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Escape from the

rumour mill
It may have gained something of a mixed reputation, but Porsche’s
now 10-year-old liquid-cooled Boxster and 911 Carrera engine can be
re-engineered to be as strong – and as powerful – as they come
Story and photographs by Chris Horton

he Internet has a lot to answer for. you’ll very quickly begin to appreciate just does have an issue with cylinder-block

T Instant worldwide communication

between potentially huge numbers of
people is all very well in theory, but it does
how ingenious it really is. And at the same
time so relatively simple.
With the engine in a surprisingly large
failure that by most conventional wisdom
renders useless the entire crankcase
assembly. Yes, the world would be a better
tend to give even the maddest pile of bits (the point being that there are place if none of these problems ever
misconception the same credence as lots of moving parts inside it) we had only a occurred. And yes, you might well feel
carefully balanced research. It is, in short, handful of basic tools scattered round the mightily aggrieved if they happen to you.
the world’s biggest rumour mill. working area. (Some ‘specials’ are required But then neither are these faults so
One of the Porsche world’s major for reassembly, but nothing that can’t be commonplace (or in practice necessarily so
casualties in this respect has been the bought or made.) No less important, we catastrophic) that buying a second-hand
company’s water-cooled flat-six. First seen hadn’t needed to resort to the kind of Boxster or 911 Carrera of any description
in autumn 1996 in the 986-model Boxster, controlled violence required to dismantle could be said to be a huge risk. They’re
and then in late 1997 in the 996-model 911 many other motors (some Porsche units certainly nowhere near as widespread as
Carrera, this extraordinarily clever piece of included). The quality and precision of just some of the more hysterical Internet forums
design has gradually expanded, as it were, about every individual component shines would suggest. And, perhaps most
from 2.5 litres right up to now 3.8 in the out like a beacon. significant, they’re by no means beyond
latest 997-model 911 Carrera ‘S’, with power Certainly the M96 – to give the engine its solution. (And let’s not forget that even the
outputs rising steadily to match. Porsche type number – has had its air-cooled engines have their problems.
An extraordinarily clever piece of design? problems. It can – and does – leak oil. It Think 964 cylinder-head studs...)
You bet. To many die-hards the mere fact does knock out intermediate-shaft bearings. There’s no doubt that Porsche has
that it’s liquid- rather than air-cooled makes It does become noisy. The VarioCam modified and as a result improved the M96
this engine the work of Beelzebub himself, system can stop working correctly. The over the last decade. Whether that could be
but take one apart – as has this writer – and timing chains can wear out. And it certainly seen as a tacit admission that the early

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Water-cooled flat-six upgrades

Amazingly, the broken piece from one engine’s cylinder wall was almost identical to
the section about to fall out of another (left) – and in both cases it was the same
cylinder involved, too. Photo above shows all too clearly what eventually happens

