996 IMS

[SHRS2000]

Hello,

Looking for some advice please.

I've been doing my homework on a potential 996 purchase &, of course, the IMS issue crops up regularly!

I've saw a car I like the look of but two things concern me so looking for the wisdom of this forum. The car has done 126,000 miles (is this an issue?), with good history, but this statement has me puzzled!

'New OE clutch kit, RMS and AOS all fitted Dec 2019. IMS was inspected at this time and proved to be a later genuine factory upgrade item. Mobil 1 oil and filter change Nov 2019'. The car is a 2004 3.6 btw.

Was there a factory upgrade item? Is this nonsense?

 

[SimonS2000]

Welcome
The only way to inspect the ims, is by dropping the engine, a big expense.
I would take it all with a pinch of salt ??
If you inspect the oil filter after every service, you can keep an eye on the ims degrading.
But it would not let you know if it had been upgraded.
Personally I would stay well clear, but it may well be a lovely car, so why not have a look.
Really hope you find the perfect car very soon.
Simon

 

[Roger12345]

If the car is close enough to you and you really like the look of it its probably worth an hour of your time to go and see it. That way you will be able to see the story behind the headline checking the receipts for the works carried and importantly which firm did the work and the history of the car.

Ive always preferred to meet the owner of any car I’m seeing at their home that way they are relaxed and generally more forth coming with information and you really see the environment the vehicle is kept in (they really have got a garage and there is space to store it)

I believe there was a factory upgrade to the bearing............someone with greater knowledge will be along soon to confirm.

Good luck with your search..........these are fantastic cars and it always puts a big smile on my face when I drive it.

 

[Richard_Hamilton]

Factory reconditioned engines use IMS bearings which were current at the time of the rebuild. From about 2005/6, this would be the larger bearing fitted to M97 engines. These bearings are not removable without stripping the engine, whereas the earlier bearings were. The way to tell if it is a factory exchange engine is by the serial number engraved on the crankcase, which will include the letters AT (Austausch - German for exchange). The M97 IMS bearing is better than the single-row M96 bearing, but isn't bullet proof.

 

[corneg1]

I have just gone through the same process resulting in a 996 purchase. All the info I could find was that there was no change in the IMS for the 996's and so there is a risk of failure. A quick search on the internet will reveal a lot of info.

All that info was enough to guide me to decide that one of my purchase requirements was a car that had had the IMS replaced recently OR needed a clutch replacement soon and so I could have the IMS changed at the same time.

As with any car, ensuring the service interval has been met through the cars life is important. So, if the car you are looking at has a complete service history and it ticks all the other box's, then you could decide to take the chance. The failure rates are low and there are plenty of folks who have high mileage 996's still on the original IMS with no issues.

It comes down to personal choice. There are plenty of cars out there so I am sure what ever you decide you will find a good one either way.

Happy hunting!