Whole lot of nothing going on for me...

I feel like I haven't been engaged in the conversations here lately. Why? Because all is just status quo. The 996 still gets used every day, nothing has changed, nothing is new, it just keeps chugging along with close to 150k miles on the odometer. Just thought I would chime in for those who are considering purchasing one of these and worried about reliability or practicality.

This is true for me 99.9% of the time as well. And generally if there's something wrong with the car, odds are it's due to something I did to the car, not something that's gone wrong on its own. The 996 hasn't demonstrated any less reliability than my Corvette or my wife's Nissan Murano. Even when it needed new coil packs a couple of weeks ago, it was running well enough to get it to the indy under its own power. Congrats on the healthy 996.

It's really only ever an issue if you're to type to keep looking for issues or like looking for problems(real or not) as a hobby. I find it ironic for the worried peeps looking to get new radio's as I would think that would mask all the potential noises on the car they might pickup.

Excellent post, as been said before, people post about the problems and not that everything is A-OK. I have had to do a lot of maintenance lately, but that is what I get for turning a garage queen into a daily driver. Mine is all ok so far and 35,700 on the clock. HA.

Got my 996 a few months ago, have added about 5000 to the odometer and agree with you on driving it. Glad to see the mileage number you have because i expect to put 40000 on this car in the next 12 months!

119k on my '99 C2, still rockin' along!

Same situation here. After fixing the issues the previous owner left me with I'm running out of issues to fix. I do want a ROW M030 but thats a nice to have, not really necessary. Now my car is just fun to drive!

Same here, 147,000+ plus on the odometer. I had to create a thread about the unicorn that is the Mk II C4 narrow body in order to find something to talk about. Now, the 928, lots o' work to be done on that beast. But, I'm too intimidated to post anything over in that forum. Plus, they're pretty serious over there (have yet to see one boobie thread on the 928 forum). Frankly, I think it's because there are constantly things that need fixin' on a 928, whereas the 996 just goes and goes and goes.

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The fact that your Porsche has had the IMS retrofit performed on it probably says more to potential buyers who might be "worried about reliability" than does your report about how uneventfully it drives, no? This is like a person with a large umbrella offering assurances that it won't rain, isn't it?

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IMS was done at 115k miles because I needed a new clutch. It was one of those things I knew about but didn't really concern myself with because I figured the odds were in my favor. Plus since it had already gone for so many miles then my thought was that it should be fine. When the mechanic removed it he said it was still in pretty good shape. I remember in my 944 days everyone would recommend you change your timing belt when you first buy the car no matter how recent the previous owner said it might be. So with the 996 the advice should probably be the same for the IMS although in this case it's a bigger investment.

I blame the "boringness" of the 996 board lately to be a direct correlation on the departure of KK, Kalashnikov and others. Heck...even Hurdi has been silent for a while. I may have to "hang out" in the 997 board where I belong...

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This reminds me of a quote from a book about North Korea I read a while back - apparently, the North Korean government "advises" anyone in a position to drive a car/truck to refrain from smoking. This makes them better able to smell smoke in the event that something goes wrong with the vehicle. Somewhere in the same book I read where they'd reverse-engineered a Soviet or Chinese tractor so they could produce cheap North Korean knockoffs - but the cloned tractors would only drive in reverse...so maybe keeping your nose tuned for potential fires is a good idea...

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I'm assuming, based on your post count, that this is intentional trollbait. The IMS retrofit is, for those of us who are neither hysterical nor in denial, preventive maintenance. Having a retrofit bearing is no more indicative of fear/worry than having recently changed your oil.

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Yeah, I miss those crazy bastards.

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The 997 board had an IMSB tread, an oil thread and a C7 corvette vs. trying to get a 997.2 to make 600 HP thread this week. It has been pretty lively!

Just over 100K for me. Had to do a lot of work last year(clutch pack with hydraulics, "The bearing", convertible top pistons, brakes, etc), but all is good so far this year. The only thing I've done are bi-xenon headlights and I'm doing the Ducane LED tails next month. I will have had mine eight years in December. I've been thinking a little about moving up to a newer model, but I'm still very happy with her. She's almost where I want her!

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My first IMS is now behind my bar. In which category do I belong? Let me see if I have this right. You are comparing replacing a bearing inside the engine, for which there is no service interval, with changing your oil, but you're not in denial? Yeah, Ok.

