[rlim]

I am in agreement with you that the mechanic has a few misses. The dealer has so far been looking after the repairs as he has agreed to give me a 30 days warranty on the car. I just got off the phone with him and he stated that he will get the mechanic to wash the engine thoroughly to investigate for other leaks other than the coolant. Hopefully this will be my final trip.

[Joe Lasagna]

HONEYMON57ER, on Apr 17 2007, 02:54 PM, said:

Pardon my ignorance but is the RMS issue linked with blown engines or
are these 2 seperate issues? I only ask because I had my RMS replaced
last week 61k.

I was informed by Pepe Motors (White Plains, NY) that the engine on my 2002 911 has to be replaced, at a cost of $12K. This is exactly 4 months after the RMS failed. The car has been pampered since I bought it (new, five years ago).
I've done a lot of research, and the two seem to be related. It's obvious that there is a design flaw with the seal, but Porsche will not acknowledge it.
If I new the consequences of the damaged seal when it happened, I would have gotten rid of the car.

Good Luck!!

[rpf996]

Hello all. I am a vette convert, having just purcharsed a 2002 911 carrera coupe six speed, with 86,000 miles & the car feels like the motor is brand new. I am absolutely shocked by what I am reading about longevity issues. I would expect & assume this motor has to be good for a 200,000 mile service life if maintained properly. MY 94 c220 Benz ran perfectly after 186,000 miles. Tha motor is a 16 valve inline four, which revs high like the 3.6 & produced 148 stock HP. My 87 Vette ran perfectly with full compression after 122,000 miles and my 97 vette in internal stock form with 80,000 miles was producing about 330RWHP, when just traded for the 911. The ls1 motor will easily run past the 200,000 mark and will have all its compression in so doing. So, I am wondering what the service life really is on the 3.6 320 HP motor. I am now really happy I have the full engine warranty for the next 45,000 miles, but have to say I didnt think I actually would be using it for a new motor from Porsche. Was I wrong about German engineering? I hope not.

[Jeff_C]

Joe Lasagna, on Jun 14 2007, 08:20 PM, said:

I was informed by Pepe Motors (White Plains, NY) that the engine on my 2002 911 has to be replaced, at a cost of $12K. This is exactly 4 months after the RMS failed. The car has been pampered since I bought it (new, five years ago).
I've done a lot of research, and the two seem to be related. It's obvious that there is a design flaw with the seal, but Porsche will not acknowledge it.
If I new the consequences of the damaged seal when it happened, I would have gotten rid of the car.

Good Luck!!

It would seem to me that the only way these 2 could be related is if the RMS leak was pretty severe and you let the oil run low (or out?!?!) for a long period of time OR you had a failing shaft that caused the RMS that was not diagnosed the first time. Of course you didnt say what the recent issue was so this is just conjecture on my part. Also, another common thing on RMS failures seems to be 'babying' the car or not using it enough. How many miles a year are you putting on your car? Just curious...

Jeff

[viper501]

Just to add another sad data point, my 99 996 C2 had 126k miles on it when it died about two weeks ago. Cruising on the interstate at legal-ish speeds. I felt the car hiccup and then the check engine light began flashing. Long story short is there is no compression on number two. One dealer said bent valve, the other that most likely the cylinder liner cracked or slipped. Car still runs, just won't idle and is down on power (imagine that). Have a new engine on order and hope to have it installed and up and running within two more weeks.

It really is pathetic that there are any failures of these motors, much less ones that are clearly a quality control failure. And as has been said before, many manufacturers have issues with their cars but Porsche seems resolute in saying that it isn't their fault. At least BMW warrantied their screwed up motors for 100k miles.

Looking back on it, the one thing that may have been a tip-off to impending doom was that the car would run hot on warm days, even with clean radiators and even after putting in the third radiator kit. Also, if I ran the car hard, I would occasionally get a flashing coolant light. Checking it showed no problem with the coolant level. Always thought that was odd.

Now I will have a two year unlimited mileage warranty on the motor and I intend to take full advantage of that. Given the miles I drive for work, I won't feel at all bad about the car being my daily driver.

[JohnJStewart]

Reading this with a Toasted 996 engine with 61k on and a full MDSH isn't much comfort.

As Jim would say, reliable my arse.

Correct Jim

[Vman]

JohnJStewart, on Jul 22 2007, 06:45 AM, said:

Reading this with a Toasted 996 engine with 61k on and a full MDSH isn't much comfort.

As Jim would say, reliable my arse.

Correct Jim

Sadly I would say it the exception that a 99 996 motor lasts more than 60,000 miles and that you don't lose 2nd in your gear box. Locally of the 4 1999 996 owners I know that do some autocross, in a mature fashion...no clutch drops etc. 3 out of 4 of us have had intermediate shaft failures result in the need for engine replacement. I am in the painful process of having my car converted to a 997 3.8x51 as who knows how long 996 motors will remain cheap from the dealer and I am hoping the new motor will be an improvement as they have redesigned the intermediate shaft. The RMS leak is a minor inconvenience as it just costs a bit of change to put in a 997 seal, the problem with these motors is the block and intermediate shaft.

VM

This post has been edited by Vman: July 23, 2007 - 07:46 PM

[JohnJStewart]

996 Engine Failure

I would like to try and start a log of all the failed 996 engines to see how many there really are.

By the power of the internet, we could see if this is a significant problem or not once and for all.

I don't want to go off half cocked so would welcome any views as to how best to go about this.

