From: James at Pelican Parts [james@pelicanparts.com] Sent: Wednesday, June 30, 1999 9:10 PM To: John-Peter Van Zelm Subject: Re: 85.5 944 CV joints. John-Peter Van Zelm wrote: > Thanks for the info. > > How can you tell if your CVs need replacing? Anything broken, excessively worn, or damaged. > I'm going to try to repack > them this weekend. When I take them apart, what should I look for? Worn (any imperfection) bearings. Any abnormal wear on the bearing surfaces. Splines should fit perfectly (no play). CV boots should have no cracking or tears. > If > there is minor scoring on the bearings, could I do a repack, and perhaps a > swap, and get a few more thousand miles out of them? You could, but likely you'll be doing them over again; plus possibly repairing any other damage it does (which could be anything from a snapped brake line to permeate destruction of the transmission). This is really one of those areas where experience is the best teacher and there is no way to convey the information in words. > > When I was under the car yesterday checking the CVs, the boots all looked > fine. I did notice some dirt caked grease around the collars. What does > this mean? It probably means the boots are defective. > I also tried to twist the axles, to see how much play there was. > The passenger side had next to no play, and the drivers had a slight bit > (rotating maybe an 1/8" if that). Is that alright? Be sure the hubs aren't moving when you do this; you should not have any play when the axle is rotated. Its best to do this off the car as the joints will have a tendency to move in and out creating the illusion of radial play.. > > You mentioned earlier that swapping axles would accelerate wear, why? It > would seem like a good idea. > Not exactly what I said: what happens is the bearing has about 1/2 inch of float in the cage. The bearing will usually rest/operate only at one end. When you flip it over it will operate/wear the other end. This is what you call a "trick", not a "fix". The problem is: if the bearing falls back into the previously worn area it will cause accelerated wear, abnormal movement, broken cage, which will be followed shortly by self destruction of the CV. > > If you have any tips on how to do CV joint inspection/repack, I'd be happy > to hear them. If there is no grease in the CV, or the grease is soupy, you have a problem! Be sure to use the special triple-square tool to remove the bolts (unless your car has the standard hex bolts). Spray carb cleaner into the bolt heads to clean them out, and tap the tool into the bolt to be sure it seats properly; otherwise you may strip a bolt head. Be absolutely sure to re-torque the bolts to manufacture specification (never use hardware store bolts, even if they look the same; they're not!). > This will be my first time doing this. I have the gist of > what I have to do. One thing though, when I repack, do I pack the entire > boot full of grease? No, just the CV. > What kind (brand) of grease is good? > You have to use special CV grease. It comes with the boots. I heard NAPA has it, but otherwise I have never seen it on the shelf. At a bare minimum, use Swepco 101 Moly lube. BTW: the factory recommends replacing the axles with late model turbo axles. james > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: james@pelicanparts.com [SMTP:james@pelicanparts.com] > > Sent: Wednesday, June 30, 1999 2:27 AM > > Cc: John-Peter van Zelm > > Subject: Re: 85.5 944 CV joints. > > > > > > > > > > > > > Hi John-Peter, > > There really isn't any such thing as a rebuild kit for CV joints. To > > rebuild > > them properly you need special machinery. Even many of the rebuilt ones > > I've > > seen aren't very good. I personally only use new CVs. The cost difference > > isn't > > really that much for the extra piece of mind and additional life of the > > part. I > > have heard of people swapping sides with the axles and wearing out the > > other > > half of the CV, but I don't condone that either; the failure rate is > > pretty > > high. Repacking is sometimes possible if the CV is not damaged. If it is > > damaged, it could damage other parts of the drivetrain. There is only way > > to do > > it that will insure a long lasting, reliable, and safe repair. > > > > Buy new CV joints. > > > > Buy new CV boots. > > > > Buy new CV gaskets. > > > > Use only Moly grease made specifically for CV joints. > > > > Be sure to torque all bolts to