924Board.org

[Ghostookami]

Hello, for starters im new here, in fact i just bout my 77 924 a week ago, however upon driving it home i noticed it was losing power, im not sure how to explain it but, when i was putting my foot down it wouldnt speed up after a while, it would kinda "sputter" like it was trying but just couldnt.

I had to pull over and stop and when i tried to restart the engine it wouldnt start. after waiting 5-10 mins to cool it would be fine again for a few minutes. Seemed like if it was just to hot or something. I may have pushed the car a bit hard...although i dont think i did anything that would be considered that bad, only pushed it up to about 80-90 a few times, just testing the waters i suppose. Needless to say it wasnt the best first day.

I got to the half way point and stopped to meet my gf at her families and let it cool down for about 2 hours. After that i started it and drove the extra 2 hours home without problem, this time keepeing it between 60-70.

Im a bit confused, i had done a lot of research about heating issues and a bunch of other things so i knew what could happen, im just trying to figure out which one is going on with mine.

On that day it was sunny, the sun was hot but the breeze was cool so i dont know if the heat contributed at all, that night when i finished my drive home it was dark, cold and rainy, so maybe the rain the coolness helped? Im not sure.

You could probably guess im not the most technicall person. I dont know much but am buying manuals and the whole lot to learn as much as i can so i can be more hands on.

As for the 924, its really wonderfull, only has 60k miles, engine runs strong, starts up no problem, the interior has been recently re done so the leather and carpetting is perfect. It only has a few minor problems that ive noticed, besides the heating issue it needs to be welded inside the battery bucket, i need to fix the AC and heater, as well as get new knobs and a faceplate on the center console for the AC and heater, and i need to put in a new radio head. Other than that though its a great deal. Its my first Porsche ever, always wanted one and now that i finally do i want to take care of and fix up this car as much as possible.

I found this site dealing with a overheating issue if anyone could look at it and tell me if i should follow it or not that would be great. Or post here if you have any helpfull tips.

http://obin_jess.tripod.com/Porsche/overheating.html

Thanks in advance
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Who Dares, Wins.

[masterdave]

Was the engine temp gauge reading in the red zone or well above the middle, if so there are some things you can check.

Make sure that your fans are working right, when on the highway the car has better air flow over the engine as well as under it and is less susceptible to heating up, the fans in front of your engine help at low speeds and idle when the air would be other wise still over the engine. If the fans are not kicking in that could be the issue. Replace the thermostat in the coolant system. Its quick and easy to do if you are mechanically inclined, they have a tendency of going bad and can create an over heat issue by not allowing coolant to flow properly. You can get a new one at just about any auto parts store, OEM, for around 25-40$. Check the coolant make sure you have the right amount. If the former owner let the car sit he may not have replaced coolant before selling the car. For that matter you should check all the fluids, oil, brake, power steering, people often forget to fill these things up. Make sure the coolant has antifreeze/summer coolant in it and is not just water.

The lack of power is interesting. Some things you may want to check,
fuel pressure
injectors
fuel flow
distributor contacts
spark plugs and wires

If you dont have a haynes repair manual i highly advise getting one. They are cheap and have all the information on how to do all of this with images and all.

Good Luck
Dave

[Ghostookami]

i think the engine temp gauge was reading somewhere between the half way mark and 3/4s, keep in mind the lack of power sputtering was only when it got hot i assume, since after i let it cool down it runs fine.

I beleive all the fans are working properly but i will check again, i know a day or so before i bought it the guy just put new coolent and oil in it. I probably do need a new thermostat thanks for lettin me know that,

Also i planned on getting a Haynes manual, im out of state still and am heading home on a 6 hour drive tomorrow, but im ordering a Haynes manual when i get there.

Thanks for some of the tips ill check everything out about wireing and spark plugs as soon as i get home.

A small edit before i post this, the guy i bought it from didnt realy know anything about the car. I knew more than him, So is there anything i should check up on since he may have not known about a lot of things? Should a car this old be flushed every so often?
_________________
Who Dares, Wins.

[masterdave]

i flush my car regularly, now that im at college im only home every so often to drive the car, so i flush it at the beginning middle and end of the summer. This is excessive i know but i have lots of time and go out of my way to make projects for my self on the weekends in the summer. I would flush it every 6months at least.

find out when the front of engine service was done last. if it was a while ago or never, take it to a Porsche trusted garage and have them do it, there are good threds on FOES here, worth reading before making any decisions. I have a 924s which has the 944 motor so unfortunately i dont know as much about the 924 engine. Check the vacuum system for leaks, it seems useless but its actually important too keep the pressure in all parts of the engine balanced.

brakes and tires should be checked etc. all that good stuff that seems like it is obvious but worth looking over. Check the fuel lines, they have a tendency of degrading and chipping away(rubber casing). trans. fluid should be checked im not sure how but the haynes will tell you, make sure that you get the fill bolt open before you dran the trans, if you dont you will have a big issue if you cant get it open.

Like all other porsches, they are known for electrical issues, it is considered good practice to have lots of spare fuses and relays (DME), etc. in your glove compartment at any time as they tend to go bad/blow. I lost my fuel pump fuse while on the road and had no idea what went wrong for a good 30min.

check all the grounding points, if there are signs of corrosion take the bolt out, sand them till you see copper and reassemble.

Good luck
dave

[Ghostookami]

ok i just checked my fans, the one in the front closest to the headlights is running nice and strong, but i cant get the one in the middle on top of the engine right in front of the windshield to work, but i think thats the AC/Heater one right? and since mine doesnt work its no wonder its off.
_________________
Who Dares, Wins.

[masterdave]

yeah that second fan, at least in the 924s, is for the heater/AC, i put a switch on my dash that allows me to turn that fan on when ever i like, due to the fact i had a similar hear issue.

[rkn]

Running betwwen 1/2 and 3/4 is not really too hot. My fan doesn't come on until the 3/4 mark.

Maybe you have a control pressure problem, i.e. the WUR is not increasing pressure as the engine heats up, so you will be running too rich when the engine is hot, which could give the symptoms you describe (poor running, won't re-start until it has cooled off etc.).
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1980 924NA ROW

[kcoyle]

I'm a newbie too so take this with a grain of salt, but what I've gleaned from these boards so far is to start from the beginning with a car where the PO did unknown and possible creepy things to the car.

Most importantly;
Manuals
new vacuum lines
check CIS system, including injectors, WUR, CVS, etc.
CIS tool here-http://garage.ideola.com/prod-Tools.html
check timing
Check grounds
And the other basics maintenance items, plugs, wires, rotor, cap, timing belt, fuel filter, air filter, thermostat, etc. I also did the water pump and all coolant hoses as well just because I was in there.

Flush the cooling system and make sure the thermostat and fan switch are a matching set too. The is a lower temp setup -75°C fan switch and a 82°C thermostat. I found a fair amount of crud in my cooland pipes.

Thats kind of a start. Everything above isn't too expensive, considering what a FOES costs on a 2.5, assuming labor is your own. Good luck.

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1982 931- Stock with MBC at 8psi

Relax, all right? My old man is a television repairman, he's got this ultimate set of tools. I can fix it.