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Perfectlap · 04-20-2010, 10:14 AM

Wish I was that handy. Would have saved myself $6K on just completed major maintenance and repairs*. What do you mean by IMS cover bolts? Did you upgrade the unit with the LN Engineering unit? I just had that done. I drive with much more confidence now and am more popular with the girls.

*Clutch/Flywheel, RMS, IMS uprade, axle boots, alternator, starter, 02 sensors, coolant/brake flush, oil change, fuel filter.

BikerDrew · 04-20-2010, 10:57 AM

I read somewhere (renntech?) that the oem bolts will loosen up over time, fall out or just leak oil, so while I had the flywheel off to do the RMS, I changed the IMS cover bolts. Sunset sold me the parts ( I actually live 30 miles from them) and the new bolts were an upgrade they knew about. I did not have any symptoms, but for $10 in parts, it seemed a no-brainer.

BikerDrew · 04-20-2010, 10:59 AM

By the way, your Recaro seats look fantastic! I hate to ask... but why the change and were they expensive?

Perfectlap · 04-20-2010, 11:36 AM

well being that you're handy you should consider replacing the IMS with the upgraded LN unit. I was following a 996 owner who did this in his own garage without a lift and admitted to never having take apart a trans. He even fab'd up his own RMS tool from plumbing PVC. One of these days I'm going to sign up for some major auto repair training on the weekends.

My seats were only to be used for track and autocross but I liked the way it kept me sitting upright so I kept them in year round. I recently dusted off the stock seats to treat the leather and boy are those comfy. I got the seats second hand from a guy who was buying a 996 Turbo and needed the cash to complete the sale. I think I paid $2K delivered. They were selling for $3500 new at the time. They are snap to install as they use the exact same mounting points and require no extra hardware. The only drawback is that you sit lower so if your suspension is lowered your back will feel it...and parallel parking is a pain because you really can't twist your torso too far. and its a tight fit so if you're out of shape getting in and out will get boring fast.

BikerDrew · 04-20-2010, 04:36 PM

I thought only the 2.7 engine needed the IMS upgrade? After having the whole thing apart to do the clutch and RMS. I am not looking forward to digging deeper for a while.

Thanks for the tip on the seats. I need comfort over style, at my age.

BikerDrew · 04-22-2010, 07:19 AM

OK; replying to myself is well... RE: IMS

I finally did a thourough reading on the Porsche achillies heal. I SHOULD have upgraded the IMS bearing assy while I was there working around it. Doh!

That leaves me with frequent oil changes for now. I changed out my 4000 mile Mobile 1 0-30 to Castrol Syn 5-30 yesterday in fact. I was surprised at how dirty all that oil was. I flushed out the oil system a little by pouring two quart, one at a time, through the engine after a thourough drain interval. This moved quite a bit of old oil out and the final result was clean oil running into the drain pan after about 30 minutes.

I used an oem filter last time and again this time. Maybe an upgrade element or better yet a spin on conversion and a Wix filter whould be a better idea.

I will set aside some time and a few bucks to do this IMS bearing upgrade job.

Thanks for all the input.

Perfectlap · 04-22-2010, 10:12 AM

don't kick yourself for not doing it the first time. At least you have the ability to tackle this job. If I were that useful, knowing what I know now, it would have been the first thing I modified...way before wheels, aero, seats, bla bla. Although this upgrade is only a recent development in Porsche world. I think this fix also makes your car more attractive come resale time. I'm mulling over a C4S for winter duty, if I do go that route (vs just waiting to buy an '09 in a few years) the IMS will be the first thing I do. The car will make a b line directly to my Indy mechanic.