More IMS thoughts, I came from a different industry but oddly enough I had 35 years experience with the precision bearing that porsche uses in their cars. I find the failure rate very similar in the area that I worked in and Porsche to be the same.
Three things caused the bearings to fail, one; bad installation during the manufacturer of the product. I have a feeling that engines that were build outside of Germany are sub standard. Bearing that could of been damaged in installation would of accounted for the early engine failures of 10,000 miles.
Two; Breakdown of the seals that allow the contamination of the lifetime grease. At this point it only a matter of time before you have
chunks of your IMS bearing swimming in the oil.
Three; Over stress of the bearing, I,E, an over rev from a bad down shift causes huge stress on all engine components of your Porsche. Automatics don't have miss shifts, and I feel that this is why you see less ims failures in this type of car.
What to do, in my case I will change the bearing on my Porsche Boxster every 40,000 miles with a new Intermediate Shaft Bearing (IMS) . This is not crazy, it's a high end sports car, Ferrari's of the same year have their timing belts changed every 30,000 and that runs about $12,000.00.
Which bearing to use, I only trust three Intermediate Shaft Bearings for Porsche, Jakes aluminum Babbitt bearing, the L.N. bearing and the Pelican parts bearing. They all have enough testing to be trusted with way lower failure rate than Porsche.
porsche boxster ims bearing repair install 986 diy tutorial Intermediate Shaft Bearing Replacement and Upgrade (IMS) Step by Step Replacement Guide - MIKE'S SPECIALTY AUTOMOTIVE SERVICE****Specializing in Porsche, IMS bearing installation, basic repairs