JFP in PA

That is not good. These engines can shed aluminum without a lot of concern, but ferrous debris is a sign of something more serious. I would not be driving a turbo around that has ferrous debris in the engine as that Mezger lump is a bloody expensive unit to replace. You need to find the source of this ferrous material and fix it before it tears up something very expensive.

What kind of metal is it (ferrous or non ferrous)? Makes all the difference..............

While I am not conversant with the iCarsoft system, your radiator fans speeds are controlled by an electronic system (Pulse Width Modulation) that can infinitely vary the fan speeds by varying voltage on time instead of the old multiple resistor system, I am assuming that is what the tools is displaying, possible as a percentage of "on time", the more on time, the faster the fan speed.

Nothing unusual; Porsche gauges are not known for their accuracy or linearity.

Welcome to RennTech

I would try rotating the engine 360 degrees by hand and check the tool fitment again. Sometimes you catch them 180 degrees off. If the cam locking tool does not go in then, you have a cam timing issue, which I seriously doubt is the reluctor..

Yes to both. People tend to forget that one of the principal functions of engine oil is heat transfer.

I'd check the fuel pressure. Running the car out of gas can suck tank bottom debris in the filter, clogging it. It can also burn up the fuel pump.

All these parts have been superseded with upgraded pieces: Piston 997.107.125.01 Spring 996.107.127.53 Gasket 996.107.123.50 So for less than $20 at retail, you get better low RPM oil pressure. The new piston also has a bevel on its upper edge as well, and the spring is slightly longer.

I would take a look at your fuel filter; running the car out of gas can suck all the bottom debris from the tank into the filter. Running it out of gas can also burn up the fuel pump as well.

You cannot lock the cam positions while doing this, but you must lock the engine at TDC at the crank pulley. Regardless of if the cams are being pulled, or just disconnected, you are going to need to retime them once all the updates are completed, which is why you don't lock them, they are going to be out of time in any case. The cam retaining plates are inserted through the green plug openings before removing the cam cover, as seen in one of the photos above. You need to also remove all four chain tensioners, which includes the one underneath the AC compressor. I would also seriously consider pulling the cams as you do not have the tools we had fabricated to compress and hold the actuator to get the small pads out. Again, you are going to be retiming the engine anyway, so make your life easier. Also pay attention to the pads themselves, two have small holes in them, two do not. They are not interchangeable.

The more I think about this, if you are a "first timer" doing this, it probably is going to be easier for you to pull the cams and do it on the bench, then reinstall the cams.

Once secured, you can remove the VarioCam unit, undo the chains, and replace the pads between the cams, or if you choose, remove the cams entirely. However, if you are changing the larger lower chain wear pads further down on the chains, removing the cams does make that easier; but then the engine would also be out as well.

The cams do not have to come out, but the do need to be held in place to prevent them snapping from the valve spring loads when the cam cover is removed. People seem to forget that the valve springs are pushing UP on the cams, which being cast iron, do not flex, but do snap in two if not correctly supported using the end plates and saddles shown in the kit above. He is the cover being removed with the end retaining plate in place, but before the extra saddles are added to even out the spring load: And here you can see the cams retained, this time with home brew saddles made from bar stock:

The cams are cast iron, which does not like to flex; the valve springs exert several hundred pounds of force onto the cam lobes, so breakage is a real issue. Both Porsche and several aftermarket firms make the cam holding tools, so again, search is your friend, just be sure the one you select matches your year engine:

Any time you remove the cam covers, you are going to need cam retaining tools or risk breaking the cams as the cover is half of the cam bearing saddles, and the spring pressure will try to flex the cams which are cast iron. By "chain buffers" I assume you are referring to the chain wear pads, which is probably why you didn't find much when you searched. On the five chain engines, the small pads between the cams are usually the worst offenders, but can be changes once you secure the cams and remove the cover. Do another search, this has been covered multiple times.

Unless the problem is due to top misalignment, some wear spots are to be expected on any convertible top.

Most likely.

There are several "depends" here; what year is each engine as some were different DME version. There is also the question of VarioCam vs. VarioCam+, and the fact that the later engine's were more heavily dependent upon CAN bus for sensor communications. Any combination is possible, it is just the amount of work required to make it happen......

Stant and several other tool companies make them:

Welcome to RennTech The claim that lack lubrication is the only cause for IMS failures is a best suspect. With the early cars all carrying dual row bearings, lack of lubrication should have been more of a problem for them as they have twice the number of ball bearings in motion; yet just the opposite happened: The dual rows have proven to be vastly more durable than the single row bearings that came later. IMS failures are a much more complicated issue, with a variety of factors ranging from shaft wobble to materials of construction coming into play. The ceramic hybrid bearings LN uses only need a very low volume of oil from the mist inside the engine to lubricate properly; this is one of the reasons they designed this bearing this way to preclude the need for an outside oil source. Adding additional oil, particularly coming from the cylinder heads, is actually detrimental to the ceramic hybrid's survival. With more than 25,000 installations currently running on the streets, they would appear to have proven the design. Oil coming from the cylinder head is also one of the hottest and dirtiest sources for oil, making this is a bad idea. There have been multiple reports (we have had two in my shop alone) of both cylinder head noise issues as well as VarioCam problems when drawing an oil feed off the cylinder heads, both of which were solved by disconnecting the oil feed from the cylinder head source. There are now a variety of "me too" retrofit kits available in the market, ranging from cheap OEM type bearing replacements, to roller bearings, and oil fed kits; but only the LN systems have been both tested to destruction before they were taken to market and have proven themselves on the street with massive numbers of successfully performing installations. If your decision is based upon durability and life span over costs, take a close look at the LN IMS Solution, which is a solid bearing (no moving parts) design similar to the one used in the legendary air cooled turbo engines Porsche used to make. It uses an oil feed coming from the oil filter, so the oil is both clean and cool. Like other LN products, this system has been tested to destruction, including prolonged running without an oil supply, and survived every time. It is also the only retrofit that is a permanent life of the engine design.

There are two lines, hoses actually, the come out under the car near the center; one is the vent line from the battery, the other is the condensate drain line for the ac system. Both should protrude past the underbody panels. Blowing air into the battey does nothing positive, as it may actually dislodge the battery vent from the battery. You need to find the lines and determine which one is for the battery and leave it alone as you only need to clear the HVAC drain.

Your heater/ac system has a drain that is nearly in the center under the car, just about at the windshield looking at the car from the side. This line runs to the drip pan under the heater assembly. Because of the amount of condensate generated, mold often grows in this drain, blocking it, which leads to water on the floor inside the car. The optimum way to clear it is with some low pressure air from below. Be very circumspect about pushing a probe into this line as is it very easy to rupture the hose or dislodge it, which require pulling the inside heater assembly to replace.

Read the DIY, you can get at it from below with the bumper cover on, but there is limited room.

Here is a DIY write up: Resistor replacement on a 996