KrazyK

BOT

D6lc

Well done for taking this on, I’m still on the std bearing and after reading your removal and the Casper data, I am more comfortable to leave the std bearing in, change the oil regular and keep it topped up to the max, so the bearing is constantly sitting if fresh engine oil.
When the clutch finally dies I might change it out for a CH bearing, but not as a panic move before.

DK570

Are you eligible to ask for the lawsuit discovery documents? There is probably a lot of interesting info in there. I'm sure your miles are low enough, is your car new enough?

KrazyK

BOT

Viper6

Anxiously awaiting your parts inventory postings you mentioned above... I have extended warranty thro Sep this year, after which I want to dive into this project over the winter break... so want to see what you show as LNE alternatives...

Dharn55

The standard/OEM bearing is sealed on both sides so the engine oil is not a viable lubricant for it. This is one of the design flaws. The only way for the engine oil to act as a lubricant for this bearing is to remove a seal. I did this on my OEM bearing (dual row) back in 2009 before the tools and technique for removing a dual row bearing were perfected.

KrazyK

BOT

KrazyK

BOT

KrazyK

BOT

nick49

Just wondering, was having the flywheel Blanchard ground (resurfaced) an option? Years ago this was 15%-20% the cost of new and worked perfect.

thirteeneast

Dam right

Skootnasty

This is no longer an option with Dual Mass Flywheels. The rubber member inside the flywheel cannot hold up to resurfacing. Honestly, it is likely worn out by the time your clutch disk is.

Skoot

perryinva

I normally avoid the IMSB threads for all the usual reasons, but I want to point out that I read years ago, just can't recall exactly where, that in the original design, the bearing was NOT in an oil bathed location, but was above the oil level and only subject to only vapor and splash, so a sealed bearing made sense, IF you were going to use a ball bearing type. When the oil starvation at pickup apparantly reared its ugly head during testing the sump was redesigned and the level was raised to increase the capacity to the now ridiculous 9+ qts it is, and IIRC, the bearing is still not totally submerged, and very dependent on oil level. At that point I think Porsche listened to the bean counters over the engineers and that is how it ended up as it is. Risk vs cost of redesign.

And of course, it's your car, do what you want, etc, etc, but I have to agree with Casper and JR about oil side open and the other tube/shaft side closed, IF you are going with an open design. Having the tube side open will not increase any flow or circulation, unless you spend all of your driving going up and down short steep hills. Otherwise it is a rotating dead zone tube, with unpredictable consequences of possibly filling with oil on a long uphill, robbing that capacity from the system, or if the fill is corrected for that tube capacity, then over filled on a down hill, as the tube empties. The effect of the mass of the oil in the tube as it is rotating at high rpms while cornering and causing possible deformation is another unknown. I'm not sure what my replacement will be when the time comes (clutch replacement, or indication), but for a lower cost Solution, a bearing with far better seals, as Pelican seems to have embraced, (I mean, seriously, in 2013 no one makes a truly sealed bearing that can work in partial submerged 250F oil?) makes as much sense to me as a splash lubricated CH bearing does.

KrazyK

BOT

JMLavoie

There is a fairly lengthy thread on Pelican mainly driven by a certain Feelix, who did a tremendous amount of work trying to find out if grease could still be found in the bearing once removed and if oil could be found in the shaft.
After looking at many bearings sent to him by willing participants to his tests (I believe most were Boxster owners), I recall reading that:
1. He could not find any grease in any bearings he took apart; and
2. In all shafts he got and against his own initial theory, he found very little oil, as in drops amount, in them.
So, I believe Perry has a point here, but I'll leave it at that, as I don't know enough to take side one way or another.