eVil44-going-home
Click on the picture for the story of the junkyard 944 Turbo
Date/Time: Sat 17 Apr 2004 05:20:55 AM MDT
I randomly went to my local u-pull-it junkyard on a Saturday afternoon. Not looking for anything specifically, just to see what was new, as they cycle inventory very fast - about 300 cars a week in and out.
I typically go straight into the yard which is ahead and to the right. This time I took a look to the left which is the incoming "processing" area for draining fluids, cat removal, etc. Low and behold there's a sad little Porsche sitting next to various half crushed cars. My eyes get big and my first thought is what time do I need to get up in the morning to make sure I get first crack at it once it goes out.
I go back into the building and ask about it rather nervously and trying desparately not to appear too eager. I know a bunch of the staff there, so I was hoping to find out some details ahead of time. Manager says a guy brought it in with a blown engine, but it's got a bunch of aftermarket stuff on it.
Occasionally if they're in a good mood, they'll let you put on a hard hat and go out and look, but you can't get any parts until it actually goes out. So I go out. It was about a 100 ft away when I first spotted it, so I didn't know if it was really a 951, but you already know that it was at this point.
As I walk up to it, the first thing I realized was it still had wheels. All 4. This is known as a "miracle" in this yard. Not only that, but they had near new rubber! So I'm going to get an extra set of wheels for the race car, what else? Dark tinted glass all around, and ... and... this is odd... there's no body damage, just oxidized paint and a bunch of rock chips. Why is this out here? It's too bad I can't just buy the whole car........
Open the door.
12 way Porsche script cloth power seats (stained and driver seat has a tear, but cleanable and fixable).
Had a big stereo. No deck or amp, but all speakers and wiring intact.
Oh nifty! Boost gauge and MBC in custom panel below stereo!
Open glove compartment - pants feel a little tighter.. ARC2 and ARM1.
(Um. Am I in the twilight zone or something? This is a cheap a$$ junkyard. They don't EVER get cars like this. It's one size fits all pricing, so they don't spend very much on cars they take in - which means they don't get cars like this!)
Pop hood.
Huntley MAF
Huntley FPR
Weltmeister strut bar
Koni adjustables
camber plates
Ground Control coilovers
Hypercoil springs
Brembo drilled rotors
ss brake lines
KFP pads
Blown engine??? Who cares!!!
The walk back to the offices took an eternity. I thank the manager for letting me go take a look. He asks me if I want to buy it (he knows about my race car). How much, I ask trying to keep from twitching.
---QUICK! in 3 seconds or less, what would you pay for this car?---
Oh, how about $650 he says.
No joke.
You take VISA right?
So I call my friend up (one hand went for the wallet and one for the cell) and kindly ask that he GET DOWN HERE WITH THE TRAILER BEFORE THEY CHANGE THEIR MIND!
So we get it home and I immediately start poking and prodding. I wonder what exactly is blown. Hmmm. Timing belt seems fine. Turns over by hand just fine. Eh, what the heck, let's hook up the battery and try and see if it'll start.
And it does.
Of course it was quickly determined that it must be related to the Exxon Valdez given all the oil it was puking on the crossover pipe... But it runs, and runs well.
If it help you hate me any less, there's probably 400 hours of labor in getting the car to point you see at the end of this album, including various seals, gaskets, and some bigger parts, but all told, much less than $2000 invested in it.
I typically go straight into the yard which is ahead and to the right. This time I took a look to the left which is the incoming "processing" area for draining fluids, cat removal, etc. Low and behold there's a sad little Porsche sitting next to various half crushed cars. My eyes get big and my first thought is what time do I need to get up in the morning to make sure I get first crack at it once it goes out.
I go back into the building and ask about it rather nervously and trying desparately not to appear too eager. I know a bunch of the staff there, so I was hoping to find out some details ahead of time. Manager says a guy brought it in with a blown engine, but it's got a bunch of aftermarket stuff on it.
Occasionally if they're in a good mood, they'll let you put on a hard hat and go out and look, but you can't get any parts until it actually goes out. So I go out. It was about a 100 ft away when I first spotted it, so I didn't know if it was really a 951, but you already know that it was at this point.
