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Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 1:25 am
by Julian Butcher
I have a '62 356. The 2nd bearing in the engine got damaged (oil starvation), and I ended up taking my car to a local mechanic who claimed to service (a) old cars, and (b) Porsche. My car has been with the mechanic since June 2016 (yep, over a year and a half).

How long should it take to repair the motor once the parts have been sources for a full engine rebuild?

The mechanic has my car and engine and parts so I feel helpless to do anything about it.

Comments? Advice? All welcome, thanks.

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 2:51 am
by Martin Bruechle
Get your car out of there. After all that time it is time for "Plan B"

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 6:52 am
by Edwin Ek
Martin Bruechle wrote:Get your car out of there. After all that time it is time for "Plan B"
+100. An engine rebuild with everything in hand takes less than a week.

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 8:22 am
by Adam Wright
Julian Butcher wrote:I have a '62 356. The 2nd bearing in the engine got damaged (oil starvation), and I ended up taking my car to a local mechanic who claimed to service (a) old cars, and (b) Porsche. My car has been with the mechanic since June 2016 (yep, over a year and a half).

How long should it take to repair the motor once the parts have been sources for a full engine rebuild?

The mechanic has my car and engine and parts so I feel helpless to do anything about it.

Comments? Advice? All welcome, thanks.
Depends on a few things.
1. What is the mechanic saying?
2. Have you been in constant communication?
3. Have you checked on the car?
4. Do you have other options in your area?

I'm in a similar situation right now, I have an old Vespa that I dropped off at the local Vespa dealer for a tune up, new tires, etc. It's been there for a year, but I would rather have Rocco, the old Vepsa mechanic do it. I have few options in my area, so I talk to Rocco every few weeks, he promises to do it, I stop by every few months and make sure he didn't sell my scooter, etc. I'll probably get it back before Spring, if not I'll probably pull it.

But please give us some more info on your situation.

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 9:02 am
by C J Murray
Julian Butcher wrote:I have a '62 356. The 2nd bearing in the engine got damaged (oil starvation), and I ended up taking my car to a local mechanic who claimed to service (a) old cars, and (b) Porsche. My car has been with the mechanic since June 2016 (yep, over a year and a half).

How long should it take to repair the motor once the parts have been sources for a full engine rebuild?

The mechanic has my car and engine and parts so I feel helpless to do anything about it.

Comments? Advice? All welcome, thanks.
Six months is enough time no matter how bad it is or how many skilled people need to work on it. Find another shop.

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 10:09 am
by David Jones
Even a rank amateur like me would feel embarrassed if it took me even 3 months to rebuild an engine especially if I started with a complete engine and only had to source parts like P&C"s, bearings and machine work. Re-assembly only working part time would be in real time 2 weeks maximum working slowly.
Just make sure you get all the parts when you get it out of there.
By the way, where the hell are you? You cannot get a recommendation of where to go for a good rebuild if we do not even know what country you are in.

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 11:21 am
by Neil Bardsley
I agree with the experts this is too long to wait. However, once I did wait 6 months to have an engine rebuilt. The short story is that you can pick 2 out these 3 high quality, low cost, quick time. I picked quality/cost but the time was longer than I imagined.

The long story is that my first 912 was rear ended and it took the garage many months to give the car bad to me. Being a new ignorant aircooled owner I didn't check the oil and shortly after getting the car back the engine failed because of no oil. I put quite a lot of pressure on the garage that they should accept some responsibility for this too. Now being a more experienced owned I always check the oil! Anyway a rebuild was agreed on for about £2.5k (including parts) and was sent to engineer builder. Which was quite a good price for rebuilt. Plus I paid in month installments after taking delivery of the engine. The engine was away for months and I started getting quite worried that it was never coming back. I also considered trying to get it back and give to somebody else. However, in the end the car did come back and ran very nicely until it was stolen. I also found out, when I know more Porsche people in the uk, that the engine builder was very experienced but only working slow/part time because of ill health and it took him quite a while to source a suitable crank at a descent price. However, I wouldn't recommend this experience to anybody else as it was very stressful at the time.

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2018 11:02 am
by Dick Douglass
Hi Julian,

You don't show your location, which could help fellow Registry members come to your aid.
My concern is that Richard Rawlings ( net worth in excess of $ 15 Million) will swoop in and buy the garage where your 62 356 is sitting and within 6 days throw away your car and create a lift in that spot, where it can earn $ 1,000 per day. We might even see it on a future Garage Rehab.

Check the Registry magazine for a Registry Club in your area and start making calls to members asking for local help.......

Tow your car home and wait for the correct solution.

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2018 11:19 am
by David Jones
Dick, not cool to ask for another members location when you do not put yours in your replies. One of my major peeves is a lack of location in the contributors information and which in my opinion should be mandatory in at least giving a state or even a capital city e.g. London or Chicago. Please fix or desist in asking others. To those who are afraid of being robbed of their cars if their location is found please recognize that even without a location there are just too many easy ways to find out where you live nowadays if someone wanted your car. This is a forum designed in large part to encourage ownership not a secret society of 356 owners.

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2018 11:42 am
by Dick Douglass
Well I'll Be ! Didn't notice that it was omitted since last renewal. Desist? Talk about secret society....Location Police...?
If I ommited it I take full responsibility.

Huntington Beach, Ca. Surf City USA

Former person in whatever of the "Central Coast 356 Club" Oh yeah did you ever send pictures of your 356 on DY356D to Gordon? Where do you think that idea came from on 19-9-99?
Santa Barbara, Ca.

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2018 6:13 pm
by Miguel Antonetti
The machining could be an issue, only few people do that correctly... BUT at worst, i'd say six months - ask me how i know. Parts are all available and may be two days - at most - to put it back together.
Get your car out of there!

Re: Engine repair help / advice ,please

Posted: Fri Jan 12, 2018 1:08 pm
by Jim Alton
David Jones wrote:Even a rank amateur like me would feel embarrassed if it took me even 3 months to rebuild an engine especially if I started with a complete engine and only had to source parts like P&C"s, bearings and machine work. Re-assembly only working part time would be in real time 2 weeks maximum working slowly.
Just make sure you get all the parts when you get it out of there.
By the way, where the hell are you? You cannot get a recommendation of where to go for a good rebuild if we do not even know what country you are in.
David, you're way, way faster than I. Then again, I was embarrassed at how long my engine rebuilds took. That's in part because I didn't source all the parts at once and had to unravel a few mistakes.

As to Mr. Butcher's position: it's definitely time for him to remove the car from the current mechanic. He should probably identify an attorney experienced in such issues. This sounds like one of John Draneas' Legal Files columns.