that £10,000 Boxster might not seem quite Working in conjunction with Andover,
so much of a bargain as it once did. But the Hampshire-based Perfect Bore (see also
fact remains that this is a fairly major pages 104–109 in the February 2006
concession on Porsche’s part. And that the edition) Fulljames came up with the radical
engine you’re replacing might well have idea of completely re-engineering the M96
covered 50,000, 60,000 or even 100,000 crankcase. ‘Actually, what we’re doing here
miles before failing. That has to count for has been used in all sorts of other engines
something, surely. for many years,’ he says modestly. ‘But I
Even so, would you want to buy another think we’re the first company to have
completely standard power unit to replace realised that the process could solve the
one that has already gone bang in a big M96 engine’s single biggest problem – the
way? Not necessarily, we would agree, but cylinder walls cracking up, basically.’
then until very recently that has been the There are numerous theories to explain
only realistic option. this distressing – and otherwise usually
Now, though, there is an alternative – terminal – situation. Some have suggested a
and a very viable one at that. Last autumn, flawed manufacturing technique, which
you might recall, we previewed a involves casting the aluminium-alloy
substantially modified M96 engine that was cylinder blocks around pre-formed Lokasil-
then under development by Oxfordshire- treated aluminium cylinder ‘liners’. Some
based independent Porsche specialist suggest that straightforward overheating is
Autofarm, and more recently we revealed to blame (and once any crack starts
ones aren’t very good is another matter. It’s that the first prototype was being installed in overheating may well exacerbate such a
a bit like suggesting that the Wright our own 1998 911 Carrera. And now we can situation). Others, Nick Fulljames included,
brothers’ Kittyhawk was a bad aeroplane. By reveal not only rather more about what believe that a very slight but none the less
modern standards, yes, it’s utterly hopeless. makes it tick (and continue ticking for a very perceptible deformation within the power
But without its faltering pioneering flights we long time to come, we hope) but also some unit’s core structure probably lies at the
would never have had the modern aircraft exciting implications for would-be tuners. heart of the problem.
by which to judge it in the first place. The driving force behind this so-called ‘All engines twist to some extent,’ he
Bear in mind, too, that Porsche has for Silsleeve project is Nick Fulljames, who suggests. ‘And the harder you work them,
some time offered brand-new replacement even at 38 has a cv that reads like some the more they tend to distort. It’s like the
engines (without ancillaries such as the people’s entire career. Studied automotive wing of an aeroplane. It visibly moves up
flywheel, clutch and exhaust system) for and mechanical engineering at Oxford and and down as the aircraft passes through
quite a lot less than they must cost to build. then Warwick. Raced bikes and then cars turbulence, which can be pretty alarming if
Here in the UK, Official Porsche Centres will since he was a teenager. Worked on BTCC you don’t like flying, but if it didn’t flex then
supply a 2.7-litre Boxster motor for £6935, a engine development, then RS500 and WRC it would simply snap off. Here that twisting
3.2-litre Boxster ‘S’ unit for £7247, and a Cosworth engines, and then to Jaguar and starts a minute crack, and then it’s really
3.4-litre 996 for £11,529. All those figures Aston Martin. Did some work for Ford and only a matter of time.’
assume you have some sort of comparable Volvo; went to Australia to work on V8 That theory seems to be borne out by
engine to exchange (if you don’t you’ll need Super Cars, then delved around inside WRC precisely where the cracks occur. If a
to pay a £1500 surcharge), and include VAT. Subaru motors for a while. Oh, and then ran manufacturing problem really were the
