steam_mill

Well, I'm closer to Porsche ownership more than ever. I have a deposit down on a 2003 996. 45000 miles, (72000 kms). Annual oil changes in since 2013 from 35000 miles (57000 km). A few thousand miles per oil changes annually. Between 2003 and 2010, car did 14000 miles (23000km). I have a gap of 3 years and about 20000 miles. During that time from the government database I have records of emissions test. Carfax shows same owner until 2017. In consideration that car has records from 0 to 14000 miles, then from 35000 miles to current under same ownership, should I be concerned.

Thoughts? I am getting the car inspected by a Porsche indy next week.

Change IMS right away or wait until clutch?

TexSquirrel

I wouldn't worry about the gap.
Recent documentation is most important.

I would change the IMS right away.
My suggestion is to install the IMS Solution.
You'll never have to worry about changing it again, and it helps to sell the car in the future should you ever decide to part with it.

Good luck, it sounds like it might be a nice one.

808Bill

I'd change it right away with "The Solution" and be done with it, unless it had a factory replacement motor installed with big bearing. It's the low mile cars that are of concern...Good luck!

David993S

I'd wait until you do the clutch. Less than 5% of 996's have/had IMS issues. The problem is way overblown. But if you're worry wart.........change it.
And congrats on getting a 996. You'll love it.

Byprodriver

Over 10% of single row IMSB's have failed !

TexSquirrel

roguiethegiant

Some repair shops offer an IMS/RMS special (which is what i did) just to make it easy to take care of. I did that along with the traditional old age related fix its (plugs, filters, belts etc) and a thorough inspection that uncovered small issues. Have had the car 1.5 years now and no issues since day 1 because i fixed those things first and then went after aftermarket perormance upgrades (and I use it as a daily driver in rain, snow, etc)

You could wait but why chance it? For the right price it's worth the peace of mind....

Os7213

I wouldn't bother with the 3 years gap.
Some owners prefer doing their own regular maintenance which is sometimes even better.
I would defenately start putting money aside for clutch and flywheel as theses are costly.
As for the IMS I personally went for IMS Retrofit (My C4S have 147000kms) but with your milage I would also consider the Solution.
You should also check if the AOS has been changed and if not keep some money aside for the part and labor.
Do you have records of parts that has been changed or the receipt you have are only from preventive maintenance?

dporto

"Less than 5% of 996's have/had IMS issues."

^^Really?^^ And where does this "factual wisdom" come from? Is that all 996's? 3.4's? 3.6's? Averaged throughout all years? I've heard "somewhere around 8%, or between 8-10%" (from the class action lawsuit) but never "less than 5%"...Maybe you can sight your source(s)...

steam_mill

Service history shows oil changes, rim refinishing (1 rim), tire replacements, brake flushes, AC repair (electric switch), seat switch repair etc. etc. Gap in history aligns with when the car moved provinces.

Ratchet1025

As others have mentioned, do the PPI and use those results. The gap in service history is normal and not a problem. IMS change is your choice. If you do change it, plan on closer to $6K for IMSS and the other items that are naturally replaced or repaired along the way.

peterp

Agree with the above. Also, that 8% figure is a pretty old statistic from many years ago (not sure of exact date). On one hand, it seems like the failure rate could be higher today given how many more years/miles the average 996 has now. On the other hand, if it was the case that some individual cars were more prone to failure than than others, then maybe the numbers wouldn't increase much over time. Of course, on the third hand, if most of the bad ones were replaced in period, then maybe the number today is lower than the old 8% figure. In any case, it's an old data point (but clearly I have no idea how that old data point should be interpreted today ).

NuttyProfessor

Exactly, and that 10% figure came out of the class action lawsuit days. There isn't a clear mechanism to know how many are failing this day and time. You can only speculate. That's why it's wise to get the common areas (IMS bearing, RMS, water pump, etc.) of failure addressed when you get a used 996, especially the ones that could lead to catastrophic motor failure.