Difficulty maintaining 911TT or 911 996 from noob

[lilx10]

Hello All,
Im trying to get into the market of a slightly used 911TT or 911 996 model and would like to know how difficult it is to work on these cars since they are rear engine.

I have worked mostly japanese cars with front engines (changing pulleys, starter, radiator, suspension work, and other basic "engine out" type of work) and not really a big fan of bringing this type of car to the stealership. I would like to know two major things:

1. How difficult to maintain 911TT or 911? (do you have to drop engine on almost everything that you due to lack of access?)

2. Since im on the market, what's your pointers to look for on 996 models?

thanks in advance and a great new year 2009 to all!

[Oh Haha]

You should post this in the 996/Boxter forum for more results.

[88911coupe]

Main difference is the fact that the 996TT motor is mechanically very different from the normally aspirated 996. The NA 996 has some very well documented issues (RMS seals, Intermediate Shaft failures, etc.) while the 996TT is a VERY reliable engine, at least for what is basically a supercar. IIRC, the 996TT is derived from the GR1 engine and is extremely robust, and also true dry sump. Prices on both are presenting some stunning bargains but I'd say, for the money, the 996TT is an absolute steal these days.
Good Luck

[lilx10]

thank you to those who replied. since i can always google the issues with these cars my main concern now is how difficult is it to maintain these cars?

I know this is an oxymoron that a very expensive car is being maintained by their owner but theres gotta be atleast some people out here that do all their "out of engine" work themselves...im not thinking of thinkering these cars to build them for the track but rather basic out of engine type of work...

pls give me some input. thanks in advance

[GaryR]

Originally Posted by lilx10

thank you to those who replied. since i can always google the issues with these cars my main concern now is how difficult is it to maintain these cars?

I know this is an oxymoron that a very expensive car is being maintained by their owner but theres gotta be atleast some people out here that do all their "out of engine" work themselves...im not thinking of thinkering these cars to build them for the track but rather basic out of engine type of work...

pls give me some input. thanks in advance

My advise would be to post in the appropriate forum, either here or on Rennlist. This forum is 99.9% for air-cooled cars. If you are truly looking at an $80+K 996 TT ("slightly used" would mean late model wouldn't it?) you wouldn't be worried about who is going to maintain it.

[Oh Haha]

I did a quick search in the 996 forum in regard to your question. Lots of good info here.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/search.php?searchid=2976091

[lilx10]

link is broke.

im beginning to think most of the 911 owners have employed private porsche mechanics.

i know its an oxymoron (expensive car and maintained by the owner?) but theres gotta be someone here that fixes their own car just coz they love doing it.

[tonythetarga]

Originally Posted by lilx10

link is broke.

im beginning to think most of the 911 owners have employed private porsche mechanics.

i know its an oxymoron (expensive car and maintained by the owner?) but theres gotta be someone here that fixes their own car just coz they love doing it.

Well most of us here DO do our own work on our cars, but our cars are the older, air cooled versions which have a bit better access to the engine than the 996's with the small engine lid. I would think that some of the basic work is still very doable but any major work will require the engine drop because the engine bay is so cramped in the 996, and the 996TT particularly. Valve adjustments, exhaust work, oil changes etc can be done w/o a drop. Not sure what you had in mind, but if you want a more specific answer, you might ask a more specific question.
Not being smart, just straight forward.

[lilx10]

Originally Posted by tonythetarga

Well most of us here DO do our own work on our cars, but our cars are the older, air cooled versions which have a bit better access to the engine than the 996's with the small engine lid. I would think that some of the basic work is still very doable but any major work will require the engine drop because the engine bay is so cramped in the 996, and the 996TT particularly. Valve adjustments, exhaust work, oil changes etc can be done w/o a drop. Not sure what you had in mind, but if you want a more specific answer, you might ask a more specific question.
Not being smart, just straight forward.

thanks for your feedback. since i plan to keep the car for as long as I can, id like to do a lot of the engine out repairs (not only plugs, oil change, etc..but like MAF cleaning, fuel/water pumps, radiator, intercooler replacement if TT, pulley/belts/chains, thermostat, etc...)

as you can see these are basic maintenance and does not require a mechanic on most cars but Id like to know if this is doable on the 996 or 996TT.

[signature65]

I do all the work on my Porsche....hell thats part of why I wanted it. A new challenge.

[jwetering]

OK -
1) post in the appropriate forum. This is an air cooled forum and you're asking technical questions about water cooled cars.

2) I've been involved in a number of posts where we have discussed (debated) the relative ease with which one can maintain the water cooled cars versus the liquid cooled cars. I have extensive experience working on my air cooled car and moderate experience working on my liquid cooled car so I feel qualified to comment.

