[united]

Hi all, my name is Gil and I'm from Athens,Ohio. Just picked up my first 968 last week and am already in "elbows deep"! Its a 1994 cab, 6 speed and it has been sitting for several years. Outside at that! A typical case of a great car just needing alot of TLC. I tried to start it and found I had no fuel pressure and the pump came off (locked up) and the pump to tank hose was full of stuff and the then the strainer came out and it had long since gone away which was probably what locked up the pump. Anyway....tonight from the strainer to the filter all goes in new. Keep your fingers crossed!

This is my 4th Porsche, all of the others have been 911's (2- 996's and a 964) I've always really liked the looks of the 968 and am real excited about my new project. Anyway, I'm glad to be here!

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[tamathumper]

Awesome! Congrats and welcome to the forum!



If the car has been sitting that long, and with indeterminate maintenance records, please please don't try to start it any more. Tow it if necessary, and get a new timing belt on there. Those things get old and crispy, and they break especially during startup, and then valves meet pistons and $5,000 goes into a rebuild.



There's a bunch of "while you're in there" stuff, too. Rollers, balance shaft belt, maybe water pump, etc.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[MB968]

Good advice. Cost of a tow truck can be cheap insurance.



Welcome. Once you get 'er running there are some good roads over in that neck of the woods. Hocking Hills is one of my favorite areas. Enjoy

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[Inkedupfatboy]

Hi Gil,

I just bought the same car - year and gearbox that had been sitting for 5 years.



Spent 2900.00 to get her running.

New water pump

New battery

New fuel filter

New plugs

New DME relay

New belt tensioner

New serp Belt

New balance belts

etc...



Flushed gas tank & Fuel system

Flushed brake lines

Flushed clutch lines

All new fluids

Flushed and replaced fluid in transaxle

New tires



All that BEFORE we turned a key.



Unfortunately although she runs great - the transaxle needs a rebuild - my guy thinks it is the dreaded pinion bearing but we will see what we see when he cracks the case.



Good luck with your new baby - and welcome to the club and the site!!!



Ed

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[craigawoodman]

Welcome. Lots of good knowledge, some learned the hard way here. All the best with the car. Great to see a car that had left to linger getting a new lease of life.



After the initial hardships and work to get her up and running again, hopefully there will be years of memorable journeys and adventures. If Khama is real, the care put back into the car, should be repaid in spades.



All the best and keep us informed of your 968 updates.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[Rap]

Welcome. Enjoy your ride!

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[Inkedupfatboy]

Keep us posted and put up some photos as soon as you can post them. Read the info in the tutorial and explore the site. I myself have learned tons of great info!!

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[united]

Thanks for the greetings, and the advice! I have read all about the timing belt replacements and their importance, but somehow I guess I really didn't think they applied to me! I know that sounds crazy. I guess that comes from personal experience. I am a tractor dealer and we have sold them to people that don't do any maintenance to speak of for hundreds of hours and they just keep chugging along. My daily driver is a 2003 Ford F-250 with a 7.3 Powerstroke and it has 350k miles on it with a starter replacement being about the furthest I've been into that engine. So anyway, I guess that is the only logical reason why my brain would not think any of that applies to me! Not smart, I know. This is not my first Porsche, but it is the first one that I had to winch on the trailer and the first one that didn't run. In my younger days I rebuilt several american v-8's and have done just about everything else there is to do to an automobile or motorcycle, but this will be the first Porsche that I have changed more than the oil on. I guess that is why I joined this forum. I can tell I'm gonna need all of the good advice and moral support I can get. And I can tell you all really like your 968's!!

An update on my 968. Yes I did get it started (before I read the replies!). The fuel system rework did the ticket. It started. I do think I have other problems however. I would say I have a problem with the head gasket. I did change the oil before I started it and there was some water in the oil. I wanted to hope it was condensation from sitting but after running a couple minutes I think it is more than that. The new oil has that slightly milky look now. So, I think a head gasket replacement is in order. At that time I will have the head reworked, replace the timing belts and rollers, and the water pump. I'll inspect the Variocam parts for wear. Is there anything else that I should be looking at? Its a fairly low mile engine (65k) so I am hoping the lower end will be good. It sounded good (No noticeable bottom end noises) during the couple minutes I had it running and the oil pressure looked real good on the dash gauge. So thats where I'm at. Once again, thanks for the greetings and the advice.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[Inkedupfatboy]

As I said, I probably have the dreaded pinion bearing failure - read up on that. Check out Flash's posts as he is a wiz at this car. Many of the other members are real experts on this vehicle. I bought mine from a friend's widow as it was just sitting in the garage. Chased the car for two years before she finally parted with it.

Even before I bought the car I was reading up on it here, and I can tell you reading the posts here really pays off. My car sat unmoved for almost 5 years, so it really needed a thorough going over. Only 44,001 on the ODO.



Much to learn as this car is very different to other Porsche autos. I am waiting to get mine back from the transaxle rebuild to I can finally get her screaming down the highway.



The information here is really valuable. It is worth doing the homework.



Can't wait to see photos!

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[MB968]

Gil, there is a really simple thing I'd suggest you do, since it sounds like you've turned a wrench. The top belt cover on the front of the engine is easily removed with just 6 small bolts. If you take it off, it will give you a look at the belts and the front of the engine.



And, you'll want to get electronic copies of the parts list for not only the 968, but 944s (I've found a couple of things on my car that were not listed in the 968 parts manual, but were in the 944 S2 manual). And you'll also want to get electronic copies of the repair manuals for the 968 and the 944s. The way Porsche wrote the 968, they only added those things that were not already covered in the 944 manual. So, you'll want all of these.



Edit: Yeah, following Tama's note below. I didn't mean to take the visual as an OK for the belts. You MUST do them now. If you take the cover off, since it is so easy, you'll get a peak at anything else that might show up like bad seals, etc.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[tamathumper]

... and even if the belt looks OK, replace it anyway. It's not that they wear out visibly, they just plain snap.



Another very common failure is the insulation on the big cable that goes from the alternator down to the starter. Standing at the driver's side front wheel, look down at the alternator and if the big cable on the back of it is bare or has otherwise crispy insulation on it, you should replace that cable as soon as possible - otherwise your car might try to self-start in the garage or parking lot due to a short with the ignition wire that runs in the same sheath. There is a very quality replacement available from one of the vendors here, called Higher Connections, IIRC.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[united]

Thanks for all of the great ideas! Definitely did not start it again. Started tear down process last night to remove the head and inspect everything. About half way there I think. Only thing that I've had any trouble with to speak of is the header to exhaust pipe bolts and I had PB'd them so they weren't that bad. I will keep you informed. 1 question...is this the thread to continue with updates on this project?

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[psuphoto]

Like Tamathumper said, something easy, but less obvious is the wiring from the starter to the battery and the wiring between the alternator and battery. And the negative battery cable. I think these are inexpensive parts, but lots of labor unless everything is out of the way. I'm debating doing the wiring myself or paying my favorite mechanic $100/hour... mmm....

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.