K-Roll's 944FMLyfe: Sad Update

"K-Roll-PorscheTamer" (k-roll390) 08/04/2015 at 15:36 • Filed to: 944Lyfe

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Safely towed home yesterday in a reasonable amount of time. Less than an hour this time! Here’s what’s happening..

At first, I thought it broke down due to fact that I was driving with my non-Porsche approved early birthday gift....

However, with the assistance of Pelican Parts and Rennlist, we’re guessing one of TWO things went wrong, and one worst case scenario:

1. The reference and speed sensors have finally given up and died, crumbled to dust, or are so old that the contacts and connectors on them are so wasted, they could be cleaned to be used for a short period of time.

2. The DME, not the relay, but the god damned engine computer has quit on me, and I need to source a “used” one, because no new one exists any more to my knowledge.

The worst case scenario....

My timing belt which was scheduled to be retensioned on Friday has skipped enough teeth to wreak havoc and I’ve lost all compression as a result... or worse....And we all know what that means... ;_;

This is a bummer for me because:

1. I wanted to drive a Porsche that doesn’t burn my feet and make me smell of oil on my birthday, on Thursday.

2. This is the second time we’ve broken down in less than 2 weeks. Third time overall.

3. Finally, when I have a comfortable and running Porsche ready for the Dream Cruise next weekend, of course it breaks down now.....(Look to #1 as I’d rather not drive the 911 sitting in hours of Dream Cruise traffic but might have to inevitably suck it up at the cost of my feet having little to no nerves left).

I’m just going to have to bite the bullet and replace all those things....

Somewhere, in Dearborn, the Mustang gods are laughing at my misfortune... -_-

GhostZ > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 15:42

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Do the Mustang Gods look like this?

Mathias Rios > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 15:47

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It’s pretty easy to check if your timing belt skipped. Prepare for a lot of money to be spent if that’s the case. Depending on how you do things, it may be easier/cheaper to source a new motor.

The DME is super easy to replace, I pulled one out when I installed a chip in Aaron’s old 944’s DME.

Reference sensors are a complete bitch to get out, start soaking them in PB blaster now to break them loose. Also, use BMW E30 parts are replacements since they are about $100 dollars cheaper and work just as well. These sensors alone held us up for about 4 hours when replacing the clutch on Aaron’s 944, and we ended up breaking the bracket for them.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > GhostZ 08/04/2015 at 15:48

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I’d imagine so...

Daggumit! That’s wut yuh git fer buying yorself that there damned Porsh...Should have stuck with that there 100% cheap’n reliable God-given ‘Murican reliobilitay.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Mathias Rios 08/04/2015 at 15:53

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How do I check if the belt skipped? If it is a skipped belt, I think I’m gonna shoot myself, the messenger, and probably give up at that point. Sourcing a new motor would be easy, but then I’d wanna rebuild it and stuff, and I wouldn’t have the money and time and space for that....

Of course teh DME is an easy fix, just unscrew and unplug from under the dash and repeat with another one. Another one I’ll definitely wanna chip if that’s the case...

The sensors are what I’m honest to god hoping went wrong, but I’ll not be relishing the fixing of it....Pelican parts has the Bosch ones for $78, and I’m praying I don’t break the bracket either.

Sweet Trav > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 15:54

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I think it's time to cut your losses.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 16:02

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If it’s anything like the VW diesel I had, it should have timing marks on the crank pulley, and should line up in a specific way re: the cam on the back of the head.

Party-vi > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 16:06

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Surprise! Old sports cars need deep pockets.

Chuck 2(O=[][]=O)2 > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 16:08

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Am I supposed to feel bad that your back up is an old 911?

Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis > Sweet Trav 08/04/2015 at 16:11

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Id figure out what’s wrong first.

K-Roll would look like a grade A idiot for dumping a non-running car that just needs a sensor.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Sweet Trav 08/04/2015 at 16:14

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You would like that, wouldn’t you. Just to drive your point home and be right about all the things I’ve been so clearly very wrong about.

Be back to one boring car and no more C&C and fun car meets, To resign myself back to a life of insignificant existence and sadness with one car, one car that can’t ever replace the joy and character the doors it opened, and emotional feeling this car brought me; just to throw it all away after not even a year.

