Autoweek Words on IMS

[Trey T]

We can all agree that, for a very long time, Porsche made a huge mistake of using a roller bearing on the IMS. As someone pointed out to me from this forum that the new 9A1 engine does NOT have IMS; they completely deleted it. This drastic design change made me to believe that they made a serious mistake of using the IMS over decades. Porsche saw the problem and was trying to remedy the bearing problem and I believe the best solution is to delete the IMS to avoid using the roller bearing.

The bottom line to the IMS issue is the pride of a company, there's no question in anybody's mind that placing an intermediate shaft b/t the crank and cams was not the best idea; it maybe a very good idea but not the best! Although Porsche had many reason to use IMS as part of their engine design but overall as a product, it's a bad design when you have catastrophic failure. Porsche should at least honor recalls on engine with 100K miles or less. No company out there with sport cars that I've seen in the last two decades have engine fail like this.

Recalls are recall, it should not factor in the level of efforts required to fix/repair/replace it. Look at the top car maker in the world, Toyota, and they have hundreds of TSB and recalls in the last few decades across Lexus, Scion, and Toyota. They address big and small things.

Originally Posted by nieuwhzn

Considering the serious consequences of an IMS failure this should warrant a recall. However, a recall means that Porsche should have a solution for the problem, which they don't. They have responded to the class lawsuit by offering a 'reasonable solution' that severely limits their responsibilities, which makes it possible for them to make it legally through the lawsuit but also limits their damages. Keep in mind that even when they would have a solution that this would cost at least $1,000 per recalled car, that quickly adds up to a couple of hundred million bucks.
If we would assume that they would be so nice to replace any engine that has had an IMS failure then this would still add up to a couple of tens of millions of dollars. So, if you would be the boss of Porsche, what would you do?

Note that I'm not defending Porsche, I think they are handling this in a despicable way, but that's what you get when bean counters run the show.

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by Trey T

No company out there with sport cars that I've seen in the last two decades have engine fail like this.

do you mean the nature of the failure or the quantity of catastrophic failures?
The latter is nearly impossible to determine because of non-existent complete and reliable reporting.

If anything, its all the other ways that the engine can fail that should be getting more attention since there are no low cost, premptive repairs for those like there is for the IMS bearing. Or that Porsche never stressed the importance of staying on top of the engine cooling with other preemptive repairs and maintenance, or that they recommended oil intervals that many believed were very inadequate. It's like we all spend our time talking about the least likely mode of failure (since it can be addressed).

[thom4782]

The ballpark estimate puts Porsche's image problem in perspective to its business problem.

Imagine if Porsche paid up to fully compensate all those who suffered IMS failures and retrofitted all other Boxsters. The payout would be huge. At $10,000 a replacement and $1500 per retrofit. Porsche would have to shell out over $300 million. That about one-third of 2011 net profit available for distribution to shareholders.

[Trey T]

Isn't $300mil is like chump change for Porsche?

According to their annual report for 2011, they had 1.5 billion in net profit

Originally Posted by thom4782

The ballpark estimate puts Porsche's image problem in perspective to its business problem.

Imagine if Porsche paid up to fully compensate all those who suffered IMS failures and retrofitted all other Boxsters. The payout would be huge. At $10,000 a replacement and $1500 per retrofit. Porsche would have to shell out over $300 million. That about one-third of 2011 net profit available for distribution to shareholders.

...

[thom4782]

1.5 billion in profit with IIRC a bit less than half reinvested in the company and a bit more than half paid to shareholders. So it's not chump change as far as shareholders are concerned.

[Porsche9]

Does anyone have any real data on this IMS issue? How prevalent is the issue? I am looking to buy a S but frankly this issue has put me off somewhat.

[KRAM36]

Originally Posted by Porsche9

Does anyone have any real data on this IMS issue? How prevalent is the issue? I am looking to buy a S but frankly this issue has put me off somewhat.

Depends on the year of the car. Look 3 post up from your post, that's a chart from Porsche. I wouldn't buy one again. Nothing like knowing every time I start the motor I could have complete engine destruction with no warning.

[fatmike]

Originally Posted by Porsche9

Does anyone have any real data on this IMS issue? How prevalent is the issue? I am looking to buy a S but frankly this issue has put me off somewhat.

There is a $2000 aftermarket solution to this problem. IF you think a 12 year old car won't need some mechanical work, then you aren't realistic.

IF you can't afford the $2K, then you shouldn't be buying this car in the first place.

IF you let this minor issue put you off from buying a Porsche, then you are making a mistake.



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[Trey T]

Ideally, these car is for hardcore enthusiast that do the repair themselves or for those that have deep pocket to have a shop work on it. If I were to buy another boxster/cayman (first or second gen), I would need to invest in a car lift before I commit. I would at least inspect the IMSB every other years to ensure that it's working properly.

Working on these car w/o a car lift, mid-engine or rear-engine (911), requires a lot of patience because everything is so compacted and the location of the engine makes it a challege to work on.

Originally Posted by Porsche9

Does anyone have any real data on this IMS issue? How prevalent is the issue? I am looking to buy a S but frankly this issue has put me off somewhat.