Since the alternator died, I decided to also tackle the wet engine.

For years TÜV has been mentioning to the previous owner that the engine is wet.

Now it’s my problem…

I have a large leak in the front



Just not sure if it’s the CPS, oil Dipstick or from the supercharger.

took off the intercooler and has some oil, but mostly blow-by. Hopefully it’s the CPS and or dipstick.

unless someone has any other opinions?

Behind the engine it seems that the oil filter housing gasket and cooler gasket are defect. New gaskets are in order.

Since there is light seepage around the rear of the valve cover, the gasket will be replaced.

Underneath, the oil pan gasket will get replaced. It is covered with RTV. PO probably thought the leak originated from the oil pan and not the CPS and or oil dipstick.

Do these motors need RTV for the oil pan?

Any opinions on the front engine oil leak?

I have already cleaned the crud on the engine, there were just layers of oil and dirt in the dipstick/CPS area.

TIA

Morgan

 

Over the years even as a non professional mechanic I have seen so many oil leak sources that it is impossible to say it is this or that.

If the leak is not severe enough to make its source known you can use engine oil dye and then run the engine for a while. Afterwards with a black light see where the engine is glowing. That's the dye and where the oil leak is.

Even a professional is cautious. I had one car -- not a MINI -- in for an oil leak. Based on my experience with another model of car of this brand I said "rear main seal" (RMS). Tech said maybe but he couldn't be certain until he dropped the transmission. He said there is a crankcase plug covered by the bell housing that could be the leak or the engine cases where they joined -- Porsche engine with two cylinder banks that bolt together to form an engine -- can leak. As it turned out it was the RMS but I appreciated the tech's reluctance to just assume it was the RMS.

Besides the RMS other sources: valve/cam shaft cover, spark plug tube o-rings, transmission selector shaft seal (engine was *behind* the transmission and transmission oil was blown backward onto the lower part of the crankcase. Years ago a common engine oil leak was the fuel pump that bolted to the side of the engine and was driven from an eccentric on the camshaft. But a timing chain cover can leak. Or anything that has oil in it or behind it.

 

I can attest to that. I had experience with a DSM as a 2nd car. Those thought you how to wrench.

Upon closer inspection, it looks like the oil residue around the SC intake side, is coming from the PCV valve. As it’s directly connected there as well.

Tested the PCV and it’s also defect. The two o-rings in the front will still be changed, as they are failure points.

You happened to mention a Porsche.
I am on the fence on getting an updated 997 Turbo.

 

Owned a 2003 Porsche 996 Turbo. Nice car. I felt like a Swiss banker driving it. And his butler driving my Boxster....

But the Turbo was a bit of a problem car. Seemingly just one thing after another. I bought it used in June 2009 with <10K miles and in pristine condition -- and I was able to confirm it had reasonable servicing. Plus the car came with a factory 2 year 100K miles warranty.

So I bought it. Before the warranty expired on time (and after I had put almost 40K miles on the car) the shifter broke. The clutch hydraulic booster system failed and lost boost when the engine was shut off.

Normally it would take 30+ pumps of the clutch pedal before the clutch pedal would get hard. But after this failed it was hard as soon as the engine was shut off. A radiator fan motor shaft snapped. Took out the radiator. No hole and no fluid leak but bent all the fins down. Oh and at the same time though I didn't know the shaft had snapped I heard a funny noise from the back of the car. This turned out to be one of the serpentine drive's idler roller, a bearing went bad.

Then the 6-speed selector shaft developed a leak. Got a new transmission.Thank God.The original transmission was horrible. But the new one was as smooth shifting as the Boxster's 5-speed.

Then the warranty expired. Felt the troubles were behind me.

Turns out the troubles were behind me alright. Behind me when rear main seal developed a leak. And the tech found the front diff axle flanges seals were leaking so the troubles were behind and in front of me. Car emitted a high pitched whistle. Turned out to be a high pressure valve anomaly in the power steering pump. Valve not field serviceable. New power steering pump/reservoir.

Oh, the rear spoiler hydraulics went bad and were replaced. Water pump failed. Then the 3 radiators all decided to leak at 130K miles. After getting these replaced in Springfield MO at the Porsche dealer there headed home to CA. At a gas station in Barstow the CEL came on. Drove home ok and had all 4 sensors replaced. At some point the fuel pump failed and had to be replaced. Ok the water pump, fuel pump and the O2 sensors are wear items. The radiators I was told by the Springfield dealer service department leak at around 100K to 125Kmiles. The temperature swings in winter does it. I was there in late Dec. 2014/early Jan 2015 and there was a stretch of days when the temperate was in the low single digits. But I had to drive the car every day I was there on personal business.

