I wanted to drop a quick post here not to open a can of worms but to provide some info about why I made the decision to use the EPS "Eternal" IMS bearing in my 108k engine. I want to preface this with the fact that I have been researching the IMS issues for about 4 years. I started reading well prior to the purchase of my car almost 3 years ago. My car is a 1999 dual row bearing car, I originally purchased it to replace my LS powered Mazda Rx7 track car but the car quickly became my top choice for my commute and I put about 20k on it the first year. It suffered a cracked head/intermix issue in Feb of 2016 and I decided to DIY replace everything while I had it apart.

I was determined to replace the bearing for peice of mind. My car has 108k miles on it and I figured I was on borrowed time with the OEM Bearing from everything I had read. When I pulled the bearing I was disappointed and joyed to find it in perfect shape, save for some oil past the rubber seals and in the IMS shaft. The oil was clean that came out of the bearing and the bearing was in perfect shape.

After discovering that putting a new stock bearing (that lasted 108k with no signs of letting up) back in wasn't possible, I decided to try and replicate that...I had read some threads on home brew bearings and decided to go that route at first. I bought a dual row NSK/SKF bearing and coupled it with the Pelican basic IMS kit and was going to install that without a second thought... and then some "unpleasantness" came out, although I wasn't using ceramic or Boca bearings I just couldn't commit to really gambling with my engine at this time.

There are plenty of people on the LN bandwagon and if I could afford it I would go with the DOF "Solution" from LN. But I can't. I didn't want to spend $800 for just a basic Bearing Set with no real warranty (due to no pre qualification on my engine, and DIY status). As well as reading of others who have had LN failures. And so I looked at alternatives. I saw the EPS bearing and could only find 1 thread where a shop said that the EPS bearing in an engine was "on the way out" but probably due to install issues..

I asked around and the new "best ever" non DOF appears to be the Cylindrical Roller Bearing use. I read all the nasty talk from people about the EPS thrust control, the bad English on the website, the talk about the weakened oil pump drive etc... But couldn’t really find people with glaring failures. There are lots of people saying "have xx,xxx miles with no issues" but no real hateraide. So I bought the kit and it was delivered the other day. I opened the box and the kit is well done everything appears to be of good quality and it was packaged well. For those worried about the hex drive, the slot is so small (the photos are not representative of the actual depth at all (red drive key pictured in advertising) as it would never really effect the integrity of the drive.. The bearing although pretty, is nothing special, and the rest of the kit is tools and the flange.

There are some things about the setup I am not super excited about (Loctite use, tapping holes in the IMS covers etc) but after holding the Pelican/LN single row el cheapo replacement in my hand with its spacers and the wobbliest bearing I have ever seen and knowing that there are cars rolling around with that setup I feel really confident. I may decide that this is a wear item vs an Eternal fix as they say (do it again next clutch) or I may not.. Overall only time will tell if I made the right call for my car and my wallet. Like I said I only dropped this here so that others considering this setup have some info, despite knowing that it will probably get cluttered with a bunch of stuff telling people that this setup is garbage.

I honestly know why Porsche spec'd a new engine vs a new bearing, because all of these fixes no matter how elegant or well-advertised, or successful are a work around to a serious engineering problem. LN, RND, EPS, all of these companies have eaten their own engines and customers engines while trying to save customers engines, it happens, mechanical parts fail, in the end we as owners have to decide how much hype, customer satisfaction, and failure rate we are willing to live with. Personally I pulled a bearing that was perfectly good with a reported less than 1% failure rate to lose sleep over a bearing with an unknown failure rate with no real world guarantee. Personally if I could go back in time I would have checked my dual row in the car, and left it there... But alas I have made my bed and now have to lie in it.. Wish me luck.

 

Pretty much sums up exactly why I´m doing the same on my car at the moment. Just one question though: Is it really possible to inspect the IMS bearing fully when still in the car?

 

This is exactly why I haven't replaced the IMS on my car. I have an early 99 C2 and have had no issues at all with this. Heck I've had my car in the shop for a number of other issues recently, but none are related to the IMS.

 

You can't fully inspect the bearing without actually dissecting it. But you can do a very thorough inspection by removing the outward facing seal, and using an inspection camera or mirrors and flashlights. Bearings in general have a "feel" when they are going out. But looking for worn races/journals, pucking on surfaces, and excessive play can tell a big story. Using a pick to check lateral play on the cage etc can all be done with the bearing in the car.

 

I am also quite interested in the EPS solution. For many of your reasons you state. the only thing holding me back is the way it is oiled. is it really necessary to put a hole in the flange? My situation is a little different as i have a 02 single row on 67k miles, and the clutch i think needs to be replaced. Some local indys here in london will not install any IMSB solutions, others are installing the old LN solution.

