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AMB Porsche Nottingham

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SamanthaHewit

New member
Hello all,

I need to get a strange noise checked out, im hoping its not an expennsive engine fault but who knows.

I found a company nearby in Nottingham called AMB Porsche. The man on the telephone said they would not charge to diagnose the fault so long as its not a huge job in finding it.

Ive never used anybody but my Porsche dealership but my car is out of warranty and im trying to look after the pennies.

Has anyone used AMB before? Any positive or negative reviews?

Thx Samantha x
 
Hi Samantha,

I've not heard of them but maybe we can help.
What sort of noise is it, when do you hear it, where is it coming from, how long does it last?
 
The noise is coming from the engine bay.
You can only hear it from inside the car and at first i thought it was a pulley wheel starting to fail as it sounds like worn bearings.
I removed the inspection plate and had a good listen but they all look and sound fine to me.
The sound cannot be heard from outside of the car, only when you are inside.

The noise / vibration / rattle is somehow connected to the engine rpm, as the noise raises in pitch when i accelerate.
There are no warning lights and there is no loss in performance either.

There are no visible oil leaks or loss of oil, i have checked levels.

I wondered if something has either come loose within the engine bay, or possibly it is a potential valve / top end problem. Although i dont have any smoke (blue or otherwise) from the exhaust.

Mileage is now 90k and it is a well looked after car that never hits high speed or high revs.

Any clues?
Thanks Samantha


 
So it sounds like a rumble which increases in pitch as revs increase? Is that the same with the clutch depressed as well? Do you have an LSD?

The most common sounds in descending order of likelihood are:-

Loose Polyrib belt - these power ancillaries such as A/C, alternator etc, either it's loose or the water pump is starting to fail and the pulley is sliding off the water pump pulley. (This is more of a screach though)

Loose exhaust heat shield - these tend to rust and rattle around.

Hydraulic lifters - you will get a tappety sound

Loose spark plug.

The engine failures tend to be sudden and permanent, you are very unlikely to get a drawn out aural warning beforehand, so I wouldn't panic.
 
Another common fault is a loose spark plug - that makes a bit of a pop squeel sound too and can sound like a worn pulley bearing
 
Several things it could be such as power steering pump or alternator bearing, there are others but get it checked out, I'd say to call Zentrum, Mike there is an ex-OPC guy and knows the new stuff very well, I've heard very good reports he's also a nice guy to talk to and I know several who he's saved a load of cash. Google Zentrum, they're to the north of Nottingham. I have been to AMB some years ago and the guy is good and a restorer of 356's etc said to be very good on the old stuff.
 
Thanks guys,

A couple of things mentioned stand out...

Hydraulic lifters, as the noise seems to be eminating from the rear of the engine bay it suggests to me that it is not a pump or other belt driven device.

Spark plug loose, possible, again this noise does sound quite 'tappit-y' if you know what i mean. It is quite a low bass frequency but it also has a steady tap sound to it so i thought it might be linked to the engine topend.

Rodney- i dont know what an LSD is im afriad, or what it means,

The noise is there whether the clutch is depressed or not.

Im 99.9% sure its not thenpolyrib belt or any of these pulleys as the noise should have been easily identifiable whenni took the inspection panel off to have a look. Instead, the noise was almost masked by the rest of the engine sound leading me to believe the noise is towards the rear of the engine, not the front.
 

Samantha,

I'm a bit confused - you said that you can only hear it inside the car. Are you now saying that you can hear the noise when you're standing at the rear?

Low bass frequency? Sounds to me more like an exhaust-related problem but can't imagine what unless it's a combination of things.

Doesn't sound like a transmission-related problem if it's there with the clutch engaged and disengaged. An LSD is a limited slip differential by the way - it's only become available more recently on the Gen II 987 series cars and on the new 981 and wouldn't be applicable to your car.

Sounds as though a thorough investigation is required with the car on a hoist.

Hope you get it fixed soon.

Jeff
 
Samantha, you did say that it sounded like a bearing then that it's tappity and from the rear end of the engine bay but that it is a low bass sound, several things are possible, the valve chain drive is that end of the engine but noise from that would have a rubbing/rattling sound if say the slipper pads weren't guiding the chains so it doesn't sound like that from your description. Low Bass sounds like something heavy in sequence with engine speed, possible engine mount would probably give a low bass resonance but also the clutch operating lever can give a low pitched almost bass rattle.

Really we can discuss for ages but best get it to a specialist to take a look.

Ady at AMB is good especially on the older air cooled cars and if I had a 356 for restoration I'd go there also in the North Nottingham area there is Zentrum with Mike ( Ex-OPC ) or Kirkmans just outside of Shardlow which is South West of Nottingham where Simon ( also Ex-OPC ) runs the workshop. Both Mike and Simon know the water cooled cars very well.
 

A failed rear engine hydro-mount sounds like a good call Kevan, particularly on a 90k miler. Low frequency with a rattle.

You'd certainly hear that inside the car if it's shorting out, even partially.

Jeff
 
I'm taking it to AMB to be checked out tomorrow.

I wasnt very clear explaining the noise was i?, from the drivers seat the noise is tappity/clicky with almost a low frequency scraping sound, although not related to the exhast note.
Initially i assumed it was the polyrib belt/pulleys until i removed the inspection panel. Once removed i was expecting the noise to be be very very obvious from the offending pulley wheel, however the noise was deeper in the engine bay.
I walked round the back of the car and put my head in the rear trunk and i could just about hear the noise. The noise is not audible outside of the car, you have to be inside with the doors and windows closed.

I remember i had a ford escort many years ago and the tappits were quite rattle-y and this noise almost reminds me of this same problem.
I shall of course report back here once the fault is diagnosed to see who guessed correct;)

X

 

The armchair mechanics await the outcome with baited breath Samantha.!

Hope it turns out to be something trivial and cheap to fix like a component that has worked loose and is touching the body.

Jeff
 
Adi at AMB has been a Porsche specialist for as long as I can remember. He used to be active in the PCGB region many years ago and lots of us used him.

He's very genuine and honest and although I've not used him for sometime I wouldn't hesitate in asking him to have a look and be interested in his opinion.

He used to do a lot of air cooled Porsche but I know he does the new stuff too. At least you know he's not the kind who will rip you off :)
 
Ok .... Who said 'Water Pump Failure'? Lol

AMB are 99.9% sure this is what has failed/failing.

Quoted £320+vat to fix, does this sound about right?
(includes parts, labour, anti freeze and bleeding)

 
I don't thing that the estimate is at all bad, the OPC price would be much more.

For that price I'd guess Ady is saying about 3-4 hours of his work.

It will need to be left to cool so he'll probably want it left the night before.
 
Nottingham OPC have quoted me £450+vat to replace the pump, antifreeze etc.

But to be honest Ady has diagnosed the fault for free so im happy to give him the work. As he already has the car he said it'll be ready for pickup, all fixed tomorrow yay!

 
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