Just my opinion of course (and the 928 owners manual), but with the temperatures you have been having in So Cal, I wouldn't put 5W anything in your 928. 20W 50 would be adequate and good to over 100F. As H. said, do check the crankshaft end play as well after releasing the flex plate pre-load, if any. Will the starter turn the engine over as it usually does? I mean not unusually laboring. If not, then really suspect the thrust bearing problem. Was the oil pressure at idle with the engine hot normal? You really shouldn't have lifter noise on startup. Was the 5W-50 oil used before, or is this something new? Could be something entirely unrelated to the oil as others have said too. Common suspects would be MAF or possibly LH.

 

Louie, the starter turns the engine easily...

 

What about that noise? Did it ever die down or was it still louder than normal when the engine problem appeared?

 

Ok. That's probably good. I think most and maybe all TBFs had the symptom of once the engine died it was pretty much locked up. Hopefully it's some electrical problem not related to lubrication, or lack thereof.

 

My bet os on electrical, many factors point to it...

 

Make sure air the filter is correct way up, and fitted correctly so it doesn't block the MAF inlet....

One guy I saw had a foam filter fitted upside down, as soon as the revs went up, it was sucked hard on top of the MAF, and strangled the engine.... :-)

Odds on it is something asssociated with the service...

 

First thing i am checking is the MAF...I have played with it in the past, and if it is not perfectly aligned, motor asfixiates.
(man, this forum moves almost too fast!)

 

Did i mentioned that AAA guy spent the ride telling me how nice 928's are?
BTW: he doesn't like boxsters, he said they did towed ~20 of them last week due to a sensor "melting down" (?), and he likes how reliable a 928 is

 

So, it sounds like you basically are dealing with a car died, turns over but does not start situation. My traditional approach:

- Check relevant fuses, and jump the relevant relays (LH, EZK, FP). If starts, pull one jumper and put relay back in to ID culprit.
- Check for spark by pulling plugs fed by each coil - examine plugs while out - dry or wet? If no spark on either, suspect crank position sensor.
- See if car will start on starter fluid (evidence for lack of fuel)
- Swap LH into a compatible test car (87+). Same for EZK.

That should give us a lot more information.

 

thanks!

 

nicobel... right after your comment about oil level was
ok, I assume dip stick check, you said "...oil level indicator
showed no signs of oil starvation." Did you mean the
oil pressure gauge read normal ??

The timing belt looks ok and tracks, runs normally?

Hate to ask this one: Is the oil gear turning but the shaft isn't
(i.e. shaft key sheared)?

Could the 'techs' have gotten something into the oil
galleries and blocked them ?

G'luck.

 

Yes, both dipstick and gage were reading ok>
Tbelt looks and tracks ok (was my very first concern)
Need to check oil gear and shaft
Yes, one of my toughts is "those ^&$$%^! must have dropped something in the cranckase!", need to rule out that one too.

Pablo

 

If the gage was reading ok, then it's proabbly not an oil problem.

 

Still worth pulling the filter and checking it out - did they put on the OEM or a generic that looked right?

 

Sorry to hijack, but I'm not following this. 5w is the low temperature weight. Once at operating temperature, doesn't a 5wXX oil exhibit the XX weight? Am I missing something as to why the low temp weight would cause deleterious effects at operating temp?