Charles Navarro

Under no circumstances should any 06-08 engine with the larger, non-serviceable IMS bearing be bored out to allow for replacement of that bearing. There is no way to keep the debris from getting into the engine which will cause damage if not complete engine failure.

Unfortunately there are enough shops out there that are stupid enough to carry this procedure out and why we make a repair sleeve to bush the block back to a standard IMS flange housing bore diameter after the engine has to come apart to be rebuilt when it fails following the boring procedure to change the 06-08 bearing out:



https://lnengineering.com/products/t...ng-sleeve.html

Charles Navarro

However much the conspiracy theorists believe that threads "disappear" into the ether, being a paid sponsor of Rennlist does not give us or any other vendor the ability to have this done. It's all there good, bad, and indifferent. Just use the "search" button.

wildbilly32

IMHO...The IMS Solution is the solution.

Fan Boi? Why yes...Yes I am and for a damned good reason!

TheChunkNorris

Rather than take your word for it, I went ahead and searched. There aren’t many and yes you’re right they are around so I stand corrected.

TT Oversteer

There’s the answer I was looking for. The EPS “oil feed” mod appears to be ill conceived and compromises the reliability of the oil pump drive. I give them credit for thinking outside the box though. So, without the oil feed, we are left with the bearing on its own merits as a roller bearing that utilizes its outer cage for thrust control….and the price comparison with comparable LN and other products is a wash.

Petza914

5 years and 30k miles is essentially a non-warranty unless they're going to also cover the engine removal and rebuild costs that are associated with putting in the free replacement bearing they send you if theirs fails and destroys the engine.

I would do this job once with The IMS Solution and never even worry about it for the rest of my life since I keep my Porsches forever.

pdxmotorhead

One thing that kinda slips by is that the "solution" isn't anything exotic, its basically the same as a cam bearing in a Chewy V8..
The weakness the IM shaft has had is poor thrust control, cranks have a thrust bearing surface in most engines, same with cams,
all implemented in whatever method the manufacturer chose. Had Porsche simple made the IMS look like a cam with 3 or 4
pressure fed bearings and had one dedicated thrust surface on two bearings they never would have had a problem.

I have the solution cause it made sense to me, and it was part of the rebuild I was already committed to.

philbert996

When I bought my 996 I didn’t know there were so many choices.
I thought the IMS bearing was something you just replaced.
After doing some researching the IMS Solution was the only replacement that made sense.
Do it once and you’re done and less moving parts.
The only downside was the cost.
Is there any other reason not to use the Solution?

Petza914

...and don't forget that it's tested in the Porsche motors since it's the same type of bearing that's in the tried and true Mezger engines in the Turbo & GT cars.

Petza914

No, cost is the only potential impediment if you consider it as such. Otherwise, it's all upside with no downside.

pdxmotorhead

Even if you're pessimistic, the solution say is a 100K mile option, most of the basic bearing replacements, are a 50-75K mile option.
the ROI seems within reason..

C2-996

Personally, on my car—when the time comes for an engine tear down and rebuild to a 4.0 with Nickies- I’ll be doing the IMS solution and calling it a day and never looking back.

My current 997.1 I bought has the EPS roller from prior owner and I do like the design a lot also and it will remain in for the foreseeable future. I believe it has over 25k on it now-no issues whatsoever. They did not do the punch in the oil pump shaft- I wouldn’t prefer that method with this product either. (Also my car is an early 05- so I have the serviceable single row bearing)- so replacing is straight forward. I’m sure if it was an 06 or newer the factory bearing would’ve handled the task to this point.

Between the ball bearing and roller- I prefer the roller for our cars- whether it be EPS or RND, with a slight nod to the EPS.
Just my preference, not looking for a heated debate.
The IMS solution from LN does appear to be the most long term/forever solution, much like the design in the mezger engines.
I think for the most part either way you’ll go- you should have fairly good luck.

Most importantly make sure you have a seasoned installer who can properly install any of the products correctly. Half the time you see early issues with any retro IMS bearings, you gotta wonder if it was caused by a botched install?
Personally never looked too close at the DOF solutions, so can’t weigh in here.
​

996-CAB

Don't discount the extra $1000 for the Solution vs. the Retrofit. You are buying a 20 year old car and it's unlikely that the bearing and clutch are all you need to do, once you get it up on the lift. My 996 went from the Porsche dealer to my Indy by trailer where I had already scheduled the IMS bearing, clutch, RMS but my Indy made up a large needs list including brakes, struts, AC lines, mufflers, 4 new tires, bent wheels that needed to be straightened, etc. That extra $1000 and more went to other needed repairs. The Solution was out of the question. That being said, I don't have any anxiety at all about the Retrofit. Sure, it is going to get replaced in four years at the expected end of life, and the Solution will go in, but I will have more money by then, and it gives me years to plan its next Spa day.

Haalex

As the “owner” of that thread, and as someone pointed out, I don’t see what’s bad in there.

I see a single example of an EPS failure, out of context, from an allegedly non-neutral source, followed by reports of failure from LN products.

All this means is no solution is perfect, be it from EPS or LN (or FVD, Pelican, etc.).

I will admit the oil feed mod from EPS seems like a bad idea and my car will not be getting it.

RL does appear to be very cautious in regards to EPS (or any non-LN IMSB product for that matter), I haven’t had the same feeling on other forums which tend to show EPS in a quite positive light.

TexSquirrel

My 996.2 came with The IMS Solution already installed back in 2013.
When the engine was rebuilt, 9 years(52K miles) later, the IMS Solution was reused.
I'm hopeful it will be a lifetime+ part...mine, and hopefully one of my kids...maybe even my grandkids.