As I walk up to it, the first thing I realized was it still had wheels. All 4. This is known as a "miracle" in this yard. Not only that, but they had near new rubber! So I'm going to get an extra set of wheels for the race car, what else? Dark tinted glass all around, and ... and... this is odd... there's no body damage, just oxidized paint and a bunch of rock chips. Why is this out here? It's too bad I can't just buy the whole car........
Open the door.
12 way Porsche script cloth power seats (stained and driver seat has a tear, but cleanable and fixable).
Had a big stereo. No deck or amp, but all speakers and wiring intact.
Oh nifty! Boost gauge and MBC in custom panel below stereo!
Open glove compartment - pants feel a little tighter.. ARC2 and ARM1.
(Um. Am I in the twilight zone or something? This is a cheap a$$ junkyard. They don't EVER get cars like this. It's one size fits all pricing, so they don't spend very much on cars they take in - which means they don't get cars like this!)
Pop hood.
Huntley MAF
Huntley FPR
Weltmeister strut bar
Koni adjustables
camber plates
Ground Control coilovers
Hypercoil springs
Brembo drilled rotors
ss brake lines
KFP pads
Blown engine??? Who cares!!!
The walk back to the offices took an eternity. I thank the manager for letting me go take a look. He asks me if I want to buy it (he knows about my race car). How much, I ask trying to keep from twitching.
---QUICK! in 3 seconds or less, what would you pay for this car?---
Oh, how about $650 he says.
No joke.
You take VISA right?
So I call my friend up (one hand went for the wallet and one for the cell) and kindly ask that he GET DOWN HERE WITH THE TRAILER BEFORE THEY CHANGE THEIR MIND!
So we get it home and I immediately start poking and prodding. I wonder what exactly is blown. Hmmm. Timing belt seems fine. Turns over by hand just fine. Eh, what the heck, let's hook up the battery and try and see if it'll start.
And it does.
Of course it was quickly determined that it must be related to the Exxon Valdez given all the oil it was puking on the crossover pipe... But it runs, and runs well.
If it help you hate me any less, there's probably 400 hours of labor in getting the car to point you see at the end of this album, including various seals, gaskets, and some bigger parts, but all told, much less than $2000 invested in it.
951-towed
Ruh roh! That explains a bit.
Date/Time: Sat 17 Apr 2004 07:57:50 AM MDT
I think the previous owner was in a bad way. This sticker was on the windshield dead in the middle of the driver side. How this car ended up in a junkyard is beyond me, but I'm not complaining!
Well, I wasn't until I spent two and a half years getting it to it's current state, but I'm getting ahead of myself...
Well, I wasn't until I spent two and a half years getting it to it's current state, but I'm getting ahead of myself...
day1
Day 1 in the garage. Time to figure out what's wrong with it.
Date/Time: Sat 17 Apr 2004 07:44:28 AM MDT
The paint doesn't look too bad here, but it was pretty oxidized over most of the body (see next pic). It came with the "sewer cover" wheels with almost brand new rubber.
polishing
This shows how bad most of the paint was. Buffers are fun!
Date: 04/26/2007
This shows how bad most of the paint was. You definitely need a buffer to get rid of this much oxidation.
eVil44-crackled-stone-guard
Driver rear and passenger front stone guards were badly cracked.
Date/Time: Thu 03 Mar 2005 09:44:40 AM MST
Driver rear and passenger front stone guards were badly cracked. Hours and hours were spent carefully removing the damaged guards with a heat gun and a razorblade.
951-hood-insulation
Nasty hood insulation
Date/Time: Sat 05 Mar 2005 07:52:30 AM MST
Chunks of the foam hood insulation would fall into the engine compartment if you so much as looked at it wrong.
eVil44-engine-whats-wrong
a number of nice mods on the engine and suspension, so what's wrong?
Date/Time: Sat 17 Apr 2004 07:38:32 AM MDT
Just plain weird. If you skipped opening up the first picture and reading the description, go back and you can find out what all came on the car.
951_greasy.sized
Greasy bits.
Date/Time: Thu 24 Feb 2005 11:42:10 AM MST
No, it wasn't missing the bolt. This is the beginning of removing the engine for cleaning and maintanance.
eVil44-greasy2
YUCK! Exxon Valdez anyone?
