[Moneyguy1]

Moon:

Contrare.

1. Enclosed, chains are not noticably noiser than a belt. Other noises incurred in an automobile tend to drown each other out!! (exhaust, cooling fans, lifters, etc)

2. Chains are metal and all metals expand when heated. Therefore, the chain would cause less "stress" than a fiber belt which has a expansion rate close to zero. Chains are more reluctant to skip teeth and cannot lose teeth (they have none)

3. Properly engineered, a chain drive should last between 150 and 200k without any trouble (given proper maintenance and abuse kept to a minimum!!). Contrast that with a 30k interval for 944 belt changes at $600 to $800 a pop.(assuming you farm out the work because you do not have access to the P9201 tool) NK..I feel your friend's pain..that is what they get when non metal components "to reduce vibration". However, on older engines I have rebuilt, the only thing I ever found after 125+K was a slight strech in the chain. Everyone's experience may be different...

4. Unlike the 928 which also uses an even longer belt, there is no hydraulic tensioner or warning indicator on the 944.

5. The chains in the 911 series have actiually not been the culprit as much as the fancy adjusters and over engineering that went into them. A bigger problem in the early models was head studs pulling loose. especially on the 2.7 liter iteration.

Like a Porsche certified friend of mine said once "A lousy design, brilliantly executed".

The VR6 engine in the VW uses two chains with an intermediate shaft. I do not know personally of any failures of this design, although they may be out there. As for vibration, It makes one wonder why Porsche built such a large in-line four rather than something a bit less needy of balancing shafts such as a v configuration or a 5 cylinder in-line. The balance shafts introduce a second "serpentine" belt and more seals to leak and bearings to fail, not to mention the added weight...Just wondering..Every additional component that can fail multiplies the number of possible modes of failure.