Originally Posted by steepsnow

I have done quite a bit of research on this forum, other forums and lots of phone calls and local shop visits. If anyone else has an engine failure, this summary may be helpful. My car is a 1999 C4 with "egas," so "drive by wire" cars are a little different.

I am located in Colorado. While there are many good indy shops, none has done any type of 3.6L conversion (996 or 997 motor). I spoke to every shop that advertises in RMR PCA magazine, plus both Denver Dealers and a couple "German" car specialists with Porsche Techs. Thus, to consider a motor conversion, I decided that using an experienced shop would be a better route than trial and error by a local shop (even after shipping costs).

Presently, there is special pricing on 997-3.6L motors from SunCoast. While the price was guesstimated above to be $6100, the real price is $7263.80+shipping. I have found used 996-3.4L and 996 3.6L engines ranging from $6,000-$7,500.

Lastly, new (factory remanufactured) 996-3.6L motors are about the same price at the 3.4L at $14K. Due to this price, I did not bother with the option of a "new," 996-3.6L in this comparison. Also, the conversion to 997-3.6L was as little as $500 more than using a 996-3.6L. Thus, due to the present Suncoast pricing, I did not evaluate using a used 996-3.6L.


Here are some of the options and pricing as of August 1, 2009:

A) NO MOTOR CONVERSION:

1) Used 3.4L 996 Motor
Base Price: $7,000 (approx. including shipping)
Extra Parts/Fluids: $500-$2,000 (includes pre-purchase "testing," plus extras at time of work)
Labor: 11-15 hours
TOTAL: approx. $9,000-$10,500

2) Porsche Remanufactured 3.4L 996 Motor
Motor Base Price: $14,000 (approx. due to core charge possible refund, shipping, sales tax)
Extra Parts/Fluids: $200-$1,000 (to be determined at time of work)
Labor: 9-12 hours
(Note: I had one dealer quote this at 11 hours and the other at 22, no indy shop was over 12)
TOTAL: approx. $15,000-$16,000


B) 997-3.6L MOTOR CONVERSION
Since no local shop had experience with a 3.6L swap, I did some research, then called two well regarded shops that have done several. I am confident either of these would be a good way to go. However, they completely different approach to the replacement. If anyone is considering this (and not located close to these shops), I suggest calling both shops, then speaking with your local maintenance shop to help decide what they can/cannot handle. I am sure there are other shops (some mentioned above in this thread), that can do this type of work, but I stopped making calls after the two prices were so similar.

1) Roock, Location: GA + CA
Motor Base Price: $7500 (includes shipping)
Labor+Extra Parts: $5500
Shipping car to/from CO-GA: $1500
TOTAL: $14,500
NOTE: This conversion method uses the existing 3.4L DME and wiring harness. They use a "black-box" to control the variocam plus and other motor timing. There are additional engine mods, plus the fuel sender as required for the 997 motor. ALL electrical functions will work as expected (HVAC, Instrument Panel, no check engine light," cruise control, PSM, etc.)

2) GMG Racing, Location: CA
Motor Base Price: $7500 (includes shipping)
DME and Wiring Harness: $1500 (includes shipping)
Extra Parts: $500-$1500
Labor: $4500
Shipping to/from CO-CA: $1500
TOTAL: $15,500-$16,500
NOTE: This method replaces the DME and Wiring Harness. They use custom connections to the instrument panel, plus do the required work on the fuel-sender unit. ALL electrical functions will work as expected (HVAC, Instrument Panel, no check engine light," cruise control, PSM, etc.)


C) CUSTOM BUILD REPLACEMENT ENGINE

1) Flat 6 Innovations, Location: GA
Total Cost approx. $21,500 (includes shipping the car both ways, CO to GA)
NOTE: Call Jake Raby for more details. Basically, for this method Jake builds custom required motor parts based on his extensive testing of the 996 motors. The final engine would be a 3.6L, but it would not be a "conversion" in the sense of using a 996-3.6 or a 997-3.6 motor. Known problem areas of the engine are modified in such a way to "fix" inherent problems with the factory motors. ALL electrical functions will work as expected (HVAC, Instrument Panel, no check engine light," cruise control, PSM, etc.)


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In summary, this is the present pricing landscape. It appears to be a "get what you pay for..." scenario. There are good reasons to pick any of the above solutions to getting a 996 with a dead motor back on the road.

Originally Posted by c70Pete

no that sounds like estimates from people who have never done it... here in Toronto there is a shop that has done that conversion many many times... and it works and works well...