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996 engine issues

S

Steve George

New member
After driving a friends 996 Carrera Cup race car I realised what the 911 thing is all about and so Im now looking to buy something with my own hard earned money.

I am thinking of a 996 as I can't afford a 997 but I am concerned about the engine oil leaks and liner failures, Im thinking that it will be a daily driver for the wife and I.
Do you know if the engines Porsche replaced under warranty on the 996 were of an improved specification for the liner and crank seal issues or were they just new versions with the same design?
Also is the 996 facelift engine improved for these issues?
Any info will be great as Im not too keen on gambling!!
Thanks.
 
Plenty of info available from owners on this site. I also found Peter Morgans publications useful and in particular the following book to provide a detailed A-Z on the 996

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Thanks Mike, I guess its a little unclear if the replacement engines have an improved specification as I have searched many subjects and threads and can find nothing to verify a spec improvement for the liners. Ill have to keep looking.

Thanks for the advice on the book though.
 
There weren't many engines failing from liner slippage, early 3.4 litre cars can suffer, later 3.6 cars don't. The numbers are fairly small, but thats no consolation.

As to Porsche replaced engines, they will have incorporated all the modifications that they could at the time of rebuild.

IMS (intermediate shaft) failures still happen, just last week i saw the first failure reported on a 987 3.4 litre Boxster S, despite an improved bearing design.

RMS or crank seal failures affect some cars but not all - there have been numerous versions of the seal over the years with increasing effectiveness, but some cars still leak with the latest seals.

Its a bit of a lottery, but if a car has made it to 70k miles succesfully then it probably has a good chance of continuing - not much consolation when you are debating whether a 996 is good enough for daily use.

And don't lose sight of running costs - its a 60k sports car when new, so tyres, brakes, other parts all need regular attention and skimping doesn't work on Porsches.
 
I've had my 2001 since new. No problems at all, for me its been cheaper to run than some main stream cars. I have only covered 43K and apart from service and wear and tear costs she has been faultless. I hope you find the right car.

Best wishes

Don
 
My engine let go at 42000 miles. Despite full Porsche service hisory, Porsche offered me nothing by the way of goodwill payment. If you don't like gambling, carefully consider buying a car with a warranty.

I think that statistically, the chances of total engine failure are less than 1%. I had adopted the philosophy that things like that never happen to me...
 
Hi Steve. I think that you've got to remember that most people are more prone to posting bad news about their 996's rather than the good news. I've had mine for 4 years now and haven't had anything major go wrong with it - running costs are reasonable, considering the type of car it is. Admittedly my car has only covered 21K miles (2003/03) but I think that you'd be unlucky to get a bad one. Mines for sale now but I'll be replacing it ASAP!
All the best.
Adrian.
 
I also have an early 996 on a 98 plate. Now covered over 80k and have encountered no problems other than the need to replace the coolant tank, which i believe is common. Car is used daily on average 6 miles per day, but was also used up and down the motorway quite regularly a little while ago. Its driven slowly round town and opens up on motorways. Main costs have been tyres, brake shoes and brake discs. Very reliable. I have seen some with huge oil leaks but mine was free when purchased....that was good enough for me. Good luck
 
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