Hi.
I had a previous post to how it felt to have a M97 engine , shall I say "expire" Having an engine in the infancy of a melt down through bore score, was emotionally draining as well as bank account draining as well, but what are the options? I had pulled the plugs, bore scoped it and there it was, bore score #6 cyl For me,options were: being an engine builder myself, there were only a few: pull it out, strip down and rebuild/modify, rebuild stock, or send it out and have it done by a shop or company that has done many many of these. I had never done a Porsche engine, mainly small and big block chevys, fords and a wide horsepower range of heavy duty diesel engines,

The choice for sending it out vs. a shop was tough, because part of me felt like I just gave up. The car would be hard to sell and get any kind of good money , unless it was running like it should. I am not someone to try to sell it to someone not qualified, that would just have a major failure on their part, not knowing what they bought, then come back at me some how, so that was not a thought either.

So for me Flat Six innovations...Jake Raby.. Excellent place to go, great communications with Jake and Jud , and they will answer any, any questions you may have. The money part, goes with the experience, as this is what they do, Porsche engines, only. The engine was sent out, on the date they requested came back exactly when the proposal stated, no ands, ifs, or buts. They provide detailed pictures through out the process as well as documentation, and what is received back is a professionally built engine, that someone took care to go over every detail on it, as I would have myself.

I have 400 miles on it now and it runs like an electric motor, smooth as glass. I will be getting a tune upgrade for it soon, once break in is complete. All possible updates that plague these M97's are upgraded,,or modified Price, I will not say, that is up to who ever calls them about service needed, I elected for a 4.0L upgrade, supplied new starter, alternator , new starter cable ( car has not spun over like that ever) , replace coolant tank, clutch slave, they installed and balanced it with a new clutch . I am a very happy customer.

 

Financially sorrowful, but I am green with envy at your new engine... How much HP does in now generate?

 

Thanks for sharing, I think that a 4.0 is also in my future. I just love my 997 and feel it would bring a lot of character!

 

Right now it has a stock tune. that comes out in another 300 miles

I should be seeing about a 60hp gain, but have to get back to you with specific numbers on hp and torque after break in and on the dyno.

Now 60hp may not sound like much, but a 17% gain over advertised stock is pretty good. I am not going for the "king of of the dyno" numbers, but I wanted a nice moderate gain over stock, good driveability and reliable The car feels a lot smoother, not just placebo smoother. This car would through a missfire code time to time before, very quiet, zero "ticks, clicks," or any noises

 

Glad to hear it turned out good for you, despite the issues you had right out of the gate with your car.

Just curious what the turnaround time was from the time you signed the contract to the time you got your car back? How long did FSI have your car for total?

 

Please keep us updated as you go along. Very interested in performance after break in and new tune load.

 

Well G I G, they driven by schedule, a strict one! The car had a failure in October 2019, like the first week. I had already did some research "in case I ever had a problem" , which I jinxed myself!!?? I received a FSI proposal on Oct 29 2019, with that I would be on schedule, once I signed it and sent 1/3 down. They wanted the engine in by March 1, 2020, with completion and ship date by June 30 2020, which it arrived, on time in a sealed box, bolted to a skid. I did my own remove and re-install, being I am a shop, and was approved by FSI to do so. To me the "R&R" is easy, but not for the faint of heart if you have never done this. Like any engine, there are absolute "must dos". Sorry for the long answer!

PS The failure happened at 68k miles, and I am the second owner. I knew the original buyer for a few years before I purchased the car, which he did not want to sell, but ran into financial problems. I put about 20K on it. It had full service records as well when I bought it

 

997 at 275 - "Right now it has a stock tune. that comes out in another 300 miles
I should be seeing about a 60hp gain, but have to get back to you with specific numbers on hp and torque after break in and on the dyno."

Remember if you want to stay on Jake's good side you need to never talk about (do I even write the words down) - Horse Power - you need to remind people (constantly) that with Jake, it is all about the Q - torque that is. Because torque is what makes the go and I'm sure that 4.0 motor goes like a freight train from 1500 rpm all the way to red line with a torque curve that resembles a pancake.
I bet I might even get an "amen brother" out of Jake
Congrats on the build!!

 

The exact numbers of each I do not know, nor will I speculate . I have an idea, but I’ll leave it up to my engine builder. That is why I put my trust in them as people do when I build engines I have been a mechanic on 2 and 4 cycle Detroit Diesel, Cats and Cummins engines for 35 years and guys love horse power or at least the word and the word torque is somewhat irrelevant or never spoken. The same with hot rodding cars regardless of the make I got you! Of coarse diesel torque vs spark engine torque. No contest!

 

Congratulations on your new motor. Just curious about why you think a tune will make it "better" or what you expect to improve that FSI didn't do already?
As far as the horsepower revelations go, I think i read that Jake doesn't really care what you publicize once the car is in your hands; he just does not care to get into making claims directly out of his shop for other reasons or to start any pissing contests , etc

 

Sorry but I'm not clear on whether the 60hp gain you mention refers to the rebuild alone or the rebuild plus the tune you plan on. I also don't know what you paid for the rebuild but I think I've seen numbers around $25,000. The tune is not that expensive so either way, I think 60hp is a lot of hp for the money. I say that mostly since the Porsche X 51 kit cost around $17,000 and only delivered some 20hp. The X 51 kit doesn't seem to be available anymore so both figures are based on memory and may not be completely accurate. Suncoast only shows X 51 headers available but not the complete kit.

So if the numbers I pull from memory are somewhere close to accurate you spent maybe around $8,000 more than the full X 51 kit cost when it was available but gained an additional 40hp.

 

That's not a bad turnaround. I believe they request the entire car for us simpletons, but that's cool they made the exception for you considering your background and allowed you to ship just the engine.

Regarding the tune, I'm assuming that is a break-in tune and the re-tune will be done once the break-in period is complete? Either way, sounds like a fantastic engine and glad to hear you're enjoying it!

 

Hi sand... the car is a 2006 C4S.. IDK what the X51 package cost back then exactly , and because it is not avail now, don't know what it's calculated cost would be now, 14 years later, and don't care. Your estimates are somewhat correct, but to me there is a bigger picture. A reman Porsche engine is a reman Porsche engine. I don't know the percentage of failed engines out there, just with the M97 series, however, this engine is hand built. It did not have a shelf of crankshafts, rods, pistons, cylinder heads, etc and then assembled. It is a one off rebuild, balanced, all pistons fit to each bore, ported and polished heads, IMS solution etc, a work of art. Yes an engine, but one that is "hand built" It has all the concerns and problems addressed with the stock M97 engines in a 4.0 L package, so that alone is worth it to me. I love my car, it's gong all the way with me.

Horsepower and torque gains: I expect a gain alone by .2L which is 12 cubic inches displacement, and ported heads, etc. How much?? IDK but added with a custom tune (which is yet to be installed) , other members I have chatted with saw a 40-60 hp gain, the torque numbers, were not posted. Yes, mid-range toque, improved, etc.

Once it's installed, I'll follow up with performance and once on a dyno, numbers so there is no BS about it!

hope than answered something, I tend to be long winded

 

Tune goes in a at 500 miles, only a few hundred to go! Great job, and as a shop owner, engine builder myself, was done as I would have done it with one exception...most every single bolt on that engine is new!

 

Who is tuning it?