slbates

I'll place my money on Loren. I'm on my third switch and now carry a spare in the door bin along with a micro screwdriver. Very easy to replace in about 15 minutes or less.

If it is on the passenger side, check the ac evap box for cracks. It is only covered by a piece of thin foam on my 99 and could have been easily damaged by a passengers feet. I found a hairline crack that allowed the same thing to happen. A thin coating of plumbers goop and no water for the past 3 years.

Techron user here for the past 10 years. This was a must when I had my 911SC. I used a large bottle of the concentrated stuff right before each oil change. I started using it after some rough running that was cleared up within a tankful of gas and a heavy dose of Techron. I still use it in my 996.

I'm not saying this is what happened to your car, but I have seen the results of forgetting to put a pilot bearing back in during cluch replacement. Crank main bearings went away real fast after experiencing vibrations. Please note this was not on a Porsche. Could be a coincidence. Four years ago I took my car in for the gas cap recall...car wouldn't start while at the dealer due to a dead cell in the battery that finally gave up and shorted out. The dealer may just be doing you a favor for someone elses mistake. Be careful on the cost as there is a large variation between list price and what you should actually pay. Just before I bought my 996 (several years ago), I was looking at a 993 that had just had a new engine put in it by the dealer free of charge. The car had about 50k miles on it and the top end was toast. The second owner took it to the dealer and they replaced it at their cost. The cost scared the owner out of the car and he was selling it after six months of ownership. This looks like a similar case with the dealer wanting/willing to help out. Just make sure your 1/2 is a fair price. Are you saying that the problem started since you had the new clutch fitted ? If so, and Porsche can without doubt say that this caused the engine failure, then it's really irrelevant how much Porsche are asking for because the mechanic that screwed up will be paying for it surely ? Sounds a bit iffy though because if Porsche are paying 1/2, then they are either being very genereous (unlikely!) or they are partly to blame in some way? Surely if it was a loose bolt, they would be able to find it, or shreds of it anyway ?

Loren is a wise man. A few months after purchasing a new BMW, I had an episode where it started and sputtered but would not run well enough to leave the driveway on a near zero degree night. One bottle af gas dryer and all was well 5 minutes later. I worked at a gas station in high school...anyone else here remember water paste? :D

1999 has a point...I have been able to fix quite a few with just a new regulator or something just as simple as a $2 diode. If one of the diodes gives up, AC voltage is introduced into the electrical system and can make your guages wacky. You can check them easily, just check for AC voltage. You should have less than a volt. If you have more, a diode has likely given up due to heat, vibration, age.

I would highly recommend you replace the external oil separator if it is original. It will only take 5 minutes and will cost a little over $100. Cheap insurance. I would consider it a "maintenance item" similar to replacing the oil sender and thermostat o-ring on the air cooled 911's anytime you had the engine or transmission out of the car for any reason.

I would get them to change the oil separator at the same time.

2 year warranty

I have used this for stuff for 20 years in my cars, motorcycles and lawnmowers. It keeps thing from getting gummed up without the need to drain the tank. I have never used it in the 996 since it is my daily driver. I started using this after I gummed up a motorcycle tank several years ago. Before winter, I ran the bike out of gas and assumed everything would be ok. I spent the next spring repeatedly cleaning the carb. Finally resorted to putting lacquer thinner and marbles in the tank and shaking vigorously for several minutes. The crap that came out of the tank was unbelievable. Never happened again after using stabil.

If you think the Conti's are noisy, then you definitely don't want to get Pirelli's. After 8k miles you can no longer hear the radio. My 18" Conti's are relatively quiet at 10K miles on the rears compared to Pirelli's. I like the Bridgestone Blizzaks for the winter. I have found the Bridgesones to be a high quality tire. The snows are very quiet.

I ran Pirellis for 4 winters and they tend to get very NOISY. Last winter I switched to Blizzaks. My impressions. The Blizzaks go better, stop better and produce 1/3 of the road noise. I a an article out of Christophorous that does an annual review of winter tires. The last copy I have is 2003. They recommend two combinations: 7J x 17 ET 50 Front 9J x 17 ET 55 Rear 8J x 18 ET 50 Front 10J x 18 ET 65 Rear I have the whole write-up if you want it.

Get the new cap if you don't already have it. Also, get the new water level switch...it is only $10 and you have to remove the tank to replace it. BTW, your mechanic is wrong. The water level switch on the bottom of the tank is not a "wet" switch and does not need a o-ring. I just replaced my tank due to old age and 98K miles of use. The tank just had a hairline crack along the side. I ran the tank for three weeks with the pressure relief valve in the up position and it did not leak when not under pressure. I changed the tank myself and it took me a solid 2 hours. I used the instructions on this site, with a few mods. Most importantly, place a couple of large vacuum caps over the fuel bungs. You do not want any dirt getting into the fuel system and with all of the wrangling trying to get the tank out, you are going to stir it up.

I have a 1999 C2 so I can give you some numbers for a car of this age with 97k miles... OAT 90 degrees A/C set at 70 degrees - outside air source (not on recirc) windows up all day due to threat of T-storms (end up sunny) center vent temp after 10 minutes of operation 50.2 degrees cabin temp after 15 minutes of operation 72.3 degrees Note: center vent temp measured with Fluke meter probe inserted about 2 inches into vent. Hope this gives you an idea

I would not rule out the ignition switch. If you don't hear the solenoid click, then I would try the switch first. My first ignition switch failure had the same symptoms you mention...everything worked but the starter. Loren kindly sent me info on how to change the switch. My second failure was just a guess on my part. The A/C blower quit working so I checked all fuses, etc. had power to the compressor, etc. I changed the ignition switch and everything started working properly. I disassembled the old switch and sure enough spotted the failure. I keep a spare handy!

This just happened to me! My 99 quit 300 feet from my house traveling at about 25 mph. The CEL flashed 3 times and the engine quit. Diagnosis was zero compression on number 2. Borescope revealed the valves had come in intimate contact with the piston. Obvious valve spring failure since mine is also a TIP and cannot suffer an overrev. The DME reported failure at 2000 rpm. My 99 TIP had 96,000 miles so the decision was easy. I put a Porsche replacement engine in with the 2 year warranty. The engine looks absolutely new. The only obvious rebuilt item is the power steering pump, revealed by the part number. The casting marks on the heads show 2002 dates. The original engine did not burn a drop of oil and I never had to add oil between changes. RMS was dry when I snapped a photo at the shop. The torque convertor input seal was weeping a bit, as well as the variocam cover. The engine ran really strong to the bitter end. It's a shame the valve spring let go... I just got the car back yesterday. The new engine doesn't really feel any stronger the the 96k mile powerplant it has replaced but I will not really be able to tell until after the breakin period since I wil be keepo\ing it below 4200 roms. Beware if you decide to replace coolant hoses. They are mighty hard to come by...one hose was not available according to the parts locater in either Atlanta warehouse or in Germany (996.106.250.55). Luckily I found one at a Florida dealer after spending mucho time on the phone chasing one down. Alot of the expense of doing the work is the labor R&I on a TIP. You may want to factor this in your decision to fix or go with the replacement engine. Good luck.