JFP, James and others,
I consciously bought a 2004 Boxster with a 'busted/blown' engine as I wanted to start a project to convert it to an Electric vehicle...
Yes, I know it is a big project but I will take my time with it and have already acquired parts on the Electric side of things from another fellow who had converted a 911. Long story...one for another thread that I may start.
I spoke the PO and he indicated that the vehicle died at the traffic light and when he restarted it he heard the metal noise and shut it down and took it to the dealer (Classic IMSB failure sound it seems). The dealer checked it over and told him that they had to do more diagnostic, most likely the engine needs to be replaced, and price for the kit will be between 18K and 24K. PO decided he was not going to do that and took the car back and sold it as-is (which I bought).
After I got the vehicle and reading up about the IMSB failures in Boxsters I (got greedy if you will) thought let me try and see if I can salvage the engine and drive it with the gas engine for a bit to get to know the car before I convert it. Hence my effort and earlier posts.
Thanks for your pointers and I will be careful as I get the engine to TDC, hold it there and remove the IMS flange to see the situation with the bearing. If it is salvageable I will replace the bearing using the right tools.
Having removed the rear parts including the TX, as I looked over the engine, I see that the dealership that the PO took it to have removed and replaced (rnr) the Cam Covers. See attached pics where you can see loose bolts on the Cams and also Coil 1. My questions are these:
-- Is anything missing there as much as you can tell from the pics? In pic 3 are those the Chain tensioners that are protruding down? Are the tensioners (the things we remove to loosend the tension on the Cams/chains) missing? I have to get my bearings properly on the components of the engine...
-- Since I will be getting the engine to TDC to remove the IMSB, does it make sense to remove and reseal the Cam covers at the same time? Or I should handle the two separately? I already have the Loctite 5900 that I bought to reseal the Oil Pan/sump and it works well. I know the tool for locking and holding the Cams are different as stated by some people on the threads...Note there is no oil in the engine at this time and what you see is the residual oil leaking from the engine...
My plan/thought is that if the engine is too much work that I cannot handle as DIY, I will just forget about it and just remove it and continue with my electric project. However I want to do my best and see if I can make the engine work. In the process I don't mind spending some money and my time. I am in no hurry and get to (love to) work on it in the weekends.
Appreciate your review and suggestions...