A way to know if IMS was upgraded
 

I purchased the 1998 2.5l recently. All I know is that it was imported from Germany in 2010, which means there's a slight chance it had the IMS bearing already upgraded by prev. owner (that's unknown to me).
Is there any way to tell if that part is stock without actually removing the clutch?

Without a paper trail, no.

If it was upgraded with the DOF solution, you'd see a tube going from the oil filter to the back of the motor where it mates with the bell housing. Any other upgrade there's no way to tell without taking the clutch off.

;)

What if it's a Tiptronic, and absent the DOF solution? Are there any other indicators that might reveal that the IMS was replaced?

Thanks!

I think I'll start by inquiring at the Porsche Center. If it was replaced there, there would be some service history available. Unless they charge the price of another Boxster for that info.....

The 98 would have had an engine with the first generation bearing. There is a chance the engine was replaced and that replacement engine could have had another generation Porsche sourced bearing. Or some owner could have replaced the original with any number of bearings from any number of sources. And there is no way known to the experts to tell short of pulling the transmission and engine apart.

If it's a Tiprtonic you won't need to remove the clutch! :D

You're brilliant! Maybe you didn't understand my inquiry, as Tiptronic doesn't have a clutch. Next time I'll use multi-colored fonts and in different sizes. ;)

This 👇 🙄

Sorry, I thought you were joking. :o

Here's the serious answer:

AFAIK, If it's a DOF solution, you'd see a tube running from the oil filter to the back of the block where the tranny mates up. Regardless of whether it's a manual tranny or Tip.

I don't know of any other upgrade where you'd be able to tell without dropping the tranny (manual or Tip) or verifying with service history.

JBauer gets it! :)

I'm always picking brains, and thought you might know something I didn't. I'll include a smiley or wink when jesting... thus the crayon reference, lol.

So... I've no jab about "slim pickings".

:D

Have a great day!!! :cheers:

:cheers:

BTW, I'm in the same situation. I have Tiptronic and no way of knowing if the IMS was done.

The cost of doing the IMS is about 1/3 of a junkyard motor. And that's just parts. I have no idea what labor would be if I got in over my head and couldn't do it myself. Not much of an insurance benefit, in my opinion, since the failure rate is about 10%.

If I had a manual tranny, I'd probably plan to do it when the clutch was due.

So, I'll just drive and enjoy the car and if it fails I'll worry about it then.

Also, I'll examine the oil filter for debris when I change the oil.

Best wishes.

Good luck at the dealer. All sorts of assumptions there as the car might have been serviced by an independent mechanic. Also the dealer may or may not give you info based on privacy concerns.

Actually tips have clutch packs....:cheers: