Capt. Obvious

FWIW, my car car has over 100k miles on it, is heavily modded, has been tracked quite a bit, and the coolant lines have not been pinned or welded. I don't worry about it.

Though I do plan to drop the engine next winter and do them because I think it is only a matter of time before at least one fitting decides to pop.

ipman

Breakdowns can happen on any car at any time. Have it shipped if this is a concern.

I bought mine and drove 1000 miles home, many others have done the same. YOLO. As I see it, if it happens it is an inconvenience that will cost some time and money, not a big deal IMO. At least we don't have to deal with bore scoring or IMS grenades that can cost more than the value of the vehicle.

2fcknfst

So 'age' is your concern, not 'tracking'...

Capt. Obvious

At this point, yes. I won't be tracking the car anytime soon, so I'm more concerned about the 20 year old coolant fittings coming loose from age at this point.

manimal

Not to beat a dead horse, but I feel very fortunate that mine blew when and where they did vs. in the canyons at high speed. Now I can drive the car without that worry hanging over my head. I think the $ is worth the peace of mind.

Definitely agree, especially as more "street" cars start to see the failure simply due to age. It's only a matter of time.

Skyman911

I think when buying a car that has had the lines pinned/welded, one needs to consider who did the work. I've looked at a lot of 996TT's the past few months and have seen a few cars with welded lines. One looked to be welded nicely, the other two, not so much. One car I was looking at was on the third repair as the first and second welded line did not work. They ended up buying a whole new manifold with the glued in fittings. I just purchased one yesterday. Driving it back about 400 miles back home on Saturday. The lines have not been pinned or welded. I will look into pinning some time in the future and will do it myself when I do it to make sure it is done right.

Iridium

Been doing some looking around in the Seattle area and it seems like the going rate for engine out, welded fittings and all new rubber/lines, everything pressure tested is like 10K. It's more than I expected, but is that well off the mark? These are from higher end Porsche shops known for good work, I was just surprised it was that much work - but this car is new to me so just doing some due diligence. See quotes above in this thread from 4-8K, but in different areas of the country.

Carlo_Carrera

$10k is ridiculously high no matter where you live.

LinwoodM

That is what I paid as well. Same, well known high end quality shop.

Dock

It's cheaper to have them pinned.

Turbodan

10 k is way too greedy for a mechanic.
even if they take out the parts and ship em to bbi to weld (I think abut $800 iirc)and two days labour to drop engine and re/re with new hoses. thats 4500 per day labour (over $500/hr).

LinwoodM

For me, it was for way more than only R/RE motor and welding the pipes. This was replacing the water pump, replacing all the water lines, fittings, o-rings, bolts, ultra sonic cleaning, ect.

Turbodan

once engine is out those things take no time at all. can change out the clutch, RMS water pump, hoses and in almost no time when engine is out. Sorry you guys are getting screwed by your friendly mechanics charging you $500 plus per hour. They must love these cars and seeing you guys coming...especially at Christmas time

88911coupe

So is the majority of the cost in the removal and install of the engine, as well as the removal of the parts? I would think the actual welding/pinning would not be super expensive? I've had a few things welded on my '88 Carrera that were already off the car and as I recall it was not expensive at all. Also, aren't there a lot of aviation applications for adhesives? I'd think there would be something that would handle this environment that would last...not to say pinning wouldn't be useful as well...belt and suspenders as they say.

theprf

I dropped off the four castings at the shop, who heated the castings to break down the adhesive - removed and cleaned 8 pipes and sockets - welded on the original pipes - pressure tested - for $100 per fitting, $800 total.
I did all the R&R work including dropping and reinstalling the engine.

Incidentally the adhesive breaks down at 250 degrees F, or so the shop says.