Circumstances
I was driving on the Autobahn in Germany this Monday and suddenly the engine started making shuddering/banging noises. A warning message flashed up to indicate that the Oil Pressure was low. I pulled over on the hard shoulder and navigated to the instrument cluster information "INFO" section. There was a message there which said that I should get the car serviced immediately.
I towed the car to dealer who informed me that the engine was now unusable and that a rebuild or replacement was required.
Car
My car is a 2006 987.i Cayman S.
It has a total of 125K km.
I have never had any engine issues at all.
I was driving pretty fast but nothing excessive for Germany. I was traveling at about 170km and was in 5th/6th gear.
I had loaned the car to a friend recently and they had to top up the oil. I am assured that they did it on time with the right oil but I have no way of confirming that.
The car has a full service history (with Porsche dealers) but as I was out of the country this service was about 500km too late. I was traveling to Frankfurt to fly abroad again and to check it in for the service.
Some questions..
I have fully comprehensive insurance in Germany. Is this sort of damage something that would be (partly) covered at all?
This should like an IMS failure. Is Porsche (corporate) sympathetic to these types of failures. Have they officially acknowledged the issue?
-
The following is the information that I got from the dealer. Unfortunately it is in German.
extract email1
Guten Tag Herr wwwwww,
wir haben den Motor geprüft und es liegt ein Defekt im Bereich der Zylinder und der Kurbelwelle vor.
Metallspähne sind im kompletten Motor vorhanden.
Somit gibt es nur die Möglichkeit einen Teilmotor zu verbauen.
extract email2
Guten Tag Herr wwwwww,
der Schaden am Motor Ihres Wagens ist zurück zu führen auf einen über längeren Zeitraum zu geringen Motoröldruck.
Ursächlich dafür konnte ein zu großer Verschleiß der Kurbelwellenlagerung sein.
Es handelt sich nun um einen klassischen Motorschaden, der wie beschrieben durch einen Teilmotorersatz zu beheben wäre.
any ideas comments..
i am also going to post something on pff.
thanks
The second email refers to crankshaft/bearing damage. That would suggest an oil starvation problem.
Thanks. It seems that way.
This (albeit shouty) video on youtube seems to suggest that IMS issues can lead to low oil pressure and oil starvation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1lLWRPzdNA
Until you have a diagnosis from a trusted mechanic, it is useless to try to guess what the issue is. It doesn't sound good but why blame IMS if it's a rod that blew? Maybe your friend overfilled the oil and the engine hydro-locked. Once again, that would have nothing to do with IMS. Find out what it is and let us know.
As far as your question about Porsche feeling sorry for you - nein! They try to ignore design issues and they're not going to feel generous to someone with a 10 yr old car.
And please explain your comment about comprehensive insurance. Are you talking about a warranty or coverage on your car in case of an accident you're at fault of? In the US, our comprehensive ins would not cover blown engines. We'd need some sort of warranty from a 3rd party (non-Porsche).
Good luck with your findings.
From what I understand regarding IMS failure, firstly it makes a noise akin to a load of ball bearings ratting around inside a can, and secondly, the motor usually seizes when the valve gear comes into contact with the pistons.
Sorry to hear about your engine and it is much more common to have oil starvation failures in a 2006 than an IMS failure but either way doesn't really matter you need a new engine and hopefully can get one from a salvage yard or remanufacturer as a new engine from Porsche is pretty expensive.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk
Re the insurance I mean this -
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaskoversicherung#Vollkaskoversicherung
Thanks everyone for the replies.
As far as I know, CASCO/Kasko Insurance is related to the liability and amount of coverage in the event of a car collision/accident.
This type of insurance has nothing to do with mechanical/engine failure and/or repair. It is not an Extended Warranty.
Note-to-self:
NEVER
lend your Porsche to a "friend". :naughty:
Did your friend money shift it? Just saying...
Good point. Might be worth having a DME report done to see if there were any over-revs recently.
Also, notice I mentioned a "trusted" mechanic in my previous post. Some mechanics see massive $$$ signs (or Euros) in this situation and no matter what the issue is, recommend a new engine. Recently there was a lady on 986forum that was told her engine was blown and she needed to spend $10K for a new one. At the suggestion of many members, she took it to a recommended mechanic and it turns out she needed a new AOS. Several hundred $$$ later, she was back on the road. Your situation sounds more menacing, but have whoever you take it to prove what the problem is. There are many points of potential failure, be sure they give you the exact cause. Do not accept the blanket statement that you need a new engine. Ask why. As Trev points out, this does not sound like an IMS issue based on limited information.
And please return with your diagnosis. It helps to have exact information available, not just speculation and hysteria.
Ok thanks.
That initial assessment was done by a large Posrche dealership in Frankfurt.
I am in the process of talking to another company who might be able to help with an assessment and a replacement, if reqd.
I also noted that there are a couple of engines available on German ebay.
Re. the original diagnosis, that is all that Porsche in Frankfurt has given me.
IMSB failure sounds like a steel rod slamming about in the transmission, nothing like ball bearings inside a can. The valve gear in the 2006-8 models doesn't make contact with pistons. At least not for many miles. The stub shaft supports the IMS with .5 mm clearance and the chains don't jump over the sprockets. The noise comes from the stub slapping the IMS (its a tube) as a ball catches and trips it over. Search my posts and I've told everything about this subject. If its the IMSB it can be repaired with the engine in the car. Of course the dealers position is "it can't be done". Wire Paladin....San Francisco....Have gun...will travel... At high speeds, it's still sort of a crap shoot. The failure I eye witnessed and repaired happened on start up.
Best of luck
