Thanks, Frederik --- looking forward to getting this engine back running + up-to-speedOriginally Posted by frederik
I sought-out a 2.2 car for a number of reasons. In addition to their dog-leg ‘box and a real oil cooler in their nose, these cars were also Porsche’s last high-compression street engines sold here in the US. And even though the subsequent 2.4s have more power (better torque, ‘easier’ GB, blah-blah-blah), the 2.2s have a ‘snap’ that I really enjoy. Sure-sure --- high-compression + short stroke = a bit of a handful . . . but that’s pretty-much/exactly what I signed-up for
Anyway, with a re-build now needed, it's tempting to try to ‘improve’ things while we’re in there. And with all the development that Porsche put into these engines --- not-to-mention the miles + experience that others have built-up over the decades . . . there’s a ton that can be done. But as exciting as all that sounds --- I mean, how often will I have the opportunity to do this? . . . the truth is, I bought this car ‘cause it was stock
Put Another Way --- I wouldn’t ‘ve bought it . . . if it wasn’t
And it’s not like I haven’t made my share of ‘improvements’ along the way --- seat, steering wheel, lid, tank, usw . . . all Faktory bits, or contemporary ones, anyway, but definitely not there when I started. But those are the kinds of things I would’ve done Back in the Day, anyway . . . added more for self-gratification rather than for any extra performance. (Although I do actually fit inside the Nasty Car, now)
'Sides --- everything I’ve stuck on? . . . 'll come right off
And everything I've done is ‘old,’ anyway. What I do to/with 1059, is all about what an ‘old car’ means to me. Except for one brief/half-hearted attempt, I’ve never restored a car --- or owned one. But I have been lucky enough to ’ve owned several very un-restored ones. And while they may not ‘ve been the cleanest or prettiest --- looking at the some of their un-touched original details always gave me pause, like . . .
. . . the dusty/musty spare + bumper jack, both un-touched + tucked away in the back of the trunk of my old Super Duty . . .
. . . that ridiculous black-washed floor sheet-metal, tar paper battery bed, and date-coded hub caps on old my Roadster . . .
. . . the half-century of dust settled in 1059’s smuggler’s box
Out-of-sight, inconsequential stuff, maybe --- even silly, I suppose . . . but the kind o’ things that ‘re easily missed or messed-with, lost or damaged --- or just scrubbed away . . . impossible to ‘restore’ . . .
. . . and irresistible to me
This engine is like that. We --- John (Forbes) + Tony + Marco . . . have managed to coax a whole ‘nother decade of use out of something that was already a little iffy (not-to-mention ~40-years-old) when I got it. And though I had hoped to do one more Big Drive before it needed this kind serious attention . . .
. . . here it is . . . the last Big Job. And even though it is ‘just an engine’ --- I feel the same way about this part as I do about that old fire extinguisher sheet-metal screwed into the floor, or those scraps of fabric glued into the glove box. I’d like to leave 1059 recognizable as something Porsche built --- and that’s passed through 7 more owners, since . . . and that includes this engine. Ok-K --- protect the Mg bits, sure . . . but then just clean the rest up . . . leave things alone
I mean, as long everything works properly --- k, just a liiiiitle nicer, maybe . . . then I’ll be more-than happy
Put it Another Way . . .
. . . I’m not re-building this engine--- or owning this car . . . just to look at it
High-ho, Silver!
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