Just bought 99 Carrera

Looking for some encouragement or caution! I just bought this car after educating myself moderately about the problems with these cars, specifically the IMS. I picked the 99 because of the dual row bearing. This car has 85,000 Miles on it and have gotten different attitudes when I speak with garages about doing the IMS retrofit. Some look at me like, "it's not one of the faulty 1% because it has 85,000 miles and hasn't failed. Others are more than willing to do the retrofit and don't mention the mileage as being proof it's not one of the defective cars, I have no need to worry. Should I continue to worry about this or just get the IMS done at 85,000 miles? I also have a negative/good report from Blackstone on the oil I just sent them. The report says this engine has less wear than the averages and suggest no issues except for a slightly elevated sodium content which I attribute to living near the ocean. Any experienced opinions are appreciated. i kind of think this fear of the IMS is overblown and only promoted/motivated by the people selling the "new retrofit parts".

If it were me, I�d install The IMS Solution and never worry about it again. Sodium is from detergents in the oil (or additives) you�re using.

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Did you get a PPI? Maintenance history? If all good, drive it like you stole it.

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This. And save up for a FSI Stage II build.

I wouldn’t do anything ims related to a 99. I have had a couple of those. The early builds are excellent cars. If the car a keeper I might consider the Ims solution at clutch time if it was around 28k plus car. Motor mounts, tranny mount, suspension, brakes, tons of little things to maintain. The 1999’s are a ton of fun. I have 2011 m3 and a 996 so I am constantly worried about an ims or rod bearing explosion at any time. Just don’t start the car . It won’t blow up that way. Take a Uber everywhere lol

Check the sticker (vin #) on the door....if it was build in 98...I would not bother with the IMS...change the oil and drive it like you stole it...just wait until engine is hot before going above 4K RPM

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Sounds like I'm relatively safe from the comments, what is funny to me is a lot that are for sale say IMS done, but they have no paperwork; so they (the sellers) feel it's a problem many can't get past, so they lie and put that objection to rest. BTW, build date was 3/98!

the 99 is the best 996 carrera

I did, where the previous owner serviced it, they repaired the water pump that was weeping, and the oil separator, for $2200. The only thing this car does when starting first thing cold is when it starts it's a powerful blast that sounds like it rattles the muffler or cat inner baffles; sort of like a rattle/blast sound, must be the high compression?

Congrats

I would drop the sump and look for debris. You may find brown plastic bits from the chain guides. Also get the cam deviviation numbers checked. This is also something that will give you good info about the condition of those.

I have the same car as yours with same build. Picked it up with 53k miles and now have 97k miles, no major issues except for a water pump replacement. Both Indy's who have worked on the car found no leaks and no reason to recommend swapping the IMSB. Plan is to drive it until it's time to rebuild. Car is awesome, now I'm getting worried about the IMSB because I just wrote about it!

26 months of ownership. Original IMS. Never worried about it for a moment. Both shops I use say it's not worth it with my age and mileage. Drive it aggressively whether it's to, on, and from the track, or to HEB. I typically attempt to get the lowest MPG possible during a trip without being stupid and driving in a way that will me arrested. Just drive it and have fun with it. I was joking about the whole IMS malarkey with some other folks at the DE event this weekend, as that was their opening line to ask about my car lol. And if it really bothers you that much, fix it, or just get a Turbo... I haven't once gotten in and fired her up and worried about it.

99 is a good year, just enjoy it!

Also have the 99, lightest of them all! Drive like you stole it and have fun. 99 is the best. This is my recommendation: - Use high DT-40 and change every 6 months (maybe pointless but cheap insurance) - Replace waterpump (pretty easy and one less thing that can break) - Have a look at the coolant tank, replace if it looks bad (loosing coolant is not good for any engine, M96 seems extra picky about having coolant...) - Dont drive it hard when cool - Don't let it idle in the cold (opposite to what you might think) You can really go down a rabbit hole with the FSI builds vs a over haul vs ebay engines.

I am biased, clearly like a lot of responses you see here saying don�t worry about the IMSB. I have had my 99 for 3 years and accumulated about 16,000 miles accumulated (at 64,000 currently), and have not replaced any component that hasn�t failed, including IMSB, water pump, AOS, RMS, clutch. I did, however, change all fluids, including transmission/diff, coolant, brakes, as well as oil/filter of course. My car also rattles and knocks and sounds pretty alarming when first started from cold. My advice is not to let it idle AT ALL under this circumstance, but instead, start driving immediately with light throttle usage, keeping the revs between 2,000-3,000 during warmup. When I do this, I have zero noise/racket. I also have zero noise when warm. While this noise could be the onset of bore scoring, it could also be many other things, and a lot of 99s do this. Don�t let anyone suggest it could be lifters. Very unlikely. Could be chains or tensioners, could be cats, but some have replaced those and still have the same problem after spending thousands. I would listen for any changes to the sound over time. Mine hasn�t changed from the beginning in intensity or duration or frequency. I run Mobil1 0-40 and that might be part of it. Peace of mind for any 911 these days when the engine knocks, is to perform a visual inspection of the cylinders from top to bottom using a bore scope. See Jake Raby�s videos. I haven�t done that yet, I�m just not worried about it at this point. Welcome to the 996-era, where everything costs as much as a 911 should cost, except the acquisition price. And that will not be the case for too much longer

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Agreed.

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I have an early '99 ('98 build date) and I recently replaced the original IMS bearing with the LN IMS Retrofit. The IMS bear was only replaced because I had an unrelated engine-out repair performed, along with a clutch and flywheel replacement. According to the technician, my original OEM 100K mile IMS bearing was in PERFECT condition and didn't show any signs of wear. Mike

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That's a very early 996 car......congratulations !....

Same here. My ‘99 is a February 1998 build date car. When I bought it the clutch was pretty much at the end of its travel at 70,000 miles, so while the clutch and RMS was being replaced I also had a LN ceramic bearing installed. The factory IMS bearing that came out of the car looked brand new. Estimated life of the LN bearing is 75,000 miles or about the same as a clutch, so you can always budget for a replacement with a clutch. Had I not needed the clutch and RMS I would not have changed the bearing on this car. I try to do everything people have suggested above - just drive the car easy until it warms up - don’t leave it idle. 3,000 mile oil change intervals are probably a good idea too - that has been my plan. Enjoy your new car - ‘99’s are the best! Also they clearly have the absolute best looking headlights and front end ever on a 911... Daryll