My Engine, RIP @ 65,750 Miles (long)

Hello All: On Feb. 20th I drove my car back from work just like every other day...later that evening, when heading out to the movies, I started the car and was surprised by the horrible sounds of something like a bucketful of bolts...(Oh No...!) I shut it off immediately, looked for oil...no oil...went to the movies in another car...and the next day began the nearly 40 days of worrying... The following Monday, my car was towed to the Dealership where it was promptly diagnosed with a Failed Intermediate Shaft. They claimed that they'd dismantled the engine and that it was severly damaged. I never saw it. They also told me that I needed a new engine...to the tune of about $15k...(ouch!!) Luckily, when I bought the car I had purchased an Aftermarket Extended Warranty upon sale...(their Supreme Coverage nontheless...)...and after many inspections and deliberations (praying and crossing fingers, etc....and reading the contract over 29 times), they covered most of the cost formy replacement engine. I say 'most' because there was a diference that they didn't cover which consisted on whether the dealership installed an engine that the warranty company sourced (from another parts source), or one that was sourced through Porsche's internal Parts Network...This all meant that their engine would have a warranty only up to the remainder of my Extended Warranty Period, versus a 24 month-unlimited mile warranty for the dealer-sourced engine...I decided to pay the difference ($1,000) and have now the standard Porsche warranty for parts & labor on my new engine. I also had the clutch kit replaced while the car was all apart and the dealer only charged me for 2 hours of labor over their price for the kit...which still puts the clutch job at over 1200 bucks...(but what the heck!!?? Right!) Considering I was up for the 60k mile service, and that I'd been quoted about $900 to $1200 for that work...(I know it's a bit late, but I had the 45k miles service done at this dealer when I bought the car at 48.5K, even though it must had been done, but I had no record...so the 60k service was like 2k miles overdue...), and that the clutch wouldn't have been covered by the warranty (of course)...I don't think I came out too badly...so, for about the same money, I came out with the new engine AND the new clutch...and didn't have to do the 60k service...whatch'all think?... I authorized it all...and waited...waited...and waited...called frequently but the dealer kept saying that the warranty people kept coming back for inspections and reinspections. Most of the time was spent in these evolutions...they finally were satisfied and OK'd all the work....(whew...) Well...I just got my car back yesterday!! (That'd be 03/31, for those that count days)...and my car is now equipped with a New Porsche 996 Engine!! The new engine is ALL SHINY....almost incredible on how different it looks compared to the old one...it sounds and feels very strong, even though it can't go over 4,000 RPM for a while...also, there's a whiny sound that wasn't there before and I'm pretty sure it's from all the new belts and pulleys....Can't wait until I can wind this baby up there in the Tach...!! The new clutch seems like it takes about 1/2 the effort to operate now...which is also great!! I bought the car with about 48k miles, and the clutch (original I presume) was quite stiff compared to other cars I've driven. I thought that this was just 'typical'...However, the new one is much easier... So...this is mostly good news but I wanted to post it to keep the folks in the forum informed... A couple of things came to mind that I'd like some comments on: I'm mostly thinking about driving the car 'like I stole it' for at least the warranty period...but, if I decided to sell...do you think that this car is now 'worth more', because of the reman engine?? Would it'd be easier or harder to sell, in your opinion? Lemme know what your thoughts are please.... now...back to driving!! PS... When I re-read my post I realized that some info was missing... 2003 911, Targa, Manual Transmission, Seal Gray, No Mods Purchased at about 48K miles, died at 65,750... ...I know, I don't post much...but I read everything...

thanks for sharing your experience - I also have an aftermarket ext warranty and while it makes my days somewhat worry free, I always wonder what will exactly happen should the car need something major like a motor or tranny. In terms of resale - just my .02, but I think I new engine would put your car ahead of another car similarly optioned with similar mileage (or even with a few less mileage). So I think it adds value, but prob not a ton.

The car is worth more with the new engine.

thanks for sharing! seems like the 02-04 models suffers more from IMS, while the 99-01 suffers the intermixes....

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That's probably because the earlier cars die from intermixing before their intermediate shafts kill them. Just kidding. Sort of.

When I was looking at cars to buy, I considered a car w/ a Porsche remanned engine to be worth more because of the lower failure rate. On the flip side, I would considered an engine (likely used and not rebuilt) sourced by a warranty company to be less valuable. No idea how many miles were on the engine nor how it was maintained.

Who did the work? The Collection? Good to hear a happy ending! New reman engine will be a plus for a enthusiast but it will raise some worries to a regular guy.

