2003 Boxster Engine Blew Up

[beefoodie]

Originally Posted by Gelbster

"I am getting it towed to a Porsche specialist next week"
If you let us know the name of your "Porsche Specialist" , the guys here will let you know if he deserves the title.
The are lots of places that service & repair Porsches. Very few would qualify as both honest & competent M96 experts.M96 is the tech name for the engine your car has. It is significantly different from many other Porsche engines. And it is quirky -hence the need for an M96 specialist ,not just a Porsche specialist.

https://www.yelp.com/biz/euro-spec-motoring-los-angeles?osq=porsche+repair

His name is Jeff and i have been going to him for a year or so.

[Gilles]

His name is Jeff and i have been going to him for a year or so.[/QUOTE]

Good luck, hopefully Jeff will find a failed AOS

[beefoodie]

Originally Posted by Gilles

His name is Jeff and i have been going to him for a year or so.

Good luck, hopefully Jeff will find a failed AOS[/QUOTE]
GOOD NEWS!!!! and Thank you to all of you guys it was an AOS and it cost me 300 dollars!!!! This is the best forum ever and because of you all I made the right decision and not take the other mechanics word.

[Timco]

Originally Posted by beefoodie

Good luck, hopefully Jeff will find a failed AOS

GOOD NEWS!!!! and Thank you to all of you guys it was an AOS and it cost me 300 dollars!!!! This is the best forum ever and because of you all I made the right decision and not take the other mechanics word.[/QUOTE]

Man, no words. Really glad it was AOS and not worse. That's great!!

[beefoodie]

Originally Posted by Smallblock454

Hi,

OK - after some thinking. It may not restart directly after an AOS failure if the engine is hot and the engine has sucked in a huge amount of engine oil. But to get hydro locked, the amount of engine oil really has to be huge

Also if the AOS failed the engine would run rough at idle, because there is a leak in the negative pressure system of the engine case. And if cold it would start maybe badly.

So an easy test would be first to inspect the throttle body. If you find lots of oil in the throttle body that may lead to an failed AOS. Throttle body should be cleaned. Next would be to inspect the AOS (the AOS separates engine oil from intake air) and replace it.

You've said that the car has stand for some years. So maybe the diaphragm of the AOS decomposed while the car was not used for a long time (hope decomposed is the right english term).

Next would be to remove the coil packs and sparks. All sparks should look oily and burned and have a crust. If it's only one spark that looks oily or all sparks of one cylinder bank look oily and the rest looks OK, than it's not a simple AOS problem.

If all sparks look oily and crusted the engine should be turned over without sparks for 30-60 secs so the oil gets out of the cylinders. For a test you can try to clean the sparks with a copper brush – maybe it's better to replace them. Electrode distance should also be checked.

If you have the tools, i would do a compression test at this point (when spark plugs are out) - just to make shure every cylinder works properly.

Than i would drain the oil and check the oil filter. If you find fine metal debree or plastic parts in the oil filter (you have to cut it and roll it out), than there might be another problem.

If there is nothing conspicuous, put a new oil filter in fill up the oil and start the engine. It should run and i would say happy boxstering.

If you find a lot of fine metal debree or plastic parts in the oil filter (you have to cut it and roll it out), than there might be another problem.

In that case there is more than a failed AOS, so you should remove the oil pan and inspect for more debree. If there is more, you have to look where it's coming from. A failed IMS bearing can be the cause for it.

As you can see there are some steps to do to diagnose the reason for the failing. That can't be done in 10 or 15 minutes. So a mechanic will need some time to do it properly. And if it's a failed AOS the amount of money you have to throw into the car is much less than you have to throw in for a new engine. So i would recommend to diagnose everything very properly before doing any investment.

Hope that helps. Good luck!

Regards from Germany
Markus

Markus, you were so right in your diagnosis, its amazing! Thank you for all your tips! My porsche mechanic figured it out quickly

[Gilles]

Originally Posted by beefoodie

Good luck, hopefully Jeff will find a failed AOS

GOOD NEWS!!!! and Thank you to all of you guys it was an AOS and it cost me 300 dollars!!!! This is the best forum ever and because of you all I made the right decision and not take the other mechanics word.[/QUOTE]

Great news!
You should be enjoying your car pretty soon, congratulations!
And you are right, this place rocks!!

[Boxtaboy]

Congrats! You should tell the first shop that you got the repair done to your engine done for just $300, and it wasn't a blown engine.

[Retroman1969]

Fantastic! Congrats!
I think an AOS failure would freak me out at first too because it has such catastrophic-like symptoms.

[Cosmo Kramer]

Great news always happy to hear a story end this way!

[Jorge]

Great news, agreed this forum is a such a great resource for owners!

Makes me wonder though, how many misdiagnosed "IMS failures" might be out there from uninformed automotive professionals.

Jorge

[steved0x]

Great news!!!

[Smallblock454]

Originally Posted by beefoodie

Markus, you were so right in your diagnosis, its amazing! Thank you for all your tips! My porsche mechanic figured it out quickly

Good to hear that your car is back on the road. And thank you beefoodie, but i think your thanks should also go to 911monty, BFeller and JFP in PA who came up with the idea of an AOS failure and especially to JFP in PA who came up withe the idea of a hydroloc. I only put things together.

So happy boxstering again.

Regards from Germany
Markus

[paulofto]

Originally Posted by Jorge

Great news, agreed this forum is a such a great resource for owners!

Makes me wonder though, how many misdiagnosed "IMS failures" might be out there from uninformed automotive professionals.

Jorge

I wonder as well. With all the emphasis on the IMS and not the other modes of failure there may be all kinds of misdiagnosed issues.

[beefoodie]

YES - to EVERY SINGLE person that posted and HELP me out! This was my first time in a forum EVER and i am so glad that I started searching for answers. AGAIN, Thank you ALL!!!!!

[jdlmodelt]

I've seen used Porsche engines on ebay for $3-5k

Originally Posted by Gelbster

Brenda,
I went through the same situation and am your neighbor.You have my sympathy but you really need lots of money to fix the problem,not sympathy!
The best solution(mechanically) is a replacement used engine. Financially that is mad because the total cost ($7000) may exceed the value of your car. I can refer you to a few local engine refitting /repairing places if you wish ?
The problem is that these cars have a diminished used value - partially because of the issue you and I have. So expensive repairs are only justified if money is no object.
Your car is what is called a "Roller" there is a market for them -particularly in Los Angeles.Yours is probably an automatic(?) and not an "S" - so it may be worth approx $3000. Try it on Craigs List ?
This may be a good Forum to ask what you should buy to replace your Boxster if you can tell us what you liked/disliked about it.
I hope this helps you.

[Teddyonine]

Originally Posted by beefoodie

YES - to EVERY SINGLE person that posted and HELP me out! This was my first time in a forum EVER and i am so glad that I started searching for answers. AGAIN, Thank you ALL!!!!!

Glad it turned out so well! ..... This was an interesting thread( with a much better ending than where it started.) so given the ultimate outcome that the issue was a bad AOS, is there a preventative measure that we can take to avoid a similar experience?

[geraintthomas]

Thank 911Monty, he was the one who suggested it

[Jamesp]

Fantastic that it turned out so well!