Hello all,

Let me start by saying this is not meant to be another thead about 996 engines biting the dust. I am trying to look forward.

A couple of days ago, my wife and I were on a trip to visit friends in Buffalo, NY. About 50 miles from our destination, on the NY Thruway, there was a clattering sound, smoke, and we pulled off to the shoulder. I looked in the engine bay, and all was fine. But there was oil on the ground. Looking underneath, I saw a gaping hole in cam cover on the driver's side. The attached pic tells the story. To me it appears that the chain broke, and the resulting jamming action broke a hole in the cam cover casting. (and who knows what kind of internal damage as well).

All of the above occurred to the original engine of a '99C4, with just over 100,000 miles on othe odometer. I have owned this Carrera for less than one year, and, up to now, enjoyed over 6000 miles of trouble free driving. Prior to this catastrophe, the engine was great, lots of top end power, good low end torque, and no oil consumption since I owned it.

Anyway, I am now exploring my options:

1. Have the engine repaired, if the internal damage is not too great)
2. Purchase a replacement 3.4 engine from a Porsche dealer
3. Look for a used 3.4 engine from the Rennlist or wider Porsche community
4. Consider this an opportunity to move up to a more powerful engine.

It is option #4 that I am asking for advice and recommendations from you.

How easy or difficult is it to swap in a 3.6, 3.8, GT3 or TT engine into a 1999 C4? I expect one would need the wiring harness and computer from the engine to be imported. But what about other things? Will the above engines fit in the engine bay, and mate up the the '99C4 6-speed manual transmission?

Any advice on the above will be appreciated, and if any of you have a spare engine kicking around, please let me know.

...Rickker

 

Hope this isn't too obvious but did you look here, a couple posts down...
https://rennlist.com/forums/996-forum/455130-anyone-in-need-of-a-motor-3-6-x-51-a.html

 

wow that sucks... sorry I cant say more...
GL I will watch what is advised and the outcome.
Ed

 

That doesn't look too bad to me. Maybe try a can of that stop leak stuff from Pep Boys.

 

Sorry to hear about this but a 3.6L X51 is a good option worth considering:

http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/9...y-broke-2.html

http://www.roocksport.com/main/tuning.php

 

WTF could cause a whole like that?

 

i think the chain broke, then jammed up inside causing enough pressure to break the casting wall. Now, why the chain would break is another question...
We were driving along at a leisurely 65 mph in 6th gear, about 2800 rpm, when this happened.
...Rickker

 

Thanks, Fissionx, I am aware of this and it is tempting. However San Diego is a long way from where I live, and the lack of paperwork for this engine could cause big problems trying to bring it into Canada. I am hoping some other opportunities will come up.
....Rickker

 

Just drive your car there...then drive it back....no paper worries that way! Make a vacation out of it...I don't think an engine swap takes more than a day....I think. Good luck!

J

 

To Rikker,
Not to insinuate anything, but just curious on what kind of oil you and the previous owner were using. This doesn't sound like your typical failure mode. Sorry to hear your misfortune. Sounds like you're maintaining a positive outlook though.

 

I'm not sure. I bought the car in Ottawa just before Christmas last year. I had a PPI done at Mark Motors, who told me they had serviced the car regularly over the past years. It did not consume any oil in the 10,000 km that I drove it since then. I was planning to do an oil change before the winter. So I now have 9 liters of 0W40 Mobil 1 plus a Porsche filter on hand. I expect, since the car was being serviced at a Porsche dealer, that the previous owner also had Mobil 1 in it. Not that it helped any in this case. However, I believe this failure was due to chain fatigue, and not necessarily related to lubrication. We may never know just why this happnened.
....Rickker

 

Isn't this a possible outcome of the 'all too common' Intermediate Shaft failure, where the end shears off leaving the timing chain to wreak havoc?

Has nothing what so ever to do with oil choice - it's a design 'feature' of the 99 block.

 

Rikker,

Do a search here using my username and 3.4 to 3.6. I had that done exactly 1 year ago by Roock in Atlanta. Happy customer.

 

Thanks, Paul. That was most helpful. Now I know it can be done, although there is more involved than I thought.
...Rickker

 

You could be right. I'm just guessing that the timing chain broke. I'm not familiar with the intermediate shaft failure problem.
...Rickker