We all work on our Porsches, that's the point of the Porsche technical forums, so no it doesn't seem at all odd that you would be considering working on yours. Porsches are as easy to work on as any other car, the motor is just at the other end of the garage. Get over it.

In my experience the 996 was easier to work on than the 911, but even then only marginally. I had to do a partial engine drop in my 996 to change a coolant tank, and had to do a full engine drop in my buddies 911 to change a fuel line. Spark plugs, filers, MAF work etc is all done with the engine in the car. The later cars need less overall maintenance than teh eraly cars.

I think the biggest difference you'll find working on a Porsche is that you spend more time *under* it as opposed to you Honda or whatever where you spend time working under the hood. It all depends on the work you're doing though.

Get over to Rennlist or 6-speed on line where the water cooled guys hang out as has been suggested a number of times. That's where you'll find the info you are looking for mate. There have been 10,000 pages posted on the reliability of the 996 motors, which isn't particularly happy reading, and on the quality of the 996 in general, which for the most part is.

good luck.

[lilx10]

Originally Posted by jwetering

OK -
1) post in the appropriate forum. This is an air cooled forum and you're asking technical questions about water cooled cars.

2) I've been involved in a number of posts where we have discussed (debated) the relative ease with which one can maintain the water cooled cars versus the liquid cooled cars. I have extensive experience working on my air cooled car and moderate experience working on my liquid cooled car so I feel qualified to comment.

We all work on our Porsches, that's the point of the Porsche technical forums, so no it doesn't seem at all odd that you would be considering working on yours. Porsches are as easy to work on as any other car, the motor is just at the other end of the garage. Get over it.

In my experience the 996 was easier to work on than the 911, but even then only marginally. I had to do a partial engine drop in my 996 to change a coolant tank, and had to do a full engine drop in my buddies 911 to change a fuel line. Spark plugs, filers, MAF work etc is all done with the engine in the car. The later cars need less overall maintenance than teh eraly cars.

I think the biggest difference you'll find working on a Porsche is that you spend more time *under* it as opposed to you Honda or whatever where you spend time working under the hood. It all depends on the work you're doing though.

Get over to Rennlist or 6-speed on line where the water cooled guys hang out as has been suggested a number of times. That's where you'll find the info you are looking for mate. There have been 10,000 pages posted on the reliability of the 996 motors, which isn't particularly happy reading, and on the quality of the 996 in general, which for the most part is.

good luck.

jasper, thanks for the comments and links to 6spd and rennlist. i dont mind working under than on the hood. my biggest concern would just be an egine drop every single little basic maintenance on the 996s...

when you mentioned "The later cars need less overall maintenance than teh eraly cars." ...do you mean the 996, 997, or both as compared to the 911? this is good to know.

happy new yr once again

[jwetering]

Originally Posted by lilx10

jasper, thanks for the comments and links to 6spd and rennlist. i dont mind working under than on the hood. my biggest concern would just be an egine drop every single little basic maintenance on the 996s...

when you mentioned "The later cars need less overall maintenance than teh eraly cars." ...do you mean the 996, 997, or both as compared to the 911? this is good to know.

happy new yr once again

Hey lil - by later cars I mean the 996 against the 911. I haven't had any experience with the 997, but I'm pretty sure they're they're the same as the 996. By 911 I mean the early 911 made before 1989 by the way. The 964 and 993 which followed were more complex evolutions of the old air cooled design, and things started getting tricky..

The 993 was particularly tricky to work on as I understand it. Two oil filters for example and one of them was *really* hard to reach. Twin plugs as well, and you know the ones near the back would have been hard to see much less reach.

In the 996 - the spark plugs are changed only every 100K miles or whatever, and they're all accessible from underneath. In the 911 you have to get under the hood, and the ones near the back can be a little hard to reach but after you move stuff out of the way you can feel your way through.

Another thing that impressed me about the 996 was changing the oil. In the 911 it was two drain plugs and a horizontal oil filter in the engine compartment. In the 996 it's one drain plug and a filter element in a cartridge. I changed the oil in the 996 without even jacking it up! It was lowered too. EZ peezy lemon squeezy as they say over here in the UK.

Anyway - don't be afraid of the 996 for ease of maintenance....you may want to be a little afraid of the engine reliability issues however. It's all very well documented but it is also true that the problem(s) have been exaggerated on the internet. That said..my buddy's 2003 M96 motor failed catastrophically, so I know it can happen.

When all is said and done I prefer the air cooled cars because they are more interesting....as you would expect from a vintage sports car. I prefer the liquid cooled cars because they perform better. When I get back into my next Porsche (I'm working overseas at the moment) I will be conflicted but will probably go for another 996 (or maybe 997 by then) because they are such excellent value. Performance wise they are spectacular...and my 911 was built to the tits so that's saying something.