Re: Help! Police!

Some one stole my motor! And trans. And a bunch of metal stuff.

Ok, maybe **I** did. A few of us got together at a friend's shop (Autohaus, New Jersey) to pull my sick motor and transmission. This is the first step to building a really nice, more powerful, motor for my track car. While it runs fine on the street, under track loads everything goes downhill (oil consumption, fouling, very low power), although it measures "ok for an old gal". I plan to install 3.6L nickies, matched pistons, carillo rods, and a bunch of other goodies, plus a normal refurb.

This will be an education. Let's see if i can make enough time to do the vast majority myself.

Also having the transmission refurbed by "gbox" in Colorado.

Anyone care to guess how many bolts are obstinate after 232,000 miles?



My PCA friend Dr. Art with the patient (my motor), on a stand.



I'll keep you posted.

Grant

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com

Sounds like a "fun" project, Granr

My guess on the bolts > 10 :-)

Happy boxer rebuilding.

Sounds like a great project, Grant. Always nice to have access to a shop and some friends for a job like this.

Questions on the motor:
I can't recall the origin as a track car, other than you bought it from Bruce--was this a junk yard motor?
Miles on it when you got it?
Did you do anything prior to installing it?
Any guesses as to what all the pieces parts will cost when done?

1. junk yard replacement motor ( likely the source of the issues).
2. Mileage somewhat unknown - it was clearly WAY more than the yard claimed once we saw the clutch, flywheel, water pump.....
2a. 3+ years, 40k miles since i put it in. Probably 10,000 of those on track
3. what did i do? Not much - deep sump 20 months back (issues, likely now resolved), LN IMS bearing, new tensioners, clutch.

note: after 10k miles on track and another 30k on street, my clutch is about 10% worn;. Its like new.....
Heal and toe works

What will all this cost? With rebuilt transmission, LSD, motor with nickies, yada, yada, all machine shop, and significant labor that I probably wont have the time or skill to so myself, $21-25. But it should be a very, very good motor/transmission at that point. (Nickies, 3.6L, matched pistons, race rods, ....) And i really like the way the chassis is working right now. Depends on exactly what we find and how much i do myself.

Grant

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com

10K track miles--wow! I think you got your money out of that motor.
The new one should be a hoot to drive on the track.

10 events/year
2 days per event average
4 hours per day average
70 mph average
3 years

3 years x 8 events = 24 x 2 = 48 days x 4 hours = 192 hours x 60mph = 11,520

mileage total = 232k - 191k at transfer from Bruce = 41k mostly to/from tracks

I'll note my red car is perfect after nearly the same # of events (driven easier though, i was slower) and with 62k onthe clock.

Big difference between a junkyard motor and one i bought new, broke in right, and maintained my way.

G

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com

it should be 2 hours per day average ( 4 runs, maybe plus some others, but 4 * 1/2 hour = 2 hours.

So its more like 7k track miles

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com

Looks like fun.

Do you already have a non-stock transmission? The stock Boxster transmission isn't suitable for a 3.6L engine. Just curious as to why you're rebuilding it as opposed to getting a stronger one.

Also, are you planning to upgrade the axles / CV joints or brakes? With great power comes great responsibility (of the drivetrain).

that aside from configuration of exterior parts for the shifter and mounting to the motor, this is the same transmission used up to the 3.6L carerra (996)... and ditto the CVs (though not the half-shafts obviously). I do have a new set of driveshafts so that I can swap them while performing maintenance on the alternating set.

You realize this is an "S" car? - so it has supposedly the same gearbox as the 996 (G86/20; G96/20) rather than the Audi 5-speed (G86/00), and it has the large CVs with 10mm bolts, not the (6mm?), lighter duty driveshafts used in the base.....? Having one of each i now how different the size and weight is - vastly stouter than on the base.

As i understand it, the "S" model was created basically by raiding the 996 (non-S) parts bin and bolting those parts on the 986. Certainly true for the calipers which retain the 996 part number, and the CV bolts which also do.

Note that the smaller (5-sp) has been successfully used in heavily modified Audis, and in a few cases, with Audi 4.2 V8s in boxsters (I want one...). And those have more torque than I will.

So no, i had not considered doing so. GBOX did not suggest it either, and they know how its being used.

G

ps: do you have a brother, Steve?

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/31/2016 03:00PM by grant. (view changes)

I've never thought about swapping out my 2.7 for a 3.6... that would be incredible. However, I had always thought being able to get to the hp. numbers of a 3.4 would make for an ideally balanced Boxster. My biggest concern would be the limitations or feasibility of mating the wiring harness and ECU.
How do you work around those issues?... or have enough engine swaps been done that this isn't a significant concern. Or given it is a track car the issues are minimized? Are engine upgrade swaps a viable option for a street car?

Grant... I appreciate your contribution to the board and have enjoyed your posts and that of so many others.

Happy New Year and best to all who make up this community... Pedro, thank you for taking up for Pete.

Quote
m2
I've never thought about swapping out my 2.7 for a 3.6... that would be incredible. However, I had always thought being able to get to the hp. numbers of a 3.4 would make for an ideally balanced Boxster. My biggest concern would be the limitations or feasibility of mating the wiring harness and ECU.
How do you work around those issues?... or have enough engine swaps been done that this isn't a significant concern. Or given it is a track car the issues are minimized? Are engine upgrade swaps a viable option for a street car?

Grant... I appreciate your contribution to the board and have enjoyed your posts and that of so many others.

Happy New Year and best to all who make up this community... Pedro, thank you for taking up for Pete.

Pelican Parts web site has some articles/white papers on Porsche engine swaps and I think covers a 3.6l engine into a base Boxster.

I am rebuilding a 3.2 into a 3.6 using the LN nickies 3.2-3.6 kit. So:
a) probably only 40 hp difference
b) same ecu. block, crank

But a far stouter motor (nickies, matched pistons) and modestly more HP/torque, which on the track with modern race cars (GT3s....) will be a great help.

That said, motor swaps are done all the time. Rule #1 is it must be same age or newer for street legal emissions. Next, the ECU is not always much of a problem if its the same "vintage". But to get a 3.6 or 3.4, you are buying a 911 motor, which is designed with all accessories backwards. You can of course change the bore or stroke. Boring tends to weaken the block (less metal, duh), another reason for me to use Nickies.

That said, done all the time. Good shops know how.

Grant

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com

Fantastic!

I always wanted to tear into an engine.... never did.

Regarding the 911 vs Boxster of that vintage.... back then the 911 owners were complaining their car was not different enough. Heck many if not most of the part numbers are 911 part numbers.

Regarding engine swaps, back then there was more mystery to it. IIRC, it was considered easier to install a 911 engine in a Boxster than put a newer Boxster engine in a Boxster... something about big ECU and wiring harness issues. But I guess all those mysteries have been solved for.

Good luck Grant, keep us informed!

Peace
Bruce in Philly