Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

Hello All

This morning I started my 944S and pulling away I noticed the steering was heavier than usual. After 20m of gently moving up the road I noticed the oil pressure guage warning light was on - so I switched off the ignition. I checked the oil dipstick and the level was fine, but, then I looked under the car and saw one of these bolts (attached) on the road and a loose belt (still intact).

It seems the power steering belt pulley had come loose (on the engine side).

Anyway, the car has already been towed to the local garage just round the corner and he says he'll re-fix the pulley so I should have the car after lunch.

I am slightly concerned about the low oil pressure though. The car was running at just a little over tickover on the 20m or so I travelled in those 30 seconds.... I doubt that really did any major damage. At the same time, I'm confused that if it is the power steering belt then why the engine oil pressure was showing in the red.

Any thoughts please?

Kind regards

Mark

Mark

That bolt is your main crank bolt. The oil pump relies on this bolt being v.tight hence lack of oil pressure. Your power steering pulley is also held on by the same bolt.
Fingers crossed for no damge due to lack of oil pressure.

Rich

Should add its unlikely your local garage will be able to tighten the bolt enough without a flywheel lock.

Rich

Thanks again Rich.

I'm guessing flywheel lock wasn't used as part of the cambelt and pulley work and that's why the bolt has worked it's way way loose over the past 300 miles (since I took on the car).

It seems the bolt needs to be tighted to around 150lb/ft and a flywheel lock will be required to achieve that.

If that sounds correct, please let me know and I'll let my garage know those details.... otherwise I guess the bolt won't be tightened correctly and it will only be a matter of time before it works its way loose again.

Cheers

Mark

Yep thats about right.

Factory Service Manual says 210(155) Nm(ftlb). Make sure that big washer goes on the right way around - bevel out. I've heard tell that you can torque it by putting the car in 5th and chocking the wheels with bricks if you don't have access to the flywheel lock.

Many thanks to both of you for your help.

Just returned from the garage - the mechanic tightened the bolt to 210Nm and on the (admittedly, very short) drive home the car seems fine.... oil pressure shot up to just below 5 on start up and engine seems perfectly smooth... so hopefully no damage.

50 quid lighter than I was this morning, but, on the whole probably a good thing that the bolt decided come loose right outside home and within 500m of my local garage and reassuring it's now been tightened correctly.

Thanks again

Mark

£50 to tighten up a bolt

Bring it round here and I'll do it for £25.

Somebody will be along to undercut me soon.....

Ah, but it wasn't some old common & cheap bolt.....

My local Ford dealer charged a guy £104 to change a light bulb. Minimum 1 hour labour @ £80 + vat. It did include the bulb tho.....

To be fair to my local garage, that £50 included a nominal £20 for them to pick up my car and take it from my home to the garage using their breakdown truck.

Just a shame the crank bolt didn't appear to have been tightened properly when the cam belt and pulley work was done just 300 miles ago... so I've spoken with that garage and they've offered to foot the bill I got earlier today which is pretty good of them really (so long as there's no lasting damage to my engine of course).

That's very nice of them.

I think it's only fair to name the previous garage if they're that honest, it's just as good to know who to use as much as it is to know who to avoid.

In fact both your garages seem pretty reasonable, count yourself lucky.

The cam belt and pulleys were changed towards the end of June by The Test and Service Centre in King's Lynn and the re-tightening of the crank bolt today was carried out by Kevin Webb Motor Engineers here in Norwich.

I also used local Porsche specialists AutoWerke here in Norwich earlier in the week for a cam chain & tensioner inspection and they seemed very good too.