Hello All,

brand new new to this forum. I really hope someone might shed some light on the problem I have with my 2000 C2 Cab Carrera.
Essentially My car has been sitting for anout a year now. It has 81,000mi. I was told by a local Porsche mechanic (not a Porsche dealership) that the IMS
failed, and he wanted nothing to do with repairing it. I have done extensive research and read all the horror stories. The problem, other then the obvious is that I'm not sure the IMS has in fact failed.

Ive viewed many videos on YouTube and read a lot of accounts of the IMS failure and it seems the problem with my car is not typical at all of IMSB failure. Here is what I do know: I was driving the car at about 50mph when the car stalled. I dropped it down to 2nd and popped the clutch and it started right up again. Continued to drive anout 2-3 miles and it stalled again. This time it would not start. Rolled to a stop, got out and oil was pouring from the back of the motor. There was no warning, (I know this is common), no rattling or knocking, and the car won't even attempt to crank. Does oil leak out all over the place when the IMS fails? Does this sound familiar to anyone else who has had an IMSB failure?

Does anybody habe have any suggestions or advice. It would be much appreciated.

thanks,

Steve

 

Yes oil could pour out the back from a bad IMS. Or it could be a rear mani seal. From the stalling and engine locking comments it could be a totally failed AoS that completely locked up a cylinder too.

I’d be prepared to have that engine pulled and thoroughly inspected.

 

Maybe, maybe not. Drop the sump and see whats doing on in there. What I find intriguing is you have let it sit a year without investigating, the suspense would be killing me lol.

Best of luck, heres to hoping its something other than IMS failure.

 

Did the shop that diagnosed it as IMS failure actually examine the bearing to confirm it was the root cause? Did they drop the sump plate? It could be a broken chain that busted a hole in the case that in turn, caused the oil to pour out. But regardless of which one it is, based on your symptoms, it looks like you're going to need to rebuild this motor or find a donor... or, sell it as a roller. If the shop didn't examine the sump plate, then that would be my first step. This is something you can do yourself. Or at least open up the oil canister and examine. Take picture and post back to this thread.

 

My advice is to stop reading horror stories and either do some diagnostics yourself or take it to someone qualified that you can trust.

If you are capable and have the tools to do a thorough inspection, then there's really nothing to lose. Start to systematically analyze the failure mode and troubleshoot the systems involved.

If you don't have the tools or skill, bring it to someone who does. You can definitely make things worse by bumbling around in the engine bay.

If you need recommendations for a good shop, Rennlist may be able to help, so may your local PCA.

 

^^+1

 

Thank you to all who responded thus far. Again, to be clear, the engine just shut off when this happened. No noise, no clattering. It was exactly like a stall. I'm perplexed as to,why it started again after the first stall. I would think if the timing chain failed it would not start again. I am going to remove the sump plate and see if there are any metal frags evident.

BTW, the car sat for about a year due to an injury I sustained which had me laid up for several months and I live in the northeast so working on the car was impossible.

Thanks again for responses.

 

Sorry for your loss. This biggest mistake one could make is what you did, bump starting it before diagnosing why it died. The colleterial damage because of it will cost you 1000's in most cases.

First drain your oil and look for glitter, cut open your oil filter and look for metal shavings, drop the sump and report your findings.
It sucks when this happens but you could get lucky as a couple other have.

 

Sounds like a classic IMSB seizure to me. When the bearing first starts to fail, before it has worn enough to be "loose", it can "seize" or "lock-up". The seizure can cause the engine to stall. When this happens, it turns the mounting stud in the tightening direction and snaps it off. The snapped stud/nut falls into the bellhousing and opens the 8mm hole in the IMS flange that oil can pour out of. There is no sound or warning because the bearing was never "loose" or "flopping", just snapped off the mounting stud/nut. The resulting catastrophic damage (bent valves ect.) is hard to access untill the engine is dissasembled.

 

^^ So, it seems like the key to an early diagnosis would be whether the oil is pouring directly out of the crankcase or if it's coming from the seam between the transmission and the engine...

 

Bummer

First post possible IMSB failure

Sorry

Hoping for the best

 

WELL, I just finished taking the sump plate down and inspecting it. At first glance there did not seem to be any metal shaving or debris in the pan. Unfortunately, I spilled what sludgy oils was set at the bottom and behold......many metal bits and pieces. One as much as an inch long. Also a small rubber O-ring torn and lots of metal bits in the sump filter. I was afraid of this but held out my hopes it was something else.

Its really a shame as I never over revved the car and drove it "relatively" normal. There are many upgrades in the car and not sure what to do now. I can't see spending $10,000 on a car worth about $25,000. I am really pissed at the shop that did my clutch last year as they could have recommended the IMSB upgrade but obviously did not. It was my fault too as I should have insisted they take a look at it when they had the car apart. I was told by the dealership back in 2008 it was done. If I can figure out how to upload pics I will. Perhaps a job for my wife....

Any suggestions with what to do with the car now? The car has a speck clutch, short shift kit, Fabspeed exhaust, K&N filters and carbon fiber interior accents. Also Michelin Pilot sport ZRrated tires with about 7000mi on them to name a few enhancements.

Thanks again to all for your suggestions and assistance. Much appreciated.

 

Sorry to hear that.

Three logical options: fix it, part it out, or sell it as a roller.

Good luck!

 

Sorry bud, but the IMSB was past it's expected service life if it was indeed replaced before 08.
As stated above, sell some parts, your car is worth $4-6K as a roller.

Download pics to your computer then start a post and click on the post card like box above (next to the smiley face) in the tool bar.

 

Lots of guys on here looking for rollers. Possible a Indy shop near you may want to buy it and replace the engine to make a few bucks. Its terrible this has happened to you.