Slipstream - April 2016

Destination Restoration: Waking from Hibernation
By Ash Seidl-Staley
Photo Courtesy of the Author
10 April
Spring is a beautiful
time of year. When referring to
how spring makes me feel, I speak
less of mild temperatures, singing
birds, or blossoming flowers,
but rather about the thousands
of Porsches awaking from their
long winter hibernations. I mean
buzzing bees and chirping birds
are great and all, but what really
excites me about this time of year
is the roaring of a Porsche engine
as its lucky owner speeds through
the streets of North Texas. Winter
is just depressing. Even in Texas the
numbers of roadfaring Porsches
drastically decline in these colder
months, and for good reason! Who
wants to risk icy driving, salty road
conditions, or crazy southern drivers?
Not this guy! Thankfully winter,
which was rather mild this year,
has relinquished its grip on the
weather and we can all go out and
play with our cars.
Due to an intense work load
in Graduate classes last fall, I was
unable to write up two separate
articles describing the methods I
used to stow away both my 914 and
my 944 for the winter. But there is
always this year right? My school
work has not let up at all this spring
semester, but I still managed to
draft the procedures I took to wake
up my 944, not only to get her running
for the 2016 year, but also to
get her inspected and registered by
the end of February.
Since, due to regular maintenance
on my wife’s vehicle, I had
planned on using the 944 a couple
times during December and January,
the procedures to get the car
ready for another year were fairly
simple. Unlike the 914, I had not
completely drained the car of gasoline
or of brake fluid. Because of
this my list of tasks was amazingly
short. First, I reconnected the recently
charged battery, pulled my
spark plug wires, and turned over
the engine a few times without a
spark. After I felt like all the pertinent
mechanicals were coated
in some much needed oil, I reattached
my spark plug cables and
fired her up. I could not believe
how quickly the car started or how
gracefully it sat idling. Was this the
same Guards Red 944?
With the remaining hours left
in the day, I hopped in the car
and drove straight to a gas station.
There I topped off the fuel tank
and filled the droopy tires with
compressed air. As the car drove
I took special care to notice if my
dashboard components illuminated
when I initiated the turn signals,
hazards, and headlights, including
the high beams. Similarly, I monitored
my engine’s fluctuating temperature,
watching it steadily rise to
the 3/4 mark, waiting for the fans
to kick on, and watching it travel
back down to the appropriate level.
When I had finally made it back to
my apartment I continued to let
the car run for a good twenty minutes
more. I was delighted to find
that my cooling fans did indeed
work, and all my fluid levels were
right within Porsche specifications.
A quick oil change, oil and air filter
replacement, as wells a brake pad
check rounded out my necessary
obligations.
The first hurdle was past me; I
had my 944 back on the road. Now
all that was left was the dreaded state
inspection. For those Mavericks
who have followed my inspection
escapades over the years I am grateful
to report that the 944 passed on
its first try! Most of the credit is due
to my intense pre-inspection procedures,
but some of it is definitely
attributed to luck. While out on my
test drive I had confirmed that the
interior and exterior turn indicators
all worked perfectly fine. With
the assistance of a helper I checked
to make sure that all the brake
lights, tail lights, reverse lights, and
rear signals illuminated when supposed
to. The only hiccup found
was my right rear tail light. For
some reason
the light
would work
at some
moments
and then go
dark for others.
Quirky right tail light
After opening the light housing
and fidgeting with the bulb I came
to the realization that I had mistakenly
misplaced the tail light and
brake light bulbs. Once I made the
switch with new bulbs I again tested
the vehicle, which, as you might
have guessed, passed. A quick jolt
down the road to my neighborhood
inspection station took literally two
minutes, and the inspection itself
was a world record breaking seven
minutes. The humble attendant at
the station took great care with my
precious classic, even asking “are
there any quirks with it I should
know about?” When I answered that
there weren’t any to my knowledge,
minus the finicky tail light, he sped
off around the corner with a smile
on his face. By the time I checked
my email the car inspection was
done and paid for. Miraculously,
my time spent in line at the DMV
was even shorter!
Driving home with my new registration
sticker, I felt as though I had
wandered into an alternate universe.
I have never had such a
smooth inspection/registration experience
ever! Let’s just hope that
the good luck will continue on into
May when I have to get the 914’s
credentials updated. Until that
time and the next article: Wrench
on Mavs!