Flashing Check Engine and Pressure Gauge Bouncing
04-23-2011, 11:45 AM
#46
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The engine is out, finally. Hopefully some diagnosis this week. Oh, have you ever noticed the dead space in the lower depths of this engine? I think they could have fit at least one more pipe.
04-30-2011, 05:48 PM
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05-05-2011, 03:11 PM
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This is frustratingly slow. My shop is obviously not working on my car as a priority, and I'm okay with that, but the labor better be reasonable.
They said there was a good bit of corrosion on some heat shields, the fasteners, and the oil pipes, and they have been using chemicals and wire brushes (not heat) to remove them. They had to drill a couple. He wants to ensure that he can get it back together and not damage the casing. Ah the joys of an east-coast car (origin). Hopefully it'll be apart in a few days and we'll have a good diagnosis next week.
They said there was a good bit of corrosion on some heat shields, the fasteners, and the oil pipes, and they have been using chemicals and wire brushes (not heat) to remove them. They had to drill a couple. He wants to ensure that he can get it back together and not damage the casing. Ah the joys of an east-coast car (origin). Hopefully it'll be apart in a few days and we'll have a good diagnosis next week.
05-10-2011, 06:57 PM
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Preliminary diagnosis!
Engine's apart. He says he sees some contamination of the lifters. Still measuring cams to ensure those are okay. Probably going to be a remove and replace lifters deal, which he says is frequent enough on higher mileage 996s not to be surprised. I hope it's just an R&R of lifters...that would be the best-case.
He did mention there was some coking on the turbos and asked if I wanted to have them rebuilt so that I can be confident in them not pissing oil sometime down the line. What do you guys think? It's an X50. I could just put in new turbos? Time to upgrade?! Hah.
Engine's apart. He says he sees some contamination of the lifters. Still measuring cams to ensure those are okay. Probably going to be a remove and replace lifters deal, which he says is frequent enough on higher mileage 996s not to be surprised. I hope it's just an R&R of lifters...that would be the best-case.
He did mention there was some coking on the turbos and asked if I wanted to have them rebuilt so that I can be confident in them not pissing oil sometime down the line. What do you guys think? It's an X50. I could just put in new turbos? Time to upgrade?! Hah.
05-20-2011, 11:09 AM
#52
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Okay, he feels confident at this point that changing the lifters out will solve the problems. The price he's quoting seems fair given what a huge pain it is to R&R the engine and transmission.
My questions to you guys are:
1) Should I go ahead and replace the clutch while I'm down there?
2) He said I have some IMS noise. I've read the GT3 part is solid and not prone to problems (but I've also heard that the Turbo is way better than the 996NA). Is it worth it at this point to go further into the engine and do this?
3) We are going to weld the coolant flange while there. Is there anything else you can think of that we should do while there? I don't want to go back!
My questions to you guys are:
1) Should I go ahead and replace the clutch while I'm down there?
2) He said I have some IMS noise. I've read the GT3 part is solid and not prone to problems (but I've also heard that the Turbo is way better than the 996NA). Is it worth it at this point to go further into the engine and do this?
3) We are going to weld the coolant flange while there. Is there anything else you can think of that we should do while there? I don't want to go back!
05-20-2011, 03:17 PM
#53
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Okay, he feels confident at this point that changing the lifters out will solve the problems. The price he's quoting seems fair given what a huge pain it is to R&R the engine and transmission.
My questions to you guys are:
1) Should I go ahead and replace the clutch while I'm down there?
2) He said I have some IMS noise. I've read the GT3 part is solid and not prone to problems (but I've also heard that the Turbo is way better than the 996NA). Is it worth it at this point to go further into the engine and do this?
3) We are going to weld the coolant flange while there. Is there anything else you can think of that we should do while there? I don't want to go back!
My questions to you guys are:
1) Should I go ahead and replace the clutch while I'm down there?
2) He said I have some IMS noise. I've read the GT3 part is solid and not prone to problems (but I've also heard that the Turbo is way better than the 996NA). Is it worth it at this point to go further into the engine and do this?
3) We are going to weld the coolant flange while there. Is there anything else you can think of that we should do while there? I don't want to go back!
The IMS (or layshaft) is a bit noisy normally -- it is gear driven from the crankshaft and this gear drive is noisy.
Now there can be a problem with IIRC the gear wheel on the IMS being loose from a (Woodruff?) key that has developed some play. Not sure how this can arise but it is not normal as near as I can tell and can probably only get worse before something lets go.
Anyhow, hard to know if what your mechanic is reporting hearing is normal or not. However, I should point out he should be the one to know.
Be sure that the noise that is being attributed to the IMS is not coming from the clutch disc or the gears on the input shaft of the transmssion. Warmed up my 03 Turbo exhibits a mild 'rattle' that still sounds a bit disturbing -- at least at first but now, not so much -- but goes away when I depress and release the clutch pedal. My best guess is the engine's slightly rough (but normally so) idle can cause the clutch disc to rattle about a bit on the input shaft splines or the gears on the input shaft to rattle in the transmission. I've heard this noise in other manual equipped cars so the Turbo is not alone in manifesting this noise.
If the noise is from the IMS and is beyond normal, I'm not sure what you can do to quiet it down sans an engine tear down to determine the source of the noise which of course exposes the engine internals for addressing the source of the noise.
Sincerely,
Macster.
05-20-2011, 03:29 PM
#54
Burning Brakes
Okay, he feels confident at this point that changing the lifters out will solve the problems. The price he's quoting seems fair given what a huge pain it is to R&R the engine and transmission.
My questions to you guys are:
1) Should I go ahead and replace the clutch while I'm down there?
