987.2 full front cooling pipe replacement?

[911hillclimber]

An evil job that I may just take on soon, but don't really fancy it.

The kit of pipes from Design911 is about £500, a front re-alignment could be £100 (?) fresh coolant about £50, my time is free.

Anyone had this job done very recently at a good Porsche independent and can give me an idea of cost?

I'm told some Porsche supplied parts are on back order...

 

[Chappelle]

£846 inc VAT through an excellent Indy albeit three years ago. Pipes £280, anti freeze £75 and 5 hours labour at £70 an hour (£350).

 

[911hillclimber]

Thanks for the details Richard.
3 years ago two I know paid £1000 for the job, both on 997 911's.
I've asked my Indie for a quote....

 

[malarcy]

OPC price 2k.... they did mine under extended warranty

Also - on good authority from a ex OPC gold tech - they never did the 4 wheel alignment in the OPC - the subframe has no adjustment - it locates back to the same place - you do have to wartch when you lower the frame that you don't let the rack slip - since that can lose the steering wheel "alignment"

yes - I have read the same about a alignment - but I am quoting someone who has done the job many times.

 

[911hillclimber]

Thank you for the details.
The one YouTube video I've seen the fitter slackened the rack bolts to almost removing the bolts so keeping the location to the frame.
This still gave him enough room to fight the cross-over alum tubes out and new back in.

Not sure I can stand going to France in the car having been told there are weeps.

 

[CLIFFWILKINS]

Try
James Cannon at TH racing Porsche specialists
Think he is Biggleswade area.
He did a mate Cayman he was very happy.
It's a horrible job and expensive
Good luck

 

[911hillclimber]

My daughter thinks we should sell the car, 'good money after bad' etc, and buy a modern MX5 (she's had 5!)
Wife not sure about that and is 75% of the way to paying for it to be done by Zuffenhaus in south Birmingham. I'm awaiting a quote.

I can do 3 things;
Sell it. Have had it 9 years now and 60K miles, time to reduce the 'fleet' and pocket the money.
DIY and save £500 labour costs but lots of grief. Thus a Grief v £500 discussion. You get a nice Design911 receipt.
Give it to Zuffenhaus and pay the £500 as no matter what the last 2 options carry the parts and alignment cost, just the labour.

As said often, a Sports car is nice to have, hard to Justify.

 

[CLIFFWILKINS]

Yep know exactly what you mean gets to a point where we think about reducing fleet for financial costs In the last couple of years Porsches have got expensive motoring with the upkeep repairs especially as I have just retired.
Small example front spring went on my Macan 3 weeks ago no biggie you think, wrong the cost of front springs Labour realignment and it damaged a cable as well when it let go result £600 just for a spring.
Once a cars out of warranty not sure spring is covered anyways and starting to get older.
Makes one wonder about something newer less expensive to run maintain.
Hope you get decent quotes but won't hold my breath.
All the best with it

 

[marc_tt]

Thinking, if you have the time do it yourself and put the £500 saved labour towards your next trip.

For parts try the continental European parts sellers on the web, as recently got 986 parts for 1/3 less than Design 911 and parts arrived in 3 days. Parts were same as sold by Design911 and saving included shipping cost.

Regularly go through the reducing the fleet discussion and then have the how will we feel if we sell and another 9xx pulls up alongside us at the lights, so then kick it down the road for another day.

We're fortunate to have a very friendly local garage who lets me use one of their lifts to do such repairs and also gives useful experience advice. Jobs are far easier and quicker on the lift and happy to take the guys for drinks.

Let us know what happens

 

[911hillclimber]

Thank you for those details, Des911 etc must buy these parts from Porsche, mark-up and retail them?
I know AOS's are cheaper at OPC than ebay..

Had a peer at the hoses this afternoon through the wheel spokes. NS of the car, top hose where it clips to the plastic or alum cross tube is where the leak is. The other pipe connections are dry as a bone.
All the 4 hoses have been changed over my ownership, about 3 years or more ago.

The rim of the leaking hose is crusty (yes) and pink, as in coolant pink.

I will remove the wheel tomorrow and take a picture. This is exactly the pic Zuffenhaus showed me yesterday. Plan will be to clean and detach the hose at the leaking point and where it goes to the radiator and have a good look.

 

[ianthow]

If it is the upper hose, it connects to the alloy cross tube. If advanced, the cross tube will be wrecked, see below. Also attached is a write-up I posted some time ago covering full replacement without disconnecting suspension links and no re-alignment required.

 

[911hillclimber]

Thank you v much Ian, excellent procedure to follow. I take it the bolts to be replaced are stretch bolts.

The only hose connection looking poor is indeed the top one to the alum cross tube on the LHS. Over the years I've replaced with great difficulty all the 4 front tubes and the 2 short straight tubes re-assembling the new tubes with O rings of larger cross section diameter for a very tight seal, the factory seals seem to have very little compression.
It is worth a poke around esp if I can release the poor connection and see what part has failed, but I'm sure the alum tube is the most vulnerable part...

I can see a fun packed couple of days coming my way.

 

[ianthow]

Thank you v much Ian, excellent procedure to follow. I take it the bolts to be replaced are stretch bolts.

The only hose connection looking poor is indeed the top one to the alum cross tube on the LHS. Over the years I've replaced with great difficulty all the 4 front tubes and the 2 short straight tubes re-assembling the new tubes with O rings of larger cross section diameter for a very tight seal, the factory seals seem to have very little compression.
It is worth a poke around esp if I can release the poor connection and see what part has failed, but I'm sure the alum tube is the most vulnerable part...

I can see a fun packed couple of days coming my way.

I had downloaded a US manual that says "Replace steering gear fastening screws, the fit bolt on the steering shaft and the steering wheel fastening screw whenever they have been removed. Screw threads must be clean and free of grease". The steering rack bolts do not look like stretch bolts but I replaced them to be safe.

 

[911hillclimber]

Thank you Ian. I wrote that because I watched a video on the subject and they changed the 'rear bolts' which I thought were the subframe rear bolts, but will check for facts. I don't think they are part of the des911 kit.

 

[ianthow]

FYI, I purchased parts from OPC as they gave club discount. Also 987 now eligible for Porsche Classic discount.

 

[911hillclimber]

Yes, going to drop into my local OPC with the diagram and see what comes of it using the discounted des911 price as a benchmark.

Wonder why Porsche used alum for these pipes when they used plastic for the 'side pipes'?
Would have stopped the galvanic corrosion of the design they used.

This is another example of weak design imho scattered through the Boxster range and others.

 

[911hillclimber]

Maybe just the hot weather, but have been quoted £1050 to do the whole job at Zuffenhaus and have beeked it in foe late July.

This gives the repair the chance to be 'tested' before going on holiday.

When I was 43 this would have been easy DIY, but at 73 out on the drive I'm sure in the wet........ time to pay somebody!

Means also I will have to keep the car to get something out of this, but with this well know weakness fixed the car's value must be better?