Had a headlight switch go bad. Even the inside rear view mirror developed a leak the fluid that was the auto dimming feature leaked and made it look like the mirror was in a shadow. Replaced this with a new one. 25 months later it too leaked. Sent the original mirror to be repaired. Installed it. Front brakes wore out at 140k miles. Actually this ain't bad and brakes are wear items, so I don't condemn the car for that.

The very last thing was the alternator failed. Not long after I decided to sell it and the Boxster.

But I know of similar cars that have covered (at the time) 500K miles and more and needed nothing more than just regular servicing. So my car was an exception. And when it was not in the shop it was an awesome ride. Fast. Comfortable. A real highway mile eater. But I took it on plenty of interesting roads in the mountains around Livermore CA where I lived. A real nice car. Except when it was a stinker.

Oh, I drove the Boxster to 317K miles and things wore out of course. But even with nearly double the miles (I sold the Turbo with 161K miles on it) the Boxster manifested way fewer problems.

In spite of my experience with my Turbo I think were there a good Porsche dealer in my area (Benton County AR) I'd have another Porsche. A Turbo? Maybe. But at least a Cayman S or a 911. That rear wheel steering intrigues me.

 

Awesome input, needed more input other than magazine or YouTube reviews. The 996 and the 997 I was looking at. The face lift 996 and or the trace lift 997.

Supposedly the 997 lifted the main-seal issues. And the facelift 997 I was looking at had the PDK transmission.

Funny you mentioned you felt like a banker because the car I was looking at is owned by a banker from Luxemburg.

The car would be kept stock, something the wife and I can drive around without the kids.

However ATM, putting the Porsche on ice, as we’re not sure how this energy issue and this Rezession in Germany is gonna look.


On another note:

It seems my oil leakage in the front was a combo from the PCV valve being defekt, oil dip stick tube has a flat spot, and the CPS print was done as well.




While I was at it I decided to do a Super charger service, the car has around 220k Km/130k Miles.

I noticed when I took off the water pump that the flange had gauges on them and there was a large buildup of coolant crap.



the flange had a gauge, but with all the build up the car was not loosing coolant.
A new one is in the way anyways.

Draining the Super Charger supprised me. Both sides were almost full of oil. I’m not sure if the PO did a service, doubt it because most of the parts I took off were never touched.



super charger oil drained. Pretty much both sides were full. After 220k KMs


The SC had no play, so the 15% pulley is going on.

Since the pulley removal tool will take untill January to get here from the states, I’ll have to make one over the weekend.

 

Kind of funny but I only really noticed the 996 Turbo when I was on business and visited the Zurich Lambo dealer. It was some kind of new model intro. Someone there to check out the new cars parked his (or her) Porsche Turbo (Arctic Silver, the same color of car I ended up buying) next to the M-B rental car I was in and I spent as much time looking over the Turbo as I did the new Lambos.

A 996 Turbo is too old I think.

I don't recall the 997 really addressing the RMS issue. This was I think just a seal quality issue. The replacement RMS in my Boxster went in at 25K miles. At 3171K miles -- when I sold the car -- the RMS and FMS were still oil tight.

The 2009 Boxster/Cayman/911 engines, a clean sheet design, eliminated the much talked about IMS and provided direct injection among other things.

I may have driven a PDK equipped Porsche via a loaner. I dove a couple of Macans and at least one Cayenne. They all had automatics but I don't recall if they had the PDK or the older style automatic.

FWIW, my 2023 MINI Cooper S has a 7-speed Sport dual clutch automatic, sort of like the PDK, and I'm liking this transmission quite a bit.

I did watch one of the senior Porsche dealer service techs demo launch control using a customer's car, with the customer's permission and riding as a passenger. The car was a Carrera 4S. Thing left the line like a homesick lightning bolt. Very impressive.

:Porsche claimed it dd not even keep a count of the number of launches. One car mag tested the PDK by doing launch after launch. No overheating no signs of any issues. 'course, some thousands of miles later... who knows?

Looked at lease return 2012 (?) Carrera 4S in Miami Blue and other bells and whistles and with the 4 wheel steering. Figured I'd buy that car. (Leased by the dealer's service department manager and he turned it in early with only 5K miles on it.) But it went for more money than I cared to spend. Beautiful car though.