Porsche 911 Carrera Service Manual: 1984-1989 review from Sports Car Market, April, 2001

For years, the only trusted source from service procedures was the official Porsche workshop manual. Bentley's hefty volume is essentially a reprint of the factory workshop manual, but at a friendlier price. The quality of the work is excellent, with crisp photos and full commentary. However, this book isn't for the neophyte mechanic.

The factory manuals have always assumed a basic familiarity with things mechanical. While there is a bit of introduction, you need to understand your way around a 911 before the book will make much sense; not a course in auto mechanics, but rather selected bits of vital information about the 3.2 Carreras.

While exhaustive on engine and transmission rebuild details, the factory manuals have always been slim on body issues. This one is better than most, having good sections on fender and door removal and installation, and dealing with the always-challenging sunroof cables. Missing is a single word on the complex Cabriolet top. The section on replacing a dash pad is disappointing as well, as it fails to call out the location of the hidden attachment studs.

The electrical sections will reveal to you components placed in all manner of strange places. For example, the central locking control module is mounted in the front luggage compartment, near the right side defroster vent, and the air conditioning blower resistor is under the right front foot rest. This manual discusses such unusual arrangements.

There is a much-needed troubleshooting guide for the Bosch Motronic electronic fuel injection. A torque curve is provided for 1987-89 engines, but not for the 1984-86 models. Given the difference in horsepower but not displacement, I wondered how the torque curve had changed.

For the owver who is committed to doing his own work or the shop now stretching into heavy-duty repairs, this is a great way to beat the several hundred dollar cost of the factory publications without losing much in the translation. -Jim Schrager