If you're in the position as Timco is currently in, it's a no-brainer to me. The trans is out and he has a person to do the work. All he has to do is be patient.

For me, it's a $4,000 cost having the Tiptronic trans, I can't justify it.

The pelican parts bearing is cheaper if money is an issue.

Money not an issue. My question is. Would you spend 20% of the value of your car for a 1% failure rate? Your car has 99% chance of never suffering this failure.

Having said that, if the engine and tranny are out, and I have free labour, I would probably spend a couple hundred dollars on parts.

Unless I missed something this is a 2004 Boxster with a single row 6204 bearing. I bought the Pelican bearing and am running the nut and bolt in my box. Far superior to stock. I did not favor the NSK bearing that came with the kit as it was not fully sealed. I sourced a Nachi 6204-2NSE a fully sealed high temp bearing with Viton seals instead of Buna-N used in the NSK bearing. Or, you might try an S6204 ceramic open bearing, they run about $80 instead of $10, make sure you get Si3N4 (silicon nitride) with a steel race. Search for 6204 bearing and bearing retail sites will come up with what you need for a few bucks. The OEM bearing was nothing special so it's easily replaced with the same or better.

Even on the 97 Base, you should now consider it a maintenance item. Not an end all fix that will make the car last forever, or a reason to immediately stop driving and head to your nearest LN authorized repair shop. Clutch, suspension, tires, etc will all wear out. Most likely you will not let them go until there is a catastrophic failure.
Do the same for your IMS. When the clutch is replaced replace the bearing. Not that big an add-on if the other work is already being done.
I pulled the bearing on two '01 2.7s with about 125K miles. Both were intact dual row, but had lost the grease and had foul smelling oil within the IMS tube. It was just a matter of time (and probably not long) until they started started wearing through the finish on the bearings.

6-7?? For an old roller up here? No way. There just isn't much of a market here in Canada, and if you want to sell it down south, well, there are lots available, so supply vs. demand just isn't there. I'm guessing you don't have collision insurance on your car too? Or any life insurance?
IMS fix is really just insurance - odds are you will never ever use it, but it can be comforting to have. Especially for a car that sits, like most in Canada do over the winter.

D@mn... Now I want to pull out the Pelican bearing I put in and swap it for one of those. Oh well, maybe after I put on 20K miles or so and change out all the chain ramps. :D

Seriously thinking of picking up a spare 2.7 and just rotate it through my 2 cars. Swap one out each year or two, do maintenance and swap it into the next car due.

Ceramic bearing
 

Someone mentioned this, I thought these were considered sub-standard now ??

They are now compared to the IMS Solution from flat6innovations.

Making a few leaps and assumptions. But, I will answer regardless, I have collision insurance, because it was an extra 45$ per year. So for 5 years of ownership 2.5% value of the car. If I could have any major item IMS, etc switched for a valuation of 2.5% I'd doit. but not 20%.

Life insurance is another thing- I don't have any debt, So really not a huge need for life insurance. Life insurance is a financial tool. after that i save money and invest it. Far too many people have way too much insurance. They spend far too much money on premiums. Thus never getting far ahead. When investing those premiums could yield a far larger return.
Via work family receives 2 years salary. So I guess I have a little insurance.
IMO- life insurance is the same as buying lottery tickets, or changing IMS:). I roll the dice I don't need it. But, build for a successful future. If you have a solid foundation to work off of. These other items are unnecessary.

Only buy items I have cash for. Most people will spend far more money in interest payments than life insurance would cover. I made it a life mission to only buy what I can afford. than work hard to pay off debt. Which I did. I will add I'm a simple guy who never made 6 figures in his life. But, always knew how to invest.

I recall reading it somewhere but I don't recall what years are affected (ie: single row vs. double row) with the IMS failure tendency. I own a beautiful 98 Boxster w/78,000 miles.

So does my year have a single or double row IMS?

Also, what's the average life of a clutch? I'm an "easy" driver/shifter and as far as I can tell the clutch on mine is working fine......just curious.

Thanks,
R

Only 100% accurate way to know is visual inspection but your year tends to be double Row
Clutch life is all over the place with so many variables that effect it's life. My clutch is also at 76k miles and it works great. Mid-pedal bite point, no slippage, no smell.
I'm thinking this coming winter may be my time to just bite the bullet, Clutch, IMSB (LN ceramic) RMS.
Car should be some where near 85k miles at that point
+1 on Don't skip IMSB replace now.
Seems like there is time and your trans is out of the way.
I don't understand all this risk management. The part is accessible now, it's a few hundred $$, a little piece of mind and it's definitely a known good afternoon drive killer

I have a 2000 Boxster S 6spd. Does anyone know what bearing I have for that year? Does it go by Vin#? Also, I saw this bearing (97 05 Porsche 911 996 Boxster 986 IMS Roller Bearing Upgrade New Made in Germany | eBay) on ebay. Says it's made in Germany and that shops in Germany use this a lot as a replacement. Any thoughts? Thanks for your help.

The new standard for maintaining our cars?

Oh what we have fallen to...

I didn't realize you had a dual row, but even a dual row will not last forever. Actually when they do fail they cause a lot more damage. I would not ignore replacing the IMS during a clutch job however.

Your mileage sounds pretty good, if the owners changed the oil at least annually you are probably in the clear until your clutch job.

As far as not wanting to spend X% of the car's value. While that sort of thinking sounds rational, it's still a $65K car as far as upkeep. The value of the car is almost irrelevant to the car's needs. If you intend to drive this car in the long-term, or drive it every day, you need to meet the car's needs. Otherwise what's the point of driving a world class sports car that will only have repairs done that represent only a minor part of its purchase price? The x% of car's value mentality really is for Hondas and Chevys.
If buying a $65K car that is out of warranty, requires expensive parts and specialized labor for ~$12-15K was good financial reasoning everyone would have a used Boxster or 996. A used Porsche is more like having swimsuit model for a girlfriend. If she stays around for long, your wallet will be a whole lot lighter.

The answers are no, no, not with a 10 foot pole. The long answer is there are years with mixed production of bearings and engine installation was not recorded by bearing design. The ebay question is more of a personal choice. I did not even look at the ad.

Not me
 

I plan on doing mine myself when I change the clutch out. This will be a huge undertaking and I do not plan on skimping out on a cheap bearing. I love the dual row replacement for my single row in my 2001S but no individual sales on these so I have a several months to find the best an individual can get.

This is the best you can get, period.

Porsche 911 Boxster Intermediate Shaft Bearing Update Kit IMS Solution 996 986 | eBay

http://lnengineering.com/products/ims/ims-solution-for-single-row-ims-my00-05.html


.

I will go for the lower one, I didn't think they sold those to individuals....good news.

Definitely go for the IMS solution. Best choice on the market, hands down. You'll want to pick this up quick as it's not supposed to be available to the general public. ;)