2007 Cayman S - Total M97 Engine Rebuild

I'm in the middle of rebuilding the M97 engine in my 2007 Cayman S . You can follow along at my website newhillgarage.com The latest articles (there are currently 3) are linked on the main page of the site, as well in the drop down for Porsche / 2007 Cayman .

Awesome!! That’s a big commitment!! I really want to do that myself.. I’ve rebuilt a couple of motors in my time( rotary and 3SGTE) These don’t look super complicated… thoughts?

Well, I guess on a scale of VW beetle engine to Porsche Carerra GT, they fall in the middle. As I will discuss in my pending build back article, I wouldn't feel comfortable doing it without the Porsche shop manual and the Jake Raby video series. With those in my back pocket, I feel confident.

Ya I bet that is….detailed. I love that guy’s approach… If you your doing something wrong he’s not afraid to let Cha-know 🤣

If you have engine building experience I'm sure you can successfully do it. From my reading it seems like the hardest part is installing the wrist pin clips. Good luck!

Great posts on your website for this. Enjoy the rebuild and lets see you tackle the wrist pin clips

I equate the wrist pin insertion to doing a tonsilectomy through ones anus

I've selected Slakker Racing Development to perform my machine shop work. The full article is linked below. Porsche Cayman – Full Engine Rebuild – Machine Shop Selection As previously discussed in articles here, here, and here, I am performing a full engine rebuild on my 2007 Cayman S with the M97 engine. Based on my inspection of the dis-assembled engine component… newhillgarage.com

this is good stuff, @harveyf ! If you don't mind my asking, do you have engine building experience? I'm asking from the POV of whether it's a DIY for a mechanically inclined person who has never done a Porsche engine before. second, how bad was the engine failure when you decided to rebuild it? third, is this a OEM rebuild at the same displacement or are you doing upgraded components?

I haven't rebuilt many engines but I'm pretty intrepid about taking on new tasks. And I have over 50 years of automotive experience, as a hobby. I rebuilt several 944 engines in the last decade but the Cayman certainly takes things to a new level. I would not attempt the reassembly without purchasing and studying Jake Rabys video. Worth every penny of the $600 he charges for the video. As to failure there was none. Details are here (First of several articles): 2007 Cayman S 987.1 – Full Engine Rebuild – Why? My friend Greg said “Only a crazy person would rebuild a Porsche engine that is running fine.” Greg, I agree! As per my thread on this car, I bought it 2 years ago. I think I just beat … newhillgarage.com I am going with the OEM displacement. There are several reasons. I like to keep my cars stock. And I am not totally convinced that you can add displacement and count upon the stock engine management system to keep up with the increased fueling demands of a larger displacement. A vast simplification of my thinking but that is it in a nutshell.

I read several of your build articles and TBH, for me personally, it was depressing. I am questioning the flat six design. not that anyone cares what I think.... as fun as these cars are to drive, and as excellent as the acceleration is, these engines are a PITA and I don't know if they are worth so much damn trouble. I have a 350Z that is track prepped with the same lap times as my Cayman S . and I'm not losing faith in the marquee, but I am questioning my own assumptions. perhaps Porsche is rare and exotic because most people won't put up with all of this bullshit....

The reason you’re questioning a flat six is because they cost another digit to replace vs your Nissan.

Just got done with mine, worst part was circlip install thru the case. machine work and parts were pretty pricey. A lot of sleepless nights, but just fired her up and damn. Installed fabspeed race exhaust (highly recommend) Sounds damn good . My wife is not even into cars gave a thumbs up!

Harvey, I think I missed this thread. Great work documenting the teardown and a comprehensive review of the oiling system on your site. Any updates since Slakker sent back your parts? Do you plan on installing or fabricating some sort of dry sump system or adopting the new Hartech deep sump kit that Slakker carries in the US? (also, I am still figuring out how I'll be doing the lights on the hood or the roof rack. definitely will come to you for advice on the bracketry/bracing needed)

For a variety of reasons, I am just getting started on putting the engine back together. I will be posting articles to my website. But to answer your question, I am going with the Hartech deepsump kit. Brandon at Slakker typically posts on Facebook, where he released some good data that shows that the Hartech sump works to eleminate oil starvation.

I just added an update to my website. 2007 Porsche Cayman S – Machine Work Done I apologize in advance for falling behind on updates for the engine rebuild of the 2007 Cayman S. Summer projects and travel have taken a priority. But there is some progress to report. As discusse… newhillgarage.com

Great work! I think for the investment that you've already put into the new motor it would be prudent to spring for the UAOS or M-AOS as it's a fraction of the cost of rebuilding in your motor. Typically the deep sumps (LN, FVD, and most likely Hartech) have a very decent chance of overloading the stock AOS and require a lower oil fill than even the 1-bar-below-max that is the correct fill level for our cars, which may start to get risky. Even though it can be installed with the engine in place some work is just easier done with more clearance, but it's just my $0.02. Looking forward to reading your continued updates!