Werkstatte

The three-year project at Automotive Reisen in now just a couple of weeks from completion.  All of the lights, instruments and horns work perfectly.  The final objective was to make every area of the 356 totally operational and attractive as the beautiful exterior look of the body.

Although it took months to get the engine done, it took lots of help to source all of the under-engine parts, cables, hoses, mufflers.  Pat writes, "Thanks to Maurice at Stoddard we were able to get most parts necessary.  Pre-A heater/muffler cans were impossible to get so we took those used on a A car and modified them so them looked exactly like the Pre-A.  We also paid attention to making it cosmetically as neat as the topside."

Because of the international pandemic, the carpet set took a long time to be delivered.  This was sourced through Stoddard using the same weave pattern and color as original.  "The installation partner commented on the high quality of the material and the pre-cutting was dead on."

The seat rails and wooden frame for a Speedster were exact as to dimensions and hole fit.  It was more economical to buy new rather than replate.  "Everyone is having long delays with chrome suppliers in the USA" 

It's almost done!   Just a few more details to finish up. 

Here are some updates from Automotive Reisen in Burr Ridge, Illinois  They've rebuilt the entire inner structure and the results are spectacular.  

We have made major progress on the ’55 Speedster with the interior metal completed.  This was part of the rear that had been crushed in one of its’ many track experiences

The bottom pan was replaced but we noted exactly where the factory had placed the seams and spot welds.  The old pan was unsavable not due to rust but rather the aggressive track use of this Speedster.

Primer and five coats of Glasurit paint with hand sanding between each coat.  The white formula is exact to the original single-stage paint.

The entire exterior painted surface was covered with foam sheet to protect the surface during reassembly.

We are now installing all of the control cables in the tunnel and then the engine goes in.  We expect to be completed in mid-May.  

A racetrack wreck to a show piece

Automotive Reisen in Burr Ridge, Illinois is tackling quite the project!  This 1955 Pre-A Speedster was used as a race car in the Midwest with the SCCA, mostly competing at Road America in Wisconsin.  The new owner wanted to restore it back to "As New" condition and shop's Pat Yanahan was up to the task.  "After we sanded off over two 5-gallon pails of body filler our forensic examination show that the right front had been crushed and the rear had shown signs of a total rollover."

Automotive Reisen assembled a crew of 356 body experts along with fabricators who were up to the challenge for a project that was to last three years.  Here's the first few pictures of the restoration—more to follow! 

After the filler was ground off the outer bodywork, the rear tail skin was removed, revealing quite a mess.  

This is what the rear inner structure looks like after years of racing and sometimes rolling.  

New sheetmetal, sourced from Stoddard, is ready to help put this Speedster back to original. 

Here's a shot of the inner structure coming back together.  Panels are clamped on for fitting before the welding begins.  

From the front, you can see the Speedster shape coming back together.  

Stay tuned for more in a couple of weeks! 

Automotive Reisen

7754 S County Line Rd.

Burr Ridge, IL 60527

(630) 395-7000

https://www.facebook.com/Automotive-Reisen-125296761509/

2021 Stoddard Swap Meet Dates...

Our 34th Annual Stoddard Swap Meet is scheduled for June 4th and 5th, 2021.  We are planning on having the Friday night literature and toy portion of the event outside. We're renting a second "circus" tent to make this work.  

The 2022 LA Lit and Toy Show will be held February 26th at the LAX Hilton in Los Angeles.  You can see more here:

lalitandtoyshow.com

Registration is now open!  We are starting to figure out the schedule for the rest of the week.  If you have a related event or open house, please email us at lalit@stoddard.com  

Our 33rd Annual Stoddard Swap Meet as held this past Saturday, August 29th.  A wet weather forecast, cancelled car show portion and the current events all effected turn-out, but we were pleased with the attendance.  There were approximately 40 vendors and we saw steady booth traffic throughout the morning.  We were limited by the state of Ohio's limitations on mass gatherings, so the car show portion could not happen--but there certainly were some nice looking Porsches in the parking lot for our "Flea Market."

Planning for the Stoddard Swap Meet on August 28th and 29th is going well!  

We will be enforcing a strict mask or face-covering policy and will be asking everyone to maintain safe social distancing to maintain the safety of our staff, customers and show attendees.   To that end, we won't be opening up our facility like we normally do.  Activities and sales will all happen outside.  

