1990 964 C4 Melbourne

[poli84]

As a follow on from my intro thread, I thought I would document my progress with the 964 C4 here.

 

1990 C4 Manual

Marine Blue exterior

Linen with blue piping interior

 

I bought the car with the following:

Bilstein dampers, Eibach springs lowered to RS height

Cup II wheels

Cup mirrors

Steve Wong strut brace

G Pipe

Braided brake lines

Fab Speed Carbon Airbox with BMX filter

RUF suede steering wheel

 

The car has had extensive mechanic work done to it by the previous owner but still plenty to keep me occupied over the last month.

 

Car as I received it (after I had re-installed the orange turn indicators from clear)

 

 

 

First step was to get the car registered in Victoria and in my name.

It required new front brake pads to pass roadworthy so in addition to genuine Porsche pads, I also had the mechanic (Auto Coupe in Eltham), replace the front discs with genuine parts and bleed the brake lines.

 

Right from word go, the ABS and PDAS lights were appearing on the dash on every drive. 

Common issue with a C4. While my mechanic had the car, he diagnosed with the Hammer and the fault code was #43 Longitudinal acceleration sensor-implausible signal.

 

 

These are two sensors located under the centre console. After removing and cleaning, the fault has gone and no more ABS and PDAS light (for the time being). Considered that a big win as it had the potential to be a costly and time consuming problem. 

 

Lastly my mechanic went through the car with a fine tooth comb and apart from giving it the all clear, prepared a list of small items which I can tackle myself. 

 

Thankfully the seller was happy for me to drive around on his QLD plates for the 2 weeks it took me to sort out Vic rego, but with RWC in hand, I was  now able to get this sorted. 

 

I decided to go for 1990 period correct plates rather than something related to the Porsche.

I looked up the combinations from 1990 and selected a combination that fits. Pretty sure there was no slim line plates in 1990 but the colours match and I think they make the car look like it is on its original plates. 

 

 

[poli84]

My driver’s side headlamp had a decent impact chip.

The broken glass was rattling around inside the lamp and there was a small hole in the lens.

 

I ordered a new genuine Bosch headlamp lens from Lampen Doktor  and insured both part numbers and ECE Approvals matched my broken lens.

 

Without reading an internet “how to” first, I began pulling apart the headlamp.

Not the greatest idea I have had because it was a lot more complicated to get to the lens than I had imagined, I had to pull apart the whole assembly.

 

Got there in the end and the lens was replaced and reinstalled.

I recommend changing the rubber seal around the glass lens if anyone attempts this. I’m going to have pull mine apart again and install a new seal because I ripped the old one trying to remove it from the broken lens.

 

New lens on the left without the rubber seal which needed to be transplanted.

 

Did a lighting alignment against the garage wall and job done. 

The other lens is looking a little yellow now against the new lens though...

[poli84]

Shortly after purchasing the car, the odometer stopped working.

After some online searching, I found the following DIY which gave the probable cause and great repair instructions.

http://p-car.com/diy/odometer/

 

The problem is the teeth on one of the small planet wheels get very soft from the VDO oil and break off.

You can see my broken tooth here

 

I ordered the part from a company in Sydney and once it arrived, began to pull apart the speedometer as per the instructions.

Was not too difficult although it was very nerve racking. Should have taken more photos sorry.

You can’t tamper with the mileage without going much deeper into the brains of the odometer than these instructions take you. I was going to wind the clock forward a couple of thousand so the reading would be accurate but I was unable to.

 

Unfortunately the part the DIY said I would need was too small for my car (I needed a 20 tooth medium gear instead of the recommended 15 tooth small gear).

The local supplier did not have this part and no other repair shops would sell me any parts.

With the speedo in pieces on my desk at work, I bit the bullet and bought from the States. The $25 part then cost me another $36 USD to ship.

 

The new gear fit and I was able to reassemble the speedo. Took it for a test drive before final installation and back to a working odometer. 

[poli84]

On Saturday and after following Mike D-Silva’s lead, I hired a Rug Doctor from Bunnings (no Britex available) to give the Linen carpet shampoo.

For less than $40, it was worth a shot given the $240 quote I was given from a detailer.

The Rug Doctor even fits in the back with the seats down!

 

I removed the front seats and was disappointed to only find $2.40 and a paperclip. 

 

Before shots

 

 

 

 

 

 

[poli84]

After about 4 hours, I was happy with the results and seats went back in.

I'd say it was an 80% improvement.

 

Rear seat carpet is still a little ratty so I might look at replacing these in the future.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[poli84]

Previous owner had installed a really nice Nakamichi head unit into the car.

Looks very period correct and in addiiton, had all of the original speakers rebuilt.

 

It was lacking bluetooth and because this is my daily driver, I set about looking for a unit.

 

Ended up installing a Parrot MKi9000 and very happy with the results.