OK, so you’ll quite possibly have to pay his own engine-development business for cause you might expect said cracks to
someone to swop the ancillaries and then fit around eight years before joining Autofarm. occur pretty much randomly; to affect any
the engine for you (around £600 including So you can safely assume that he knows of the six cylinders. In fact, it’s almost
VAT from an independent), and suddenly what he’s talking about. always either cylinder number two or five

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that lets go. The one in the centre of each

cylinder bank, in other words.
Last summer we saw for our ourselves
two failed M96 engines that Autofarm had
removed from customers’ cars prior to
installing new units supplied in this instance
by Porsche Cars GB. In both cases the
single piece of liner that had fallen out of
each failed cylinder (number two in both
cases) were similar enough to have been
virtually interchangeable. Had such an
extraordinary failure occurred in two aircraft
engines then the entire fleet would almost
certainly have been grounded until the
precise cause had been established.
Whatever starts the crack, and wherever
it starts, there follows a fairly predictable
and well-documented scenario. The tiny but
none the less definable pathway from
waterway to combustion chamber allows
coolant to be drawn in to the latter, and for
combustion gases subsequently to
pressurise the cooling system, perhaps
even forcing liquid out of the spring-loaded
radiator filler cap (and ultimately that would
certainly lead to overheating).
Often the engine will run in this
condition; perhaps a little down on power,
but otherwise coping by expelling any small
quantity of ingested water through the
exhaust ports. Then the car is left unused
for a day or two, and as the metal cools and
contracts sufficient coolant is drawn in to
the combustion chamber that the next time
it’s cranked on the starter motor the
hydraulic pressure simply bursts the
affected cylinder wall like a balloon.
‘Sometimes you’ll see an overload failure in
the affected cylinder’s big-end bearing, too,’
suggests Fulljames.
Whatever the cause, the result – and the
answer – are the same. One cracked
cylinder block. And the kind of major
machining that makes it look a whole lot
worse before it starts to get better.
Essentially Perfect Bore mills out all six
cylinders in their entirety, replacing them
with individual Nikasil-coated steel liners
spigoted right down towards the crankshaft
for maximum strength. (The original
cylinders are, as we’ve said, Lokasil-treated,
but apparently this surface isn’t as hard as
Nikasil.) This structural integrity is further
enhanced by the fact that at their upper end
the liners just touch both each other and the
outer wall of the block (see page 98).
‘The standard blocks have a very open
design to the water jacket,’ says Nick
Fulljames, ‘but what we do effectively
creates what’s called a closed deck. It gives
a nice, big footprint for the cylinder head
and the gasket to clamp down on, and
certainly makes the finished engine much
more rigid. But obviously not so rigid, we
believe, that it’ll then be too brittle!’
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to
deduce that getting rid of the original
cylinders, and replacing them with stronger
RMS leaks may not be what they seem. Our own 996 Carrera’s original engine (top) and custom-made alternatives, potentially
was leaking (slightly) not from the crankshaft, but from the intermediate-shaft seal allows worthwhile increases in their internal
below it. Bear in mind, too, that while seal may leak, so oil will also tend to leak along diameter, and thus the engine’s swept
threads of bolts securing bearing housing – they pass right through the crankcase volume; its capacity. And there’s no
(middle). Later-type RMS (above, left) is none the less a direct fit in earlier engines substitute for cubic inches.

