Intro and question(s)

Hi, i'm Erik, and I'm new to RL. I currently have a 600ish HP F150 Lightning that I have grown bored of due to not driving. I'm putting this up for sale to fund a 996. I had taken a ride in a friends TT and quite liked it. Ideally I'd get a convertible or Targa as it's just perfect for that in AZ right now. One of the other reasons I don't drive my truck much is the A/C actually runs the supercharger intercooler as well, this in turn kills my A/C inside when the temps get over 100, which is often. I've taken the truck out to Firebird main track for PROauto DE's and run it on the strip many a time. It's built, like a lot but I just don't fully enjoy it like I once did. I started looking at the 996 as I love the body and water cooling, which is kind of needed in AZ. (See my previous BMW's dead on the freeway with ruptured radiators). The RMS doesn't scare me as much as the IMS. I'm currently looking at a slightly high priced 99 manual (would prefer S, don't need 4s) but only looking. The engine was replaced @ 60k by P and I'm figuring it's upgraded in some form for the IMS. Some looking around in here and I have not seen second failures on replaced motors, that I was able to find easily. This 99 now has 110k on the body and another 60k on the new motor, as the first failed at 60 I'm that typical american gun shy about the 100k Pcar, mostly only due to seeing I should be shy of the 60k Pcar in the 996. Does anyone know if the replaced engines still suffer the same fate or if what they were replacing with in 06/07 is good? I can't afford the TT or I would. And I'm fully aware of adding about 1 to 1.5 seconds to my 0-60 but it's a different beast these Pcars. The value of these is also kind of astounding. I didn't expect to see anything less than $20k that's not a Boxster but along comes the 996 and surprises me. I figure on driving it once or twice every week or two for 15 to 50 miles. Probably NOT DE etc. Kind of like a retirement car without giving up my man card. I had a daughter in May of last year so limiting the number of things that could kill me easily is kind of on my list right now. (DE event in the Lightning caused me to pretty much pack up putting it on the track anymore). I know I'm kind of getting into the same thing with not driving it much. My truck kills the battery after 14 days, I read the 996 does it in 10 (German efficiency!). How well do these handle 100+ degrees? the 3rd radiator in the Tip is one reason I'm leaning that way. The truck that's up for sale/trade (not a sales attempt...just showing where I'm coming from)

Welcome to rennlist. Glad to see you're doing some homework on the 996. It's a great car for a daily driver or for a toy. Mine's a daily driver with over 121K miles on it. To answer your question, the risk of IMS failure is still there on a replacement engine. The engine still has an IMSB, and it can still fail. I believe it is rare, just like it is in the original engine for the 996. Your best bet is to find one that has been well maintained with documentation. It appears that cars that are driven more frequently experience fewer problems with the IMSB. You won't find a targa in a MK I 996 ('99 - '01). Those were only available in 2002+ cars. Also, there is not a 996 S model. The only 996 S is the C4S, produced from '02 - '05. Good luck with your search and have fun!

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That sounds like a good story. Care to give up any details? I've always wondered how those things handle. Are they any good stock?

