Dropping a tiptronic

[toolmonkey]

Even though there are no unusual noises, leaks etc... The internet and my "new to me" 2000 996 is almost making me lose sleep. Don't know how "REAL" this IMS issue is, but it sure cast cast doubt.  Being a 2000 I would expect to find a double IMSb once opened, but one never knows! About to hit 160k km (100k miles)...so now time is as good as ever....if I want to enjoy the car and not worry .....for a while  anyways.

 

Two simple questions: what is the average useful life expectancy of a 3.4? this will impact what "type" of IMSbearing replacement I chose.... (as example, If these engines only tough ~200k km then OEM type bearing unit would be best, at 250-300k then I may look into a more permanent fix- of course; dependent if it is single or double.

And is it necessary to drop the motor/transmission as a unit , then separate to replace IMSb or can a Tiptronic trans be easily  dropped leaving the motor in the vehicle.

 As a domestic vehicle tech, I have no worries on "domestic setups" but honestly haven't even lifted a 966 to carefully look at what I'm in for. I quickly looked, but was more worried about looking for oil leaks when I picked up the car. (I did not expect to be "frightened" into replacing the IMSb).  Given I can't preorder parts....so useless to tie up a lift.....Doing it on Jackstands (commercial grade ~3ft) and with 25+ years as a mechanic; what is a comfortable time frame  to allot for such a job? (yes to air/electric impacts/ratchets).

[JFP in PA]

Even though there are no unusual noises, leaks etc... The internet and my "new to me" 2000 996 is almost making me lose sleep. Don't know how "REAL" this IMS issue is, but it sure cast cast doubt.  Being a 2000 I would expect to find a double IMSb once opened, but one never knows! About to hit 160k km (100k miles)...so now time is as good as ever....if I want to enjoy the car and not worry .....for a while  anyways.

 

Two simple questions: what is the average useful life expectancy of a 3.4? this will impact what "type" of IMSbearing replacement I chose.... (as example, If these engines only tough ~200k km then OEM type bearing unit would be best, at 250-300k then I may look into a more permanent fix- of course; dependent if it is single or double.

And is it necessary to drop the motor/transmission as a unit , then separate to replace IMSb or can a Tiptronic trans be easily  dropped leaving the motor in the vehicle.

 As a domestic vehicle tech, I have no worries on "domestic setups" but honestly haven't even lifted a 966 to carefully look at what I'm in for. I quickly looked, but was more worried about looking for oil leaks when I picked up the car. (I did not expect to be "frightened" into replacing the IMSb).  Given I can't preorder parts....so useless to tie up a lift.....Doing it on Jackstands (commercial grade ~3ft) and with 25+ years as a mechanic; what is a comfortable time frame  to allot for such a job? (yes to air/electric impacts/ratchets).

 

There is no real "average" life expectancy for the 3.4L engine; we have customers well over 200K, while others have had to change engines much sooner, and several of those were due to IMS failures.  Besides specific component related failures, how long one of these will run depends a lot more on how they have been maintained and used.

 

As for which type of IMS bearing to retrofit, consider this:  With 2000-2001 cars, you need to pull the car apart to know which style bearing you are dealing with.  And as Porsche does not sell replacement bearings, but only assembled shafts (which require a total engine teardown to install), you are limited to what is available in the aftermarket.  And while there are suppliers of "an OEM like" single row steel bearing, if your engine is a dual row, you would have to use the single row bearing with a spacer, which would mean you are replacing the strongest known design with the weakest.  If your car is a single row, and you replaced it with the aftermarket "OEM like" steel bearing, the moment your car touches the ground, you have the exact same odds of suffering a future failure as you did when you jacked it up.  But if you used a ceramic hybrid bearing (LN Engineering), regardless of bearing type, while costs a bit more, your odds of going another 100K just got a whole lot better.  With components like the IMS bearings, which can cause catastrophic failures,  you really do get what you pay for.

 

You can pull just the Tip on the ground, but you will need to get the car as high as possible and you will need a trans jack.  Many find it actually quicker to drop the engine and trans as a package, but you can pull the Tip by itself.  How much time it is going to take depends a lot on how you are equipped, as well as how talented a wrench you are.  Going non stop, by yourself and on the ground, drive up to drive off is going to be about ten to twelve hours for most, but that would assume you have the replacement bearing on hand, which in you case isn't going to happen as you won't know what you are dealing with until the car is apart.  On that basis, I would suggest planning for two weekends.

[mdragon]

Hi there, I have a simple little question. Have you looked at your engine serial number yet? You might be surprised at what you find, I know I was. I found out that the engine in MY 2003 911 Carrera 4 Cab had a ~2005 new engine installed with the larger bearing. I found this out when I took my car in to have my bearing replaced. Just a little more information in your back pocket as you start your project. You won't be able to know about the bearing per se, just whether or not you have the original engine.

 

When I was shopping for my Porsche, I did a PPI on every single car I was interested in other than on the one I actually bought. I lucked out and it ended up being a really good car. Everything about it is almost perfect. I was a little stunned about the new engine when I found out, but I think it is okay. 

 

There are a couple other things you can do to put your mind at ease before you change out the bearing, but flipping it out and actually knowing what you have and using the LN Engineering solution should put your mind at ease so you can finally enjoy your car. I completely understand the angst and worry that you are going through and I think it is valid.

 

Best of luck to you on your project! You should start enjoying your car soon because it is meant to be driven and enjoyed!

 

Julie