Like the Energizer Bunny, it just keeps on going . I bought mine four years ago with 107K on the odo, and now it has 144K miles. No serious issues, and a few plug and play upgrades , man I love this car Sometimes just driving to the store is a thrill

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I live in a perpetual state of denial about MANY things, and I have some serious appropriateness issues and a healthy anger problem...but WTF does that have to do with me (or OP) replacing a wear item?

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Yeah...I read those too. Don't you find it interesting that the 997 board is just as IMS paranoid as the 996 board? But I digress (as usual). It looks like we have the makings of another great IMSB debate brewing here, so back to your regularly scheduled programming. I had my IMS Retrofit done on my beloved 996 when I did the clutch. I too considered it a maintenance item under the circumstances (the class action settlement was a big deal to me since PCNA feebly attempted to take a position on IMSB failure). I figured with that kind of publicity the chances were pretty good that my eventual Buyer would find value in the IMSB replacement. As it turned out, the eventual Buyer for my car did his research on Rennlist and knew the car's history from my posts. I think considering the 996 market, I got my money's worth doing the replacement. I must admit, it also gave me additional piece of mind, even though I still think the failure rate is very low. I would highly recommend that the IMSB be replaced when you do your clutch as a maintenance item. I think it makes good financial sense, and I also think that down the line, it makes your car more sellable (but don't misinterpret that as "more valuable").

Gonz.....same here. The new owner of my car would have never contacted me without the IMS being addressed. Having a motor serviced by Flat6 helped the sale...a lot.

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a "wear item"???? Is that what it is now? Like tires? Oh yeah, that's right. It's right there in my manual. "The Intermediate Shaft Bearing in your new Porsche Carrerra should be replaced at 100 miles (with an aftermarket product that hasn't yet been designed nor fabricated), and thereafter at intervals of 50,000. After all, you will probably need to do the clutch, huh?" What, is there some monthly contest here for the most imaginative way to rationalize the appalling engineering gaffe that these cars were built around? Are you determined to win this month?? Look, I love my 996. I must; I just got finished buying it a second time. It is precisely BECAUSE it is such an otherwise wonderful car, that I refuse to listen quietly to the rationalizing, blame the owners, blame a conspiracy (of BMW and Audi owners??), blame the market, blame everything and anything besides the company whose engineers (or bean counters) are actually responsible for this inexcusable error BS. The facts aren't complicated. This is an $80,000.00 automobile that was built with a bearing not dramatically different from what is found in a $250.00 swimming pool pump, buried in the bottom of the engine. It never should have happened. As a result, the car isn't worth on the market nearly what it could and should be worth. I can deal with those facts; they are what they are. I didn't buy mine to sell it. Most don't fail. Mine did, and it cost me a lot of money. I still love my car, but what happened to it doesn't have me tied in knots trying to see it as something other than what it is.

What SPECIFICALLY are we (and even more specifically, I) rationalizing? It sounds like you're pretty damn sure that Porsche screwed the pooch with the IMS bearing. Lots of other people agree. Yup, crappy bearing. Damn. That's an epic fail. It's "my bad" with a German accent. My 996 would have cost me A LOT more if the IMS bearing fiasco hadn't happened. Ten grand more? $20K? I don't know, but I'm pretty sure it's a lot. I am sure about one thing: I can buy a sh*tload of bearings for $20K. I didn't buy it new, so I'm not endlessly bitter about getting reamed by depreciation. I bought a used '99 996, which has several known problems. One of them can be eliminated, or at least temporarily avoided, by throwing a little money at it. So I threw a little money at it. Now I drive around in my sweet 911, and the only time I think about the IMS bearing is when I'm on Rennlist. I'm cool with that. I'm not rationalizing that my car is awesome in spite of the bearing - I freakin' LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE the IMS bearing. Sh*t, I'd still be driving a Boxster if it wasn't for that bearing.

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If I were your therapist, I'd look up from my notebook, tap my pen a couple of times, and suggest that we talk a little bit more about this comment.

Finally, something interesting happening!! Bowl, I believe it is your turn.

A little wd-40 will loosen up those knots.

