New M96 only good for 75k miles?

I'm one of those lucky people who had an M96 pop a cylinder (#2) and I'm now looking for options to get my 996 back on the road. Current best option looks like new short block from Porsche and build with all new hoses, aos, water pump, pulleys, clutch, flywheel, etc for lots of money. I say lots of money as I'm in Ontario so US prices don't apply and I don't want to get hooked up on the price. My question really is, after I spend lots of money, will this new M96 motor really only be good up 75k miles, then suffer the same issues as all M96's? I ask because I drive my car 15k miles per year, so in essence, I'm committing to rebuilding this expensive motor every 5 years. This makes me feel funny. Thx.

There are a lot of folks with over 200k on their cars with no major problems. LOTS of factors come in to play, care, tracked, how you drive, temperature extremes. To me it boils down to whether you love driving the car or not.

Sold my '02 cab as a roller for $4500 after the camchain broke at 72K miles and the engine grenaded. The car had been in the family since new and was perfectly maintained. I really miss the car badly, but to me it wasn't worth the risk of another unannounced failure like that. Gonna save my pennies and eventually get a 997 where reliability sounds to be much better.

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Well, I'm only on this forum as I love driving the car. If you aren't it love with it, then it just becomes a mode of transportation, so any car would do.

An option is to have the short block cylinders supported at the head face. Hartech does this and others may as well. Stops them going oval.

The factory short blocks are a pretty nice upgrade over the original engines. I'm not sure where you came up with 75k miles. Take good care of it (maintenance wise), keep it over 3k rpm for cruising speeds, and be sure that the gas pedal finds the floor every now and then to blow out the cobwebs and you should get 150k+.

With the engine out, you can easily address the IMSB and clutch. Since I have heard of the crank bolts stretching in the M97s, I avoid redline in my 2006 Cayman. The forums (here, P-9, PP, etc) show lots of folks 150-225K regularly. Definitely luck of the draw meets maintenance and driving style.

I'm currently madly in love with my '07 Cayman. And not just because it's the only 1 out of 5 p-cars that is sorted at the moment. It's just so nicely balanced for street driving and does everything you ask it with spirit.

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I'd be curious to hear your feedback of that "proper" engine position on track. Having ridden in a Cayman R (bone stock with tires and pads) on track, I was shocked at the balance, and mechanical grip.

Engines are only good for 75k miles? No one tell that to my old C4S that has almost 170k on it now.

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When cruising, I keep mine just under 3k, say, between 2500-3000 on a flat highway. What�s the benefit of keeping it over 3k? 2500 RPM is actually still quite fast if we are taking about circulation of fluids, and in terms of preventing lugging (I don�t floor it at 2500, I shift down 2).

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Yep, then the car becomes worth less than salvage value. Let me know when you hit 75k miles and I'll haul that paper weight away - no charge.

"Sold my '02 cab as a roller for $4500 after the camchain broke at 72K miles and the engine grenaded. The car had been in the family since new and was perfectly maintained." 6L6, sorry to hear this! Sell a couple if those Martins and you'll probably have the cash for a 997! To add to this conversation, I now have 176,000 miles on my '02 Coupe, original engine. Oil analysis reports always look great. I'm driving it until it blows, but after 7 years of ownership I hope that day is far off.

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Did you figure out what happened?

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scoring and de-chunking. Ims looks great, and it's original.

The first variocam angle is supposedly hard on the Mk1 engine. Keeping above 2900 when it kicks in solves this.

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I thought the mk1 engine Variocam kicks in at around 1,300 rpm* and 5,920 rpm? My notes show: �Engine speeds below 1,300 rpm produce a slight overlap in the valve stroke curves for the intake valves in relation to the exhaust valves. This particularly affects low proportions of hydrocarbons (HC proportions) in the exhaust gas before the catalytic converters. If the engine exceeds the 1,300 rpm mark *, the intake camshafts are adjusted by 12.5� (by 25� if measured a the crankshaft). Adjustment of the camshafts to produce a greater overlapping of the valve stroke curves for the intake and exhaust valves results in improved cylinder charging and thus an increase in engine torque. In the case of engine speeds above 5,920 rpm, the intake camshafts are returned to the basic control times (as for engine idling speed). If the intake valve closes later, additional amounts of intake air can be drawn in. This produces a recharging effect since the flow of air is not interrupted. This also results in improved charging of the cylinders and an increase in performance.� * The value 1,300 rpm increases to 1,480 rpm with engine oil temperatures of approx. 133�C."

Awesome info. Not sure where I got the 2900 number but Flat 6 is who preaches to keep it above 3k. FWIW.

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Yeah, I�m sure there�s been plenty of debate back and forth on what the �ideal� RPMs are for these cars or any cars are. The debate has raged on for decades since fuel economy has been on the list of improvements, overdrive transmissions included. Tip cars - none of them have been programmed to holding RPMs above 3,000. The owners manual usually states to keep RPMs above 1500. And to not exceed 4500 RPM when cold. Keeping revs over 3000 all the time just seems unnatural for every drive, all the time, even to work, to the supermarket, to church. Even cross country. Maybe this recommendation has had to do with oil jets? Oil pressure in these engines will be at max above 2500 RPM, so maybe that�s why? Anyway, I�d like to know more about this recommendation.

Ya, the amount of vendor spread information around here that's turned out to be opinion rather than fact is a little disappointing.

I�m not saying it�s wrong, per se, but curious. Perhaps the oil jets start operating above a certain pressure.

Does anyone have any high mileage Flat6innovations cars out their? I drive 15-20k a year, so durability and longevity are important considerations. Thx

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Start a new thread with that topic. I would love to know that answer.

Since you have a D chunked cylinder you can probably re-sleeve the engine and throw in many upgrades along the way. Research LN Engineering Nickies. Locate a reputable Porsche engine builder and rebuild it. My old 4S dropped a valve seat and D chunked around 70k. I was tracking the car a lot during that time. Funny thing was it gave up leaving Sunday brunch loafing in 1st gear. Lost compression and rolled to a stop, done. I was back on the road with a LN 3.8 in about 4 months. Not sure if you have that much time or a second vehicle but I did. Once I made the decision to rebuild we had some fun with additional mods. Take your time and research a bit. Good luck and hope you get back on the road soon.