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Water-cooled flat-six upgrades

‘We’ve done a lot of work on mixing and

matching bore sizes and crankshaft
strokes,’ says Nick. ‘Almost anything’s
possible, especially if you went as far as
changing the crank – you could even make
a 4.0-litre engine from a 3.4 – but we
concluded that as far as the 986 Boxster is
concerned the most realistic and cost-
effective increases are to push the 2.5 out to
2.8, and the 2.7 to 3.0 litres. What you have
to remember is that the 2.5 and the 2.7
share the same unique crankcase castings,
and in the case of the 2.5 have a particularly
short-stroke crank.’
If that doesn’t sound overly tempting,
then things start to get more interesting with
the 3.2-litre Boxster ‘S’. That – with the
same crankcase and heads as the 3.4-litre
996, but with the Boxster 2.7’s crankshaft –
can go as large as 3.7 litres. As for the 996,
meanwhile, the 1998–2001 3.4 – and these
are said to be the engines that have Autofarm engine expert Nick Fulljames (above) has a wealth of high-tech engineering
suffered the most crankcase failures – experience behind him – more details in text. Here he’s using some of the remarkably
makes an easy 3.7, and the 2002–2004 3.6, few special tools required to assemble a 986/996 power unit
which has both a different crankcase and
cylinder heads to the standard 3.4, will bore length with Nick Fulljames and other experts them – the holes they’re screwed into pass
out to as much as 4.0 litres – or even – we’re inclined to believe first that most so- right the way through to the inside of the
slightly more. It’s an intriguing thought. called RMS leaks are, in fact, from the crankcase. You could use something like
And it’s a broadly similar story for the intermediate-shaft seal (how can you Loctite 574 on the old bolts, of course, but if
987-model Boxsters, the 997 Carrera, and possibly tell without separating the engine you do that you have to make sure you put
now even the Cayman ‘S’. Mechanically, and gearbox?); and second that if there a dab under the head of each one, as well.’
both of these new Boxster models are much ever was a problem with the RMS itself then So the later intermediate shaft is a great
the same as the last of the first-generation it was more than likely the result of a batch idea. Well, yes, but don’t get too excited just
cars from 2004; the 3.6-litre 997 engine is of faulty seals rather than any inherent yet. When, some time during autumn 2001,
essentially the same as the 2004-model 996 weakness in the engine. Our own 996 Porsche subtly redesigned all these
(the ‘S’ model’s 3.8 litres is achieved with certainly didn’t have a leaking RMS. components, the engineers also changed
bigger pistons); and the Cayman ‘S’ engine A bold statement? Maybe. But then the the sprocket immediately adjacent to the
is generally similar to the standard 2005- current engines use essentially identical bearing. Instead of the previous
season, 997-model 3.6-litre Carrera. crankcases, crankshafts and RMSs, and conventional affair with a double row of
To be absolutely fair, though, it has to be they don’t seem to leak. And that’s why, teeth they now specified a gear-type wheel
said that – to date, anyway – we’ve heard of says Fulljames, the only attention designed to accept an internally toothed
no cylinder-block failures in these later- Autofarm’s Silsleeve engines normally chain. This was done primarily to reduce
generation engines, and so far we would receive in this area is simply a 997-style oil mechanical noise, we understand.
imagine that anyone seeking to go the seal, which fits straight in. Indeed, he says, What it means, though, is that the only
Autofarm route with one of these cars would that appears to do the trick even with a way to fit the later shaft (without also fitting
be looking simply for a capacity and thus markedly grooved crankshaft. a brand-new and hugely expensive later-
power increase. And why not? Besides, he adds, it’s almost certainly type crankshaft) is to machine off the gear-
Not entirely surprisingly given Porsche’s the intermediate-shaft seal, immediately type sprocket and then spline on to the
habit of continually improving its products, below the crankshaft, that’s the major shaft a custom-made toothed sprocket of
these 987, 997 and Cayman engines source of 986 and 996 leaks – and that the correct diameter, width and pitch. It
incorporate a number of other major proved to be the case with our own engine. sounds like a compromise in strict
developments over their predecessors (and The RMS was virtually dry, but there was a engineering terms, but the fact is that it
even the later 996 and 986 engines were noticeable black stain around and works perfectly. We now have just such a
significantly different from the earlier units), especially below the intermediate shaft. It system in our 911 Carrera, and every
and several of these between them form the wouldn’t have been long before we saw tell- confidence that it’ll last the distance.
basis of the rest of the Autofarm Silsleeve tale drips on the garage floor. Incidentally, if ever you replace the seal
programme. Central to that is an improved That, in turn, has at least two possible alone for yourself, always remember first to
oil seal for the rear end of the crankshaft. causes. One: the seal – a simple ‘O’-ring – rotate the crankshaft so that the crankshaft
Some truly imaginative theories have has failed, in which case you can either do is in the correct position (precise details in
been suggested as the reason why many nothing more than fit a new one to the the workshop manual), and then to back off
986 and 996 engines leak oil from this area. current (upgraded) specification, or else fit the three spring-loaded camshaft-chain
Suffice it to say that by its nature any rotary the later intermediate shaft with both a tensioners. If you don’t the tensioners will
shaft seal has only a narrow point of contact larger bearing and a significantly improved invariably pull the intermediate shaft off-
– in this case with the rear end of the seal – more on this in a moment. Two: that centre. (And don’t forget to reset the
crankshaft, and which in this instance can oil is leaking from inside the engine along tensioners again afterwards, of course.)
routinely rotate at up to 7000rpm. A slight the threads of the three bolts securing the So much for the theory. But the proof of
weep of oil is thus almost inevitable – and intermediate-shaft oil-seal housing to the the pudding is in the eating, as it were, or in
perhaps even desirable to lubricate that outside of the cylinder block. this particular case the driving, and we’re
point of contact – and will normally ‘The later bolts are what’s known as delighted to have been able to provide a car
gradually increase over time as primarily the micro-encapsulated affairs,’ says Nick to serve as a mobile test-bed for Autofarm’s
shaft and then the seal begin to wear. Fulljames. ‘That means they’re treated with first fully converted Silsleeve engine.
For our part – having thought long and a special Loctite-style adhesive that not only Essentially this now has modified standard-
hard about it, and having discussed it at stops them working loose, but also seals bore cylinder blocks (allowing the use of the

