An engine’s front and back are traversed by a geared shaft called the Porsche IMS, or intermediate shaft. By means of the crankshaft’s mechanical revolution, it indirectly drives the camshafts on either side of the engine. The issue was not with the shaft itself. Since the 911 has existed, the shaft design has been used, and it has been successful as a component of the flat-six engines for which the Porsche is famous. However, the sealed cartridge-style ball bearings that support the IMS were the source of the IMS issue that existed previous until 2009.
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How to Determine If Your Porsche’s IMS Bearing Is Failing
IMS bearing failure is a problem that affects Porsche vehicles quite frequently. The intermediate shaft, which runs the length of the engine, is supported by the IMS bearing (also known as the intermediate shaft bearing). In most Porsches, the issue is not the actual intermediate shaft. The infamous engine issues that beset this antique automobile brand are caused by the IMS bearing.
The IMS bearing in your Porsche could break down from regular wear and tear. However, mechanical errors account for the majority of this feature’s failures. Due to their older designs, the Porsche models 986, 987, 996, and 997 are more vulnerable to IMS bearing failure.
Lack of lubrication causes the bearing to repeatedly overheat, which eventually leads to IMS bearing failure. The only real defense against this is to get your automobile serviced on a regular basis by qualified mechanics and to get an oil change every two years.
IMS bearing failure may not be completely preventable, but any mechanic with expertise in Porsches will be able to spot any little details that might point to this system malfunctioning. To avoid a complete failure, they will give you advice and make improvements while conducting inspections.
Which Porsche models are susceptible to IMS bearing failure?
All Boxster, Cayman, and 911 vehicles from MY1997 to MY2008, with the exception of Turbo, GT2, and GT3 variants, are susceptible to IMS bearing failure.
But over time, the types of bearings utilized changed, and some of them were more likely to fail than others. According to statistics, the Boxster 986 and 911 models built between model years 2000 and 2005 are the most likely to experience IMS bearing failure, whereas the odds are extremely low for a Boxster 987 or Cayman built after a stronger bearing was introduced in late 2005.
In terms of mileage, there is no clear trend in the failures; some owners were unfortunate enough to encounter IMS issues at less than 20,000 miles, while others assumed they were safe only to have the bearing fail at 130,000 miles. In summary, you should be aware of potential issues if you now own or intend to purchase one of the versions with the weaker bearing that were in use from 2000 until late 2005.
The base engine (3.6) bears the designation “M96,” and depending on your engine number, you may have the smaller IMS or the revised bigger bearing:
Engine (3.6) number M96/05 69507476 has the larger updated IMS bearing, while Engine (3.6) number M96/05 69507475 has the smaller IMS bearing.
The “S” Engine (3.8) is designated “M97” and features a choice of a smaller or bigger upgraded IMS bearing:
Engine (3.8) numbers beginning with M97/01 68509791 have the larger updated IMS bearing, whereas Engine (3.8) numbers up to M97/01 68509790 have the previous IMS bearing.
Porsche stopped utilizing the IMS bearing in what year?
The IMS (middle shaft) of an M96 or M97 engine is supported by a sealed ball bearing. the bearing installed on the intermediate shaft by
Porsche offers an interval, replacement process, or replacement IMS bearing for
It was not able to replace or upgrade the original factory IMS bearing until LN Engineering.
inquiries to find out all there is to know about intermediate shaft bearings
and why the best IMS bearing Retrofit and Solution products are those made by LN Engineering
What occurs if the IMS bearing breaks?
The internals of the engine are typically polluted with debris as a result of an IMS bearing failure, necessitating the engine’s removal, rebuilding, or replacement. Extreme failures might impair cam timing, resulting in valve-piston impact and the necessity to rebuild or replace the complete engine.
What model year Porsche has an IMS issue?
The intermediate shaft bearing, commonly known as an IMS bearing, has a significant failure rate in the Porsche 911 and Porsche Boxster from model years 1997 to 2005. Its build and design cause the bearing to prematurely fail, which causes a catastrophic engine failure.
Why do IMS bearings fail?
The majority of Porsche IMS bearing failure situations are caused by a combination of factors that eventually lead to the bearing’s disintegration. Normal wear and tear is a contributing factor, but that is not always the case. When a heavy load and insufficient lubrication combine to create overheating, it is one of the main causes of bearing failure in the IMS. Pits are left behind as a result of friction and fracture caused by the overheated metal in the bearing. These pits exponentially speed up the cycle of wear and tear, leading to early IMS bearing failure.
What does it cost to replace an IMS bearing?
Thousands of independent technicians advocate IMS Retrofit ceramic hybrid ball bearing as the best preventive treatment because it is the only long-term fix for IMS bearing issues in M96/M97 engines. IMS Retrofit replacement bearings typically cost more than $4,000 in labor and materials, but they can be installed at the same time as the clutch. Compared to the price of rebuilding or replacing the entire engine, this is a relatively low expenditure. The cost of this repair should be weighed against the minimal likelihood that an IMS breakdown will occur in an older Porsche. You might decide it is worth the risk if you carefully evaluate the possibility of a future failure and compare it to the cost of an IMS Retrofit bearing. This preventative procedure, however, may very well be a worthwhile outlay to avoid future harm and larger spending in the future if you are worried about the health and well-being of your Porsche.
Do the Porsche 997’s IMS suffer problems?
IMS (intermediate shaft) bearing failure in some 997 production cars has recently put Porsche in the spotlight, but new research suggests that there may not be as many issues as first believed.
What indications point to an IMS bearing failure?
There are three warning signals that a bearing is failing: finding metallic debris in the oil filter while doing an oil change; discovering an oil leak at the rear of the engine; or beginning to hear metallic and knocking noises coming from the back of the engine.
Why does the Porsche bore score?
The main factor for wear or bore scoring is a lack of cylinder and piston lubrication. All street-legal Porsches require 91 octane gasoline as the minimum grade.
When did Porsche experience engine issues?
The dreaded intermediate shaft (IMS) bearing failure is the most noticeable and well-publicized problem you’ll encounter on the used market. An IMS bearing failure can result in a loss of the engine timing, which would completely destroy the engine. A Porsche engine replacement is not inexpensive, as you might expect.
The M96 and M97 flat six-cylinder engines used in 911s, Boxsters, and Caymans between 1997 and 2008 frequently experience IMS bearing failure.
However, the 996-era Porsche 911s and 986 Boxsters experienced the most significant IMS bearing issues up to 2006. Despite the significantly lower IMS bearing failure rate in the later year samples, it is still feasible.
Before buying a car, it’s crucial to check the VIN and service records. It is best to budget for an urgent replacement of the IMS bearing if you locate a car in this time frame that you are interested in purchasing. It might cost up to $2,500 to have an IMS bearing replaced by a skilled mechanic.
The cost of replacing an engine, though, can be more than triple that. As a result, it is imperative to replace the bearing before anything else.
You would be hard-pressed to identify any significant failure areas of Porsche flat engines if the age of IMS bearing problems were excluded. Given their great performance, Porsche engines are known to be remarkably durable whether they are new or old.
Some more recent models hardly ever have “bore score,” which is the engine cylinder walls scraping together as a result of inadequate lubrication.
However, if a Porsche has been well maintained, you won’t likely encounter any significant problems.