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I pulled the plug on a 2010 PTT purchase after researching this issue. A local Porsche shop quoted me $3416 with tax to replace the camshafts with the updated design and another $2029 to address the coolant pipe epoxy issue. It is a shame Porsche won't address the issue because it is a serious safety issue. If the camshaft fails, you may loose power brakes as well. I believe 2012+ models are safe from the camshaft issue.
Just posting the link to a definitive thread on this failure mode - which is common to the Cayenne and Panamera V8 engines from late 2010 to early 2012 models.
For the people who have experienced this failure - there are instructions in this thread on how to report it to NHTSA/DOT. The goal is to encourage Porsche to do a general recall on all the vehicles that were manufacturered with aluminum bolts in the Variocam adjusters. It should be noted that Porsche did exactly that in both China and Japan (details in the thread) - but they continued to only cover a very limited VIN# range in the US/Canada. Engines ARE failing outside the VIN range Porsche covered with WC-22 (the US "Workshop Campaign") - and in some cases - owners are eating the cost of a new engine ($30k+ installed.)
I did some more research yesterday after posting those questions and have found more answers under the Cayenne areas than Panamera areas.
Here are some pics to help describe the issue:
The sprocket you see is attached to a camshaft actuator that controls the advancement of the camshaft timing on the intake side. There is one intake camshaft per bank of cylinders. The way in which the sprocket is bolted to the actuator is by way of 4 safety Torx bolts made of some aluminum alloy that are inserted from behind the sprocket.
The problem lies in that over time, these 4 Torx bolts can start to back out. Given enough time, they will back out to the point that the head of the bolt will impact the camshaft cap and subsequently sheer off. One bolt sheering off is probably not the end of the world, but once all of them back out or sheer off, the sprocket is now continually turning but is not actually turning the intake camshaft. Depending on which intake bank has had the failure, the symptoms vary. If you driver side fails, the HPFP is no longer turning so fuel pressure falls to the point where the engine won't run anymore. If the passenger side fails, the vacuum pump stops turning causing a lack of power assist to the vehicle's brakes. The engine will still run on one bank of cylinders, but is obviously down on power.
My thoughts: This is very worrisome. Without taking the engine apart, anybody with a 4.8L V8 in a Cayenne or Panamera is driving a time bomb. I would think, at a minimum, that the best prevention for failure is having a shop replace the Torx bolts with the updated steel bolts and red Loctite. As never having the ability to work on one of these engines, I can deduce that this is a major job, but one that can save $20k+ in repairs down the road.
Do you have any spare camshaft carriers? We currently have the same problem with a broken camshaft carrier and we want to avoid buying the complete kit which includes the cylinder head and all the camshaft carriers. If you have any and are for sale please get in touch at chartoupallos@cytanet.com.cy
This is the third major recall for the brand this year.
Another month, another Porsche recall in the United States. The German sports car manufacturer is issuing a service campaign for certain Panamera and Cayenne models that may have defective camshaft controllers.
According to a report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Academy (NHTSA), the controllers may come loose inside the engine, potentially resulting in an engine stall. If that happens, the risk of crash could be increased.
A total of 17,986 vehicles are affected from the 2010-2012 Panamera S, Panamera 4S and Panamera Turbo, 2011-2012 Panamera and Panamera 4, and 2011 Cayenne S and Cayenne Turbo models. No notification schedule has been provided yet, but Porsche says it will soon notify owners and will replace the fastening screws for the camshaft adjusters, if needed, free of charge.
08-11-2016, 08:41 AM