Date/Time: Thu 03 Mar 2005 09:09:21 AM MST
There were areas that had an inch thick of greasy goo. Cleaning required screwdrivers and putty knives to scrape most of it off before I could even think of washing it.
dirty greasy engine bay
more oogy. and gooey.
Date/Time: Wed 02 Mar 2005 02:16:36 PM MST
more oogy. and gooey.
dirty greasy oily engine bay
oogy gooey goo.
Date/Time: Wed 02 Mar 2005 02:16:41 PM MST
oogy gooey goo.
empty 951 engine bay
Simple Green and a toothbrush do wonders. But it takes a LOOOOOOONG time.
Date: 04/26/2007
Simple Green and a toothbrush do wonders. But it takes a LOOOOOOONG time.
clean engine bay
Much prettier engine compartment after a bit of scrubbing and polishing.
Date/Time: Sat 05 Mar 2005 07:22:27 AM MST
Much prettier engine compartment after a bit of scrubbing and polishing.
left front wheel well
Ground Control coilovers with Hypercoil springs, Brembo drilled rotors, stainless steel brakelines, and stock 4 piston brakes. In serious need of some scrubbin.
Date/Time: Sun 20 Feb 2005 04:09:22 AM MST
Ground Control coilovers with Hypercoil springs, Brembo drilled rotors, stainless steel brakelines, and stock 4 piston brakes. In serious need of some scrubbin.
right front wheel well
Amazing what a little elbow grease and some paint will do.
Date/Time: Sat 23 Apr 2005 07:09:11 AM MDT
Amazing what a little elbow grease and some paint will do.
right rear wheel well
more dirt. dirt dirt dirt.
Date/Time: Sat 23 Apr 2005 05:19:02 AM MDT
more dirt. dirt dirt dirt.
right rear wheel well clean
more scrubbing and caliper paint pays off!
Date/Time: Sat 23 Apr 2005 07:06:37 AM MDT
more scrubbing and caliper paint pays off!
interior
stereo bits
Date: 04/26/2007
The car had a big stereo system in it a some point, and all the wiring and speakers were left in it, but the head unit and amplifier were gone. It's obvious this car was someones pride and joy at some point, but probably not the last owner.
passenger seat
12 way Porsche script power seats
Date/Time: Sat 17 Apr 2004 07:41:55 AM MDT
Interior is in decent shape, but stained and generally neglected.
right front with cup 1 replicas
New shoes! Ready for $2005? Not quite...
Date/Time: Sat 23 Apr 2005 06:56:44 AM MDT
We tried our hardest to get the car ready for the $2005 GRM challenge, but electrical gremlins plagued the car. It looks purty though no?
right rear with cup 1 replicas
18x9 Cup 1 replicas fill the well nicely!
Date/Time: Sat 23 Apr 2005 06:59:26 AM MDT
18x9 Cup 1 replicas fill the well nicely!
right rear cup 1 closeup.
The chrome on these was in as bad of shape as the paint on the car!
Date/Time: Sat 23 Apr 2005 06:58:44 AM MDT
Hours of polishing. Mothers powerball rules. Of course I didn't know that until most of it was done by hand.
dying the carpet
Carpet faded? Rit dye and a Harbor Freight sprayer to the rescue!
Date/Time: Sat 27 Feb 1999 03:40:37 AM MST
Carpet faded? Rit dye and a Harbor Freight sprayer to the rescue!
dying the carpet 2
Before on the left, After on the right.
Date/Time: Sat 27 Feb 1999 03:32:16 AM MST
Before on the left, After on the right.
dying the carpet 3
Half done to show the difference. It's actually much darker than the picture shows.
Date/Time: Sat 27 Feb 1999 03:49:29 AM MST
Half done to show the difference. It's actually much darker than the picture shows.
concours 1
A year passes and I finally found the electrical problem. This is at the CP Concours in Denver.
Date: 04/26/2007
A year passes and I finally found the electrical problem. This is at the CP Concours in Denver.
concours 3
I found a great deal on seats, and installed the dyed carpet. Custom seat brackets made from Home Depot flat stock steel. What a difference!
Date: 04/26/2007
I found a great deal on seats, and installed the dyed carpet. Custom seat brackets made from Home Depot flat stock steel. What a difference!
injector cleaning
Injector cleaning while the intake manifold is off.
