'91 Porsche 944 S2 8/22/17 Fotki update

[Foxer]

It's time to move to another build for me as the last one was nearing completion and I CAN'T have that! This was my last Porsche and by far the best 944. It was normally aspirated but with the new 3 liter Four destined for the 968 ... gobs of torque and HP compared to the 2.5 liter! It also had the rear wing of the 968 and the 944 Turbo bodywork. I was able to start with the Hasegawa Porsche 944 Turbo since the bodywork was correct.

 

I started this back in the 90's with my first try at resin casting to copy the engine from a 968 kit. That didn't go too bad, but I got tons of small bubbles ... probably normal for a first time casting. I tried filling the bubbles with putty but finally put it aside. Here's a few shots of that engine...

When I started up again I had acquired another 968 kit (the original was sacred because I thought I was going to replace the 944S2 with a 968) for cheap so I discarded the resin engine and swapped out the needed 968 parts. Now I expect to get anal on detailing the engine as I did with my '87 944 build.

 

For the rear wing, I filed down the molded in 944 wing on the body and made a 968 type wing from sheet ... still not wanting to use the wing out of the 968 kit!

This brings me up to the present, so all the tough stuff is done. I found the correct 928 GT type wheels in a 911 kit and proceeded to adopt those. The inside needed to be ground down flatter and a tube installed to go through the brake disk for mounting. This created a habitual problem for me ... locating the exact center of the wheel for a hole for the tube. A trick I learned here worked perfectly ... stacking various sized tubes so the outside tube centered nicely on the existing hub shoulder while the inner tube fit the drill diameter. This works for many centering applications! You can see the drilled hole in the wheel on the right.

 

The engine just need a slight adaptation from 968 to 944S2 intake plumbing but pretty easy. Then all the stuff to add no matter what .. fuel rail, wiring, plumbing and various boxes ... easy. Hopefully this one might see the light of day sometime soon!

Edited August 22, 2017 by Foxer

[Wonderbread Kustomz]

One of my favorite Porsche models... This and the 928.... Nice start!

[mitchell]

looking great.

[beeRS]

Nice one Mike. This is an idea I had in the past too, but never got round to it. Looks like you're gonna make a fine job of this. look forward to seeing your progress.

[hjracing]

Sharp build! I'll keep an eye on this one!

[WizPorsche944]

Oh I cant wait for this one !! Its going to be great !

[Foxer]

A bit of an update mostly engine wise. Did a lot of detail painting of engine and chassis parts as I need to partially assemble the engine before finalizing the scratch-built pieces to fit. The Air Flow Meter got the most attention as this is highly visible and nothing like the 968 engine. I built the shape with layered sheet and glued .01 x .02 inch strips around the top edges. The circular piece needed a ring punched from two different sized punches. For the grid at the center I'm using pieces cut from MCG Speaker Covers. They are just the right size! It needs a little fine sanding before painting but here's where it is along with a shot of the 1:1 engine.

I got the wheel pins glued and well centered ... all went well with that.

Note that you're looking at the rear of the engine in this shot ...

Edited August 22, 2017 by Foxer

[Foxer]

The turn back of the 968 engine to look like the version of it mounted in the '91 S2 has been weighing heavily on my mind. How much do I really want to scratch build for this? I always put way too much before me to be absolutely accurate, when only me will really know, So, I decided to just throw the engine as is into the S2. I am modifying the Air Meter plumbing as that's almost done and it is very noticeable. The main difference in the way the two look is the head cover. The 944 S2 head had PORSCHE cast into it and the injectors were pretty much open to view with just a black plastic cover. These are between the head and intake manifold in the photo above. Below is a photo of a 968 engine and the head has no PORSCHE cast into it, instead it has a new metal injector cover with the PORSCHE lettering on that. It's a minor difference, but would be a major job to model it correctly.

This is the engine in my 944 S2

Edited August 22, 2017 by Foxer

[simonr]

Hey, you're doing really great work here...

Simón P.Rivera Torres

[Foxer]

Thanks for all the encouragement everyone ... it really helps me keep going!

For instance ... in the last posted photo you can see the little stiffener for the flange of the rectangular tube. This piece is only about 1/16" on a side and it's the third time I've glued it and has fallen away again! I've used Testors Liquid Cement, Ambroid Pro Weld and CA, which I even reapplied along the joints afterwards. I use an over sized piece, about 1/8", and trim the edge down after a day of drying. It usually falls away while sanding and I use a light touch with the fine sandpaper. I REALLY don't want to have to epoxy such a small piece in.

This tiny piece may just be asking too much of my old hands. But, I'll keep trying!

[Foxer]

I feel like I've been making pins for two days. At least some of them, like the aluminum master cylinder, will be seen. The Brake Booster was turned on my old Dremel "lathe" from two disks of .8" sheet. The aluminum Master Cylinder sticks into that and the plastic reservoir sits on the Master Cylinder. The silver disk on the long brass rod will slide into the Master Cylinder after the rod is cut to cap it off. The brass brake line is stuck into a piece of tubing filed into a rounded end and glued to the cylinder.

The rectangular tube inlet to the Air Flow Meter is done and rounded at the end for a duct to the Inlet Box .... whew!

