2008 Cayman - Rebuild Advice
 

Hi Everyone!

Proud owner of a 2008 Cayman here. Car is completely stock with all original parts and 56k miles on the motor. Absolutely love driving the car although it is a weekend driver which i only put around 3k miles a year on.

I recently discovered a leak in the rear main seal which is going to require me to pull the motor to replace. I am no where near what any of you would consider a gearhead so definitely going to use a well respected porsche shop near me to do the work. The reason im reaching out to you all is for advice on what else i should consider doing while the motor is pulled. Im already likely going to replace the clutch but how much further would you recommend i go?

My Goals:
- I do not want to have to pull the motor again for another 3-5 years
- The ultimate goal is to extend the health of the car/drivetrain as long out as possible. would love to pass the car on to my kids some day
- Additional power is on the bottom of the totem pole but gladly welcome it if a result of upgrades to extend life of the car. I am not trying to make this car something its not.

I will be doing extensive research myself throughout the next few weeks in and outside of the forums but was hoping to get some advice from much smarter people than myself as to which direction i should go in.

I havent landed on a budget yet but obviously dont want to spend to the point where it would just make more sense to sell and buy a more aggressive used porsche.

Really, really appreciate any and all input!

Thank you

Hey, I moved this from the 718 Forum to the 987 Forum.

Good luck!

Shaggy

I’m no expert, but I’d consider removing the seal from the, not easily replaceable, IMS bearing.
I also saw very recently, a new cover designed to feed more oil to this potentially problematic bearing. Hartech I think. I assume this would be easy to fit when the seal was being removed.

Last year, I went done a much more cluttered path than you are contemplating. That said, if you want to potentially know more about your engine than the shop does, you can slog your way through my series of articles, linked below.

Yes, do the clutch and the flywheel. Keep everything stock. Current wisdom is that the IMS bearing is good to go as-is. If your shop can snatch the oil seal out in-situ, you might gone some marginal value from that. But I don't think it can be done. I could be wrong.

In my article, when you get to the steps where I describe all the electro-mechanical stuff that is somewhat external to the engine, that is where you can spend some money to add some reliability.

There is no useful power to be gained with anything you can do externally to the engine. Keep it stock and then you and those that follow will know what they are dealing with.

Good luck!!!

https://newhillgarage.com/2023/03/02...ngine-rebuild/

Replacement of the RMS does not require removal of the engine. You only need to drop the trans. Much simpler and cheaper. While you’re in there, consider pulling the seal from the IMSB and replacing the clutch.