Date/Time: Sun 21 Feb 1999 06:22:35 AM MST
Using siphon pump hose, a couple ring clamps, a schraeder valve, and an injector tester, I did an injector flush.
eVil44-injector-seal-kit
Much cheaper o-rings for your Bosch injectors.
Date/Time: Sun 21 Feb 1999 07:38:35 AM MST
Much cheaper o-rings for your Bosch injectors. Make a note of the part number.
sanding the intake manifold
Lots and lots and lots of sanding in preparation for paint.
Date/Time: Mon 16 Oct 2006 01:52:29 PM MDT
Lots and lots and lots of sanding in preparation for paint.
polished camtower
Polished the face of the cam tower to be different.
Date/Time: Sat 21 Oct 2006 09:01:59 PM MDT
Polished the face of the cam tower to be different. Sanding and polishing the camtower while it was installed was fun. Not.
interior prep for color change.
You have to be willing to sacrifice a few things for the GRM challenge...
Date/Time: Sun 22 Oct 2006 12:38:05 AM MDT
You have to be willing to sacrifice a few things for the GRM challenge...
color change in progress.
Yup. That amazing red interior came out of a can. My GF rocks.
Date/Time: Sun 22 Oct 2006 04:08:45 PM MDT
Yup. That amazing red interior came out of a can. My GF rocks.
red dash
It was an eVil sacrifice. Goats, chickens, small children...
Date/Time: Sun 22 Oct 2006 04:08:15 PM MDT
It was an eVil sacrifice. Goats, chickens, small children...
finished interior
It's almost challenge time! One day until we leave!
Date/Time: Tue 24 Oct 2006 03:33:06 AM MDT
It's almost challenge time! One day until we leave!
tinted taillights
Tinting the taillights.
Date/Time: Sat 14 Oct 2006 05:31:50 PM MDT
Tinting the taillights. No, I'm not making a politcal statement.
taillight tint paint
The trick to getting the color right.
Date/Time: Sat 14 Oct 2006 05:33:19 PM MDT
More rattle can work. I've seen others use the candy apple red to cover the amber turn signal, but it always seems a bit orange, or the red is so thick it makes it too opaque. I discovered the answer! Adding the "window tint" color after the red and before the clear made for an almost perfect match.
tinted taillights
Not a bad match eh?
Date/Time: Sat 14 Oct 2006 06:35:40 PM MDT
Not a bad match eh?
993 wheels
Got a killer deal on badly rashed 993 wheels.
Date/Time: Wed 10 Feb 1999 10:44:13 AM MST
Got a killer deal on badly rashed 993 wheels.
repairing the wheels
Sanded off the paint and built up the gouges with filler.
Date/Time: Mon 16 Oct 2006 01:51:04 PM MDT
Sanded off the paint and built up the gouges with filler.
painting the refinished wheels
CRC carb cleaner has so many uses!
Date/Time: Sun 15 Oct 2006 04:59:21 PM MDT
CRC carb cleaner has so many uses!
Duplicolor high heat paint
Used Duplicolor high temp pain on the intake manifold and the wheels. 4 coats of color and 3 of clear
Date/Time: Sun 15 Oct 2006 04:17:15 PM MDT
Used Duplicolor high temp pain on the intake manifold and the wheels. 4 coats of color and 3 of clear
finished red wheels
My best rattle can paint job EVER.
Date/Time: Tue 24 Oct 2006 03:32:46 AM MDT
My best rattle can paint job EVER.
hood before
I tried scraping off the hood insulation, but it wasn't going well.
Date/Time: Sun 02 May 1999 03:19:31 AM MDT
hood during
Solution: remove hood, turn upside down and soak with adhesive remover.
Date/Time: Sun 02 May 1999 04:31:39 AM MDT
3M adhesive remover works great, but don't leave it on too long. And use a plastic scraper so you don't damage the paint.
hood after
First time I've waxed the underside of the hood!
Date: 04/26/2007
First time I've waxed the underside of the hood!
cleaned painted polished engine
The final result of all the engine compartment cleaning, polishing, and paint work.
Date/Time: Fri 27 Oct 2006 04:45:27 PM MDT
The final result of all the engine compartment cleaning, polishing, and paint work. Check out the Harbor Freight compressor filter modified for use as a oil catch can.