Is it still worth it?

[Homeoboxter]

Originally Posted by elgyqc

My understanding is that there is no "factory" duel row replacement... you can only buy the IM shaft complete with the bearing, which means splitting the engine cases...

Yeah, I thought the same until I came across this:
https://www.123bearing.com/bearing-BD20-17-A-DDUA17NX01-NSK

Someone else pointed it out for me in a separate thread. This looks like the same exact thing. No need for spacers, just pull the original which usually is in perfect condition at around 100k miles, put the new one in, should be good for another 100k.

[elgyqc]

Originally Posted by Homeoboxter

Yeah, I thought the same until I came across this:
https://www.123bearing.com/bearing-BD20-17-A-DDUA17NX01-NSK

Someone else pointed it out for me in a separate thread. This looks like the same exact thing. No need for spacers, just pull the original which usually is in perfect condition at around 100k miles, put the new one in, should be good for another 100k.

Thanks for the info, that's good to know. Makes replacement of the dual-row simpler, as you mention. Do you know of anyone who has used this bearing?

But it is still not a Porsche factory part... which is likely a good thing ($$$).

[Homeoboxter]

Originally Posted by elgyqc

Thanks for the info, that's good to know. Makes replacement of the dual-row simpler, as you mention. Do you know of anyone who has used this bearing?

But it is still not a Porsche factory part... which is likely a good thing ($$$).

I don`t know of anyone who used this. The original bearing is a special one manufactured by NSK for Porsche. This is exactly the same size, with similar numbers, made by NSK. I don`t think they would manufacture a bearing like this for an application other than the IMS because it has a very unique width with a very uniquely positioned groove. That`s why I think it`s the same exact thing. It`s more robust than the replacement bearings because those are narrower and the two races are closer to each other. Therefore you need a spacer for those to fit. I played a lot with these options when I replaced mine and did a lot of measurements, and finally went with a completely different solution, but I would have bought this if I had known about it.