944 Turbo Mini Restoration

[Wh1t3Kn1ght]

Hi Guys,

You wanted to see my 944 Turbo so I feel I must oblige :grin:

First picture from several years ago now and shows the original condition.

I collected the keys to this beauty back in 2007 and it was my daily driver until 2014 when I got my company car.

I took the opportunity then to have a good look at the bodywork as some rust was starting to appear in the usual 944 places.

Got it booked in with a local Porsche bodywork specialist who fitted some new body panels and repaired some sections.

After this the car went into a local classic car bodyshop for a full glass out and bare metal respray in the original Panther Black.

Car is currently in storage and requires some final assembly of interior and exterior trim. I then have a list of mechanical items I want to complete and servicing before I get it back on the road.

 

[Gazc2]

Very nice :thumb: hope your spring plates are in better condition than mine which were seized solid , I`m trying to decide between replacement rubber bushes or the harder poly

 

[HSC911]

:worship:

You should be called the Bl4ckKn1ght

:grin:

 

[Chief]

Dark horse and all that!
What a car A lot or work has gone int that :thumb:

I trust we will see pictures and updates as you tackle the mechanicals?

 

[Wh1t3Kn1ght]

:worship:

You should be called the Bl4ckKn1ght

:grin:

Hahaha you are right - mate said it was a good name when I had my white 944S so it stuck

Dark horse and all that!
What a car A lot or work has gone int that :thumb:

I trust we will see pictures and updates as you tackle the mechanicals?

Yes - will start an instagram account as well going to be very busy between this and some other jobs on the 996

 

[infrasilver]

I have no free time due to a permanent maintenance program on a 944S and 996 combined.

I do love the N/A engine of the S but I guess going to a Turbo is a better prospect.

 

[Wh1t3Kn1ght]

Quick update from me - I spent 3 hours in the garage on Friday night whilst it peed down outside going through the interior of the car and gathering all the various loose parts and sticking them in a box. I also noted down anything I needed to order or any jobs I'd overlooked and added them to my ever growning list.



Battery was dead as a do do when we picked the car up from storage and looks like the bad indie I went to stuck a cheapo Lion brand battery in and charged me same price as a Bosch...

I've got a brand new Continental timing belt and balance shaft belt so will be ordering the belt service tools and a flywheel lock very shortly so I can tackle the first job. Making sure I get this done before I get any inclination to start her up. I also need to get the hand brake adjusted on my 996 - so that is my first priority.

 

[Chief]

Looks a bit tight in there!
Keep up the good work :thumb:

 

[Wh1t3Kn1ght]

Not much to report so far - spent some time sorting out all the parts I have and buying lots of fasteners from ebay!

Belt change tool kit arrived from Germany and the quality of the tools is very good - nice thickness and weight to the spanners and a very solid looking flywheel lock.



Battery is charged and the CTEK managed to totally revive it so I got the tyres pumped back up to spec pressures using the compressor.

Checked the oil on the dipstick which is a nasty colour and smells like paint thinners... will get some cheap synthetic and do an oil flush I think after I've changed the belts!

More to report later in the week hopefully!

 

[Frenchmeister]

My 88 Turbo S is playing silly buggetrs at the moment cooling fans intermittent and now no fuel pressure, trying me at the moment but I know when sorted it is great, managed about 50 miles in it this year as I have Ben doing a complete brake rebuild.
Hopefully sorted and a euro trip next year

 

[Wh1t3Kn1ght]

Hope everyone had a great weekend - quite a big update as I spent some time during the weekday evenings and had a marathon day on Saturday dismantling everything that had been bodged and getting it all ready for a proper re-installation.

Passenger seat wouldn't move forward or backward so after investigation I found that there was an electrical lead going to a rusty metal box that was sitting underneath the seat...

Decided to remove the seat to find out what it was and then found I only had 2 loosely fitted bolts holding the seat down - (new bolts ready to fit!).

After a quick google and confirming my suspicions this was the original alarm / immobiliser fitted by Porsche UK. I'm pretty sure that it isn't functional as I now have a different more modern alarm / immobiliser fitted, however I've decided not to disturb the thick bundle of cables which heads into the unknown beneath the carpet. Found that it should have been tucked under the carpet beneath the seat and it sits there without impeding travel of the seat!

On to the next job, I was pretty sure that the front bumper and wings / fenders hadn't been installed properly judging by the wonky and rusty screws holding it all together. So time to dismantle it all!



Whilst doing that I set about getting some new screws painted ready to fit to the top of the wings so it doesn't look ugly when opening the bonnet. I plan on using a piece of soft tubing to reinstall them and the tighten them very carefully to avoid chipping the paint.



Was a bit disappointed with the final finish after applying the clear coat as they appear to be matte instead of glossy?!? - wondering if I'm going to need to polish them to bring out the gloss...

Whilst I was in the middle of that the courier showed up with a present from Porsche Exeter :worship:



And then just this morning I managed to get the drivers side roof trim and new seal fitted.



Till the next time...

 

[infrasilver]

Good progress, it'll be mint once you've done with it, although are they ever done?

 

[Wh1t3Kn1ght]

Been awhile since the last update but I have been busy!

Found that the screws I painted for the wings came out a bit milky after applying the clear lacquer to it. Luckily a spot of autoglym super resin polish sorted it right out!



I then cleaned up the rear side windows and removed the old immobiliser stickers, whilst I was doing that I sanded down the metal trims that fit into the rubber seals and repainted them with some satin black paint.





Mate came over last weekend and we got the front wings fitted with the new screws - only loosely fitted for now until I get the bumper back on.



Also found there was a few odd bits of carpet underlay / dampening material in the boot. Took out both front seats which weren't attached properly and found that the missing bits went on the drivers side.

Whilst I was in there I refitted the accelerator pedal correctly, hammered the floor flat and sealed a hole in the floor with a rubber bung. Just need to seal it all when all is done with some underseal and then fit the plastic chassis protector.





Next job is to put the rear windows back in, remove the power steering pump for new seals and change the timing and balance belts so a bit of preparation already done -

 

[Wh1t3Kn1ght]

Hope you folks had a great christmas and are looking forward to the new year!

More updates from me

I fitted the rear quarter windows back in and began stripping down the front of the engine ready to replace the cam and balance belts. After getting in I realised that a little more work would be required so I ended up removing the power steering pump and anti-roll bar.

The balance shaft front seals look a bit weepy so will be getting replaced along with the front crankshaft and camshaft seals. Water pump pulley / bearing seems fine and all the rollers bar one idler can be reused. I'm hoping that the balance shaft races and oil pump gear aren't worn but haven't got to them yet so crossing those fingers (oil pump gear is quite expensive...).

Picked up some more bits including brand new and correct spark plugs (previous ones don't appear to be correct).

And finally cleaned most of the parts ready for installation.













No wonder the air conditioning never worked the condensor looks completely knackered - but not a priority currently so will perhaps get replaced at a later time.

 

[HSC911]

That's a lot of paper clips :grin:

:thumb: