question about RMS leakage

All, I went and looked at a 2002 C4S tonight in my area that I'm considering buying. Everything seemed in great shape. I asked about the RMS and he said that it has not been upgraded, but the dealer said it was ok. The dealer told him that a little bit of oil leakage is normal from the RMS. I asked if it was like oil on the ground where he parks or just some oil around the RMS and he said a couple of weeks ago there were some drops on the ground. Is that a symptom of the RMS starting to go bad? Is there such thing as "normal" RMS leakage? Of course, I will take this car to the dealer for the PPI before going any further, but I just wanted to get your thoughts. thanks... josh

RMS/ IMS should not leak. When the RMS/ IMS begins to leak you will likely not notice any oil, but over time it will continue to leak more as the seal begins to further deteriorate and you will notice a dime to quarter size spot after you drive your car an let it sit over night (note looking at the bottom of the engine leak will be basically dead center). The cost to repair is not that high ($600 approximate) but most people wait till it is clutch replacement time since the labor hours of both are pretty much the same. If I was buying the car I would have a PPI with the note the RMS is leaking and have the owner pay for the repair. While he is doing that I would go ahead and have a new clutch put in on my dime. I have the new style RMS now for about 2 years with no leaks and it appears most other people with the new seals are doing fine. Hope this helped.

ps when/if you buy a Porsche make sure you post your first welcome with pictures. Failure to do so will result in an immediate engine failure. Best of Luck

I just went through something similar 2 weeks ago when I bot my C4S (mine was an '03). It had an RMS issue as well - I had the seller replace it during the PPI. Not a big issue, just make the seller pay for replacement at a porsche dealer. My new RMS seal (from downtown porsche here in toronto) came with a 2 year warranty - they'll replace the seal for free if it fails again in the next 2 years...

Roundtreed is spot on. The RMS is not designed to leak. When the do leak, most of them "sweat" rather than actually drip. As he said, over time the leak probably will increase. The cost of the RMS itself is about $70, the labor to replace it is about $600 - $800 because they have to drop the engine. The RMS was replaced, under warranty, on my 2004 C2 about 6 months ago. You definitely want to have a PPI (Pre-Purchase Inspection) completed on the car. If the current owner agrees to have it replaced, make sure the check the clutch at that time. If it has less than 50% wear life on it, have them replace the clutch because the labor to do so at that time is free. The clutch parts cost about $750, if I reacall correctly. Good luck. Also, if you don't post pics of your car within 10 days of purchasing the car, your RMS will begin leaking on the 11th day!

My 99 RMS was fixed under warrenty in 99. It has not leaked a drop since. I don't care what he tells you the Porsche engineers did not design the seal to leak. That fact that they leak is a design flaw that Porsche has been battling since the car was introduced. If the latest seal is put in properly and the stars line up the seal will not leak. As near as I can tell about 90 percent don't.

also, don't know if a pressure test on the engine crank case is included during the PPI, but you might want to have that done as well. I have an 02 C2 that was just diagnosed with a porous engine crank case which requires a new engine.

Thanks for the replies everyone. This has been very helpful. The clutch is said to have about 10k miles left on it, so I would have that done as well at the same time. I'll take the car in for PPI and see what they say about the oil and RMS/IMS. thanks again... josh

just wait until the clutch needs doing to do it , but make the owner pay for it nego it in the price. Then you get to spend more time driving than worring.

sorry to hear that, however porous case can't be detected using pressure test. X-ray maybe, correct me if i am wrong.