I'm would like to change out the power steering return hose which comes out of the PS reservoir and connects in the bracket about 6 inches forward above the engine on the passenger side (BTW, anyone know the trick to disconnecting the hose in the bracket??). My understanding with lowering the engine is that I just need to disconnect the silicone hoses from the Y-intake and remove the M12 bolts under the engine mounts with the engine supported by a jack. After that, I can just lower the jack and the engine should lower and inch or so. I am assuming that just the back of the engine will lower since the front is still supported, correct? There has to be another engine support/mount on the front of the engine, right? Will the engine itself only lower a max amount or is there a LIMIT OT HOW FAR I CAN LOWER THE JACK SO THAT I DON'T DAMAGE ANYTHING? I wanna make sure I don't bend, tweak, torque, or break anything. I still have a hard time understanding how we can lower the engine a couple of inches without hurting anything since it is attached to the transmission, drive shaft, etc... Is this "lowering of the engine to get a few inches of room" an approved procedure by Porsche or is this one of those things that just works and has been proven? Thanks in advance.....

 

All you need to do is remove the airbox, remove the 2 engine mount nuts from below and loosen (completely) the exhaust strap(s). The engine will lower until it hits the rear bulkhead. This will give you plenty of room to get around up there.

 

Quick question..... why do you need to loosen the exhaust straps? Isn't the exhaust system mounted the the "bulkhead" on the back of the engine and as a result will lower in unison along with the engine?

 

Try it? I think you will see that is it mounted to the chassis in back. At least mine is, but mine isn't stock?

 

I'll have to look under the car to see how everything is hooked up. I just recall seeing pictures of the whole engine/turbos/exhaust removed as one piece. The PET catalog shows it like that too. The exhaust should be attached via the straps to the engine carrier.... Anyone wanna chime in?

 

The straps connect to the carrier and it should come down as one piece. Whether or not things will hit, you'll have to watch to be sure...

 

Maybe that was it. My FVD exhaust MIGHT have hit, thats why I have to loosen mine? It's only 2 allen bolts so I do it everytime anyway...When I lower my engine, the exhaust is the last thing I see, so I know I have to undo mine...

 

Straight from the manual:
To avoid damage to the hoses, leads and engine, the engine must only be lowered by approx. 30 mm − 40 mm!

It's very easy to lower the thing 4-5".

 

Can you please clarify. So is it easy to lower it 4-5" SAFELY or can you only lower 30-40mm (1.25-1.7") as you say above? I am trying to get a definitive answer to this. From what I've read here, it seems like a lot of guys here say that you can just lower it to the point where the engine rests agains the rear bulkhead but reading your post seems to contradict this....

 

I'm not sure what all this bulkhead talk is, if I lower mine the full travel (4-5") the bottom of the transmission contacts the cradle and stops the movement. So yes, I've done the max drop possible without any known issues. Would I do it again? No, even after disconnecting the airbox and intercooler hoses, there are still engine wiring and coolant hoses attached to the body that have to flex an awful lot. The easiest way to limit the motion is to loosen the 2 18mm bolts to the bottom of their travel but do not remove them. This will get you almost 2" of drop and make things up top easier to work on, all while keeping you within the factory tolerances.

 

Perfect. Thank you. This makes sense - not removing the bolts but just loosening them to the bottom of their travel. One other question: The engine/transmission combo is supported by the two engine mounts in the rear and then also by the transmission mount in the front (the one that people are swapping out to the 997 version)? Thats it as far as the support, correct?

 

Correct.

 

Not fully and not really a mount but there is a cross member that will keep you from dropping the motor on the ground.