You know what. Yeah, I am stupid, really fucking stupid. Stupid for buying this car when I did and for the reasons I did so, but it sure as hell made life better than what it was before and them some. Even when it did breakdown, life was better than before the 944. So I don’t know what I’m gonna do, but it’s going to be wrong, and if it means that I’m happy at the end of the day or even close to happy, then that’s good enough for me. Do I expect you or anyone else to understand? Hell no, this is just my shitty attitude voicing out it’s opinion, but it’s who I am, a shitty person.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Chuck 2(O=[][]=O)2 08/04/2015 at 16:16

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Did I ask you to feel bad? And it’s not MY 911.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Party-vi 08/04/2015 at 16:17

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Hi, my name is Shit Sherlock, first name No. I guess no one’s dreams can last forever.

Jayhawk Jake > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 16:19

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It’s not like you’d have one boring car, you have a fucking Focus ST.

I don't think you're stupid for buying a 944 per se, but driving it when you knew the timing belt needed tightening is pretty dumb in my book.

Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 16:28

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K-Roll,

Being a car enthusiast is not about what you drive or what people think about it. It about loving the car your in. Thats it. Your life is not better because of the 944, I promise. I’m the one who got you into this and look at what I drive, an old GP and a late model Taurus. I can barely drive stick, don’t modify my cars, and am pretty useless with tools. But I still love it. And that’s all that matters.

To everyone else, lay the fuck off. Yelling “haha told you so” does shit and it makes you sounds like a toddler.

To K-Roll, lay of on the self-deprecation, its not very flattering.

Party-vi > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 16:35

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It’s not the end of the world. You’ve got a new Focus ST as well. Leave the 944 sit until you have the time to work on it. It’s not going to to anywhere. This is what all the rest of us have to do when our fun cars are laid up. My Willys has been in the garage with the transfer case hanging open for over two weeks now, and I’ve had all the shit I need to button it back up sitting in there with it.

Skamanda > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 16:35

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You know, I’m always a bit surprised at how few Fox bodies I see around Dearborn. Heck, you hardly see anything but the current generation of Mustangs anymore! Must be all the employee/executive leases...

If you end up needing spares, you could always pick this up, strip out the drivetrain for parts, and put the rest of it out of its misery...

http://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/cto/514662…

Actually, there’s a ridiculous amount of 944s on CL locally. If I wasn’t terrified of how much of a pain they are to find parts for, I’d actually consider picking one up...

Skamanda > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 16:47

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For what it’s worth, if it is the timing, and your engine is asploded, there are tons of engines to be had on http://www.car-part.com/

If it’s the normal 944 (non-S, non-turbo), there’s one listed as a “nice runner” in Harrison Township for $750...

DogonCrook > Party-vi 08/04/2015 at 17:45

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This. It’s now a project car, probably the first of many, and certainly not the last to grenade on you. All part of the deal really. You did it right, it’s not your primary, so fuck it, your gonna learn how to rebuild an engine. Take your time and do it right and you’ll love the car even more. If you don’t rush, do some research and some smart shopping it’s not even that expensive.

Spaceball-Two > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 18:30

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Try and stay positive man. No one wants to see you have a melt down over this. Might be time to take a step back and reexamine some of your life priorities. You have another good working vehicle that a lot of other Oppos would love to have. You seem like a smart kid so maybe focus on school and work. Your family life seems well sorted too ( I assume no one is beating you).

In the end the car will get fixed. But putting so much weight behind whether or not the car is fitting into this preconceived dream you’ve got your mind stuck on is only going to push you closer to insanity. Sorry didn’t mean to seem like the old guy dishing out sage advice. I just know what a broken car feels like. I drive an Audi.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 18:31

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“How do I check if the belt skipped? If it is a skipped belt, I think I’m gonna shoot myself, the messenger, and probably give up at that point.”

Or you can just get a Prius like a BMW M3 owner recently tried to do.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Manwich - now Keto-Friendly 08/04/2015 at 18:33

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Fuck. That. Noise. I’d rather walk everywhere than be caught doing so much as sitting in one of those worthless crapola cars.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 18:37

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LOL... I was joking.

But I wouldn’t say they’re worthless or crap. They’re very good at being economical, reliable commuter appliances. The Prius is excellent for what it is designed to do.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 18:38

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If it’s the timing belt and the engine is done, the obvious solution is to swap in either a Ford 302 or a SBC.

That way you get your ponies and your Porches at the same time!

