Hello all,

A year ago I took ownership of fellow member (father) earossi's 914-6 build. Nicknamed 'the clown car' by my mother (the name stuck despite protests) I've done my best to keep up with maintenance, and I can report it's taken top awards at more than one local car show (where I was asked when Chevy made the corvette in that body style I might add..)

Big issue was an oil leak that finally got me to bite the bullet and drop the motor. Oil leak was fixed, but now a new problem. Until I dropped the motor the engine ran wonderfully and more importantly the temperature never went above 210. Flash forward to trying everything out prior to parade and suddenly we have issues! temperatures would shoot up to 240 (which was the max extent of my courage.) In a review I noticed the engine seal was out of alignment. On closer examination I realized the engine seal was cracked, split, and generally trying to escape from the engine bay. All it took really was a tear about two inches long on the driver's side.

The motor is a 3.2 from a 1988 911, complete with ECU, and I noted that when I temporarily patched the torn area (tape) the temps went right back to 210. So! Thanks to 914rubber.com (on whom I've come to depend on all things 914 seal related) I ordered a new set. I also verified I can, in fact, install the new seals with the motor still in. Brad Meyer stated it would be 'difficult.' I suspect He's being optimistic about my skills. So, any advice? Dish soap is easy, I'll be cleaning the tracks, I have the HF cudgel kits, and as you can see I've labeled the heck out of the seals to make sure I don't install them backwards or upside down. This is a learning process as this is my second Air Cooled car, and the first that could actually exceed 80 mph. Enjoy the photos!

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Here we've got the driver's and passenger's sides removed. The tape was temporary, I swear it wasn't there long.. mainly because the adhesive melted off...
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More gory crime scene photos of the murder of effective air cooling.
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While the passenger's side seal came out in one piece, I was suspicious...this was hiding in the...cracks?
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This is a comparison of the seal at the front of the motor vs. the passenger's side.
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This is the passenger's seal track. I discovered sadly, just why it was easier to remove. I promise the rest of the car is in great shape! (hell hole, longitudinals, etc.)
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The new seals arrived today. Yes that's sharpie, I'm not taking any chances given my ability to get it wrong

Try disconnecting your shift rod ,support the gearbox and lower the engine and gearbox down as much as you can without straining the front mount .
You will have less trouble fitting the rear one and the sides will be a little easier also,you can remove your engine tin sections with the engine in but its a bitch getting them back in .
Good luck.

So a brief update; I have the front seal -almost- all the way in. About one centimeter right in the middle of the fan shroud remains annoyingly free. Driver's side is all but the last bit on the driver's side to the rear. 97 out. Woof!

Update Update: Middle firewall seal was out of joint because an electrical cable got tangled with it. Got all the rubber installed without dropping the engine. Sweet Christmas, please drop your motor before trying this! I think I wiped all the gut smudges off the rear trunk lid. Now The last issue is the fact that the firewall seal isn't clinging the way the sides are to the engine tin. It's a bit long. asdlfjakldsfsa that was unpleasant.

Congrats on getting that pita job done

Interesting how this relates to the recent thread regarding running with and without seals. I suspect that the seals are very important. Getting the air to flow from above the engine to below relys of pressure differential. Even with the fan blowing, any chance to equalize the pressure top to bottom will have a detrimental effect.

These are the 1st seals I made. 1 because the rear wasn't available, and 2 because every time I ordered the front longer seal. I always got a short side as the part numbers are the same.
Just a trip down memory lane for me.

Also you can hog ring the cornered to hold them together on the ends.

Nice work. But I'm curious what this clown car looks like. I'm kind of expecting polka dots...

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In a move that is somewhat sacrilegious to purists, the color scheme is BMW based, Estoral Blue with Coral Red interior vinyl. Before I had it repainted and clear bra'd the front air dam was polka dotted! ... mind you this was caused by rock chips, but it's as close as we got. When the car was initially delivered to my folks' home, my Mother apparently uttered "It looks like a clown's car" and she has a habit of naming things accurately.

(Also, spell check says it should be escalator blue by the way.)

Thats the best looking Corvette I have ever seen!

That's sharp, I like the blue. Well, the name has character but fortunately is not literal!

Holy that car !!!!!!!!.....more pics please

Man if that's a clown car, sign me up for the circus.

Sorry Mom. You're way far wrong!

I would love to see more pics of this car,.!! very unique color choices that work,..!!

Your car looks great. 914's usually look tiny to people who have never seen one before. Your mom probably thought of something like this when she first saw it and thus the name she gave it.


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Dave,

You really have a nice car. Later when you have some extra money you can add a Steve Wong chip to you 3.2 Motronick. It will give you a nice increase in power but more important is how it will feel. Smother and pulling right from the bottom RPM right to red line.

Bob B

Great looking car and must be a rocket ship with the 3.2. Enjoy it in good health.

great color and great place to drive. Yeah, what a nice circus to be part of.