2) He said I have some IMS noise. I've read the GT3 part is solid and not prone to problems (but I've also heard that the Turbo is way better than the 996NA). Is it worth it at this point to go further into the engine and do this?
3) We are going to weld the coolant flange while there. Is there anything else you can think of that we should do while there? I don't want to go back!
My questions to you guys are:
1) Should I go ahead and replace the clutch while I'm down there?
2) He said I have some IMS noise. I've read the GT3 part is solid and not prone to problems (but I've also heard that the Turbo is way better than the 996NA). Is it worth it at this point to go further into the engine and do this?
3) We are going to weld the coolant flange while there. Is there anything else you can think of that we should do while there? I don't want to go back!
The addition of a GT3 IMS would make the motor much more reliable IMO.
05-20-2011, 04:10 PM
#55
Three Wheelin'
Agree with Paulunm. The IMS seems to be affecting, eventually, any 996 turbos. But you still have a long way to go to reach it and replace it. Plus the GT3 IMS is a lot more expensive but seems to fix this problem forever.... I think, you will have to replace the timing chain and sprockets also.... I would think about it more than twice.....
06-08-2011, 03:18 AM
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Okay, here's a long-deserved update. It's taking a long time to get all the parts in order but here are the costs associated with everything so far.
Absolutely necessary:
Lifter Job:
(Take out engine, transmission, all the crap on top of the engine, R&R lifters/seals, and replace a lot of rusted crap under there like some oil pipes, heat shields, tons of bolts and locks and fasteners (he said he could tell it grew up on the east coast))
Labor $2900
Parts: $3000
Clutch ("totally fried" was the quote LOL):
Labor: $100 (hooray, there is a benefit of overlapping labor)
Parts: $2900 (although it looks like I could get a clutch kit and flywheel from Pelican for about $2100 and may do that if they can't find an alternative on those parts).
Coolant pipe weld (may as well do):
Labor: $200
GT3 IMS (unnecessary but a thought):
Labor: $2900
Parts: $7000 ($2200 for the IMS but the balance in all sort of things to rebuild the engine since you take it apart, bearings, something called Titanium Grease for $700 WTF!!!, and tons of other seals, bolts, a chain, new rails, etc. etc.).
So, I think my decision is fairly obvious. If the IMS isn't causing problems, leave well enough alone and hope beyond hope that I never have to go in there EVER! It was a good thing to think about and find out the cost, but it makes no sense if it's just normal noise.
I'll proceed with all the other things and get out of there for around $9,000.
How's that sound to you guys?
Absolutely necessary:
Lifter Job:
(Take out engine, transmission, all the crap on top of the engine, R&R lifters/seals, and replace a lot of rusted crap under there like some oil pipes, heat shields, tons of bolts and locks and fasteners (he said he could tell it grew up on the east coast))
Labor $2900
Parts: $3000
Clutch ("totally fried" was the quote LOL):
Labor: $100 (hooray, there is a benefit of overlapping labor)
Parts: $2900 (although it looks like I could get a clutch kit and flywheel from Pelican for about $2100 and may do that if they can't find an alternative on those parts).
Coolant pipe weld (may as well do):
Labor: $200
GT3 IMS (unnecessary but a thought):
Labor: $2900
Parts: $7000 ($2200 for the IMS but the balance in all sort of things to rebuild the engine since you take it apart, bearings, something called Titanium Grease for $700 WTF!!!, and tons of other seals, bolts, a chain, new rails, etc. etc.).
So, I think my decision is fairly obvious. If the IMS isn't causing problems, leave well enough alone and hope beyond hope that I never have to go in there EVER! It was a good thing to think about and find out the cost, but it makes no sense if it's just normal noise.
I'll proceed with all the other things and get out of there for around $9,000.
How's that sound to you guys?
07-05-2011, 08:14 PM
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Got a coolant pipe weld kit from one of the guys on here. Thanks! The guys at the shop really liked them and it'll help the welder make a much better weld. Too bad the J-shaped pieces couldn't be machined more easily. We'll just reuse those.
Now my coolant pieces and the exhaust assembly is headed out for welding.
Checking brake pads while we wait, but the lifter job is done and soon everything will be coming together. We also decided to replace the water pump (75k miles, may as well) and the master and slave cylinder for the clutch. Good prevention.
I can't wait to get my car back! I am planning on a 4500 mile drive in August =).
Now my coolant pieces and the exhaust assembly is headed out for welding.
Checking brake pads while we wait, but the lifter job is done and soon everything will be coming together. We also decided to replace the water pump (75k miles, may as well) and the master and slave cylinder for the clutch. Good prevention.
I can't wait to get my car back! I am planning on a 4500 mile drive in August =).
07-13-2011, 01:22 AM
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Took a few extra days to get the coolant pipe pieces that were epoxied in the aluminum blocks to come out, but they finally got them and now they are off to the welder.
The mechanic said that on the cylinder with the misfire, one of the lifters came out much easier than the others, and he suspects that was probably the issue. I inspected the old lifters and did not see any of the pins coming out and there was no scoring of the housing, so that's good.
Also, related to the irregular oil pressure, we found that the hose just below the sender was kinked, so we hope that a replacement will fix that bouncing issue.
The mechanic said that on the cylinder with the misfire, one of the lifters came out much easier than the others, and he suspects that was probably the issue. I inspected the old lifters and did not see any of the pins coming out and there was no scoring of the housing, so that's good.
Also, related to the irregular oil pressure, we found that the hose just below the sender was kinked, so we hope that a replacement will fix that bouncing issue.
09-10-2011, 12:54 PM
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Engine's back together, welds look good. All the parts finally came in. Engine in next week and then hooking up everything. Goodness what an epic. It's been so long I'm starting to think my Acura 4-cylinder is powerful again.