dgjks6

Yes to the new drain plug. Prior to all the IMS hysterics, the most common post was stripped drain plug.

mayday1

Bad news I'm afraid.

Just opened up the oil filter and found lots of looks like hard plastic
bits. I also saw a few shiny possible metal bits, but the are really
small specks, on the order of 0.1mm, may be a few specks in the filter.

There must be a few dozen of these plastic bits, in the order or 1-2mm size.

I'll load the pictures next.

mayday1

pictures of the dissected filter.

mayday1

After seeing what's in the filter, I couldn't fall asleep, and decided to research
what plastic bits can be inside the engine, seems like the chain tensioner
guide/skid is made of plastic or plastic like substance, and is known to
wear in '99 engines.

But I was bothered by the shapes of the bits, they are sharp and pointy
as well as droplet like. I imagine the tensioner worn bits would be more
like wood shavings. So I went to the garage and check the bits again.

I think I found the culprit. The same paper filter element are jointed at
the seam using some sort of adhesive, and in my filter, there are noticeable
droplets on the edge of the filter seam, and this stuff looks just like the bits
I found. So I think the oil filter had too much adhesive/glue oozing out
of the seam, and over time they break off in chunks and circulated around
the engine and eventually lodged inside the filter.

The bad news is this stuff is pretty hard and possibly abrasive, the good
news is that the bits are still softer than metal even though they are pointy
and sharp, so I hope they didn't really do damage to the engine. I'd say
hardness wise they are a bit harder than epoxy, almost cured JB weld
type of material.

Big question is, what to do next? Borescope?
And how do I clean this up? Do a couple back to back oil and filter change to
flush out the bits? Should the handful of really tiny shiny possible metallic
bits be of concern?

The oil sample was already sent to Blackstone for analysis early this morning.

mayday1

PS: the old filter was a Mahle OX 128/1D filter. You guys should
check yours for glue overruns and perhaps scrape them off
before installing.

rockhouse66

I think my next step would be dropping the sump plate to see what is there and also see what might be stuck in the oil pickup screen.

dgjks6

Agree with rockhouse - drop the sumo

How long ago was the last oil change?

Ignore the metal

I'm going to go with plastic can't scratch metal so done worry about that (but i could be wrong) - but what it can do is block passages and filters.

I would also get a magnetic drain plug and either the LN spin on oil filter or a new OEM filter housing, You don't want non filtered oil running through the engine.

As an aside - no expert here - but frequent forum reader - I have read every OMG my engine failed and non have started with plastic in the oil filter.

docmirror

Get the pan off. Good views up there to further diagnose. You can use a high intensity light to see if there's plastic bits clinging to various parts of the engine.

mayday1

I'll drop the oil pan to take a further look, what do you use for the funny
star shaped bolts. Is there an untightening sequence, I guess I'll
ask about torque and tightening sequence when I re-assemble.

Here's is a picture of the source of these plastic bits. I was thinking
that if the oil filter never opened the bypass, all the bits should
be contained in the filter and the cartridge, and shouldn't make it
to the engine.

alpine003

Hell no. PM Paul Waterloo on here and ask him to borrow his microscope IMMEDIATELY! You don't know what you're dealing with until you get it under that microscope.

rockhouse66

The bolts are Torx head, and Porsche uses a lot of them, so you might as well buy a set of Torx sockets. I just did this job on my car so it is fresh in my mind.

You will have to carefully pry all around the perimeter of the plate to break it loose. Be gentle and keep going around as you don't want to break anything or scar the sealing surface. Clean the gasket surfaces on both the block and sump plate with a razor blade to remove all previous sealant. I also used some Scotch Brite to remove the residue then wiped both with acetone. I used Loctite 574 but I would think any anerobic flange sealant would work. Torque value is 7.5 ft..-lbs. or 90 in.-lbs. I just went round and round though I did go up in steps. First just past hand tight, then 50 in.-lbs., then 90. I also gave the sealant overnight to cure before refilling with oil but you probably don't have to do this.

dgjks6

The problem is the bypass gets stuck open and you get no filtered oil. The LN does not have a bypass.

docmirror

No Scotchbrite on sealing surface please. Maybe one has the right density, and maybe one has the right touch to do it without damage, but - maybe not.

Use the right chemicals and a rag. If you must use a safety razor edge be cautious, the razor can cut into the Al surface. If one has to use it: http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/detail/MMM0/37448.oap and go very gentle.

mayday1

I'll have to wait till I get the correct star/torx sockets before I can
drop the oil pan and finish up my oil change.

Since I haven't put in oil, I can still decide to use something different.

From the owner's manual about engine oil recommendation:

For ambient temperature mostly higher than 50F, which is the case
for me, it recommends 15W-40, 20W-50, or 20W-40 for mineral oil,
and 10W-40, 15W-40, 15W-50 for synthetic oil.

Then in bold:
"Use only engine oils labelled as API SH or ILSAC GF-1 and viscosity
of SAE 10W-40 or higher. For continuous weather conditions with
ambient temperatures of mostly below 32F/0C, use SAE 5W-30 engine
oils."

Why is everyone, including my previous owner using 0W-40?

Since my car will spend days or weeks sitting in the garage not driven,
would a heavier weight oil stay on better on the bearings, timing chain
wear pads, ..etc so starting it will not incur too much wear?

Ahsai

The owner's manual was printed a long time ago. We need to refer to the latest Porsche approved oil list (just google it).