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original pistons, which rarely wear out), that ‘production’ versions can now go on Clever intermediate-shaft mod splines
brand-new piston rings (including specially sale. They will all be assembled to more or custom-made toothed sprocket to later
treated oil-control rings compatible with the less the same specification (see panel shaft with bigger bearing (above, right)
harder Nikasil bores), and the below), but with various other permutations
aforementioned intermediate-shaft upgrade and upgrades as required. Silsleeve engine renders just about bullet-
(including the tensioner for the later tooth- Nick Fulljames is already talking about proof, we believe, a car that could be worth
type chain; that’s a straight swop for the modified camshafts to make the most of as much as £50,000 or more – but which
earlier item, and appears to be quieter, says any increase in capacity, for instance, and without a running power unit is effectively
Nick Fulljames). even a remap that will not only offer more about as much use as an elastic spanner.
Other parts fitted as a matter of course power and torque – up to 16bhp, he For our part we shall be continuing to drive
include new standard-size main and big- believes – but will also prevent the engine our 996 just like any other, reporting on its
end bearings, new big-end bolts, a full set immediately revving too quickly after a cold progress, and during the coming months
of drive-chains and plastic guide blades, a start. (Some habitually go to 3000rpm; perhaps looking in more detail at further
997-style rear main oil seal, or RMS, all-new hardly the best way of treating stone-cold aspects of maintaining, repairing and
gaskets and seals, and not least two new mechanical components which may have upgrading this fascinating engine.
solenoids for the VarioCam variable only a very thin film of protective oil Porsche’s air-cooled flat-six has been
camshaft-timing system. (One of our adhering to them.) That feature will also be around for well over 40 years now, with
original units had failed, making the engine available as a standalone upgrade for any tuners and enthusiasts around the world –
idle rather roughly when warm, and it other 986, 996, 987 or 997 engine, and and not least Autofarm itself – still finding
seems that this too is an increasingly should dramatically extend its lifespan by ways to improve it. The water-cooled M96 –
common problem.) allowing the oil to circulate more fully for all its supposed faults – is no less an
As this is written, in mid-February, that before the bearings are loaded up. engineering jewel. And if history is anything
engine has covered well over 4000 miles of None of this work is what could be to go by then it’s barely a third of the way
mixed driving without a single problem, and described as inexpensive, but then this is a through its own production life. So here’s to
Autofarm has not unreasonably decided major-league piece of machinery. And a the next 20 years! n

How much? Options and prices explained

Autofarm (01865 331234; www.autofarm.co.uk) is naturally the best source of full details
of Silsleeve options and prices (it’s inevitably quite a complex situation), but the table
below offers a pretty good overview. All prices include VAT at the UK’s standard 17.5 per
cent, so you can deduct that if buying from overseas.
Rebuilt engines come with a modified intermediate shaft and the relevant chain
tensioner, new internal drive-chains, new updated chain tensioners and guides, the latest
VarioCam actuating solenoids, all of the latest seals (including the RMS) and gaskets,
and not least an ECU remap. Pistons are replaced only if necessary (which is rarely);
otherwise the original items are simply fitted with new rings.
Note that some big-bore engines (capacities not otherwise available from Porsche,
basically) require custom-made cylinder-head gaskets. Note, too, that while most
engines can be significantly increased in capacity (see text), that’s not always cost-
effective. You could, for instance, build a 4.0-litre motor from a 3.4, but it would be much
cheaper either to start with a 3.6 or simply take the 3.4 to 3.7 litres. n

Fully machined Silsleeve cylinder-block assembly (exchange,

per pair, any capacity, but at the same time on a like-for-like basis) £2203.13
Oversize Silsleeve cylinder-block assembly (exchange, per pair),
plus new pistons and rings £3953.87
Oversize piston and ring set; any size £1750.75
Modified intermediate shaft (available separately if required) £881.33
Rebuilt standard-capacity engine (exchange, minus ancillaries) £5816.25
Rebuilt standard-capacity engine, plus installation
(exchange, and with 12-month, 12,000-mile warranty) £6991.25
Rebuilt big-bore engine (exchange, minus ancillaries) £7567.00
Rebuilt big-bore engine, plus installation
(exchange, and with 12-month, 12,000-mile warranty) £8742.00
Standard-capacity ‘short’ engine (exchange) £4406.25
Big-bore ‘short’ engine (exchange) £6157.00
Silsleeve conversion (above, with Surcharge for irreparably damaged donor engine £1468.75
pistons) creates cylinder blocks with a Surcharge for irreparably damaged standard pistons £705.00
much less open ‘deck’, or top surface

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