Edited August 22, 2017 by Foxer

[Foxer]

Small update photo-wise but major for me as I've come to some hard decisions as to how far I go in the engine compartment ... ALL THE WAY I say! Most of my recent research has been centered around the headlight rotate assembly and the missing details in the Hasegawa 944's as opposed to the Testors kits. The most noticable is the Testors inclusion of a piece that includes the Windshield washer reservoir, headlight lid motors, power steering reservoir and the ignition rotor. This is shown in the first photo. On the Hasewaga, the washer and power steering reservoirs are molded to the fender well and the rotor is part of the engine assembly. There are no headlight motors. The photo of the S2 engine compartment shows all these parts. To me, these fill a large space and the absence of them leaves a large hole. One "help" for my decision, to use the piece from a Testors kit, was purchesing the wrong kit to use for a build of the '84 944 I had. I ended up with a 944 Turbo that had a very similar box to the 944 S that has the correct front bumper. Anyway, I got the piece I needed at least without messing up a future build.

I have also decided to construct the aluminum bar that connects the headlights and is also very noticeable. This should be simple with some support brackets off the frame and a few levers mounter to an aluminum tube. I I shouldn't have said SIMPLE here yet!)

 

Edited August 22, 2017 by Foxer

[Kennyboy]

Love what you are doing here Mike!

I had a Copenhagen blue 85 944 1:1 years ago, you are absolutely right when you say that those pieces will be seen under the hood.

Keep up the great work on this!

Edited September 8, 2013 by Kennyboy

[Modlbldr]

Mike-

I like the detail that you are puting into this build. The scratchbuilt wing looks good and suits the car well. I always liked this body style of Porsche but have never had one of the kits. I'be always stuck with the 911' s as they are my favorite. Keep it up.

Later-

Edited September 8, 2013 by Modlbldr

[Foxer]

I had a Copenhagen blue 85 944 1:1 years ago, you are absolutely right when you say that those pieces will be seen under the hood.

That was a great color!

Thanks for your kind comments.

[Foxer]

Mike-

I like the detail that you are puting into this build. The scratchbuilt wing looks good and suits the car well. I always liked this body style of Porsche but have never had one of the kits. I'be always stuck with the 911' s as they are my favorite. Keep it up.

Later-

I only drove one 911 and they are great cars. I'll admit I'm not a great driver (I always seemed to miss the local Porsche track events at Limerock) and I didn't have wads of cash when I bought my first 924 turbo, but the handling blew me away! It made me feels like I was a race driver. Suspension is what I look at first in a car and the 924/944 had what 911's WISH they had. They were also my daily drivers all year round in snow country. Did you know eight foot long 2x4's fit in a 944 ... with the hatch closed!

Thanks for your gracious comments.

[Modlbldr]

I've had those "daily driver" problems too. I've always lived in snow country and had to deal with what you have. I have a Escort wagon right now. About a year ago it had a broken rear strut and I just happened upon a guy a couple of.miles away who was willing to give me a few bricks for a walkway. I hauled home 142 bricks with my car! My old Tempo that I owned had a permanent scuff on the dash from where my 8 ft 2X4's came through the trunk with the rear seat folded down and rested on the dash.

Later-

Edited September 8, 2013 by Modlbldr

[Foxer]

My old Tempo that I owned had a permanent scuff on the dash from where my 8 ft 2X4's came through the trunk with the rear seat folded down and rested on the dash.

Later-

[Modlbldr]

That did not come out right.

I would load the 2X4's in the trunk, through the rear seat and rest them on the dash to be able to get the trunk closed.

That makes it sound smarter doesn't it? Before it sounded like they slid up through the back seat and came to rest on the dash-----maybe I should just stop while I'm behind.Lol

Later-

Edited September 9, 2013 by Modlbldr

[Foxer]

That did not come out right.

I would load the 2X4's in the trunk, through the rear seat and rest them on the dash to be able to get the trunk closed.

That makes it sound smarter doesn't it? Before it sounded like they slid up through the back seat and came to rest on the dash-----maybe I should just stop while I'm behind.Lol

Later-

I understood you right the first time.

I remember using the dash for maximum extension also in the 924's! The seats prevented using the foot wells properly.

[sjordan2]

I also had an '84 standard 944, dark gunmetal. I'm looking forward to seeing how you create an '84.

[Foxer]

I also had an '84 standard 944, dark gunmetal. I'm looking forward to seeing how you create an '84.

I always thought the original '84 Fuch wheels, black centers and chrome ring, looked the best on the 944's.

As a prelude, since I won't be starting it for awhile, I'm using a Testors 944S which has the correct front end with some Fuchs off a 911 and an old style dash from a Monogram 924. I'm thinking I don't want to go crazy with the engine so I may just use the turbo without a lot of detail added ... we'll see.

[Foxer]

Just a little update to show this is being worked on ... along with the '84 944 build as I try to get both ready for the same Guards Red paint. I notched the battery to look like a battery with the cover off as it appears in the photos. A simple job for added detail. The hood latch receiver at the front was made from an angle under the nose with the mount from sheet. The silver receiver on top is all but done but has to wait until the red paint is done.

The fender well was cut to allow an overflow bottle from a Testors 944 to fit. It's ready for paint now.

The wheels are ready to get their black centers ... as soon as I mask them with a little tape, that is.

Edited August 22, 2017 by Foxer

[Foxer]

This is a big one, though not that much to see ... both 944's are ready for paint! Now I better check that the Guards Red Touch UP paint is still good. Here's shots of both bodies, an '84 and a '91 where you can see the differences ..

The WIP for the '84 is here, so I'm not updating this post for both.

Edited August 22, 2017 by Foxer

[IMSANUT]

Very cool projects. Looking forward to following them, and perhaps it will force me to revisit the conversion to an early 83 car to replicate my own 1:1 944!!