manufacture specification. > > > > Most these parts are readily available and not very expensive. I think you > > can > > even get a CV kit that includes the joint, boot, gaskets, and grease. Give > > Tom > > in parts a call for more details (1-888-280-7799). > > > > Feel free to mail me if you have any other questions or need help with > > installation. > > > > Good luck. > > > > james > > > > > > > > John-Peter van Zelm wrote: > > > > > > > I need to do something about my 944 CV joints. They are clunking. Do > > you > > > > have rebuild kits? What do they include? How many do you need for a > > 944? > > > > (There are 4 CVs right?) > > > > > > > > Can I just repack and swap them around? > > > > > > > > Thanks, > > > > John-Peter > > > > > > From: James at Pelican Parts [james@pelicanparts.com] Sent: Wednesday, June 30, 1999 6:24 PM Cc: DHalbig@aol.com Subject: Re: Fwd: 1978 Porsche 924 > > > a) is there a standard gasket 'kit' like I've used on other cars (my Accord > > was a good example) for this model as well? Is it the most economical way to > > get all of the gaskets, etc for the engine? What does it include? (head > > gasket, valve cover, main oil seals, yada-yada-yada?) > > Yes, kits are probably the best way to go. You actually need to buy 2 kits: Upper; 047.198.012.A Lower; 060.198.11 Unfortunately there is no contents lists for these kits but they should include almost everything you normally would need. Experience has taught me though that there is usually something not accounted for; so don't be surprised. > > > b) I'm planning on replacing all the 'usual' items, including water pump, oil > > pump, temperature and pressure sensors, thermostats, etc. Again, is there a > > 'typical' list of stuff that's replaced during a rebuild? > There is no "typical" list. Its usually done a "inspect and replace basis". Aside from the waterpump, I wouldn't replace anything not known to be defective. The costs can easily exceed the value of the car. The exception would be items that are inexpensive, but difficult to replace while the motor is in the car. Of greater importance is the cam, belt and its associated components. Replace all the idler bearings and tensioners (and aluminum gears if any). You'll probably want to pay close attention to all rubber hose, belts, and boots. > > > > c) I'm very comfortable with remanufactured parts vs new parts (from my other > > car experiences), but I'd like your advice on whether this is a good idea > > across-the-board for the 924. > Remanufactured parts is often the only viable solution. Try to go with best possible source: i.e.: factory, Bosch, Behr, etc. > > > > d) In prior rebuilds, I've used re-assembly lubes for the critical few > > seconds/minutes before oil starts circulating for real in the engine. Any > > guidelines here (kinds of lubes, pre-filling oil lines and filters before > > cranking the engine, turning the engine over by hand a couple of times before > > hitting the starter, etc)? > Always use quality assembly lube on the bearings (Redline or Moly), motor oil on the pistons rings, and valve guides. You don't really need to hand turn the motor, but use the starter for a couple of minutes (coil disconnected) to circulate the oil and build pressure. Fill oil to dipstick level as you normally would, and prime the oil filter. Run at high idle for 20 min (about 2K). > > > > e) The throw-out bearing is bad/going bad, and apparently is accessible only > > by either pulling the engine or pulling the rear transmission assembly (man, > > is this ever evil, ugly, sick and wrong!). Obviously, I'll be pulling this > > out during the engine rebuild. Are there any other parts (clutch, pressure > > plate) that I shouId go after in the bell housing as 'maintenance'? > Since your in there you might as well do the whole clutch; this is a place where I wouldn't use rebuilt parts. Also be sure to check the throw-out assembly and guide-tube for wear or damage (this is often overlooked and the cause of many problems). > > > > I'm hoping you can provide prices/availability for the broad categories I've > > posted here. For the record, we won't be doing the re-assembly for about a > > month (machine shop schedules, personal travel schedules, etc), so > > back-orders don't worry me (too much). Call Tom in part (1888-280-7799) ASAP, as 924 parts are not usually in stock and may take a while to get. Let me know if you need help with anything else. james