That is LITERALLY not a pretty picture.

Very sorry that this happened to you, and I hope all turns out well, without any undue out of pocket expenses for you, and to your complete satisfaction.

Other than having aftermarket coverage - which I hope covers this completely - another bright spot is that it happened where you could pull off safely, and it happened in good weather/mild temperature. I had a breakdown in 110F in the middle of almost nowhere before (not in my P-car).

Question: Once you use your coverage for repair/replacement of the engine, will you have to add to the policy to cover the repaired/replacement engine, or will your policy continue to cover the car without your further funding it? In other words, is the coverage on your policy a "one time shot?"

 

According to my contract, it covers all factory parts/work for the duration of the agreement. Replaced parts and work performed is covered so long as the parts are not aftermarket and the work is done by a certified Porsche mechanic.

The coverage I have is through CNA National. This is the recommended warranty coverage for the particular dealership that the car is being repaired at. In fact, so long as the work is performed at the dealership, I have 0 deductible for all covered work. The coverage I have is their maximum coverage package. The only work not covered is what is listed in the contract. If the work is not listed in the exceptions to coverage, then it is covered. Engine replacement/repair is not excluded (for obvious reasons). Therefore, under contract, any work that needs to be done that is engine related (or anything to do with the power train for that matter) is covered.

Interestingly enough, this car was offered for sale as a CPO car about 2 months ago by a local dealership. The car sat on their lot for 60 days and they sent it to auction. I subsequently bought it from the dealer who purchased the car at this auction. As such, I did not get the CPO warranty. I do have the service record of all service performed by the dealer who offered the car as a CPO'd vehicle about a month before my purchase. In other words, everything on my end is taken care of. Perhaps this event can be evidence that even CPO cars are not immune to such engine failure. Then again, that's why warranties (and insurance in general) exists.

 

Make sure you get an engine that has the latest larger IMS seal. It's the luck of the draw people say.. however if the buck stops at your garage .. it's a real painful situation. It makes you wonder though. Our P-cars are having some real basic problems, from sticky radio buttons to IMS / RMS to glued waterlines. Who at Porsche signs off on those things I wonder?. I just hope that VW management has some extra reliability engineers laying around that can be assigned to keep an eye on these Porsche "nerds" :-)

 

UPDATE:


I just heard from the dealership. They confirmed that the motor suffered from an IMS failure. I suppose my car was a prime candidate (low miles, rarely driven by previous owner). Recommendation is engine replacement. Now we are just waiting for the warranty people to sign off on the repair after looking at the car.

So, chauk one up for IMS failure... 2005 C2S at 10k miles.

 

A diamond out of a manure pile. Congrats!

Now, the excruciating wait begins to get your car back.

 

Wow.....let us know if they fix it, then let us know what the name of the warranty company....

 

Since you're getting a new engine put in ask the dealer what the incremental cost would be to install a GT3 or a X50 or even if its possible to put a TT engine in it! Who knows, it might be the best thing imaginable!

 

Agree. This is a good litmus test for this particular warranty company. A great way to see if they are up to snuff. Keep us informed on all the particulars of the cost of repair and how quickly the warranty company worked with you.

 

Not worth it for the GT3 engine and impossible for the Turbo engine. It's not only the engine that has to be changed, full ECU and a host of other things.
I would simply ask for the latest version of the RMS/IMS seals, replace the clutch while the engine is out. Perhaps, you can change out the exhaust for some more exotic if you like that sort of thing and you have a brand new car.

 

Is the clutch an issue with the 997.1? If it is, what is recommended to replace the stocker?

 

No and it definitely shouldn't be on a vehicle ~ 10k. That said, you never know about the previous owner habits so absolutely inspect it now while easiest to do w/ everything apart. Heaven forbid should it need replaced, you'll basically only have to pay for parts and minimal (if any) incremental labor.

Good luck

 

UGH! The temporary tag is still on the back window!

This is really painful for me to see because I've got the same color. Sorry to hear it is the IMS. Hope the warranty company will take really good care of you.

 

Agree with Burg... Open that thing up and look at the clutch... it's cheap once you have the engine on the bench. You can look at a slightly more aggressive clutch if you wanted too but just think about it. the clutch is basically 8 years old, it can not hurt to get a fresh unit. Personally I would stick with the OEM Bosch version but... that's just me :-) Some people would also change the shifter into a Short Shifter I am sure. Time for you to start reading up on all of that. That's part of the fun.

 

This scares the hell out of me. Been looking around a lot lately, will be looking at the low end of the price range too

Please keep us up to date on how the warranty coverage goes!! Hope they get it back on its feet quickly and painlessly!


edit: you gotta wonder if the previous owner knew... did you buy private party or dealership?

 

There is no issue and it is quite reliable but the clutch is a "wear and tear" item. Since you were the 2nd owner, I would definitely inspect the flywheel and pressure plate for burn spots, and check the disk for wear.

Were you able to get the engine number? Now that it's confirmed of a IMS failure, it would be good for all of us to know if this engine had the smaller or larger IMS bearing.