Well, as stated in the last post, I decided to do a quick repair and see if I could save 2nd gear on my Boxster. I bought the car with an issue and spoke with G Box who seemed to think my problem could be possibly solved by their 2nd gear detent. It's supposed to be a quick an easy replacement so I thought I'd see if I was that lucky.... Turns out, I'm not...Or I might be...But I still don't even know actually as I never got the chance to check. When I tried to remove the old detent, it would not come out! I was informed that all it would take would be a magnet, but nope, no detent! So then I tried a Super Magnet but still no detent. I called G Box back. Maybe these guys know Porsche gearboxes (or maybe they don't, honestly, I couldn't even tell) but they sure are short on personality and help. But he assured me it should just come out. And it didn't. Then another call and he said heat it up, so I did but still nothing. Another call, another annoyed G Box guy....But this time he told me to use an easy out to grab the inner recess of the detent so I could grab it and pull it out. So I tried that. For a long time. Like maybe two days. But still no detent. The detent would move up and down slightly but then would stop and not come up any further and out. So another call but now I was having trouble getting ahold of them at G Box. (I think they were avoiding me.) But I did and the guy had no idea why it wasn't coming out.
At this point my only choice was to pull the transmission. I was planning on doing the IMSB since I had just bought the car and did not know its IMSB history and so pulling the tranny, although slightly earlier than intended, was not the worst thing to happen. Nope, the worst was still to come....
Out with the tranny, and just for the detent....Are you impressed with my Block 'O Wood balancing act? Looks horrible but was actually amazingly well balanced.
Even Mom couldn't get it! I'm going to give her GBox's number; that'll show 'em!!!
All cleaned up and nowhere to go! That's life in TN or with a 6 speed Getrag!
So out with the tranny and now with more room to work and better access for both tools and sight, I figured the detent would be out in no time! Well, guess what? NO DETENT!
Well, hello, all you shiny gears!
And yet another call to G Box and the guy says my only choice now is to pull the transmission nose cone and get to the detent from the inside. So, off with the nose cone and out pops the most spread eagle detent anyone has ever seen! I sent pics to G Box but still haven't heard back but since that email was sent in October of 2021 and it's now January 2023, I'm not expecting an answer as to why the detent looks like it does. I guess I'll try another phone call....
And the detent...No wonder it wouldn't come out!
However, I'm sure I caused some or even a lot of that damage to the detent but I suspect it was bent from the beginning and that was the reason it would not come out as it should have. But after trying the easy out for hours, I was getting fed up. And the GBox guy really didn't give too many details. He was more like, "Take off the nose cone. Get it from inside. The end!" So as I was trying to get the detent out, I eventually started trying more twisting and torque as I really wasn't familiar with exactly what was happening inside the transmission and in the process, I heard a distinct crack and clunk which was when I broke the detent selector fork. Luckily it's a cheap replacement part.
But the most concerning discovery was all the debris on the magnet inside the transmission. I've been told this is probably from the sealed pinion bearing inside the tranny. (Gee, why does that sound so familiar??) Yup, you thought your only worry was the IMSB but welcome to the world of the 6 speed Getrag transmission. More sealed bearings and more misery. I was told by GBox that the pinion bearing is only good for about 60k miles and then you need a replacement for the completely reasonable price of $2000-4000 installed! Oh, and you're not dissuaded yet because it's only money? Well, the main shaft is hollow and thus requires a special press which no one has and even if they do, you can only press the bearings on/off twice before the shaft can no longer be used reliably. Reliably? Hell, why even bother throwing that word in at this point?
Grab your debris and face magnetic north, only then will you feel the true wrath of the Porsche 986S ownership experience!
My transmission problems in ascending order: Broken fork, $20; old detent, $175; debris field of bearing goo, $priceless$$$!
Of course, I've talked with a lot of Porsche shops since and most shops tend to find the 6 speed tranny fairly reliable, except for the 2nd gear weakness. So, not sure who to believe: Mr GBox personality or Porsche shops.
Ok, well, I've been told I complain too much about this car. And I do. But I expected more out of Porsche and the other German firms who built this car. Don't get me wrong, it's a great car and I absolutely loved driving it. And I suppose the low purchase prices on them is due in part to the quality issues and problems they have. So, it is what it is but that doesn't mean we have to take it sitting down. And this coming from a lifelong Alfa Romeo owner as well as a Porsche 951 and probably the worst of all, a 16v Scirocco. They all have their problems but the unfortunate part of the 986 is that some of the fixes are just ridiculous. There is no reason some of our parts should cost what they do. And traditionally, aftermarket suppliers undercut OEM prices and everyone wins but some of the aftermarket Boxster suppliers are just as bad. I mean the IMSB folks mostly and others who design and sell tools and specialty parts made for the Boxster. I still think they could lower their prices, sell more, make even more money while protecting the limited supply of great cars in the world. See, everybody wins!
So, that's my story. One day when I'm king, Porsche parts will be free!
More to come, not even half way there yet and by half way, I mean half way to teardown.
Oh, and I missed out on a junkyard 2003 986S transmission last week. I'm still in LA and I'd have to get it to Nashville but details....And for $300 at the pick a part, I couldn't lose. Unless of course I get there and it's already gone, which it was! They even left the engine and just took the transmission, along with the immobilizer, calipers and a few other parts. The engine is still there, having by just the front mount. By the way, I always wondered if the front mount would hold the engine and it does. It's not even tilted as much as you'd expect. I would have thought that the engine would almost completely fall out and tip down but either the AC hoses or other hoses are still holding it or it's wedged in against the body at the top and it's still mostly in place. I wish I could grab it but no time or money right now to deal with it.
Here's a pic:
2003 Boxster S 3.2 Engine hanging by a thread. Notice the transmission thieves use of sawing through everything to take my beloved Getrag! I'm so sad!
More to come with my Boxster and moving onto the engine now while the transmission sits and waits....