Funny thing about these trucks, some handle really really well, and then there are the track nuts that push that as hard as they can by changing most of the truck. Very interesting guy who I learned a lot from who routinely run is Tim Skelton. 380hp/440ft#'s tq stock (proven at sea level) .8 g lateral holding on stock Goodyear F1's 295's (also proven by quite a few road tests) Some minor additions and tuning can put a down 450hp/600tq at the tire. Some major can put down upwards of 800. The trans has a torque doubling torque convertor the 600 is during a locked pull in 3rd. When it shifts expect to see 1200+ ft #'s of torque. If you can get that to stick (which is kinda hard) it'll break your neck. Mine on the street pins you about 4 inches into the seat on a hard shift, Others I have been in pushed you hard enough into the seat to 'pull' the wheel out of your hand. Those are ultra tricky to get sticky. There have been improvements. Mine using a 'pocket dyno' which is actually my Pioneer AVIC-D1 claims to touch 1g in the corners, it's Pioneer though and not G-tech (not sure if G-tech is any better). I run 305 Nt555DR's on all 4 corners when tracking. I had picked 2 sets of NT01s but have never actually run them. My instructor runs the first time out involved several different instructors once word got around that it wasn't a normal F150. The ability to pull lengths on M3's on the back 5/8th's is quite fun. I would let them run up to the drivers door then lay down the boost so I have about 3 or 4 car lengths on them before the carousel. Sadly they'd usually pass me in that back end as there is some ripples in the pavement (insert 1st OH S*&^ moment) which allos the *** end to unload (should have ballasted with sandbangs bout would have needed to weld in boxes to hold it) and the rear to lose grip. Once grip is lost the torque kicks in and makes it even harder to recover from. OD is only used on the street so letting off hard will actually cause the tires to slide as the engine RPM comes down, again even harder to recover from, and the outer 3 ft of that track is covered in dust. Insert backwards slide off into the sand. (some rock/dirt/dust kind of slows you down as you fly towards the tires). Live through this moment attempt to remember not to push past 65 in that sweep, rinse repeat, or try not to. Also on the main track is a transition from blacktop to concreate. Concrete being the burn out box for the drag strip. This gets slippery as the day progresses. This is also the 110 degree corner to the 5/8th straight on the back. No unloading necessary, the tires will just let go and the rear will swing out as if to high five the concrete wall. (insert second and third oh s%$^ instance) The 3rd instance involves a STI that cut on the inside. I end up nearly sideways pointed at a T to him, there was about 1/2 car width between him and my front bumper, he was moving forward, I was moving diagonal. He escaped and I drove through him about 1 car length later, the Challenger behind him , missed me. I HATE that corner almost as much as the slip house corner. Last moment involves the end of the carousel. There is the time slip house. coming out of the large left sweeper there is an off camber 70 degree right, that points you straight. At the apex of that right is a bump, that as far as I know only trucks seem to know it's there. It will allow the back end to unload and the rears will come off the ground. I had pushed harder little by little throughout the day. But had not warmed the tires enough on the last session of the day. The back end unloads, goes airborne a couple inches and drops the rear bumper about a couple inches from the wall. Over correction and yanking my foot off the gas allows the back to swap out and I pull a 320 off into the parking area. None of these would actually have killed me and all of these days were worth every second, it was really just a iffy weekend event for me really. It did however show me that a cheapie Miata could probably be just as fun for a lot less money. 3 sessions a weekend on NT555DR's yeilds about 3 weekends out of a set of tires. @$340 a tire it added up quick. Add in breaks and rotors as these would last the weekend and stopping a 2.5 ton truck is harder than one thinks. Even with my upgraded brakes. Stock they are a fun truck, modded they become an addiction. My cousin drove my truck when I was running 12#'s of boost on the stock blower. He bought a Lightning 3 weeks later. He drove it like that for years. Then I sold him most of my older mods as upgraditus kicked in and now he's happy and I'm at my upper limit. The stock F1's suck for the most part and got crazy expensive. NT555DR's last about 10000 miles on the street and still don't stick until heated. I have notches the rear frame to allow the back to take the weight transfer which helped a ton. Stock they are tire smokers, modded they smoke a lot more tire. But as a live axle vehicle they are still best in a straight line. Hence mine is on the block. I grew tired of the amount of money spent to go .10 seconds faster in the 1/4 and it's all over in 11 seconds anyway, that I switched to road. As this truck really is a limited production vehicle I didn't want to risk adding it to the totaled tally which is about 50% now. 5000 ish a year for 5 years, 1/2 of them still on the road, 1% of those are in great shape, 15% are construction trucks hauling trailers haha. I hauled a trailer with my ex wifes crap in it once, at 115mph I remembered it was a Uhaul.

my 02, gave it to my eldest daughter (took it VERY easy on mods: 4# pulley, JLP CAI, dyno/tune using a Diablo Predator)

AZ Erik: Thanks for the tale. That's insane. I figured they had to have a lot of grip, but I didn't know if you could seriously push one hard at the track. Do you get a lot of dirty looks, I wonder? At any rate, you oughta find a 996 easier to drive and better braking. Who knows, maybe even cheaper to run. 3 weekends per set of tires at $340/tire will grow you up quick.

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User name looked familiar, from Svtperformance?

Ok, for the record, I seriously hope you buy a 996, because you are the first person I've seen on these forums that could give Macster a run for the money on length and detail on your posts. I appreciate your dedication to the cause. Do NOT worry about the IMS. The statistics of IMS failure are incredibly small compared to the population. If it makes you feel better (like me) to replace the IMS/RMS/clutch for peace of mind, then please do so. The chances that the beautiful incredibly graceful perfect lines which you don't even realize were there until you clay her by hand 996, has an IMS issue are minimal. Do NOT forget to name your 996. It significantly cuts down on IMS/RMS issues as she knows she is cared for.

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No Kidding, after downing (yeah just now downing) a bottle of Unruly RED I'm realizing I talk to damnmuch Claybaring a 996 would be about a hard as the bed of my truck. It wasn't till I started that process that I realized just how much surface area there was on these full size trucks!

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Yup, that would be me: I kept the same name in all forums I joined (NHTOC, NLOC, SVTperformance and more). I know that pain well......and I also have a 4-door Supercrew (this is an 01 so no s/c)

Wish I could get my account on LR activated, I might be able to sell my Lightning.