IMS Bearing Failure

I have a 2004 Porsche Carrera C4S serviced at the right intervals etc and was unfortunate to have the ims bearing fail !! I had just set away from some traffic lights at low speed and having no warning i heard a strange noise after 20 yards immediately switched off the car and got it recovered to a porsch indy. They took the gearbox out and on inspection it was the bearing that collapsed and further more the sump was full of metal particles, So i had the engine striped down and found the metal bits had made it into the cylinders and scored them and the pistons :sad: I haves opted for the cylinders to be replaced by hartech ones and low temp thermostat and upgraded ims bearing to hope this solves any future common problems which these engine's suffer from. Price to fix approx £10,500 I'm not a happy chappie as the car has only 28,500 miles from new. Just thought i'd let people know this has happend to another porsche owner. :frustrated: I hope these upgrades makes the engine future proof ???

Holy cow, that is still a lot of money for a rebuild, I assume that includes vat? Did you do all six cylinders?

Sorry to hear this.

ims Bearing Failure Yes this inc vat and yes I've opted to have all six cylindes replaced by Hartech. incidentally an exchange engine from porsche would cost nearly £15,000 without upgraded cylinders and upgraded ims bearing !

So guessing at least now the engine will be bulletproof yes? :thumb:

Yes hopefully it will be bullet proof but will be waiting for about 2 month's to get it back :sad: Hartech about 5 weeks to do the cylinders !!

Should follow America's and file a Class Action Claim, these failures are appalling and relentless: Only affects certain cars - Not quite final but basically done.. Not sure if it will affect European warranty claims. ¬¬¬UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE CENTRAL D¬ISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA Eisen v. Porsche Cars North America, Inc. ) Case No. CV11-9405 CAS (FEMx) _______________________________________) Notice of the Pendency of Class Action Settlement and Hearing on Final Approval Order and Judgment If you owned or leased a Model Year 2001-2005 Porsche Boxster or 911 vehicle in the United States you could be affected by a class action settlement. A federal court authorized this notice. This is not a solicitation from a lawyer. - The purpose of this Notice is to inform you of a proposed settlement of a class action lawsuit known as Eisen v. Porsche Cars North America., Inc. You are receiving this Notice because Porsche Cars North America's ('PCNA") records indicate that you may be entitled to claim the benefits offered by the Settlement. - This lawsuit claims that some 2001-2005 model year Porsche Boxster and 911 vehicles experienced or may experience intermediate shaft ('IMS") related engine damage before or after their original Limited Warranty or Approved Certified Pre-Owned ('ACPO") Limited Warranty has expired. These vehicles are known as the 'Class Vehicles" and the individuals who owned or leased such Class Vehicles at the time they sustained such engine damage are known as 'Class Members." PCNA has not been found liable for any of the claims alleged in this lawsuit. The parties have voluntarily reached a settlement. - Under the proposed settlement and subject to proof, PCNA will reimburse Class Members for repair or replacement costs paid due to IMS related damage in Class Vehicles. - Your legal rights are affected whether or not you act. Read this Notice carefully.

Just out of curiosity's sake. What was the noise you heard please?

ims Bearing Failure The noise came on all of a sudden and sounded like something metal dragging along the road under car. There was no warning at all !

:nooo: I feel sick for you. There, but for the grace etc ... etc More evidence that M96 engine woes are a lottery.

What a shame and at such low miles... Hard to see how a bill for over £10,000 gets racked up... Porsche should at least be doing some kind of good will on these engine failures,they will keep teling you its only 5% of engine that suffer.. I call BS....

That is absolutely awful,i am gutted for you. When I did some research about these engines I found that the cost of a proper rebuild was generally in line with what you are paying rather than the figures of 6-7k which are quoted. Its good to see that you are going to a proper job and also that you have documented this.Hopefully this well help others who will be in a similar situation. :thumb:

Was this like a knocking sound but only when in gear or was it all the time Mine has a weird knocking sound when in gear and foot on the throttle. Let of the throttle and stay in gear and sound stops. Clutch in and rev sound stops. Out of gear rev all the way through the range normal sound. I've been told it could be clutch bearings and to wait until the clutch needs replacing. Just wan to confirm he symptoms aren't like yours. Thanks

Ouch . Still, at least once it's done you'll know that it's good for the future. Mine had a rebuild 3 years ago, and it "only" had 2 new cylinders, plus strengthening rings on the others, and that was nealy £8k, so I can see how getting to 10k is an easy thing to do. So you're keeping this until it falls apart after this expense, I guess?

Sorry to hear of this ordeal, OP. For peace of mind, I'd never have one of these cars on the standard IMS bearing. bloody hell.