Opinions please - 2005 Boxster S IMS

Cook&Dunning · 02-03-2014, 11:07 AM

Hello to all - I have an opportunity to buy a low mileage (~20,000 m) 2005 Boxster S. Car is in amazing condition. I am planning on having a PPI done before sealing the deal. I would welcome opinions from the forum.

I have checked the VIN on IMS settlement sites and car is not a class car - meaning it is not one of the vehicles listed by Porsche in settlement.

More worrying though - If the car is not in the class settlement, can I assume that it has the later style larger bearing - meaning that the the only way to repair / replace bearing is to disassemble engine?

On one hand the car seems like a really good example - on the other hand, it seems to be that low mileage babied cars may have higher incidence of ims bearing failure. And if that means dropping engine and pulling apart to fix, maybe I should walk away?

I really like the car, but am concerned I will be stressing about potential failure / repair.

mikefocke · 02-03-2014, 12:13 PM

You understand the issues very well. Now it is a matter of probabilities. If it is third generation and if less than 1% of those have failed, then the probability of failure of your car in any year is how low? .1%? But if it is an early 2005, you can't depend on it not being from the second generation IMS and your probability could go to 1% per car year.

So I'd focus on is it the original engine (engine number) and when was it made...in 2004 or 2005?

Cook&Dunning · 02-03-2014, 12:19 PM

Thanks Mike : I appreciate your comments - I have read a bunch of your posts here and feel like I learn something every time.

I will follow your advice and check up on engine serial number.

techweenie · techweenie's Garage

Mike is spot on. The IMS design was changed in the middle of the 2005 model run. Failure rates appear to be 25% or less compared to the previous design. You always have the option of buying a service contract on a used car if you have some concern. As depressed as 987 prices are, it's a consideration.

Cook&Dunning · 02-14-2014, 07:16 AM

I took Mike's advice and got the engine serial number. Car was first licensed in September '05 and engine serial indicated late manufacture '05. I was going to have the transmission pulled with PPI and see a) what bearing I had, and then b) if it was the later version - take the outer seal off to inspect for wear.

I ended up passing on the car. In some ways the final version bearing - while consensus seems that it is less likely to fail - is a bummer because you can't make the problem go away with the "relatively" easy bearing replacement vs. splitting the case. Of course I might be over thinking it and the car could never have a problem.

I did think about insurance as you mentioned - but I just decided I wasn't up for the worry, or my perception that there will always be the ims cloud hanging over these cars. Now searching for an '09 and up version.

MikenOH · 02-16-2014, 09:49 AM

As a former 987 owner, I think this design is way more robust than the earlier version and you should expect significantly longer life if you drive the car at least 5-6K miles /year, go through the gears with gust on a regular basis and change your oil at roughly a 6 K interval.

I did numerous DE's with our 06, never saw any flakes in the filter and the cam deviation test (I'd recommend this before buying a 987) showed essentially no deviation after 40K miles.

What bothered me about the car you considered was how low the mileage was; when it isn't being driven much, the oil isn't being circulated throughout the motor increasing the likelihood of of metal on metal contact when it is started.