You know we give the IMSB most of the credit for ruining the 996's reputation, thereby allowing us to buy ours for dirt cheap. But it's kind of fun to go back and read some of the really old threads. Those original owners first got their panties in a bunch over the RMS leaks. Can you imagine the horror to some uptight ****-retentive doctor of spending $85k on his new Porsche only to have it leave little puddles of oil all over the immaculately spotless garage floor of his McMansion? Thus began the myth of the 996 being a POS. The 996 reminds me so much of the F/A-18. Initially it was considered an epic fail because it didn't carry enough gas to let the former Phantom & Tomcat drivers light off the burners as much as they wanted. But, they fixed the glitches and it turned into a damn fine warplane. Anybody who says otherwise now would be ridiculed out of the ready room. Anybody who still thinks that the 996 is a POS because of the IMSB (or RMS) is living in the past. I'm sorry that some had to replace their engines due to the IMSB glitch, but it's time to move on. The 996 has proven its worth.

I drove the ever living **** out of mine today. It was effing awesome. Tomorrow I'll drive the **** out of the MX-AWE5OME and will love that too. Stop worrying so goddam much and drive your car or sell it to someone who will.

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Good to know - they did my IMS/RMS/Clutch/AOS/Water Pump/oil sending unit in one swoop. Plus they're great people to talk to.

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I also bought mine used. And, in response to your other comment above, I have zero intention of selling this car, and therefore zero interest in the re-sale value. And I am fortunate enough to have the cash to fix it without it affecting my lifestyle. I drove mine into work this morning with a smile on my face. It can't be both a "wear item" and simultaneously "an epic fail". You have made my point for me. As I said, folks on this board seem to feel the need to tie themselves in knots concerning this issue, intellectually, if not emotionally. I will let you debate yourself as to which it is. We know where I stand. You, not so much.

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+996. Luckily the only things I've done in the last few years is spark plugs, coils, oil changes since PO had all the other maintenance things covered. My RMS leaks a bit and I'm at 125k on original motor and IXX. So what? I sleep like a baby at night. I'll get to it when it's convenient for me to do so or unless I see the leak increase. The only time when I'll replace my IXX is if I sell the car thanks to the internet paranoia as it would make it a LOT more difficult to sell one without it. If my motor blows, it blows. We have a VERY small and partially unsubstantiated sample here compared to 130k models in circulation. Gawd, I got suckered into participating yet once again...

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This thread was IMS-free until you staggered in here and threw up all over it. But yeah, _I'M_ the guy obsessed with it. The last time I checked, "epic fail" and "wear item" weren't mutually exclusive...but let's prove it! Bust out some paper and a crayon and draw up some Venn diagrams including "epic fail" and "wear item" and see where the transmission in the first round of new-generation GT-R falls. Mini Cooper timing chains. The clutch and flywheel used in the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon. BMW's impressively long line of crappy EGR coolers. ALL of these are wear items and epic fails. Some became wear items because they were epic fails. Rather than reposting how I'm obsessing on the topic and you giveth nary a damn, go back and reread your first post on the first page. Denial much? Here's a Venn diagram example you can use as a template:

Here's a Venn diagram example you can use as a template: [/QUOTE] Ha, I'm rolling here, best thing I've read this morning!

Same here OP, whole lotta nothin' except driving fun. 2 mos., 2500 miles and deleted the ashtray. Now if I can make up my mind on the stereo swap ... Hmmm, now there's an epic fail, Porsche sucked *** with the stereo! Ha! Love the car, love the price, learning to love AM radio and absolutely love person's reaction to the 996, "Gorgeous car, is it new?"

Most folks have a hard time believing that my 996 is 15 years old. Thanks, OCD previous owners! OC, you're definitely right about the stereo fail. MOST is one of the mightiest fails I've ever seen.

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Mine is pre-most - pioneer double Din fixed that problem for $300 or so ....

Wow I feel like I walked into a crowded room, threw a grenade, and stepped away for a moment! Regarding the stereo, yes it sucks but my car is so loud that a good stereo would be a waste of money.

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Ditto. Fortunately, most of mine was covered by the seller before I bought the car and warranty. I occasionally smell coolant when stuck in traffic. Based on the the research I've done here, the expansion tank in my car is starting to leak slightly. Meh...I'll have it fixed & move on to the next issue.

Yesterday, I pulled into the same parking lot where three CHP officers were climbing out of their cruisers for lunch. I swear all three of them gave me the stink-eye, so I gave them a nod and wave. I'm no mindreader, but I'm pretty sure they were each thinking, "I'm gonna get you, sucka."