Broken Engine Carrier... Anyone else?
 

Just acquired a very cheap 2000 Boxster S 6 speed. Of course, there's many problems and this Porsche will find itself being not-so-cheap very soon.

This is also my first manual, so I've probably been putting the whole driveline through its paces. I've always had major clunking in 1-2 shifts as well as clunking with acceleration/braking. I was thinking, "Ah, the old engine and transmission mounts are probably worn and my clutch control isn't good enough yet."

I took it to my local Porsche and they did a very surface-level diagnosis. "Fix the MAF then we'll go from there." $350 dollars for that lol

I took it to a local Euro specialist for an in-depth inspection of the whole car (... a post-purchase inspection) and they basically wanted to wash their hands of the car because the engine was falling out and they didn't want that liability in their shop!

I got some QuickJacks and threw the car on. The engine was basically resting on the plastic underbody cover and essentially crushing the radiator hoses.

The carrier mount was indeed cracked and no longer secured to the frame.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1715112454.jpg
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1715112490.jpg

The studs and nuts that would otherwise hold the carrier to the frame were gone, minus a piece of one that was still stuck in the thread, just sheared off.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1715112545.jpg

The engine mount with the rubber insert was intact.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1715112572.jpg

Has anyone seen an engine carrier break like this?
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1715112591.jpg

The mechanic suggested a significant rear or side impact...

He is probably on to something with the side impact. This is exactly why pre purchase inspections are so important.

Maybe whoever worked on it didn’t put all the studs back in so it was relying on only the outside one and snapped.

Hopefully there aren’t other drivetrain issues. I can’t imagine how much the drive train was flexing with a mount like that.

Edit: I see now that they were sheared off. Fingers crossed for you!