99 doesn't start, good for me?

[twsarch]

Still shopping for a cheep boxster, found one on e-bay near by (2 hour drive is near). The seller says it was sitting for a while and wouldn't start, so he/she is selling it. Supposedly it ran when they parked it in a garage and they say there was no strange or catastrophic noise last time it ran. They owned it new. Anyone care to hazard a guess as to why it wont start? They are telling me it gets fuel and spark to all cylinders. I cant get a clear answer to compression and leak down questions and cam timing wasn't looked at. Apparently they have it at a shop now. The “buy it now” price may be possible unless it needs new cylinder sleeves. I know 99 is probably the worst year for cylinder sleeve issues. If I buy it and it does need sleeves it will sit again until I can come up with the money for L&N

[kbrandsma]

Still shopping for a cheep boxster, found one on e-bay near by (2 hour drive is near). The seller says it was sitting for a while and wouldn't start, so he/she is selling it. Supposedly it ran when they parked it in a garage and they say there was no strange or catastrophic noise last time it ran. They owned it new. Anyone care to hazard a guess as to why it wont start? They are telling me it gets fuel and spark to all cylinders. I cant get a clear answer to compression and leak down questions and cam timing wasn't looked at. Apparently they have it at a shop now. The "buy it now" price may be possible unless it needs new cylinder sleeves. I know 99 is probably the worst year for cylinder sleeve issues. If I buy it and it does need sleeves it will sit again until I can come up with the money for L&N

It is always a good idea to store a automobile with a tank of fresh fuel and a fuel stabilizer. I'm not sure what you mean by cylinder sleeves? Make sure the battery is fully charged. I certainly would not buy the vehicle if it won't start. Better to spend a little more with low miles, one owner and all service records (maybe this is) otherwise a cheap vehicle will be far from cheap down the road.

Check out Mike Focke's Web Page HERE for purchasing advice. A PPI inspection is always recommended.

[infocusf8]

A PPI (pre purchase inspection) from a certified Porsche shop is always a good idea before buying a Porsche and if it won't run to get it there then I'd walk. Don't know where you got the idea '99 had the problem you state with cylinder sleeves.

[twsarch]

I’m looking for a fixer upper to tinker with so a PPI doesn’t seem to make since for me, working on them is hopefully half the fun. I was fishing for guesses ahead of time so I can research them before going to look at it.

My comment on cylinder sleeves is based on things I read regarding Porsche breaking one of their casting machines in ’99. To meet demand they allegedly started using previously rejected castings that they repaired, one of the repairs was cylinder sleeves inserted in place of the milled out defective cylinder. Guess they didn’t get the process right the first year and a lot of the sleeved slipped. Most of these have been warranteed by now but there is a danger of low mileage cars (like this one) still having the original engine. Of course this info was mostly from the internet so I can’t vouch for it accuracy. I consider the info is correct so I can assume the worst. If the price is low enough (this one may be) it may be worth re-building the engine.

[N41EF]

If the car was really running when parked, and won't start after sitting, I wouldn't worry about catastophic engine failure so much. I have bought several cars, site unseen online and had reasonable luck, as long as the person you are dealing with are straight with you. I've seen mice chew wires, fuel pumps gum and fail, and a host of electrical gremilins especialy on computer cars. If they charge the battery will it crank when they turn the key? If it will crank over but not fir, as long as the engine doesn't make "expensive" noises it's just a matter of troubleshooting and fixing it. Engines are still a matter of fuel/air/spark unfortunately there are a dozen things that won't let spark happen.

Assuming you have a decent set of tools, and are mechanically inclined, go for it.

Let us know if you buy it, and what you find.

