IMS...yea, I know...AGAIN!

If she is going to blow, will she blow at any time, or are you pretty safe after XXXX miles? Thanks So sorry for the enzo

Current belief is that it's a wear item - so it is as likely to go at XX,XXX miles as YY,YYY miles. There have been examples of poorly installed or defective bearings failing fairly quickly after being installed. I would think that a defective bearing would make itself known pretty quickly. A non-faulty bearing will eventually succumb to wear. The dual-row bearings are more robust and fail less often. If you have a dual-row car, worry less, but still a good idea to add to the service schedule to move this item from "eventual time bomb" to "regularly serviced...no problem."

Unfortunately for you a parroting n00b answered you who couldn't even tell you where the IMSB is much less give any advice about wear. Try waiting for those who have actually done something to answer.

She could blow at any time. No guarantees! My opinion (at this moment) is get rid of the ***** if you can.

How's the full-chest tattoo of Jake coming along? I hope the restraining order hasn't made it difficult to find tattooists willing to do the work. As of last weekend, I figure I've done about 60K miles between my two M96-powered, IMSB-equipped Porsches. Tell us, KK, how many miles total did you put in behind the wheel of your 4S as you were honing your self-decried Porsche expertise? Whenever I see your "unfair" vanity plates, it makes me consider your sad, flaccid reality...repeatedly (and obsessively) disassembling and reassembling your car. How convincing your Quixotic delusions must have been - they actually made you believe that your inability to muster sufficient nerve to fire the car and take it out for any drive longer than the twice-weekly trip to Walgreen's for fresh hemorrhoid cream and a pack of your favorite "discreet" adult undergarments could be obfuscated by sitting alone for yet another weekend fixing an unbroken car... We'll imagine your too-high, slightly nasal testes-never-really-dropped voice explaining to the nice lady how your near-encyclopedic knowledge of torque values was perfected over the course of countless pathetic evenings in your sad little garage fondling those things you couldn't actually bring yourself to use properly. Your trolling is getting angrier - I imagine that's due at least in part to the fact that I'm not reluctant to point out your pathetic faux swagger. But please, do continue to hang around here and badmouth the cars that the rest of us love. It makes everyone like you so...

I was just at my indie last week having some routine work done and - shock...horror - the IMSB came up as my clutch is getting close. The guys commented that although they are continuing to do preventative jobs, they aren't seeing clear IMS related activity at the frequency like they were a few years ago. Take that for what it's worth... R

KK, man you are garnering a record of Eric Crumble when it comes to verbal spats with Schnell. Sphere%203d_zpsobkuvvko.png

I pulled my imsb at -~60k when I was doing rms leak and checking clutch anyway. As many others found here - no wear. But now I have ceramic bearing for piece of mind. There is a lot of speculation and not many facts on how big a problem this is - yes it appears a single digit percentage of these bearings have failed within 10 years. Some say if cars are not driven much ( or lightly) and oil is not changed frequently - the problem is worse. Many bearings failed early on - leading to warranty engine replacement. I saw one theory that relates to the manufacturing tolerances of the shaft and bearing - if things are slightly off , load will be higher on one side of the bearing , causing wear, and even a new one will eventually wear. If you are going to pull transmission to do other work anyway - makes sense to do bearing since cost of labor at that point is minimal. But bearing is only one thing that can fail - so even if you address it - your engine can still Die due to other reasons. Best advice is to change oil frequently with something that is porsche approved - and some would argue better than mobil 1. Lots of other cars also have "premature" engine failure - look at the panamerra forum for example ! Enjoy the car and don't loose to much sleeo over it - but, why the question in the first place ?

Karen, be proactive and consider addressing the issue at your next major service. The general consensus is that these are wear items and require periodic service/replacement. You'll feel more confident when you take your beautiful machine out for a drive. KK, here's an article that may point you into the direction you need in order to get help for yourself. Please understand that we truly care even though you truly are "unfair" with your constant and pitiful attempts to be hurtful. I must acknowledge that publicly admitting to being unfair with a vanity plate on your car would be more effective if it actually left the garage from time to time. It is, however, a fair start as acknowledging one's flaws is the first step to recovery. We're all behind you sir. http://http://www.livescience.com/7282-bad-decision-makers-lack-reasoning-skills.html

My 996 is at 120,000 miles and still on original imsb. And I have no intention of doing anything about it anytime soon!!!

I think panicking about the IMS is a US thing. Over the pond in the UK, IMS failures are very rare these days, and no one worries about them. They seemed to go fairly early in the car's life, the wisdom is ,if it hasn't gone yet, then it probably won't. Get it checked when the clutch is next done, and make a decision then. My 996 had a clutch at 39k miles, and the IMS was in fine fettle, so it was left in situ. When the clutch is done for a second time, I'll more than likely change it, but not for a ceramic one, I'm not convinced of it's longevity. Hartech in the UK make their own, I'll fit one of theirs. I think the biggest tip for you is, change the oil regularly, and use the thing!!

You should only plan on taking it out if you plan to gold plate it and show it off. I'm still on my original at 125k as I don't have the funds for both the retrofit AND gold plating services.

Karen...as active as you are on Rennlist I gotta ask...why ask?

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Hey, if it is gonna be responsible for a giant chunk of devaluation it might as well look the part 70k and found a pristine dual row in our 01. I'm finding that I'm actually more worried about it now than I was on the factory bearing Treat it as a maintenance item with the clutch (or do The Solution), drive the car, keep with a reasonable OCI schedule, and keep the RPMs above 2.5k (the higher the better and more fun).

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Not to add fuel to the fire, but called my indy about the mirror problem I had, and their first question once they heard 996 was if I had the bearing replaced. It's a wear item and every clutch replacement should be fine. This winter I think I'm going to follow in the gold plating, then maybe make a trophy with it and pass it around our owners club.

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+996......must of been a slow day in the OT section.....but damn Karen's avatars never disappoint.

I have my 996 in for service at an indie in the west suburbs of Chicago. They see a lot of Porsche's. I asked them how many cars have they actually seen over the years that have had shaft bearings let go with the most feared catastrophic results. The answer was exactly 2 of them. No idea how many M96's they have worked on over the years but I will bet it's a bunch... Bill

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One of the Gold Master Techs at Barrington told me exactly 1 while he's been there for 30 years.

Karen.... Karen... you know not of what you you ask... You are summoning up gorgons and Beelzebub from the depths of the underworld.

Does anyone use the IMS Guardian? Is it still available? The only one I could find was the "junior". I understand this does not cover every possible bearing failure scenario, keeping track of ferrous material seems like a good idea regardless.

See what I mean??? ^^^

Sorry if I violated some protocol, Cuda; I've only had my car 4 days, so I know almost nothing in-depth. I asked about the guardian only because I saw it referenced in some other IMS thread. I we stupid noobs can't ask what may be perceived as stupid questions, how are we supposed to learn? Better yet, educate me on how (or even if) I should ask questions.

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You didn't do anything wrong...folks just having fun. The Guardian is a mixed blessing...good because you theoretically know to shut your engine down before you grenade the block, but once the thing goes off you know you're probably in need of a full rebuild. So I guess you save the core charge you'd pay if you didn't shut down _before_ poking a new hole in the block. Good luck with the 996. I'm three years into my 996 and still can't wait for any excuse to make any trip.

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Someone should really make an FAQ sticky. (This dicussion thread is great, it's just hard to find specific information because it's long) Also, I don't think there is a consensus on whether the IMS bearing is actually a problem. Then again, I haven't been around long enough to make that call.

Yep, just razzin' ya Carl. There a couple "sticky" threads at the top of the 996 that have pretty much all the info. you will need to know about the IMSB issue.

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At that point a person could change their oil and filter every 3k miles and/or send oil samples in for testing. It'd be more expensive in the long run but would give you better notice and a better indication of what's going on in the engine. Although, then there is the advice of my engine builder friend who said something to the effect of "the only good reason to test the oil is if there is a suspected problem" - paranoia, according to him, isn't a good reason.

Schnell / Cuda, thanks for clearing-up my concerns. It's just that I saw some threads where there was no mistake about the screaming among the participants! Chiamac, good point about the oil change frequency. I used oil analysis every oil change on my airplanes, and the analysis commentary was always insightful. I'll probably pull the sump a few times just to check for particles. All: I found the "things you never knew about your 996" sticky insightful, but I gave up on the 10th page. Fully intend to get back there and read the rest of the thread. Thanks again; Carl PS: Took my car back to the non-Porsche dealer because the engine started missing; threw a "cylinder 1 misfire" code in OBD II. No word yet. They were taking it to an indie who does work for them.

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If that is the case, then a high % of 996/986 owners would qualify as paranoid about the IMSB

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Some motorcycle guys, not HD, would change their oil every 3k miles and always send a sample in. I think it's what happens when people have money, go online, and get advice from others who have money and go online. I think if someone is really that paranoid then they can change the oil filter every 1500 miles or so and keep checking for junk. That should be more than enough time to catch a failed IMS before it does severe damage.

A misfire on a single cylinder may just be a spark plug or a coil pack - both are benign and relatively inexpensive.

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f-ing classic... love it... I couldn't care less about the drama in this forum But 5CHN3LL 's crushing retorts are worth stopping by renn every so often... another beat down lol btw guessing I should go by a new water pump and an IMS kit.. and 5 cases of oil... but what kind of oil should I buy ????? ohh and a need a guardian, maybe two in case the first one fails... I could keep it in the frunk with the extra water pump/s and oil... I may just post pics of my 99 tip cab with a question about the cab latching mech or tip service ideas - so 5CHN3LL can berate me - again lol

If the OP wasn't a girl, you guys would have already told him to shut up or F Off. But since she isn't, all of you think you have a chance with her if you are extra nice. The pussyfog is strong on the interwebs and you guys all fell for it.....again! She gets the same reaction on the other forum too.

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I guess when you get so old that you can't get it up any more...you get cranky.

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Or maybe Karen has been around long enough that we actually know something about her and respect her. Besides, if someone was dumb enough to start a booby pic war with her, she'd school them so fast all our heads would be spinning. She is the queen of lovely lady pics

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And your point is....??

Yea, Karen isn't some random woman who wandered in off the street, she knows more people in real life around here then most.

I saw in OT she is getting a PPI on a Boxster she's looking at buying. It has a 996 motor.

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Yeah she's been stringing us along. What a tease

And her collection of avatars is very impressive. Karen rocks.

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It doesn't blow randomly. The most convincing description I have seen for the details of what is happening is that the seal starts leaking, letting fluids through. This results in engine oil flushing out the proper lubricant in the bearing, replacing it with a mix of engine oil and its own lubricant. The answer to your question depends on a couple of things: 1) does the seal go necessarily bad over time? Or can a certain pattern of oil change, driving style, heat/cold cycles make it last for a very long time? 2) what makes the ball bearing give out when it runs in engine oil? Engine oil isn't useless. In fact I have seen recommendations to remove the seal entirely in the third generation IMS cars (where you can't change the bearing easily) and have the bearing run directly in engine oil, which is then flowing freely (as opposed to not flowing when it entered slowly through a leaking seal). Personally I would only trust the IMS for a long time if there was a flawless history of oil changes with mention of which oil was put in, if it was always the same oil and an indication of how hot the thing ran regularly (aka where did the car reside?).