jdcorbitt3

I just bought a 2003 Boxter with a blown engine. I sounds like it threw a rod. there is a hole in the top middle of the case. It looks like a used 2.7 goes for about $5500 and a 3.2 goes for about $6500. Searching the forum, i have seen where some are putting 996 3.6l engines in them. I am looking for input from those who have put different engines in the Boxter. I am also considering putting a 20b rotary in there. I see some have put an LS3 engine in a 996. Does anyone know if that has been done to a Boxter?

John

Byprodriver

I have a 2000 Boxster S I bought 8 years ago. 2 years ago I rebuilt the engine with bigger pistons & cyl sleeves to increase displacement to 3.6L, IMO the Boxster S is the funnest driving experience available at any price if you like cornering fast. To circumvent the Porsche engineering with a different engine (nonPorsche) will alter this driving experience & kill resale value. So I recommend you install a 2003- 2004 Porsche engine the bigger the better. Staying with the same year as the car insures no cumputer campatability problems.

jdcorbitt3

So a 3.6l 996 engine should be plug and play with the wiring harness. I read somewhere reprogramming the ecu, but could I just get a 996 ecu with the 996 engine and plug it in?

This is also an automatic, so I am not to interested in getting crazy with it. My brother in law and I partnered in it together. We both prefer a manual gearbox and if it was a manual, I would get a little crazy with it. As for the other engines I mentioned, they weigh the same as the 2.7 so cg and polar moments would remain the same. Power and torque would go up considerably.

John

CW-VIESOCK

Contact Jake Raby at Flat 6 Innovations. He may be able to save the blown engine and increase displacement. For roughly $23k, he can transform your car into a real thoroughbred, a car worth many times its resale value in terms of driving pleasure. Transplanting a 996 engine is not as unproblematic as some will have you believe. If your engine is toast, Jake may have a built m96 3.4 or 3.6 for sale. If you stay with a 986 engine, IMO, you will end up a happier Boxster owner.

The engine you have is Jake's specialty. He builds them to be nearly indestructible. http://www.flat6innovations.com/home

Work from Flat 6 Innovations is not cheap and not quick but as "they say", you get what you pay for. It is better if you only pay once.

Byprodriver

2002-2004 3.6 will plug & play with no modifications but you will want to reflash the original ECU with the 3.6 tune for more power. You want to use the original ECU since it also controls instrument panel.

P.S. the 3.6 intake manifold is about a inch taller so you have to lower engine mount or use the Boxster manifold.

66mustang

I have been in a 986 with a 3.6l. Holy crap that car is fun

BPG_Austin

http://www.precisionchassisworks.com...onversion.html

John, it seems like you're not a purist if you're considering a non Porsche engine swap. I like this idea a lot. He used to post here with updates but I don't think he's active on RL any longer. (?) Just another idea, and I'm sure a lot more work than any porsche swap.

jdcorbitt3

I like the Flat Six Inovations concept. If this were a manual gearbox S, I might consider them as an option. This is a street car that we probably won't keep.

I am a semi purest as most on this forum, in reality are. Most on this forum, as well as the other car forums I visit "mod" their car, ie pss10s for shocks, FVD tunes ect. When we find something that works better than factory, there is a chance it will wind up in our cars. Porsche is famous for building amazing engines. They, however fell short of the mark during the years they built this generation of cars. A 27% failure rate is unacceptable. What if the plane you were on had 1/100 of this failure rate. The FAA would put out an emergency airworthiness Directive and ground all aircraft with that engine installed in it.( back in the 90s there was a Porsche powered Mooney). Mazda had a 1% failure rate on the latest rotary so the extended the factory warranty to 8 years or 100,000 miles. I would have thought Porsche would have done something similar with these cars. Therefore I consider the LS1 or the 20b rotary a "mod" to the car, as it upgrades the reliability and performance of the car. There. Would no reason to consider this if my car were a 997 or even a 987, as Porsche solved the problem in the new engines.

All considered, it our decision, since this is an automatic, we will go the way of a factory engine, since it will be sold in the future to be replaced with a manual gearbox S model.

John

jdcorbitt3

What about a 01 or 02 2.7? Can I bolt on the throttle by wire from my 03 engine and put the older 2.7 engine in there. I realize a small power loss but this is an auto and maximum HP is not a priority.

John

mikefocke

I'd love to know where you plucked that figure of a 27% failure rate from.

I'd guess the failure rate is less than for the 20b from all the smokers I see in my travels.

http://sites.google.com/site/mikefoc...ngine-is-blown

jdcorbitt3

I got that from someone on one of the many phone calls I have made. That number includes the warranty replacements. I talked with someone at flat six Inovations said the failure rate is more like 10%. That sounds like a more real number to me. I still consider it an unacceptable number.

fivepointnine

I would put the actual failure rate probably closer to 2-5% remember, there were almost 200k 986 boxsters made and you only here about the failures on the forums, I can look at my local craigslist and see over 100 boxsters for sale with about 40% of them over 100k miles.

jdcorbitt3

It turns out the oil is coming from a hole in the timing chain cover. I drained the oil and found no metal in it. I think the ims bearing and the crank are ok. I have read about timing chain tensioners failing on older engines. Could that be the case on is newer engine? Also can I replace the tensioner without pulling the engine out?

John

jdcorbitt3

I just hooked up to an OBD2 and it has 6 pending codes, which tells me the guy did not run it long much after the bang. The codes are P0344, P0300, P0301,P0302,P0304,and p0303 in that order. I am hoping the timing didn't jump enough to hit a valve.

John

racer

Not sure what the prospects would be of selling your mod. I would think most modern Porsche buyers would prefer a Porsche motor (whether stock 2.7, an S or a 996 upgrade) vs a sbc or rotory swap.

Since you mention this is a "shared" car for a short term ownership, a used Boxster or 996 motor would be the best. 996's came with TIPS too. Infact, 300hp with a TIP can be quite nice.