Lockdown.1

Times sure are Strange Ones..

Still, it is up to each of us to be and do the responsible thing, and for me that means, among other things, not driving my 968 Sport unnecessarily. That opens up a great opportunity to tend to a job list; some cosmetic, some performance, and a few mechanical.. The latter being subject to streetside limitations..!

Track Attack

I took the 968 to the Porsche Experience Centre at Silverstone a week before the Shutdown / Lockdown, which was great fun. Obviously. Enthusiastically Driving / Ragging the 968 around the Short Handling Circuit, the Skid Pan, the Kickplated Water Pan and the Corkscrewed Back Track.. It also highlighted some inadequacies with the 968 Sport that needed correcting / sorting.

The KW Variant 3 Suspension setup had seen better days and needed either a rebuild or replacing. As new, they are quite a harsh ride, especially for a car that has to deal with Urban Roads. Each to his or her own of course, but for me, they gave a bit of a Crash and Bang.

The Passenger Tutor that coached me around the PEC Circuit noticed on the first lap that the Offside Shock was not holding up well, possibly weeping, but definitely needing attention. This revelation provided more of an opportunity than a grimace.

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I decided it was time to replace them, and with a drive towards Stock, I sourced a refurbished fully adjustable KONI M030 Shock & Spring set.

I really want to swap these out during the Lockdown, but with Discretion being the better part of Valour, I think I need to wait until I can get some Ramp Time with Andy the Mechanic. Until then, they’ll just look really nice on the Dining Room table, or wherever they get moved to once that becomes an annoying place for them to be.

Some fun news, I clocked up the 968’s 165,000th Mile on the way Home from Silverstone..

Brace yourself

Having removed a Strut Brace from the 968 during its refreshing [but being advised to install one whilst at the PEC Silverstone] I set about finding one that would compliment the Stock look I had pursued. Wiechers make a lovely Steel unit, painted coincidentally in either Guards Red or blingtastic plated Chromium.

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Installation is simple, but has to be done when the Car is on level ground; easy in a Mechanic’s Garage, not so much on a cambered Street. Fortunately, the Street on which it is parked [STOP PRESS: Man keeps Classic Porsche parked on Street] is pretty much level..

Now that the Brace was in place, I really didn’t like the PORSCHE lettering on the Cam/Intake/Plug Vanity Cover; it had to go. That, the Cam Cover and the Intake Manifold are to head off for a Media Blast and a Powder Coat, in stock Silver. I have already found a Company to handle the task, but they too are in Lockdown, so that will have to wait a few weeks..

Beam Me Up

Talk about pulling on a Thread. I wanted to repair the Headlamp Retaining Rings, which had suffered breakages on both sides; they are parts 15 & 16 [944.750.151.00 & 944.750.153.00] in the diagram below. They rattle a bit and move a little too freely. They are also £73.39 and £55.07 respectively. Plus VAT. Per side. That’s £308.30. Before Paint.

So repairing them is really the only way to go without spending the £400 on something that only I would know is busted. Upon closer inspection, the parts are inherently flawed; their design is weak, the plastic material becomes brittle from the being exposed to the elements and their purpose would have been better integrated into the HeadLamp Cowl [part 17].

The trick to removing these Rings is to move the Headlamps into their On position [Key in and turned to II, turn the Headlamps on; Key to O, remove and turn off Headlamps], pop the Bonnet, then pull the release Handle out [part 14 in the diagram above] and coax the Headlamp into a fully upright position. Easy if someone hasn’t Zip Tied the Headlamp and Locking Segment [part 2] together:

Cutting the Zip Ties and moving the HeadLamp in to this upright position, I could tackle the damage. Look away now if you don’t like Super Glue.

Lower Rings

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Removing the seized M5 Bolts, I was able to clean the broken surfaces of and repair the Lower Ring segments with [ahem] Super Glue; a little Touch Up paint providing a tidy finish..

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Upper Rings

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A damned good clean and touching up with some Guards Red paint is all that was required to bring the Upper Rings back to showroom spec. There was no damage to the pieces otherwise.

Lord of the Rings

Reuniting the Upper and Lower Rings with new Bolts has given them a far more sturdy purpose. Also replaced the Springs [part 3] and one of the worn Roller Tabs [part 2] that tension the Headlamp Unit to the Motorised Frame. No rattling and no visible damage. Very happy with the result..

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Hello, my Name is..

Looking at Immaculate Engine Bays can be somewhat addictive, and after a while you start to discern differences between ones that are simply clean and ones that are absolutely perfect. There is a VarioCam Badge [part no. 944.104.464.00] that is bolted to the Cam Cover that I have seen in only a few 968 Engine Bays, and it was missing from my Engine Bay, so I had to have one..

Looking at the above photo, you could be forgiven for thinking that all is required are a couple of M5 Bolts, however you’d be wrong. Because this is a Porsche. And things are never as simple as they should be..

What is missing is two intermediary rubber mounts that thread into the Cam Cover, and that the Badge Bolts, hence Vanity Cover, thread into. These pieces have float so that Engine Vibration, movement and rock are compensated and do not snap the Bolts holding the Badge etc.

These parts [999 703 388 00] are £24.25. Each. Plus VAT. Not including Postage.

Fortunately, other industries have a similar requirement using a similar part, called a Male Female Bobbin and the dimension matching parts cost the price of a 1994 Pint of Beer each. Perfecto.

If you too are searching for these, you will need the following dimension part:

Part No.	D	H	V	I	Max Load (KG)	Deflection	Cost
1515MF10-60	15mm	15mm	M5	10mm	11.0	1.3mm	£1.59

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Will complete this piece of refurbishment when the Covers come back from the Painters..

Cool Runnings

Opening the Bonnet and fitting the Brace directed my attention to the woefully low Coolant Reservoir. I hadn’t been aware of any leaks nor any overheating, so took this as a chance to monitor both moving forward.

Another aspect of the 968 that I started to contemplate is the age of the Head Gasket. None of the Tell Tale signs of trouble were apparent, but something I wanted to confirm all the same. I contacted the chap I bought the 968 from who was more than happy to allay my fears. This is evidence that it really is a good idea to keep in touch with the Seller; they know things about the Car that, yes you could find the Paperwork for, but they commissioned the work, they paid for the work, and they will remember Big Bills..

Head Gasket, stripping and rebuilding the Head, Cam work, new Clutch, it was all there on an EMC Motorsport invoice; £3K+ worth and only 5 Years / 9,000 Miles ago.

Much relief, time for a Cuppa and some leftover Easter Egg I reckon..