[williamoss]

OK thank you for that information on the pads. I have another thought. Since I assume one has to remove the Chain Adjuster (part # 944 105 201 AX). Does this part wear out at around 100,000 miles or is it just the pads? I ask since I am not lucky enough to do the work myself, and labor from a mechanic is expensive, But so is the entire Chain adjuster. I would hate to change the pads only to have to do the job again in say another 50,000. 

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

[MCL968]

My adjuster has 110k and when I had my head gasket, pads and chain replaced last month, the mechanic said it looked great and worked as Porsche intended. While these parts can fail like anything else, I don't believe it's one of the weak points of our engines.

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

[ds968]

Way too many variables affecting the longevity of certain parts in our cars , not the least of which is driving habits. So always keep the YMMV adage in mind, things like abrupt acceleration , keeping the revs consistently high, using lesser quality oils and other fluids, even cheap gas can affect the wear and tear factor of parts. True, not one of the known weak points in our cars, but you don't want to become the first statistic with things that could be catastrophically expensive to fix.

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

[wildcat]

My trashed and thrashed 968 has the original chain adjuster and pads at 135k plus, not to disagree on the premise of your statement.  While I've had other issues, the one that many are most concerned about has not been a factor in my case. I checked the pads about 5k ago and there was a very slight amount of wear.  After all the horror stories, I have really wondered at the apparent discrepancy. I know I'm not alone but the concern has been very real to many.

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

[Sculler]

Wildcat. Just curious. Did you check bottom pad as well as top pad? My top pad looked okay at 55,000 mile but bottom pad was trashed.

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

[wildcat]

Yes, I checked both. The bottom is harder but I've got a friend with a boroscope.  Something used to look inside jet engines and its got a flexible head...

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

[Sculler]

Like you say discrepancy in wear is pretty dramatic. I do know that my car saw a lot of track time.

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

[vliegwielolaf1234]

Looking if they are groved wil give you an indication , but on the other hand , in my believe it has never been an issue that pads have little groves , the reason for the chain to fail , is because the pads over time become brittle and start falling appart , when that happens the pads at one point wil be thorn off and end up between sprocket and chain , chain wil break an valves get bend .

Other one is the streching of the chain , when that happens it wil eat up the theeth on the cam sprockets , and they wil fail at one point with same bend valves .

 

 Inspect en in doubt change them .

 

Age is as much a factor or maybe even bigger , than mileage .

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

[Bulti]

Very much agree on that one.

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

[wildcat]

The original pads were dark brown as they came from the factory, which is what mine has.  The replacements I've seen are a much lighter yellow. If anyone knows if any replacements came in the dark brown I'd have to change my statement.  And to all that, performance will be at its best with new ones. 

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

[jfrahm]

I believe the brown staining from the oil and crankcase vapor turns the off-white pads dark over time.  The same staining can be seen on the aluminium under the cam cover.

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

[williamoss]

where have members bought both the top and bottom pads from and what are the part numbers?

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

[vliegwielolaf1234]

where have members bought both the top and bottom pads from and what are the part numbers?

Like i said before . both parts are the same , that is why people cannot find the bottom pad .




because in real life it is the top pad .

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

[Bulti]

Maybe try here:


http://www.paragon-products.com/Camshaft...1.rail.htm

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

[wildcat]

I know an old Porsche mechanic who worked on them in the early 90's and he said the originals were brown, they do get stained and turn a darker brown. But if you took an old one and cut it in half you'd see the original color. The early replacements were an off white as you suggest, and the most recent are a bright yellow. I have papers on the service and work performed but no mention of changing the pads. I've looked into the differences and have concluded they must be the originals.  The original owner was rather casual about maintenance and the car has proven tougher than some might think. 

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

[wildcat]

Just thought I'd post these pix to clarify.

 

       

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

[az968]

There's a really good set of instructions on Variocam maintenance, including the pads, on this forum, search under the maintenance section.  The pads can be purchased from a Porsche dealer, the set I purchased earlier this year were $23 and change each, need 2. part number 944-105-509-00.  The Paragon site linked above also shows them.

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

[williamoss]

I just picked up a set of the pads from Sunset. They were $18.68 each. They were a light brown color, with the part number was 944-105-509-00. The ones I picked up were the last ones they had in stock.

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

[williamoss]

There is a very interesting article on the 968.net site published by Derek Holliday and Ugo Manfredi.   It is a 16 page discussion on the inspection procedure and Maintenance Schedule on the 968 Variocam

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