[Cloudsurfer]

Let me first state the proverbial rule of "the cheapest Porsche you buy, will be the most expensive to own." Now, that said, there are a few ways of going about this. If you just want a roller, to put a new motor into (as I did when I bought my 03 S with an IMS failed engine to put a 3.8 into), then negotiate the best price you can get and have some fun (however, a 99 body makes a lot of the "better option" motors much more difficult). If you expect to fix this and get it running, that could be something as simple as a fuel pump, clogged fuel filter, chewed up wiring (which could take eons to track down and fix), or any number of "small things." It also could require a new motor, something you really can't diagnose without at least doing a compression and leak down check. You are also assuming that the people selling the car aren't lying to you (and the "can't get a clear answer" part is rather concerning in that regard).

Also, if you're going to "come up with the money for L&N" (which is really LN Engineering or LNE, not like K&N, who makes air filters), you're also going to need to find yourself a host of really strange, difficult to obtain, and expensive tools that are needed when working on these engines, and you better really know your way around a modern, complex engine to do it. Further, starting with a 2.5 is really a horrible idea, as the largest you could make it, even with a crank and bearing carrier change, is a 2.9. If you want to do the LN route, at least start with a 3.2, 3.4 or 3.6 (all of these can wind up with 99mm bores with Nickies, as they are made from the same castings).

If you want a project, and want to do it the easy/ right way, find an 03 or 04 car (S preferably), and swap a 3.6 or 3.8 in there, or build yourself a 3.8 (or now, a 4.0).

For the record, you are correct in that some 98 and 99's did have pressed in sleeves, which do fail, when Porsche tried to keep car production on line when their super duper "Lokasil" casting machine went down. Whether a slipped sleeve or a D-chunk cylinder wall failure, either would be diagnosed via a leakdown check.

More than likely, if I had to venture a guess, I'd say that the engine internals are probably fine, and that the car has just been neglected. Either way, I'd walk on this unless you could pick it up for almost nothing.

[infocusf8]

Let me first state the proverbial rule of "the cheapest Porsche you buy, will be the most expensive to own." Now, that said, there are a few ways of going about this. If you just want a roller, to put a new motor into (as I did when I bought my 03 S with an IMS failed engine to put a 3.8 into), then negotiate the best price you can get and have some fun (however, a 99 body makes a lot of the "better option" motors much more difficult). If you expect to fix this and get it running, that could be something as simple as a fuel pump, clogged fuel filter, chewed up wiring (which could take eons to track down and fix), or any number of "small things." It also could require a new motor, something you really can't diagnose without at least doing a compression and leak down check. You are also assuming that the people selling the car aren't lying to you (and the "can't get a clear answer" part is rather concerning in that regard).

Also, if you're going to "come up with the money for L&N" (which is really LN Engineering or LNE, not like K&N, who makes air filters), you're also going to need to find yourself a host of really strange, difficult to obtain, and expensive tools that are needed when working on these engines, and you better really know your way around a modern, complex engine to do it. Further, starting with a 2.5 is really a horrible idea, as the largest you could make it, even with a crank and bearing carrier change, is a 2.9. If you want to do the LN route, at least start with a 3.2, 3.4 or 3.6 (all of these can wind up with 99mm bores with Nickies, as they are made from the same castings).

If you want a project, and want to do it the easy/ right way, find an 03 or 04 car (S preferably), and swap a 3.6 or 3.8 in there, or build yourself a 3.8 (or now, a 4.0).

For the record, you are correct in that some 98 and 99's did have pressed in sleeves, which do fail, when Porsche tried to keep car production on line when their super duper "Lokasil" casting machine went down. Whether a slipped sleeve or a D-chunk cylinder wall failure, either would be diagnosed via a leakdown check.

More than likely, if I had to venture a guess, I'd say that the engine internals are probably fine, and that the car has just been neglected. Either way, I'd walk on this unless you could pick it up for almost nothing.

Did Porsche keep any engine serial numbers when they went to the process of using sleeves? Does that pertain to motors made in both factories or were the motors installed in the Finland factory made in Germany and shipped there for installation?

Edited April 10, 2011 by infocusf8