Seal removal on Dual Row IMSB

[Troutman]

So I removed the flywheel and there was some oil spread about the rear of the engine, some had gone out the gaps in the bell housing and covered the right rear of the engine.




Not really obvious if the IMSB flange seal was leaking but I reckon it might have been weeping. The RMS oil must fling out when the engine is running and spread everywhere.

Cleaned it all up.

So I locked up the cams after modifying the tools I got. Pulled the tensioners and pulled the flange.
As I thought the bearing looks perfect with no movement on it whatsoever...It looks like it was just fitted. Dual row.





So now I'm thinking leave it in, get a new type flange from Porsche and fit new clutch/flywheel, RMS ..job done....right?
Well I just don't know what the races/balls are like.probably like new no doubt.
Need to make a decision.

[Gilles]

Originally Posted by Troutman

So now I'm thinking leave it in, get a new type flange from Porsche and fit new clutch/flywheel, RMS ..job done....right?
Well I just don't know what the races/balls are like.probably like new no doubt.
Need to make a decision.

Troutman, must be easy to spend some body else's money, but if I were on your position I would definitely buy a new dual row bearing from LN Engineering, because if your IMS bearing fails you will have to do it all over again (IF the engine is salvageable..)

Good luck with your project!

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by Troutman

So I removed the flywheel and there was some oil spread about the rear of the engine, some had gone out the gaps in the bell housing and covered the right rear of the engine.




Not really obvious if the IMSB flange seal was leaking but I reckon it might have been weeping. The RMS oil must fling out when the engine is running and spread everywhere.

Cleaned it all up.

So I locked up the cams after modifying the tools I got. Pulled the tensioners and pulled the flange.
As I thought the bearing looks perfect with no movement on it whatsoever...It looks like it was just fitted. Dual row.





So now I'm thinking leave it in, get a new type flange from Porsche and fit new clutch/flywheel, RMS ..job done....right?
Well I just don't know what the races/balls are like.probably like new no doubt.
Need to make a decision.

You spent all the time and effort to get at it because you were concerened, so it makes no sense to just leave it there as you are now about 10 min. from pulling it and replacing it with something that you can forget about for a long, long time. Choice is yours............

[Troutman]

Originally Posted by JFP in PA

You spent all the time and effort to get at it because you were concerened, so it makes no sense to just leave it there as you are now about 10 min. from pulling it and replacing it with something that you can forget about for a long, long time. Choice is yours............

Not exactly..I did all this to replace the RMS and stop oil being thrown everywhere. In the UK oil leaks are recorded on your MOT (online for everyone to see) as well as any other concerns the tester has with your car.
It's hard to sell a Porsche with an oil leak , registered on the internet.
The IMSB was always going to be an inspection first approach.

I know what you mean though...it's the £700 that gets me, when a new Sachs clutch and LUK DMF is £490...if it was say £200, no problem.I definitely am not replacing this dual row with a new single row, just doesn't make sense at all.
I might go down the EPS route.

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by Troutman

I might go down the EPS route.

You would be better off to leave your factory bearing in place.

[Mig]

When I pulled the seal off my dual-row bearing I found no grease at all -
Only the oil that had found its way past the seal.

The question that no one can answer is how long will the bearing last if you leave it as is?

I decided to pull the bearing and replace it with the Pelican Parts kit. Yes, it's a single row bearing, but that wasn't a concern because I'll be replacing mine regularly. It's a maintenance item.

The other thing the Pelican kit gives you is the upgraded 'bolt'. The factory one has that cutout for the o-ring. When you see it in person you can see why this design is prone to failure.

Lots of ways to blow up your M96. I found a used 2.5 for $1000 and I keep it tucked away just in case. I sleep really well at night now.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

[Troutman]

Originally Posted by Mig

I'll be replacing mine regularly. It's a maintenance item.

I don't think you're going to replace that bearing regularly are you? It's not a set of brake pads.

For instance my 2.7 has circa 80k on it and it's 19 years old..still on the original bearing and clutch/flywheel, I know this because I have a FPSH from the PO. RMS was changed in 2000 under warranty.
Changing the bearing is not something to be taken lightly, it's a big expensive job and it can cause other problems bashing a new bearing into that precision part called an IMS.

On a car that's worth £5k I'm struggling to justify replacing what appears (and I know what that means) to be a perfectly good bearing with another product for £700 and the risk entailed with removing the old one and fitting the new one. Remember..these engines were not designed to have that bearing replaced.ever!
These bearings didn't fail very often (mine is 1%) and something else caused them to fail, lack of grease and no oil or misalignment, could be an unbalanced IMS, who knows!
No matter what I do, I can't win (unless I keep the car for another 10 years and it doesn't fail and I save £700.. big deal!)

Thanks for the help anyway.Much appreciated.

[Mig]

Originally Posted by Troutman

I don't think you're going to replace that bearing regularly are you? It's not a set of brake pads.

For instance my 2.7 has circa 80k on it and it's 19 years old..still on the original bearing and clutch/flywheel, I know this because I have a FPSH from the PO. RMS was changed in 2000 under warranty.
Changing the bearing is not something to be taken lightly, it's a big expensive job and it can cause other problems bashing a new bearing into that precision part called an IMS.

On a car that's worth £5k I'm struggling to justify replacing what appears (and I know what that means) to be a perfectly good bearing with another product for £700 and the risk entailed with removing the old one and fitting the new one. Remember..these engines were not designed to have that bearing replaced.ever!
These bearings didn't fail very often (mine is 1%) and something else caused them to fail, lack of grease and no oil or misalignment, could be an unbalanced IMS, who knows!
No matter what I do, I can't win (unless I keep the car for another 10 years and it doesn't fail and I save £700.. big deal!)

Thanks for the help anyway.Much appreciated.

Replacing the bearing with just another bearing doesn't fix the underlying issue of the grease in the bearing being washed away by the engine oil.

Yes, I will be replacing,mine on a regular basis. Plan is to replace it next summer. I do my own work and won't be bashing in the new bearing. (I've seen some of those videos on YouTube).

Yes, these engines weren't designed to have the bearing replaced, but that doesn't mean that it can't be done safely.

If you don't want to replace the bearing regularly, then I believe you need to invest in a solution whereby the bearing is fed by oil (DOF, EPS, or LN Solution).