Balance belt whine - 944 S2
- Thread starter rowey200
- Start date
blade7
Well-known member
If you are inclined to work on your car yourself there's usually a guide on youtube for the service type jobs. I learnt how to work on my cars years ago when all there was were Haynes manuals and advice from mechanic friends, mainly because I didn't want to pay garage rates and most of the mechanics I knew weren't geniuses. Nowadays there's plenty of things I'd rather be doing than rolling around on a cold garage floor, but I'm too tight to pay an often uninterested grease monkey £80 ph to do something I can do myself.
jonnyporsche
PCGB Member
Oh how I wish there were people like you in East Yorkshire. I am learning all about mine on my tod, great fun though.[
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]Monkeythree
New member
ORIGINAL: pauljmcnulty
Possibly.
We need to look at it from the indies' point of view, though. A well-known indie near me pulled out of servicing the front-engined 24/44/68 cars a few years ago as the rates they could get for the newer cars was higher, and the owners had no issues spending more.
They were struggling with our cars coming in with things like water leaks, odd electrical issues, things that might need hours to diagnose. They may have spent hours finding a fault and estimating the cost to fix it, but the owners were taking the cars away as the estimate was stupidly high.
Yes, that was partly because a Lux was worth perhaps £1500, and a full service with a couple of other repairs could easily be £1500. I'm not sure many of the owners of the cars will be saying it's now worth £3K, so £1500 for an annual service is good value?
We're stuck with the charges motor repairers can get away with, at least near me. Sites with planning permission are at a premium: my "cheap" guy who services my van is now competing with the nearby Jag main dealer on rates, and isn't far off the Aston dealer just up the road. [
I believe that some OPC's have a lower "classic" hourly rate for working on the older cars. Makes sense really. Keeping older cars going is good for the brand because cars are seen as having longevity. Supporting owners of "cheaper" models keeps a pool of cars on the market which provides an entry point for those who can't afford a modern Porsche but are happy to climb the ladder.
I never dealt with the service side of my OPC, only parts but the parts department were always very supportive with discounts. I daresay that if one were to speak to the service manager of any OPC and explain the predicament they would probably help. Worth a try anyway.
pauljmcnulty
Active member
Yep, that's what I've found. The issue is paying someone top money to essentially "learn" your car. Fair enough if they know the 944 inside out, as they will be faster and do the job better, but I could go to the local garage to get that service. My problem is that this is increasingly the case with indies as well as PCs: even if there's a 944 guru in the company he's going to be the more experienced member of staff, so unlikely to be doing a basic service on a 944 when the apprentice needs the practice.
Some PCs are fantastic, but it's patchy at best and there isn't one near me anyway.
The other issue with PCs is that they have set service schedules and are a lot less flexible. Brake fluid changes, for instance, or replacing brake pads that might easily have a year more life for a car that does low mileage.
Monkeythree
New member
Presumably PCGB have a good relationship with Porsche GB and could set up a meeting to discuss the issue? It certainly seems that the current environment isn't optimal for either customer or supplier so perhaps it's as simple as getting a few heads together for a review and see if there is anything that can be done.
I would be happy to represent PCGB and the interests of the front banger fraternity at such a meeting but I know nothing about the wants and needs of the beetle brigade so it would probably need a few others to provide a spectrum. Actually it's probably the boxster boys who are most likely to be facing a similar conundrum.
Thoughts?
I would be happy to represent PCGB and the interests of the front banger fraternity at such a meeting but I know nothing about the wants and needs of the beetle brigade so it would probably need a few others to provide a spectrum. Actually it's probably the boxster boys who are most likely to be facing a similar conundrum.
Thoughts?
My immediate thought M3 is that that is a very sound idea indeed, and I'd happily volunteer to be part of the PCGB delegation. However I am not someone who would pay for work being done at an OPC as I can do most of it myself anyway, so I'd be a bit of a fraud.
However I'd be interested to hear how you get on.
Oli.