I had the original Nakamichi installer wire up a loom for me.

Parrot plugged into the small amp located in the passenger kick panel (next to OBD port), power taken from Nakamichi.

Ran the microphone to the top of the driver's A-pillar.

 

Phone call quality is great and the unit is all very hidden other than the microphone and the small wireless controller which is detachable.

Audio streaming, AUX, iPhone jack, and USB.

I have these stored behind the carpet near the passenger kick panel and just audio stream my music. 

 

I highly recommend this Parrot unit for those wanting to add some modern telecommunications to their car.

 

 

 

[poli84]

Ever since my first drive, the car was having idle and rev problms.

It would often stall on cold start, hunt for revs for some time and when coming to a stop, the revs would drop VERY low to the point where I think it would stall.

Made driving more of a challenge and often embarresing.

 

After some more reading, I decided to give my ISV (Idle Stabilisation Valve) and air-flow meter a good clean as this often leads to poor... idle stabilisation I guess.

 

I followed this DIY and it was a 2 hour job for me with very basic DIY skills.

http://rennlist.com/forums/964-1989-1994-911/197997-how-to-clean-isv-and-air-flow-meter.html

 

The air-flow didn't appear too dirty but after a good cleaning with WD-40, there was a lot of blank gunk that came off.

The ISV was very dirty with a thick black substance. I just gave both a very good clean and dry with WD-40, re-installed and the car feels great again.

This appears to have fixed my idle problems but time will tell. No dipping of the idle when coming to a stop and very strong idle at start up.

 

The black gunk which came out of the ISV and air-flow meter

 

Dirty ISV

 

This side looked OK but was crystal clean when I was done with it

 

Sorry I didn't take any after shots, will get better at photos as I do more write ups. 

 

That's it so far, been a busy month and I'm not sure how much my girlfriend is enjoying my new love (time waster), but I've been loving working on the car as much as time allows. 

 

Plenty more on the list and am waiting on a big Pelican Parts order.

Still haven't detailed the exterior but that will be very soon.

 

Will also be changing the Cup II wheels for some Cup I shortly and 90% sure I will remove the Carrera decal although I don't hate it. 

[hugh]

Great stuff! 

[Tit]

Hmmm...I should really clean my carpet...

[Owgasm]

Great stuff:)
Will be following this, to slowly do my C4

[Mike D'Silva]

I want your third pedal!

[SimonR]

I removed the front seats and was disappointed to only find $2.40 and a paperclip.

Damnit … I only got a dollar out of mine. Oh, and a vacuum cleaner bag of dog hair. Still got it if anyone's looking for a bag of ultra-rare 1976 911 dog hair and carpet fluff? Buyer pays shipping.

[Simonk]

Great work Poli! I'm enjoying reading about other members experiences with their cars and checking out all the photos.

[JV911]

Great work and nice write up Poli

 

Idle problems can also be a result of having the RS flywheel - do you know whether the car has been re-chipped?

[poli84]

Great work Poli! I'm enjoying reading about other members experiences with their cars and checking out all the photos.

Thanks Simon, it's enjoyable to document my learning and progress.

Need to remember to take more photos along the way though.

 

Great work and nice write up Poli

 

Idle problems can also be a result of having the RS flywheel - do you know whether the car has been re-chipped?

Thanks mate, that's an interesting point.

As far as I know, no chip.

 

I was thinking a Steve Wong to go with the G Pipe, I will look into something for the RS Flywheel and idle issues.

Any recommendations? 

 

Second drive today from cold start at 5:30am this morning, still hunts for revs in start (is this normal for an air cooled though?), but very stable on the drive and the idle drop problem coming to a stop seems to have gone.  

[SimonR]

poli84, hunting at idle is a common problem, if you search the Pelican Parts forums there are tonnes of posts of fixes. This is probably the most comprehensive thread I've found, although I haven't had the opportunity to work through any of the solutions yet (got other problems to deal with!):

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/250438-idle-bounce.html

My 2.7 does it; DAF911's 3.2 does it; could be any one of a number of things as you'll see if you read that thread. It outlines the basic trouble-shooting plan of attack.

[JV911]

Steve wong could do a chip to suit g pipe and lightweight flywheel. As Simon points out there are a number of other things to troubleshoot too

[clutch-monkey]

yep wong chip solved my flywheel idle issues on my 3.6.

if i had to do it again and had more money i'd simply get BPS or CNJ motorsport to do a custom tune rather than a generic chip.

[poli84]

poli84, hunting at idle is a common problem, if you search the Pelican Parts forums there are tonnes of posts of fixes. This is probably the most comprehensive thread I've found, although I haven't had the opportunity to work through any of the solutions yet (got other problems to deal with!):

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/250438-idle-bounce.html

My 2.7 does it; DAF911's 3.2 does it; could be any one of a number of things as you'll see if you read that thread. It outlines the basic trouble-shooting plan of attack.

