996 Tip Engine Out or Not

[terryh]

Have a '99 c4 Tip with 215k km ... very good condition ... but has
1. Very Minor Coolant drip from hose top of engine
2. Minor oil weeping left side of engine ... told cam cover
... but still inspection failures

Sending car off for fluid service at Indy anyway .. but thinking go further rather than continuous issues / labour rates

Take the hit ... drop engine ?

1. replace cam cover sealant .... both sides
2. replace spark plug tubes (and plugs)
3. replace AOS and hoses
4. replace oil cooler
5. replace cam solenoid covers
6. replace various coolant hoses or all
7. Water pump, thermostat

Maybe I'm going too far ?

 

[Robertb]

If not done already, engine drop is a good opportunity to do brake lines and aircon pipes.

Makes sense to keep on top of all those things in one go if you can take the hit... as you say will be a labour saving overall.

 

[Alex]

Sounds like you're addressing issues that don't need addressing (and mostly don't need an engine drop) and missing ones that do, as stated brake lines & aircon pipes.

 

[deMort]

If the over engine pipes are starting to leak then there is no option other than an engine drop to replace them .. a repair imho wont work long time .. but i do stand to be corrected on that .

The usual pipe to leak is the small one running up the chassis on the n/s .. this has a steel bracket locating it .. these metals over time don't sit well together and cause tiny pin head corrosion of the ally coolant pipe to the bottle .


Engine out and obviously other things are often changed .. the entire 3 over engine coolant pipes for a start .. any garage will recommend these are done at the same time ..

A/C pipes .. not every owner is bothered with a working a/c so in this case it's not needed ..

What i can say is the a/c is a system that's often overlooked service wise .. a dryer is rarely replaced .. It will become saturated and allow moisture into the system ..

This can cause corrosion along with an acid effect that eats through the ally pipes .. as these can only be replaced with an engine drop then it's another consideration if you want a working a/c to last .

Typical proof is if the front to rear a/c pipes are starting to bubble .. that's acid corrosion and the rear pipes will be no better than the front to rear ones .

The o/s/r brake pipe .. again gearbox if a manual or engine drop if a tip to replace ..

This tends to be done with an engine drop anyways .

In short the cost soon mounts up and not really due to labour costs .. the parts are not cheap .

This is one of those jobs .. in for a penny .. in for a pound !!!

water pump etc can be done with engine in situ so no need .