Thelonious_Funk

First time poster, long time lurker. Have done some extensive searching and gotten some answers, but looking for a few honest opinions.

Long-story short: aside from IMS/RMS failures, timing chain tensioner ramps, and perhaps bore-scoring, what likely failure points are there on these cars at high mileage that would lead to a full rebuild?

Long story:

I had a PPI done a very nice example of a 996.2 this week and received a squeaky clean bill of health from a reputable shop. Car has about 110k miles on it, but has a lengthy service history and has been maintained by reputable shops or the dealer for all of its life. Clutch and IMS were replaced about 6 months ago by an LN Engineering certified installer, so little to no qualms there.

After delivering the clean bill of health, however, the individual who performed the PPI basically gave me a rather plain warning about high-mileage 996s. Mentioned timing-chain tensioner issues, of which I'm aware, but pretty plainly told me that he'd be shocked to see me get more than 30k miles more out of the car before it needs a rebuild, and then followed it up by telling me it was one of the cleanest 996s he's seen and had no reason to believe that the engine had a single issue.

I was ready to pull the trigger on this thing if it got a clean bill of health on the PPI, and I'd like to think I've done my homework and research watching these cars for 12+ months trying to pick my spot to jump in, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't rattled by the conversation. I can handle the expense if the worst happens, but I struggle with the concept of having 100% of the purchase price into an engine rebuild when I've intentionally sought out a particularly clean example. I get the feeling that the answer to that may be "Then 996 ownership probably isn't for you", and if that's the answer then it's the answer, but I'm trying to decipher if I've been put into a tizzy by an air-cooled snob with a hyperbolic opinion of 996s, or if I've actually gotten some sage advice.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Southern Man

808Bill

Read these opinions...https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...weet-spot.html
I wonder if the mechanic wanted it?

dporto

spruden

Strange that your mechanic didn't highlight the fact that if the LN IMSB procedure was done by a certified installer then the car went through a 4-8 hour pre-qualification only 6 months ago. This is way more invasive than some routine PPI. The procedure is very specific and allows for no deviation if any issue is found with the engine. There's a ton of value in knowing that a M96 expert has been intimately involved with the car only 6 months ago and found zero issues. This should be the take away from your mechanic - not sure what he/she is thinking.

This mechanic could also give you the same advice about any car this old with similar mileage. Even an air cooled car - just price out a top end rebuild on a 993 - not much different than a mild rebuild for a M96. There are thousands of these engines happily racking up miles well in excess of 100K. This doesn't seem like sage advice to me. Your mechanic can and should check for wear items in the PPI - you should also know the oil change intervals of any used M96 power plant - if not heavily discount your purchase price for the added risk.

Remember all engines will require rebuilds at some point. It's not a matter of if, just when. With no indication of a rebuild needed now, you're not taking much of a risk. If the camshaft deviation numbers were off, if there were range 2 over-revs, if the oil hadn't been changed in 2 years and was slowly eating away at the plastic internals, if you found metal in the sump during the PPI, if there was a huge amount of deferred maintenance needed, then you'd budget for a rebuild soon and adjust your purchase price way down. Don't over think it.

misterbeverlyhills

I am interested in some opinions on high mileage cars other than just the motor. I am looking at a 180k mile '99 with a rebuild at 140k by a very well known local shop. Other than the motor, what are some of the (equally) expensive items that go wrong?

z driver 88t

To the OP: You'll get answers all over the place on this one. Very knowledgeable guys at LN will tell you anything with more than 20-30k miles will have cylinders out of round. At the same time, there is no shortage of guys running cars with well over 100k miles and no apparent issues. Mine has 115K and the PO and I have been doing UOAs with Blackstone since about 100K and so far no concerns. Its a bit of a crap shoot. The M96 seems to be a bit more failure prone than than a Toyota Camry or Honda Accord. That said, a well maintained M96 engine with the known failure points addressed does seem to be generally reliable.

As to the other wear items, they are pretty much anything you'd find in other higher mileage car - shocks, plastic expansion tank, water pumps with plastic impellers, alternators that seem to crap out right at 100k miles, a few electronic valves that comprise the evap system, and belts and hoses seem to be the common issues I've come up against. None of these are deal killers and they are all pretty cheap, just things to stay on top of as they happen.

Gulliver

Bah, 130k on my '99 which is still going strong... "Jump in somewhere" is correct, buy something and drive it. I love mine, and even if I have to rebuild the engine, I'm in for less than a used Camry.

5CHN3LL

There are no items that may potentially fail with the same price tag as the M96, though extensive water damage to the cabin would get you at least halfway there.