How many have NOT changed IMS bearing on their 1997-2000 Boxster? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

Meat Head · 03-27-2013, 02:42 AM

Like every other Porsche owner I'm concerned about IMS failure. I by no means am a expert on this topic but from the information that I have gathered the 1997-2000 Boxster 2.5 engine has a double row bearing system. Though this system is flawed, they seem to be much less likely to fail. I'm asking all early Boxster owners on this forum to give their experiences/opinions on the subject.

Most importantly I would like to know if you have or have not changed out your IMS bearing?

How many miles on car before you replaced bearings?

If you have not changed your IMS bearing how many miles do you have on your Boxster now?

Please state the..........Year of Boxster,.............Motor size,...........Number of miles,.............Any other info you feel is pertinent.

kjc2050 · 03-27-2013, 03:38 AM

Dude: Seriously. What do you hope to accomplish with this post? It looks like you got a great deal. You've already gotten a lot of good advice. Polling the handful of owners who'll respond to this additional post will change nothing. Your options:

Drive the car, enjoy it, save your money, and do the IMSB in another year or so.

If you can't sleep at night because you're worrying about the IMSB, sell the car.

Finally, look at this: Porsche Boxster Reliability

Meat Head · 03-27-2013, 04:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kjc2050

Dude: Seriously. What do you hope to accomplish with this post? It looks like you got a great deal. You've already gotten a lot of good advice. Polling the handful of owners who'll respond to this additional post will change nothing. Your options:

Drive the car, enjoy it, save your money, and do the IMSB in another year or so.

If you can't sleep at night because you're worrying about the IMSB, sell the car.

Finally, look at this: Porsche Boxster Reliability

What is your problem!! Are my threads taking up to much space on your computer lol. I'm just trying to gain every bit of info I can. That is what these forums are for. There are all types of people talking about failures of the IMS bearings, I just want to hear a few that are not having problems. Negative always gets more attention on the internet. I'm sorry if you don't like my threads, my suggestion........don't read or post in them.

southernstar · 03-27-2013, 04:46 AM

I have a 2000 Boxster 2.7 (therefore unsure if double or single row bearing) with about 56,000 miles (92 Km) and the original bearing. I will change it, but not until the clutch needs replacing. Initially I was worried after reading of the various IMS bearing failures, but have decided to enjoy the car, change the oil every 4000 miles, check the filter for flilings and debris (next one is due in the next couple of weeks). Oh, and I have purchased a magnetic drain plug.

Brad

oc-boxster · 03-27-2013, 07:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meat Head

What is your problem!! Are my threads taking up to much space on your computer lol. I'm just trying to gain every bit of info I can. That is what these forums are for. There are all types of people talking about failures of the IMS bearings, I just want to hear a few that are not having problems. Negative always gets more attention on the internet. I'm sorry if you don't like my threads, my suggestion........don't read or post in them.

the issue is that people who have not changed their bearing, didnt do so because they know there is not an issue. I was going to chance it and leave mine alone, but my 2002 needed a clutch and when it was all apart, my cover was leaking badly and the bearing in the 3rd stage of failure, there was absolutely no symtoms of this and it is not an item you can easily inspect and make a decision on, it seems you are a bit like me and more on the nervous side, so save some money and just change it, i have enjoyed my car alot more since i had it done. ask yourself, if money were no object when it comes to your new car, would you change it? your low mileage puts you in a higher risk of issues with seal leaks.

oc-boxster · 03-27-2013, 07:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meat Head

What is your problem!! Are my threads taking up to much space on your computer lol. I'm just trying to gain every bit of info I can. That is what these forums are for. There are all types of people talking about failures of the IMS bearings, I just want to hear a few that are not having problems. Negative always gets more attention on the internet. I'm sorry if you don't like my threads, my suggestion........don't read or post in them.

the issue is that people who have not changed their bearing, didnt do so because they know there is not an issue. I was going to chance it and leave mine alone, but my 2002 needed a clutch and when it was all apart, my cover was leaking badly and the bearing in the 3rd stage of failure, there was absolutely no symptoms of this and it is not an item you can easily inspect and make a decision on, it seems you are a bit like me and more on the nervous side, so save some money and just change it, i have enjoyed my car alot more since i had it done. ask yourself, if money were no object when it comes to your new car, would you change it? your low mileage puts you in a higher risk of issues with seal leaks.