Congrats on the positive outcome! Care to share the name of the auto warranty company? If I hold on to my car after the CPO expires I'm going to be in the market for one.

$1,000 more to get the Porsche warrantied engine was definitely the right thing to do. I had an extended warranty that expired about 8 months before my engine died, and I did not renew it as funds were short. Bad decision. But the dealer where I bought the car and the extended warranty (EasyCare) said that EasyCare usually want to find a used motor and put it in.

What is this aftermarket warranty? How much if you don't mind me asking. Right now, i'm driving around Commando in the C4s. My CPO expired March 1. And Murphy always seems to be hanging around the house waiting for the best time to announce his presence.

Arg. I have EasyCare...

I think it's better for resale to have a new motor with all the update and a 2 years warranty. That's how I feel about it.

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*transferable* new engine warranty is worth as much as it ever will be. Any driving, and any "driving like you stole it" will only subtract from the value. If I were to keep the car I'd certainly drive it, a lot. It makes no sense to let the 2 year 24,000 mile warranty (or any time/mileage warranty) expire on time. Problems arise from miles driven, not time car sits still. Sincerely, Macster.

Good story. For me the key is how the car was treated its first 48,000 miles. And I'm not talking about service records, I talking about how it was driven. After your break-in period I feel that keeping the revs between 3 and 4 grand in all gears, with the occasional 6 grand burst is how these engines are designed to be driven. I think some might hit the extremes too often, putt'n around at 2,000 rpm or over reving it at the wrong time. But that�s just my opinion. And, having owned a 993 you came about better compared to those cars that can require top end at about the same milage so that they can pass emissions test.

Make sure with the new engine is that you let the engine get up to operating temp before any kind of heavy acceleration even if it is just up to 4K.

I have 125k on my original motor. I hit the redline about every day. I just keep the revs below 4k until it's fully warmed up (and don't accelerate hard then, either), and NEVER lug it around at low rpms. Lugging the engine and being afraid of high rpms are a recipe for dirty/unhealthy internals. The higher the gear, the more revs I make sure I keep - for instance, 2k is no big deal in first or second gear, but I keep it above 3k if I'm using 5th or 6th. I also make it a point to engine-brake for a little bit after I've gone above 6000-redline, since it creates a suction and will pull the blow-by gasses from beyond the piston rings - which helps keep the cylinders clean. I never "baby" the car, and drive it hard without abusing it. I change the oil every 5k-7.5k, and it burns ZERO oil between changes. I think if you respect the engine and drive it like it was made to be driven, you should be fine.

Thanks for all the postings and replies...I feel the same about opting for the Porsche-sourced engine. I was told that the warranty company was going to source a new one, but I didn't want to miss out on a longer warranty period. I've also heard that warranty companies usually like to find used engines to get cars back on the road....I didn't care for that... The collection is the dealer/installer...they were excellent throughout, but they are up there in the pricey range for labor (of course)...and they are always watching for THEIR bottom line...(also obvious)... The warranty company is National Warranty (of FLorida, in my case), and they were also excellent....they always communicated that they were going to cover me...although sometimes it didn't feel like that...but their process required inspections and visits from the adjusters/inspectors (naturally) when the claims are over a certain figure ($3,500, I believe)....and therefore, my car spent a lot of time out there on a lift... hope that answers the questions posted... ...still driving below 4k RPM...

Nice outcome. Definitely worth a lot more.

the guys at the collection are great to deal with. have purchased three cars from them. who did you deal with? Ralph Monteagudo, service manager and Brad, head tech, are awesome to deal with. yes they are a little pricey, but i have never had any issues with them. Ralph has given me his cell# and he always makes time for me. Brad is a great tech and knows his stuff. he always follows-up with me personally every time he works on my car.

Did you get a rental car while this work was being done? Curious to see if your warranty covered that...

Very cool that you had the warranty. My extended 2-year warranty that I paid $2k for expires in 2 weeks. I only put about 4k miles on the car in that time - no problems. No RMS leaks, no window regulator trouble, no nothing. I'm hoping as soon as the warranty expires I don't hear that bolts in a washing machine sound, or find coolant in the oil!!

I bought my car from Champion, but I now have it serviced at the Collection.

I Googled National Warranty of florida, but the site does not include Porsche in the cars covered. Got a better website for us?

The number I have on the contract is [phone removed]... and Yes they do cover rental car...initially only 5 days, but they've extended since the delays were caused by them...

Pardon my ignorance, but what is the opinion of many auto insurance companies with failures like this? Do they cover a portion of the expense or none at all?

did they tell you whats been Updated? and how does it look diffrent?

Insurance companies do not cover this at all, I believe...