986 engine out service time

[kbod]

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[Boxstard]

IMHO you are still guessing what is the root cause and after all those extra work you may still end up with no fixing the very issue you have now. I’d continue investigation until positively ID the issue, then determine extra work while you are there, if any, as you desire. If you are giving up or tired of root-causing it, maybe more reliable and quick fix is to swap out with another running engine, I’d never $3K for a pair of new solenoids at the stealership.

[flmont]

you don't see much talk on those going bad unless you find green chunck's of rubber in either the oil filter or the oil pan as I understand it..I have to pull my engine this fall aswell. for the same job/inspection,...plus you can test those units with a 9 volt battery,.Ive never done it but there is a write up on it..! Frank

[Stl-986]

There is no valve cover gaskets. The cam cover uses a sealant, but no gasket....and it isnt RTV.

Echo the above, dont thing rebuilding is going to really tell you what the issue was. Suspect when you drop the engine you will do other work that will be the resolution. Engine will either be in time or not. You dont want to know what will happen when it isn't.

Dont get me wrong...been fighting very, very, very similar issue. Mine I believe is the actuator since the solenoid has already been replaced. Suspect your issue is that the engine is just enough to throw your deviations out, you have a vacuum leak and/or dme/wiring issue. I'm sending my car off to KC this weekend so someone else can just fix it for me, I'm tired of not having it run right.

[kbod]

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[Stl-986]

I'm still going to rub you on gaskets....might be symantics, but there aren't gaskets Dont know the shop you are referring to but without posting what the actual deviations are at idle and at 1700/3000 rpm I think you are going to tear it apart and not accomplish much.

Before you do anything I would record what your deviations are at idle & the rpms. If you have durametric, this is easy as it will export it all to a csv/excel file. I would gather rpm, engine temp, deviations & angles and misfire counts on all cylinders. You will need a starting to point anyway.

You should also capture your vacuum readings.

Cam actuation pads generally will wear at the same rate all things being equal and yes if you do 1 side you should do the other. Yes it is easier to do with it out of the car.

After you gather all the info I would drain the oil, check it for debris, check the filter and also drop the oil pan.

Not saying you shouldn't do it, just saying you should have more data. Timing the engine in the car isn't that difficult, much easier then dropping the engine & transmission, just a pain in the butt.

Which bank have you already done the cam pads & which bank is having the misfires? Bank 1 is pretty easy to do if you can get the exhaust out of the way. Bank 2 is harder but still possible.

Everything you describe is pretty spot on with my 2000 and I know the issue is the actuator. Pads need to be done but my issue is almost 90% certainly the issue that is causing it all to happen.


Does your oil light come on when coming to a stop right before it dies on you?

[Stl-986]

Of course, it's your car & money but if your ims hasn't been an issue that would be a waste of money. RMS...yea, it's cheap & easy.

Look through my post on driving it off a cliff. good info in there.

Also a smoke test wont always reveal a leak. My vacuum reservoir had a crack that only showed up when there was vacuum and never when there was pressure. They typically crack on the underside which wont show in a smoke test only when there is vacuum.

[kbod]

Originally Posted by Stl-986

I'm still going to rub you on gaskets....might be symantics, but there aren't gaskets Dont know the shop you are referring to but without posting what the actual deviations are at idle and at 1700/3000 rpm I think you are going to tear it apart and not accomplish much.

Before you do anything I would record what your deviations are at idle & the rpms. If you have durametric, this is easy as it will export it all to a csv/excel file. I would gather rpm, engine temp, deviations & angles and misfire counts on all cylinders. You will need a starting to point anyway.

You should also capture your vacuum readings.

Cam actuation pads generally will wear at the same rate all things being equal and yes if you do 1 side you should do the other. Yes it is easier to do with it out of the car.

After you gather all the info I would drain the oil, check it for debris, check the filter and also drop the oil pan.

Not saying you shouldn't do it, just saying you should have more data. Timing the engine in the car isn't that difficult, much easier then dropping the engine & transmission, just a pain in the butt.

Which bank have you already done the cam pads & which bank is having the misfires? Bank 1 is pretty easy to do if you can get the exhaust out of the way. Bank 2 is harder but still possible.

Everything you describe is pretty spot on with my 2000 and I know the issue is the actuator. Pads need to be done but my issue is almost 90% certainly the issue that is causing it all to happen.


Does your oil light come on when coming to a stop right before it dies on you?

Ok, I am well aware the head sealant is Loctite 5900, I have a couple tubes of it from taking off the valve cover/cam holder. The camshaft deviations are over the alloted 6 degrees on bank 2 which I haven't even touched. while you are right about the smoke test not always being indicative, at the same time I had a porsche specialist look at all my engine readings and come to the conclusion it is a mechanical timing issue. Makes sense too, After all, when i first got my p1341 the car would not stall, it would run amazing and drive great then randomly at a stoplight It would idle a little rough and throw the check engine light. After replacing my solenoid and actuator with a used unit all hell broke loose with issues and stalling issues and it got worse rather than better, This led me to the conclusion that somehow and some way the job was not done right replacing the variocam actuator. and given my bank 2 deviations are also beyond spec it just makes sense to drop the engine to do it all at once and have a fresh chance of timing the engine right, I am in no way a professional but ive done numerous timing chains on bmws and other cars and in the boxster I just cant seem to get the riming right with the engine in the car. there isnt room for me to see whats going on, and even now that I seemed to nail the timing its still not running right. The o2 sensor values are valid, the maf sensor values are valid, and even if there was a vaccum leak it is sure as hell not enough of a leak to cause the car to run and stall like this because if it was id have found it with smoke tests or running values. as for the ims bearing, you are right. statistically the chances are very small but at the same time the assurance it would give me that my engine wont blow up without warning is defiantly worth 700$, especially when im already taking out the engine, I just want to enjoy this car without being scared to floor it. I can get back to you with my camshaft deviations since I havent even touched the car for a few months now since I have been busy with other project cars but from what I remember I just think its a bright idea to give this car a fresh start. As for the actuator on bank 1, yeah i used a used low milege unit which is probably no better than the origional one so if you know where to get one that would be great as im not trying to spend 1,400 on a dealer one, also does it make sense to change the variocam solenoid on the other side or is this just a fluke failiure that is unlikely to happen again?

also, with my scan tool my camshafts are changing timing at exactly 2700 rpm with no latency so i dont even know if my actuator is bad, maybe its just the engine not being in time due to the other side having worn pads and a improper timing job by my part who knows. I want to conduct a compression test to make sure i didnt bend a valve even though the car makes plenty of power and has no blow by.

[kbod]

Originally Posted by Stl-986

Of course, it's your car & money but if your ims hasn't been an issue that would be a waste of money. RMS...yea, it's cheap & easy.

Look through my post on driving it off a cliff. good info in there.

Also a smoke test wont always reveal a leak. My vacuum reservoir had a crack that only showed up when there was vacuum and never when there was pressure. They typically crack on the underside which wont show in a smoke test only when there is vacuum.

heres my old thread (s) covering this issue

http://986forum.com/forums/boxster-general-discussions/79253-2001-boxster-camshaft-issues-3.html

http://986forum.com/forums/performance-technical-chat/78827-986-weird-engine-issue.html