However I'd be interested to hear how you get on.
Oli.
pauljmcnulty
Active member
Indeed. The problem would be that the PCs are nearly all independant businesses and don't tend to be interested, even if it's a three-line whip from Porsche GB. We've had the problem with this before over schemes to promote membership to new buyers, and over member discounts. It's all down to how the individual dealer principle, or the service manager, parts manager etc., are interested in what the Club is promoting.
I'm not sure there would be a lot of demand, given that the 944 owners who are concerned about using a main dealer already do so. The number of centres who restored front-runner cars last year for Brands shows there is a lot of enthusiasm, but whether that's backed up with mechanics who know the cars well I don't know. My concerns about the way main dealers replace parts more readily would put me off as well, even if there was a PC within an hour or so.
Car was back in the garage today and you were bang on the money - BB tensioner had been turned anti clockwise by the garage to tension the belt. This issue has now been rectified (BB correctly tensioned with a clockwise turn of the tensioner and tension set) and the idler also correctly set with a 0.5mm gap to the belt at the bottom.
When I got the car home I whipped the upper belt cover off and confirmed the above! There is now just a very slight whine, similar to before the water pump / belts were changed - I'm lead to believe this is perfectly normal. I'll get the tension checked at the required 2k miles.
As ever, thanks to all those that helped on this thread. Can't wait to get out for a proper drive at the weekend []
[/quote]
Not shown in the photograph is the balance belt tensioner pulley. My guess from the line that the balance belt is taking above the idler is that the tensioner puller is installed wrongly. With the tensioner pulley installed correctly, there should be sufficient adjustment on the idler pulley (it's slotted) to position it 0.5mm from the belt.
ETA - the balance belt tensioner pulley should be turned clockwise to tension the belt. I'm convinced from the line of your belt that it has been turned anticlockwise to tension it and that is why there is such a huge gap to the idler. You will probably find the balance belt is touching (or within a gnats nadger of) the water pump pulley too. Find a new indy.....
[/quote]
When I got the car home I whipped the upper belt cover off and confirmed the above! There is now just a very slight whine, similar to before the water pump / belts were changed - I'm lead to believe this is perfectly normal. I'll get the tension checked at the required 2k miles.
As ever, thanks to all those that helped on this thread. Can't wait to get out for a proper drive at the weekend [
][/quote]
Not shown in the photograph is the balance belt tensioner pulley. My guess from the line that the balance belt is taking above the idler is that the tensioner puller is installed wrongly. With the tensioner pulley installed correctly, there should be sufficient adjustment on the idler pulley (it's slotted) to position it 0.5mm from the belt.
ETA - the balance belt tensioner pulley should be turned clockwise to tension the belt. I'm convinced from the line of your belt that it has been turned anticlockwise to tension it and that is why there is such a huge gap to the idler. You will probably find the balance belt is touching (or within a gnats nadger of) the water pump pulley too. Find a new indy.....
[/quote]
PSH
PCGB Member
That's good news.... there are a lot of helpful people on this forum which is what helps all of us keep these cars on the road. Like others here i also try to help where i can, I've owned my car a very long time now and know it well, I also have a good understanding of what can be done to get even more out of this fantastic machine and will happily help direct new owners on their extra Boost quest that we all succumb too sooner or later...
Pete
Pete
ORIGINAL: zcacogp
Easy there, tiger; this thread was started by someone who has the taste and refinement to own an S2. We'd rather not have it clogged up with some of your turbo boys' hot air, thanks! [ORIGINAL: PSH
... extra Boost quest ...
Oli.
I'm with Oli here .
we'll have none of your boost nonsense going on here. We let the ladies in our lives play with hair dryers..... LOL
ORIGINAL: PSH
awww... come on guys, a little extra boost is good for the soul....I'm sure we could bolt a ladies hairdryer onto your cars one Saturday afternoon while you guys are in the pub having a relaxing drink....just so you don't feel left out on the drive home ..
Pete
LOL
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