[wross996TT]

JohnJStewart, on Aug 13 2007, 08:50 AM, said:

996 Engine Failure

I would like to try and start a log of all the failed 996 engines to see how many there really are.

By the power of the internet, we could see if this is a significant problem or not once and for all.

I don't want to go off half cocked so would welcome any views as to how best to go about this.

Define significant problem...the problem (statistically) with using the internet is it tends to be a biased, inappropriate sample for drawing conclusions from. You could develop some hypotheses based on this sampling, but (scientific method) then requires some deductive reasoning (i.e., sampling plan) to provide insight to those hypotheses and ultimately lead to conclusions.

[LVDell]

JohnJStewart, on Aug 13 2007, 10:50 AM, said:

996 Engine Failure

I would like to try and start a log of all the failed 996 engines to see how many there really are.

By the power of the internet, we could see if this is a significant problem or not once and for all.

I don't want to go off half cocked so would welcome any views as to how best to go about this.

two words....sampling bias.

speaking as a behavioral scientist that deals with this on a DAILY basis, there is absolutely NO WAY for you to get what you are looking for unless PCNA opens up their database to you. That isn't going to happen.

This post has been edited by LVDell: August 13, 2007 - 10:31 AM

[HONEYMON57ER]

JohnJStewart, on Aug 13 2007, 03:50 PM, said:

996 Engine Failure

I would like to try and start a log of all the failed 996 engines to see how many there really are.

By the power of the internet, we could see if this is a significant problem or not once and for all.

I don't want to go off half cocked so would welcome any views as to how best to go about this.

see here, something similar has been running a while - http://www.petrolheads.co.uk/gassing/topic...=0&t=400915

[Eric]

Loren, on Sep 22 2005, 01:25 PM, said:

Jim Pasha has written an outstanding article in the October 2005 issue of Excellence Magazine. He discusses the overall reliability of 996/986 engines and what makes these engines some of the best Porsche has ever produced. We have added the 26 high resolution pictures showing the 996 engine internals.
Thank you to Jim and Excellence magazine for allowing us to reproduce this.

You can download the PDF version of the article here:
attachment

Members can view all 26 pictures - most not in the article.
(You will need a browser that has the Flash plugin to view these pics) here

(edit - added pictures link Sept. 27, 2005 - Loren)

[rcarson25]

I must say I have been very impressed with my 99 996 C2. It has been a commuter, not just a daily driver and is up in the 197K mile range and still on the same engine and tranny. I know Hondas that have crapped out before that. Of course now that I say that I am sure I will go out and it won't start, but I have been truly impressed by the reliability of this car.

[rpf996]

rcarson25, on Dec 21 2007, 07:44 AM, said:

I must say I have been very impressed with my 99 996 C2. It has been a commuter, not just a daily driver and is up in the 197K mile range and still on the same engine and tranny. I know Hondas that have crapped out before that. Of course now that I say that I am sure I will go out and it won't start, but I have been truly impressed by the reliability of this car.

Its good to finally find someone approaching the 200k mark. I still have not found anyone with 95,000 on a 2002 C2, the mark that I have just passed!

This post has been edited by rpf996: December 21, 2007 - 01:21 PM

[phillipj]

rcarson25, on Dec 21 2007, 08:44 AM, said:

I must say I have been very impressed with my 99 996 C2. It has been a commuter, not just a daily driver and is up in the 197K mile range and still on the same engine and tranny. I know Hondas that have crapped out before that. Of course now that I say that I am sure I will go out and it won't start, but I have been truly impressed by the reliability of this car.

That is awesome. I don't think I have heard of that mileage on a 99 996 (which I own.) Nice to hear good news on this car. Mine has been very reliable in the past 3 years.
Thanks for that post!
Phillipj

[pomocanthus]

I currently own a '99 Boxster and am looking to upgrade soon. The possibilities are 996 w/ 35K, 996TT w/ 50K, new 987S, or 3.6l install plus a bucket of cash. My Boxster is on her second engine (int shaft failure @ 55K) It sounds like the way to go is with the 996TT. Loren, can you chime in on this; as I believe you have a Boxster, a 996, and a TT, correct?

Thanks,
Hung

[Loren]

Quote

I believe you have a Boxster, a 996, and a TT, correct?

At this time I only have a 996.
It all comes down to what you want to drive a Boxster (987), Carrera and TT are all Porsche's but very different.
I suggest you test drive them all...

[pomocanthus]

Thanks Loren. I have driven all three and each have their merits. BTW, I meant a Cayman S not a Boxster S. My original question wasn't very well formulated. I was really looking for recommendations from a reliability stand point. Care to chime in again?

[Loren]

IMHO of course...
If I were to pick the "most reliable" Porsche to own right now it would be a GT3.
With a normally aspirated engine that is the same as the 996 turbo it is about as close to being bulletproof as can get.
Now a GT3 is a little less "comfortable" to drive than a Cayman, or Carrera, or TT but then that would depend on what you are looking for.

Of those three a Cayman would certainly have a lot merits - mid-engine and more HP.
I am not sure there is a bad choice there - so any would be okay.

[saaber]

This may have been posted before but excellent article on cause of engine failures:

-- Link Removed --

Besides the excellent techncial info there, one thing that caught my eye is that they seem to subscribe to the "a redline a day keeps the mechanic away" theory. I know there is one guy with a modified boxster that is at 157k on original engine and he drives it to the redline most all the time.

What say ye on the "redline a day" theory?

This post has been edited by Loren: February 19, 2008 - 11:13 AM
Reason for edit: Link removed - we need permission from the author