Having also owned a RX7 the 996 issues dont seem that bad. it just isnt as certain with what you should replace with upgraded parts.

 

I will offer only one caveat to the use of the notched oil feed, which I've mentioned before. The oil being supplied to the bearing is coming directly from the oil pump which is the only part in the entire engine that does not get filtered, cooled oil. I would recommend that along with the modification to the oil pump shaft, one puts in the full-flow oil filter adapter, so that all the oil from the engine is filtered at least once per cycle through, and there's no more oil bypassing the filter.

 

I have also opted to install the LN no bypass filter. Although.. I am not fully familiar with the oil bypass and when it chooses to bypass, I can only imagine that would occur if the oil change interval was extended or ignored?

 

In my best estimation the EPS bearing could survive with just the oil bath as this is how the LN bearings are cooled and oiled. I know the Rollers have more surface in friction although I don't think this would out work the oil in that area. I have decided to install the kit as intended and let the cards fall where they may.

All the talk about unbalancing the IMS, pressure pushing the chain gears off all seems a little extreme to me.. My IMS shaft was full of oil on the stock bearing, the LN original kit has no seals on the bearing at all..

 

According to EPS/Vertex and other Roller IMS bearing vendors, the supplementary oiling is not essential. However, their technical credentials and credibility are questionable. We recently discussed this in another thread. On any Roller bearing issues, RND would be a more credible source of info.Their product has no supplementary oil feed.
The alternative (theoretical)oil feed would be a Roller IMSB kit with DOF like Pedro's.You can buy it w/o a bearing and supply your own(NUP204?).Ask Pedro? He is a very pleasant fellow.
http://www.pedrosgarage.com/Site_2/TechnoFix_DOF.html

 

I did the same. I searched extensively and couldn't find any reference to failures related to the EPS kit. I chose it based on the lack of negative things said about it... I could not find a single reported failure and the price seemed right. The main question for me was surrounding the bearing's thrust load capacity. But in this application, the bulk of load seems to be centrifugal and thrust seems to be less of a focal point.

My 94k mile bearing came out in perfect condition and the new bearing has been doing fine for 1300 miles thus far. I have not noticed any apparent changes to the engine's oil pressure values since the hole was punched in the IMS cap to allow the direct oil feed. Engine runs smooth as silk (chain tensioner pads were changed too) and I couldn't be happier.

Seems to be a very good product, being sold at a very good price, with minimal self-promotion from Vertex/EPS. I'm a big fan of quiet confidence, and I haven't seen EPS/Vertex on any of the common forums trying to push their products and I searched high and low to find reported failures of this bearing and came up with nothing derogatory from an acutal end-user. There does not seem to be a need for them to be online defending their products. The seem to sell plenty.

In this day and age, that speaks volumes to me as an EPS bearing failure would be impossible to hide from the internet. So far.... I'm thrilled and can't help but recommend this product. I drive my car with considerablly more peace of mind than before and was able to use the money saved ($449 for EPS bearing kit vs. $800+ for LN's solution) to pay for my clutch kit and a few other new bits. If my opinion of this product changes, I'll be back to let readers know that too. But so far, so good...

 

My instinct is that in a dual-row engine with 108K on it, any of the ball or cylindrical retrofits would probably last the probable remaining life of the engine. That is, if there is no debris in the engine that could damage an open bearing, and if the retrofit is properly installed.

 

I would take this a step further and suggest that any 996 that has over maybe 70K miles on it with no issues would be just fine with about any bearing you install. I am assuming, of course, that the bearing you remove is in good condition at the time of the replacement. I went with the RND to get the roller bearing and I don't understand the value of the DFO since the bearing is submerged when the engine is off and surrounded by oil mist when it is running.

 

I went with the EPS Bearing as well. The cost was a large factor in my decision however, I was sold on the cylindrical bearing as a reasonable option based on my experience with my KTM LC4. KTM had a issue with premature ball bearing failure on their crankshaft. The solution was replace it with a roller bearing. Here's a quick write-up.

http://advrider.com/index.php?thread...-how-to.73558/

 

Good post, but I don't think it adds much to this ongoing decade-plus controversy. My local indy, who I respect very much, uses the EPS when he does engine rebuilds. My '99 Boxste' has 164,000 very abusive miles on it, original IMSB, lots of track time. Maybe it will implode this weekend at the Chuckwalla raceway, maybe not. Seems to me that as long as you don't go the KK route and build your own IMSB, the vast majority should be fine with whatever option he, she, or he-she chooses..

 

cuda, who is your local indy? i'm close by...just for future reference-

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