[Perfectlap]

you say the bare minimum of oil changes were done? How many?


Another factor is how often was the car driven. a 12 year old car that saw about 4,500 miles might be good if the mileage came in somewhat frequent and year round trips. Not so great if they came from mostly summer time driving without having the oil changed after the driving season.

Did your PPI include a leak down test? That will tell you more (engine wise) than a visual inspection of just the IMS bearing, which really needs to taken apart to see what's doing (by someone who knows what to look for).