street rod

Amille, Nice work good to see it was a success. What was your approximate cost and time for the complete changeover?

Amille28

Street Rod.

Total time was about three weekends worth of work plus a few nights of project time after work. The hardest thing about the project is that each 3.2 head requires 9 holes to be drilled and tapped. The intake runner on the 996 engine is different and the holes for the 996 exhaust hanger bracket are not drilled and tapped. An M6 and M8 thread tap and recommended drill bit was used to do this work. If I had to do it again I would pay a machinist to do this.

Cost is where this swap takes the cake.
Used 62k 3.2 longblock eBay - $2,500
Shipping - $200
Clutch kit- $360
Gaskets - $100
Fluids = $100
Bits and taps for drilling holes - $25

Many of the items on the old engine were already new. My rod bearing went.. so in troubleshooting I replaced a bunch of stuff hoping that it was not internal engine related. AOS, water pump, coil packs, spark plugs, oil tube, vacuum lines, and coolant tubes were all less than a year old on the other motor so they were direct swapped over.

I would argue this is by far the cheapest way to get a 996 back on the road. I also have my old core. Next project will to see how rebuildable it is.

Amille28

This picture shows the four intake runner bolt hole locations that have to be tapped on the boxster S head. Also the three larger exhaust hangar bolts 8mm X 1.25. There are two additional holes on the exhaust side of the head that need drilled/tapped. (not shown in picture)

Be careful if you do this yourself. This is something you measure, then double measure before drilling. Also pay attention to the depth of the holes needed. This takes a long time to get right mostly about being careful. If I did this again I would pay a machinist to drill and tap these holes.

Amille28

The studs on the 996 oil pump housing have to be removed to use on the boxster motor. Use the nuts that hold on the rear engine mounting support. Jam the nuts together(seriously) and you will be able to remove the studs

Amille28

While the engine was out, I took the opportunity to remove the foamy stuff in the engine bay as it was heavily cracked and flaking off. This stuff lines the area above the plastic intake spider. I replaced it with duramat type sound deadener/heat shield. The stuff is peel and stick, very easy to put on.

Imo000

Is the new sound deadenning tar based? Also, those 4 intake polt holes are already drilled just needs to be tapped?

KrazyK

Great DIY and interesting approach to your problem but this is why you dont depend on a 996 as a DD.

I think it would have been better to just rebuild the 3.4 or find a 3.6 but still you made an interesting swap. Hopefully you will be able to recoup some of your 3.2 money buy selling it when your ready. Good job!

Amille28

I do not think the sound deadening is tar based. There are many different brands of the same stuff. I got mine from the local speed shop for about $40.

Here is an example.
http://www.eastwood.com/dynamat-extreme-bulk-pack.html

As for the holes they need to be drilled AND tapped. The bosses are there for all of the holes but different ones are drilled on the 996 vs 986 head.

I have to say it was a fun experience.. I don't think I'm hurting performance wise. This thing pulls and sounds amazing from 4-7k RPM. If someone lives in the Washington DC area they might be interested in doing a stock 996 to 3.2 swap 996 review or driving test. I'm really interested to get an objective opinion on the swap.

Imo000

I cound't DISAGREE more. This is an excellent option, 20hp to save $5000 is a very good trade off. Drilling and tapping a few holes is penuts for a DIY-er. If I wasn't able to fix my 3.4, this would have been the next best option. Heck, even that it "only" cost me $2000 in parts and a lot of my time, the 3.2 was even cheaper. WELL DONE!!

KrazyK

How is he saving a dime, much less $5000 if hes going to repair the 3.4? Hes merely DELAYING that expense while he spends less right now. If hes not able to sell the 3.2L when his 3.4L is ready how exactly does that save money?

Im not dissing his DIY ability, I just dont get the reason. To me it just made more sense to park the car with no engine while you repair and or upgrade the 3.4L.

A good start would be:

Amille28

There are differences on the philosophy of use of the car between owners. I get it that some folks want a high performance show car. They want to get as close to performance to a GT3 as possible with a LN engineered Jake Raby super machine. Don't get me wrong, im as envious as anyone else of who has one. They are great machines and those folks at Flat6 or LN do great work. The bottom line is I just can't afford that. Maybe I shouldn't even own a Porsche at all, but I do.. I own a 928 as well and I love the spirit, and I love getting in my used 996 and driving it to work EVERY day. I personally believe these cars are meant to be driven. They look great on the road and even in DC they are a rarity.

I'm not going to repair the 3.4 anytime soon.. it will be a garage project. I have some mechanical ability with cars, but to rebuild a flat 6 motor takes some know how. How many rebuilders out there that do this every day have a bad rap? It's easy to make a mistake. It is not as simple as a 1.5k$ rebuild kit.. thats just the beginning.. you have to inspect the cylinders... I'm pretty sure i snapped a rod when the engine gave out. What about if the crank is scored or the bearing carrier is damaged. There could be 4 or 5 other issues I find that add up to $$$

How many times have we read on this forum. 'I want to increase performance to XX' and the response is ' you should buy a 997, GT3, or turbo' How many have gone down mod avenue to only end up selling the car a few months after the nightmare is over. How many swap and rebuild services are for sale on ebay. Any happy takers out there.

For $3,000 I could drive my 996 every day, blow a 3.2 every two years and my total investment is $125 a month. Its an option.. and for the 20hp loss.. maybe not worth it to the individual. I seriously invite anyone to come drive it and see if they don't smile when the thing bounces off 7000 RPM..

If some of us are willing to work together.. we could baseline the performance of this setup and find a way to get back the lost 20hp. I'm thinking a combination of possible LN low temp thermostat, an underdrive pulley, and possibly 3.8 headers might show some gains.

The answer to so many long time 996 owners with IMS or failed engines doesn't always have to = $$$

Kalashnikov

Great work Amille. Please record the acceleration videos and post them on Youtube. This way we can see how the car performs with the 3.2 motor.

Amille28

Does the video go like this? hehe

DaveCarrera4

+1

2003 Carrera 4S Speed Yellow / 1955 356 Continental 1500 Rust Red

stjoh

While I totally agree with your reasoning I just wanted to point out that I did have a good experience with one of the ebay rebuilders.