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Spaceball-Two 08/04/2015 at 18:41

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Might be too late for the internal meltdown...

I’ll be honest, I haven’t got much of anything in faith to look forwards to in regards to “life priorities”. Cars are the only things I have/had to look forwards to aside from the hell that is college, and I’m not looking forwards to anything but college debt.

Seriously, someone can take the ST, I don’t want it right now, they could take it and keep and do whatever the hell they want with it. Whatsmore, cars were my one and only break from school and work, and if I don’t have that, then life is about to so much more worse. Family life is....stable, but far from what I wish it was, and it’s not ever going to change so there’s that.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Manwich - now Keto-Friendly 08/04/2015 at 18:42

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Where’s the $5-10k for that? Because I haven’t even got $2k.

RustedSprinter > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 18:53

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I know those feels K-Roll. You are (not) alone dude. I hope I can get my MR2 running the way it should. Tomorrow I’m finishing the mini service sparks and wires. My brother always makes fun of my for buying a MR2 as opposed to a foxbody / Iroc / Camino.

Mathias Rios > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 18:56

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There should be a little rubber plug to the right of the distributor that lets you take a peek into the area and see if the timing belt still has all its teeth and if it looks good. If you can’t take a good look that way, then take off the plastic cover on the outside (a bunch of 10mm bolts) and take a better look.

Another tip is that these sensors have to be “gapped”. So take one of your old sensord that is broken (if it comes out in one piece) and glue an 8mm washer to the end of it where it would be touching the flywheel. Then bolt down the adjustment screw and remove the old sensor with washer attached, and put both new sensors in place.

What exactly are the symptoms with your car?

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Mathias Rios 08/04/2015 at 18:58

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I went to break for a red light and as I did, the car lost all power, stalled or died on the spot. Felt the car rumble a bit after coming to a stop, then die.

I tried swapping in my spare DME relay(I already put in a new one earlier yesterday) and that did nothing. The fuel pump is working fine. I have yet to check for spark. The car cranks, but doesn’t fire up at all.

Spaceball-Two > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 19:05

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It gets better dude. College is what it is. It’s that shity waiting room you have to sit through before the cool stuff starts. Just hunker down and do the best you can because it will have an impact on your future. Student debt is just something we all have to deal with. Hell I’m almost 40 and still have a monthly payment, and my major has NOTHING to do with what my actual career. But that payment is very small in the grand scheme of things. Hell my cell phone bill or my Comcast bill are higher.You can’t change your family, all you can change is you.

StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/04/2015 at 20:17

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I was wondering where you were Saturday! That sucks man, hope you can get it fixed and its the lesser of all evils.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 08/04/2015 at 20:53

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That’s not exactly the reason I wasn’t there Saturday. I was up until 2am going to war with the alternator belt and was too tired to get up in time.

Are you going to Ann Arbor for the Car and Driver C&C?

Mathias Rios > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/05/2015 at 09:40

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I hate to say it but that sounds most likely like a belt failure. Before we jump the gun though, see if you can see the belt mounted on the cam gear through the inspection port.

Good luck, the 944 can be a cruel, cruel mistress.

StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/05/2015 at 09:48

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No, I’ll be at the Kid Rock concert Saturday. Tailgating starts at 2!

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 08/05/2015 at 10:37

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But it’s from 9-11am...

KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs > Manwich - now Keto-Friendly 08/05/2015 at 15:03

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Pictured: Porches.

yamahog > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/05/2015 at 15:36

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Cmon man, you know he’s not like that. We’re free this weekend if there’s anything we can do to help.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs 08/05/2015 at 16:50

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And they’re better than Porsches too! More space, lower maintenance costs...

pauljones > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/06/2015 at 09:15

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Chill out, dude. No one that I can see called you stupid or insulted you for your car. All travis said was that it might be not be worth putting any more money into this particular car. Your car broke down, that sucks - but hey, life goes on.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 08/07/2015 at 19:09

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Are you gonna be out tonight?

StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/10/2015 at 08:43

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Ended up passing out early friday. But I’ll be at Roadkill nights wednesday and the Dodge display Friday.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 08/10/2015 at 08:51

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What is roadkill nights?

StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 08/10/2015 at 09:18

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What???? Where you been?

http://www.roadkill.com/events/roadkil…

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 08/10/2015 at 09:47

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Under a beetle :p