Thanks Simon, have begun reading through this thread, lots of information in there.

Will add the trouble shooting items to the list, perhaps start with the ICV and O2 sensors.

 

Cleaning the air-flow and ISV has made a BIG difference however.

Except for a slight hunt at start up from cold, the revs are pretty stable driving. No longer have difficulty taking off and the car is not stalling anymore which has DRASTICALLY improved my driving experience.

Until the clean, I was having a lot of difficulty taking off smoothly and was concerned that I had forgotten to drive a manual. 

 

Steve wong could do a chip to suit g pipe and lightweight flywheel. As Simon points out there are a number of other things to troubleshoot too

I was interested in the Steve Wong chip before I realised I had idle problems.

If it gives a little better performance and works well with the flywheel and G Pipe, then all the better. 

 

yep wong chip solved my flywheel idle issues on my 3.6.

if i had to do it again and had more money i'd simply get BPS or CNJ motorsport to do a custom tune rather than a generic chip.

What were your idle issues with the RS Flywheel?

Why would you go for the custom BPS or CNJ over the Steve Wong if the Wong helped?

[clutch-monkey]

Thanks Simon, have begun reading through this thread, lots of information in there.

Will add the trouble shooting items to the list, perhaps start with the ICV and O2 sensors.

 

Cleaning the air-flow and ISV has made a BIG difference however.

Except for a slight hunt at start up from cold, the revs are pretty stable driving. No longer have difficulty taking off and the car is not stalling anymore which has DRASTICALLY improved my driving experience.

Until the clean, I was having a lot of difficulty taking off smoothly and was concerned that I had forgotten to drive a manual. 

 

I was interested in the Steve Wong chip before I realised I had idle problems.

If it gives a little better performance and works well with the flywheel and G Pipe, then all the better. 

 

What were your idle issues with the RS Flywheel?

Why would you go for the custom BPS or CNJ over the Steve Wong if the Wong helped?

with the RS flywheel and ceramic plate clutch it could stall at low speeds especially on downshifts. i also have RS cams though.

BPS does a comprehensive tune using a piggyback ECU, deletes the AFM from intake. CNJ also does a piggyback ECU with a tune.

just much more comprehensive and precise tune, done on  my specific  car on a dyno, not as generic as the wong chip. back to back there is a marked improvement.

wong chip is fine and works! just the BPS/CNJ solution is a next step up (both performance and dollars).

[poli84]

OUTER WINDOW SEAL (SCRAPER) REPLACEMENT

Pelican Parts order arrived, included were a set of outer window seals (or scrapers).

Mine had shrunk with age.

 

You need to order left and right

Left: 911-531-931-02-M136

Right: 11-531-932-02-M136

 

Replacement was very easy, the steel black strip just pops up with minimal force and allows you to slide out the rubber strip which is covered with felt on the inside.

WD-40 into the rail to allow the rubber to slide in and pop the steel strip back in.

5 minute job.

 

A lot of corrosion under the steel strip, and the under felt lining seems to be perished also.

There is a shorter seal which runs under the small front window, this was badly rotten on the passenger side and I would suggest changing this also (will have to leave that for the next PP order).

 

 

Driver before:

 

 

 

Much better:

 

Left was bad

 

 

 

 

[Stepo]

Nice work Poli, looks like the regular things that need maintenance every now and then.
 
Re the shrinking scraper rubber; I never liked the fact they kept shrinking even after installing a new set

 

Keep up the good work.  If you want to tackle a job that your car will love you for, pull those door cards off and give the lock mechanism a good lube .  I expect your deteriorated felt window seal could be letting some water in so give it a good clean out while you're there.

[poli84]

Nice work Poli, looks like the regular things that need maintenance every now and then.

 

Re the shrinking scraper rubber; I never liked the fact they kept shrinking even after installing a new set

 

Keep up the good work.  If you want to tackle a job that your car will love you for, pull those door cards off and give the lock mechanism a good lube .  I expect your deteriorated felt window seal could be letting some water in so give it a good clean out while you're there.

Thanks Peter, that's a great tip and will hopefully stop them from being so noisy.

Next large project is to install new door stays so when the door cards are off, I'll lube up the lock mechanisms.

[poli84]

New Wheels

Finally got around to picking up the Cup I's and dropping them off for refurbishment.

They weren't in bad condition, but I wanted them looking factory fresh.

 

A week later I picked them up and had them fitted to the car, replacing the current Cup II wheels which I was never a big fan of.

Paired with the removal of the Carrera decal, the car looks totally different in my eyes and much closer to how the factory wanted it to look. 

 

Before doing the above, I took some decent (non iPhone) shots of the initial set up.

 

 

Much better

 

 

 

[hugh]

That's more like it!

 

What a transformation the wheels and deleted decal make - looks fantastic!