To make this happen, we had to make a few operational changes to the event. 

A)  The Friday Literature and Toy Show will happen outside.  We will be setting up the normal tables in front of our showroom garage door.   

B)  There will be no dinner provided on Friday night.  We will, however, have our normal sandwich shop as a vendor on Saturday for both breakfast and lunch. 

C) The new parts sales area will be set up outside.  You can talk with a sales rep, let them know what you want, they will take payment and your phone number. We will call you when your parts are available for pick up at our shipping dock.   This should go smoothly enough, but we are encouraging everyone to pre-order your parts for pick up at the swap meet.  All show sales, pre-order or on-site will receive a 10% discount.

D) Our normal scratch-and-dent area will be set up outside, rather than our warehouse.   This will take up the first few normal vendor spots from prior years.  

E) Vendor spots will be spread out with spaces in between each vendor.  This might cause some shifts in where certain vendors are versus where they were last year, but we will make every effort to keep things consistent.  No more than four customers per booth at a time.  

F) The car show has been cancelled.  We are allowing Porsches to park in our normal parking area, but there must be no congregating or mass gatherings of more than 10 people in the area.   

G) There will be no access to inside restrooms.  We will have multiple port-o-potties and a wash station.  

Here are the step by step instructions for repairing your LCD screen on the HVAC panel of your 986 Boxster or 996. 

You can buy the kit here:   LCD Kit

Question:

 
I have a 356A coupe and getting it ready for driving this Spring. I have the brake and clutch pedals out of the car and thought to replace the clutch cable. But, I’m confused as to which cable to order – the online listings like the Porsche PET aren’t too clear. - A. Cunningham, Monroeville, PA.

Answer:

Yes, there continues to be confusion about the cables due to misleading printed catalogs and present on-line entries. Many guys seem to go by the length of the cable when ordering. All old used cables in the car for 20-40 years have stretched, so length isn’t a good identifier but can be a rough guide. By the way, the difference in lengths of new cables is only about 3 inches. So, a better guide is the thread diameters on both ends of the cable.  If you disregard the very early cable with the outer casing, you’ll see other three cables all have a different combination of end threads. So the thread diameter is the key to which cable you need. 

Take a look at the chart below.


In the chart I added the part number of the  German company, Gemo, that supplies these cables to the after-market.  In the last several years, Gemo has identified their cables with a red sleeve marked with their part number – a convenient way to lessen the confusion with these cables. 

See our website for details for cable end fittings for each model/transmission combination. Also, I recommend application of the Wurth product, HHS-K lubricant, on the moving parts at each cable end. 

Regards,
Brad Ripley
   

Question: 
I’m finishing up the rebuild on my 356B Super engine. It’s been a couple of years and just now I’m installing the fuel system. I have several banjo-bolts and can’t figure out which one goes where.  Please enlighten me on banjo bolts. - P. Garvey, Concord, MA.

Answer:
Like many guys owning and working on 356s, you probably have a box of nuts, bolts and other fittings including a few banjo bolts. There were many banjos on Porsche engines, so it’s not surprising you have this question. If you are wondering, What’s a banjo bolt? See this video here. Porsche calls these "hollow bolts."

For 356 fuel systems there are only two bolts to worry about. First, for the carburetors (Zenith and Solex), the bolt looks like this photo:

The important dimension is the thread: 12 x 1,25. The length of the bolt is 22,45 and shoulder under the head is 12,00. With many original bolts, the head will be stamped with a “V” which denotes Vergaser, German for carburetor. Part number is 616 100 867 00 .

For fuel pumps, the bolt may look about the same but the thread is 12 x 1,50. Length is 24,00 and shoulder is 12,00. Part number is 900 175 020 01. Bolt looks like this below: 

Note, there is no shoulder under the head, although the same sealing washer is used.
The fiber sealing washer for both sides of the banjo (ID 12,12) for both carbs and pump is part number 616 108 423 00. You’ll need seven washers per engine. 

Incidentally, for early 356A engines, the 900 175 020 01 bolt is used in the Solex 32 & 40 carbs and also in the early fuel pump. 

I hope this sorts out some of those banjo bolts in your Treasure Box of Fittings.

Regards,
Brad Ripley