. It is LHD, but I prefer it that way (even though we drive on the same side of the road as you UKers) as there is no offset on the pedals. Photos are from Wanaka, about 350km from home, on a recent trip down to Central Otago to watch motor racing at the new Highlands Motorsport Park.”
Kudos Patrick: wishing you many happy miles in the new arrival. Great to see our photo hanging on the wall! Keep in touch with Ferdinand by email at mail@ferdinandmagazine.com.
by John Glynn | Mar 2, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Project Cars
Been meaning to uncover my Carrera 3.0 for a while and stick the battery on charge. Did it this evening and found a big surprise hiding under the cover. The roof, rear arches and scuttle are peppered with microblisters. What a pain in the arse!
It’s not a huge deal, as the guys at Racing Restorations have some Porsche rust & bodywork repair work to do for me: repairing the dents I made over the driver’s door in Monaco, and sorting a bodged repair from before my time on an offside rear quarter replacement. So we’ll have to paint lots of the the car anyway, as matching this custom Continental Orange mix won’t be easy.
While we’re chopping about, I might get them to make a nicer job on the oil cooler nose box (done before me), and change an inner rear wing where it’s been hammered out in the past, so they might cut the rear quarter panel off for that. I’ll find Rob’s boys some other stuff to do: maybe chop the sills open to look for any rot. Tuthills have some nice carbon 935-style mirrors coming through on a new build, so maybe I’ll switch to those too. And fit a Safari roof vent! (might be just kidding)
I suppose this only really bugs me as there was nothing wrong with the paint when it went under cover, and the cover is not some cheap blanket affair: it’s a supposedly breathable genuine Porsche Tequipment accessory.
But I’m not blaming the cover and I don’t blame the car. I’ve neglected the Orange for long enough, so will just get it fixed. First thing to do is drag it out and run it to for an MOT when the battery’s charged. That’ll clean the mildew off the throttle.
by John Glynn | Feb 22, 2014 | Project Cars, Porsche Cayenne
The original Volkswagen Touareg and Porsche Cayenne may not share an engine, but earlier models do share a transmission: the Aisin AW TR-60SN/09D.
This six-speed transmission is generally reliable, but develops problems with the valve body: the hydraulic fluid control assembly that regulates gear and clutch engagements. The classic valve body symptom is a hard shift from fourth to fifth. “It feels like you’re going through the windscreen,” is how one Porsche tech friend described his first experience of the problem.
I’ve been having gearbox problems with my Cayenne for a while now, with the valve body the prime suspect. My 2004 Cayenne S never had a huge problem changing gear: it was much more a clutch control issue, where the car would drop out of gear while waiting to pull out of a T-junction or onto a roundabout and leave you stranded at first, but suddenly find second, tearing off with a highly undignified bang. Cue eyeliner streaks on back-seat teenage cheeks.
The experience was most unbecoming, so I decided to fix it. The Internet provided two firms in the UK known to repair Cayenne valve bodies (mine shown above) by reaming the worn valve passages out and inserting bigger valves, and refurbishing solenoids where required. The cost was less than half that of a remanufactured Porsche part, said to solve the problems discovered in the earlier Cayennes.
I emailed the first firm. The owner answered a couple of my messages but stopped when I asked for a few more details on the process for a magazine article. The other firm’s contact was more amenable and sounded like he knew his stuff. We stripped the valve body out of the car and sent it away. It came back refurbished, we refitted it and the car hasn’t worked since.
We’ve tried two different valve bodies, both supposedly testing fine on the bench but not working in the car. I can get gears 1, 2 and 3 ok, but when it hits the shift to fourth, the display says it has shifted but the car drops out of gear, as if you’ve stepped on the clutch. It will rev away doing nothing, then it throws a gearbox fault and limp mode follows.
I’ve bitten the bullet and ordered the Porsche replacement valve body at £1030 plus 20% VAT. Plus another round of trans fluid changes and work time lost, and whatever bill I get for these unsuccessful valve bodies (one my original, the other going back). You can be sure of small claims repercussions there.
Learn from my mistakes. If you’ve got a reliable Subaru, stick with it. Do not buy a used Porsche Cayenne! Add this to the classic Cayenne problems of coil failures, coolant pipe failures, control arm fails, screenwash leaks and ECU destruction and so on and it gets very expensive to run a used Cayenne. Not to mention what happens when your engine fails – as many V8s and Turbos do.
Anyone well versed in auto gearboxes with some thoughts on the 4-5-6 issue, kindly drop me a line. We have triple-checked wiring connections, fluid levels, filters, pressures, gearbox operating temps and it works fine in first through third, if not as smooth as original. Very disappointing not to have the car outside the door, but we will sort it out eventually.
Update to this post – I sorted the problem by rebuilding the transmission. The 4/5/6 clutch pack was gone. The specialist I was using at the time did not diagnose the issue correctly, but a transmission expert sorted it in a couple of days. Cost was £1500, including removal and refitting of the transmission (that price included a discount of their normal valve body refurb cost as mine was done). Moral of the story: not all Porsche specialists are equal – I didn’t need to buy the Porsche valve body as the original refurb was done by the guys the transmission specialists usually used!
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by John Glynn | Feb 21, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Project Cars
Another fun email exchange this week was with Jim in Down Under, concerning his 1967 Porsche 911 Soft Window Targa.
“The Targa is almost complete: all very good gaps, road registered and all electrics work. Only real problem is bad rust in a difficult spot around the pedal box area, fiddly to fix but will happen. Interior is so good that I plan to detail it to within an inch of its life and leave as is.
“About the only thing missing is the ash tray and they are a bit hard to find unfortunately (email if you can help – JG). Even the Targa top which needs full restoration is absolutely complete. The early cars had a lot more thin metal detail trim than later cars and they would be impossible to find and a nightmare to make, so good that it’s all here on my car.”
The left-hand drive Porsche came to Australia from the US (left hand drive cars over thirty years old are OK in Australia) and sat in a barn for twelve years. Jim bought it from the importer and send it to Autohaus Hamilton for recommissioning, with instructions not to disturb the patina. Hamiltons flushed the fuel tank, cleaned the lines and rebuilt the carbs, sorted some failed bushes, a dud master cylinder and brakes, and it was ready to go.
Too many people would sand and repaint this car, without savouring it as it came. Kudos to Jim for sticking with his patina-rich classic 911 Targa: it snaps, crackles and pops!
Got a Porsche project you want to share with the world? You know what we like to feature: doesn’t have to be a 911. Send us some pics and a couple of words: mail@ferdinandmagazine.com.
by John Glynn | Feb 13, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Project Cars
Those famous Nürburgring Porsche racing heroes have unveiled a Manthey Porsche 997 GT3 4.4-litre upgrade engine conversion for GT3 models.
With increases of up to 80Nm and 95hp available versus stock-engined Porsche 997 GT3s, Manthey’s 530 engine kit includes a redesigned crankshaft. It’s the most powerful engine upgrade package offered by the Nürburgring 24-hour winners.
Olaf Manthey Porsche 997 GT3 Engine Conversion
“Serious engine construction involves craftsmanship far in advance of simple engine map reprogramming,” explains Olaf Manthey. “It is important for a 24-Hour winner to say that engine design and development is done in-house, with no external knowhow. Using Manthey designed and race proven parts is the only way I can hold my head up high, saying “our team did that.” Those driving with one of our engines in the back of their GT3 know that Manthey power is a very special feeling.”
Manthey offers smaller upgrades, adding up to 35hp to early GT3s. The full range of Manthey products can be seen on the Porsche Racing website.
