I wanted to collect some feedback from people who experienced engine failure (IMS or other source), and how the warranty did or didn't pay for the bill.

I am shopping for an extended warranty and my major concern is the IMS failure. Anybody had their rebuild engine billed to their warranty? All exceptions are so vague, there is always one that could be link to the IMS problem: sludge build up, gaskets, wear and tear...ect ec..

If you have suggestions for extended warranty companies, I am taker. I can barely find service agreements contracts online. This business of warranties is darker than the Sicilian Mafia!

Interesting to read about the engine failures on 996/997.

I wonder whether this problem exists on all N/A 996/997 including GT2/GT3, from what I've gathered so far, turbo engines aren't impacted by this issue.

From my reading it seems that the turbo and gt3 are immune to the IMS (intermediary shaft) bearing failure problem. Aside of those two, all 996 and 997 are exposed and some are talking about 20% of engine fail. This is scary. Some Porsche mechanics said that some weeks they had like cars lining up to wait for engine replacement. This might be a little dramatic, but unfortunately Porsche North America never revealed any official number about this problem. What is certain is that the number of 996/997 owner who experienced engine failure is abnormally high for a brand who sold most of their car based on the fact that they were ore reliable than their Italian counterpart like Maserati and Ferrari.

How can anyone say "abnormally high [failure rate]" and "never revealed any official number" in the same sentence? No one knows the rate, so there is no way to know whether the failures are "normal" or not.

It's all internet made-up land.

-td

check this out then
https://www.6speedonline.com/forums/...ooks-like.html

pictures of the IMS failure, it is not pretty.

Most are scams, especially those out of St Louis. Make sure they send a complete copy of the contract and then go over it thoroughly. Most of these are not warranties but service contracts. That been said, I would start saving for that an RMS, IMS and clutch cost. If one of them goes, you have the funds, if they don't you have extra cash. The warranties are not cheap for the coverage you would need. Check out http://www.lnengineering.com/ims.html. They make a replacement for the IMS. My Porsche mechanic has used it and was quite high on the product. The RMS is not that expensive to repair. A clutch is a clutch job. I have a 99 996 with 72,000 miles on it. The RMS was replace in 2007. No other problems. It is my everyday vehicle.

what is the difference between warranty and service contract ? I have a hard time to understand that !

anybody heard of Prizm ?
http://www.prizm.net/AutoServiceAgreements.html

I can't tell the difference between their product and the contract are so slimmy I am put off. Saving $3k but exposed to a 10k new engine...

I wish I could find at least one extended auto warranty that had paid for an IMS related engine failure. So far I can't find any witness

I had an engine failure on my 996 years ago, so I don't need to be converted. I know how much it costs, how long it takes to replace, what parts are included, options for upgrading etc. etc. You just joined here recently, so what I see is just a rehashing info that has been circulating for years - much of it pure speculation. There is no way to determine how many engines crap-out.

It is still internet made-up land saying "abnormally high."

-td

Can you tell us if you were under warranty, who paid for it ? where the replacement came from ? May be what was the total cost ?

Total engine failure. Aftermark warranty paid for new crate engine. Total cost around $15,000 including intall. I had some small out of pocket expenses, but nothing major. I also know of other aftermarket warranties that paid full engine replacements. It happens more than the internet would have you believe.

BTW, I checked the appropriate box in your poll.

-td

As your warranty was one of the 'good guys' can you mention their name ? I think they should be praised for not bailing out like most insurance do.