Franco · 04-12-2013, 05:24 PM

1997 with 100,000 KM. put in new clutch, flywheel and RMS last week mechanic said everything else was OK.

enjoy the summer...

cardiffgiant · 04-13-2013, 05:34 AM

I picked up a 2002 S at the end of the summer last year. I am taking it out of storage tomorrow and then have an appointment to have the LN bearing done the second week of May.

keysguy · 03-27-2013, 03:41 AM

I have just over 50K miles on my 2000 Boxster and have not changed it. When I have the clutch done I will have it done. I DO NOT want to start a war on this board and everyone has their own opinions. From my research the rate of IMS fails is about 5%. (again this is my personal research and talking to MANY others, including experts not associated with this board or companies that sell IMS kits.) Some on this board believe that every car is a time bomb waiting to go off. This is simply not the case. I've read your other posts and the fear that you have, we've all been there wondering if we made a bad choice in cars. My personal advise is run your car as often as you can, try and avoid idling for long periods of time, change the oil often and enjoy the car.

Keysguy

Sunsport · 03-27-2013, 05:08 AM

2000 Boxster S 3.2 6spd
178,000kms
Original IMS bearing (as far as I know)

ProjectM96 · 03-27-2013, 05:15 AM

2000 2.7L with 94,400 miles. Original IMS. I do my own oil changes and I see no evidence of IMS failure in oil filter or magnetic oil drain plug. So I am confident it will never happen.

Perfectlap · 03-27-2013, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ProjectM96

2000 2.7L with 94,400 miles. Original IMS. I do my own oil changes and I see no evidence of IMS failure in oil filter or magnetic oil drain plug. So I am confident it will never happen.

A failed IMSB will generally only leave evidence as it's actually failing. So while checking the filter for cracked peppercorn sized fragments is a good practice to keep, it's not an early warning device. More like morning after pill. That's what the LNE Guardian is for. Otherwise you have to be lucky enough to be checking your oil filter at exactly the right time. It could easily fail in between oil changes with no warning whatsoever.

Also, with a 2000 you don't know if you have the more robust dual row bearing or the single row until you crack it open. And from my understanding Porsche weren't consistent about who got what in 2000.

Meat Head · 03-27-2013, 04:31 PM

Great news for the double row IMS bearing engines! There is a new thread on this site that states Porsche has released the percentages of IMS failures. Porsche states that less than 1% of the double row IMS bearing engines have failures. Does anyone know the validity of these statistics?

If these stats are true it makes me feel SOOOOOO much better!!!! I will still change my IMS bearings when I replace my clutch but not sooner.

This information makes me want to :dance:

paintboy · 03-27-2013, 05:32 AM

1998 2.5 with 78K. 100% original. Not worried, but I do keep a credit card with a $15,000 limit ready....

Mark_T · 03-27-2013, 05:44 AM

99 Boxster, 124000km, magnetic drain plug, zero particles in oil filter. Not worried about the IMS. Might change it when I do the clutch but not certainly not before.

I already changed out a perfectly good water pump because I listened to the fear-mongering. Keep in mind that it is in the best interests of the companies that do IMS remediation work to generate as much hysteria over this issue as possible in order to feather their own nests, and there is no better place to do it than on forums like this. Just sayin'.

steved0x · 03-27-2013, 05:53 AM

I bought a 2000 Boxster S with 103,000 miles on it. It had the double row bearing. Before I took delivery I had the shop that did the PPI install the LN Ceramic bearing for $1300. The clutch and related parts had been replaced a few thousand miles earlier but the previous owner elected not to replace the bearing. It was worth it to me to take that particular worry out of the equation.

I got other quotes that were much higher than $1300 and if I wasn't able to do it for $1300 I am not sure what I would have done. Probably bought the IMS Guardian Jr and installed it myself, and then just kept an eye on it.

For me, having installed the LN Ceramic bearing, I just don't even worry or think about it. And that peace of mind was worth it to me.

If you are a long way from needing a clutch, then maybe the IMS Guardian or the IMS Guardian Jr is the way to go. From my understanding if you catch the bearing failing right away you can replace it before it destroys the engine.

Good luck! I can tell you I am having a blast driving the car and loving it!

Steve

cbbepop · 03-27-2013, 06:09 AM

2001 Boxster S
64XXX miles
3.2L

The only reason I didnt change it yet is quite frankly I don't know if it is single row or double row bearing.
LOL

Prev 2 owners made no mention of IMS issues but the dealer pulled up the cars records according to VIN and said the engine was replaced before in the first year of purchase when the car was still under warranty...hmm

derb · 03-28-2013, 01:24 PM

Model year 1999 (June 1998 build).
139,xxx miles.
Original engine and bearing but many other things replaced.
I've put 81k on it in 7.5 years. Few of those miles were easy ones.
Oil: Motul 8100 5w-40 changed every 10k.

Perfectlap · 03-28-2013, 01:42 PM

^ who are you ordering the Motul from? price?

Meat Head · 03-27-2013, 06:15 AM

This is exactly the info I was looking for! I do think the IMS bearing is a huge issue and needs to be replaced at some point. However, I think it isn't an unreasonable risk to wait until a clutch is needed. It's good to hear from all the Boxster owners that have had good luck with the factory IMS bearings (and how many miles they have on them).

Thanks guys! Looking forward to hearing from more members.