Just received some goodies for my next 996 engine build, 4.0 LN block, JE pistons, custom head gaskets, LN Solution IMS bearing, Carrillo rods, new pinned IMS shaft and CrMo pump drive.

Just these parts alone are around the cost of a stock /6 pro rebuild.

I got a call from a guy yesterday, he was local, about a 2003 C4S with 30,000 miles and a bad IMS bearing. I figured those motors were pricey, and passed on the car. Sounds like I chose right based on what you're saying on costs.

I wonder if the parts will ever come down in price? There would be enough volume from production numbers for sure.

How much?

Not really in the market but would be interested for the right price.

Doubt it, this is only a bit higher than if doing a high end /6 build with LN nickies and Carrillo rods.
For a 3.0up /6 LN nickies are only about a grand more than a new mahle stock P&C kit.

There is a company in the UK that does it cheaper than LN, but it uses your old stock pistons, the cost savings are less than the set of new JE's.

So to wrap my head around this are you talking 10k in parts or 20k ?

My price is in Canadian so I'd have to look it up on the LN site, but $10K sounds close.
With all the stock parts included, plus flywheel and clutch kit, 6 gallons of coolant, etc $20K in parts isn't too far off.

Performance costs, this is a 3.6 to 4.0 upgrade for a C4s combo street/track toy.

We are doing an $80k 3.8 build. CNC heads, lots of custom stuff. Should be pretty.

Just on the engine or other work as well?
Easy to spend a lot on these cars, definitely not a poor man's game, but still cheap compared to Ferrari, etc.
And yes I'm forgetting the headwork, owner still on the fence, but he only has a couple more weeks to pull the trigger.

I'm finishing up the install of a 3.8 (was 3.4) right now, pretty well stock but with a bullet proof bottom end.

He wanted $12,000, but it could probably be had for less, let me know if you want the contact info.

Just the engine. I think it will be a $300k car.

I'm interested if Mark Henry passes...

Yeah, I got absolutely 0 interest..
Wouldn’t take one free exzept
To maybe flip it for some coin..
My old mechanic said that if it puked green stuff.
It wasn’t a Porsche..
He built Ralph Meaneys engines in the day..
r

m96 wasn't known to be a great engine but they unfairly get a bad rap.

with a custom build all bets are off as far as cost.

I love my 996



you haven't driven one then

I think LS v8 conversions are going to be MUCH more popular in the future for the 996's.

I've been considering it when the prices of the cars hit rock bottom and the conversion gets a little more affordable as the 996's are very nice drivers cars.

I’d wait for a test ride in a new
Mid engine Vette way before buying a water cooled
Porsche.
I am not a real fan of Vettes either, but I have an early
ZR1 that the factory claims 180 mph out of the box.

Love my 996... A lot of fun to drive for the price...

Not the right time for me right now, so go for it, sounds like a good deal.
I will be looking in the fall when I can afford the time off.

I'm an old aircooled mechanic and used to think the same, Charles was the one asking me to get into the 996 engines. Now I've driven 996/997 I do have to agree they are a nice sports car. Not an aircooled 911, much more refined, heavier, similar but different feel and much more modern.
I like them and I'm seriously thinking of building one for my wife, but of course I'll be borrowing it.

Just some quick comparison of the stock vs LN 996 bottom end parts

Pic 1, Left stock 3.6 95mm, right 4.0 JE 100mm, The JE is 7.7g heavier than stock.

Pic 2, Face to face size difference, doesn't look like much but times 6 = 400cc

Pic3, Left stock rod, right Carrillo rod, Carrillo rod is just under 100g lighter.
So piston and rod together is 92g lighter than stock, times 6 = 552g removed from rotating mass.

The Carrillo rod is stronger, lighter and it you can resize the big end. The stock rod uses cracked rod tech, the big end can not be serviced.

!!!!!!! ^^^^^^^

Subaru six conversion would probably be easier.

Smart man.

The 996 C4S was a GREAT drive—better, in some ways, than the sublime 996 Turbo—and with a keener engine would be even better.

Been wondering where the tipping point for the 996 might be, as it is interesting to me what people will spend fixing massive rust and/or mag cases etc in cars that are nice to look at and be around but are nowhere near as good to drive or usable as, say, a 996 C4S. I remember an early phone call with Jake Raby, where he floated the idea about getting into M96 engines, and I thought it was a very smart move. That was a long time ago, and it's nice to see some people actually paying to build these engines up.

I've looked into it, to have it pro done it's about the same price (if not more) as a performance rebuild with LN goodies. You can get a factory 996 short block, a shop could install that for about the price of parts on a LS conversion alone. The only V8's worthy of the conversion are aluminum block engines. Also there's no room atop of the engine so body mods, a hatch, would be wise.

Some areas you may run into emissions and insurance hassles. Here the car would be classed as a "hotrod", you have to have stock induction and exhaust (cats) with the engine year emissions, you also have to install an OBD port beside the 996 one. The wiring can be done, but making the GM ECU talk to the porsche ECU is problematic.
If you want to track it, which most of my customers do, I'm sure you will run into class issues.

It's a lot more work than one may think, Renegade charges over $30k and the Renegade kit is $8k alone IIRC.

I'll say this about 996's. A couple of years ago I was looking to add a modern Porsche to the stable, preferably with a back seat for the kids, A/C would be nice too. As luck would have it, one town over a guy was selling a 996 Anniversary Edition so I went and drove it. The first funny thing was I pulled up in my 356 and he looked at it and said, "Is that a Porsche?" I then drove the car and was pretty underwhelmed. A friend who has been driving Porsches since they were new has owned a 996, a 997, and currently has a 991. He confided in me that with the newer ones you have to push them to the limit to make it feel like a 911. He said paddle shifting is cool, but his wife's Jetta has it too, as does his dogwalker's Subaru. Another friend who works for Porsche pointed out to me that around the water cooler the 996 is referred to as the 911 that the Accountant's designed.
I decided on adding a 993 to the stable and I have to say, it feels like a Porsche, no mistaking it for anything else. A/C and a backseat is a bonus!

Another expensive 996 problem.
3.6 to 4.0 upgrade planned.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mbz3_gG4Sz4

How bad does the IMS trash the engine?
I'd expect a new cnc'd block and pistons to not be cheap but a rebuild with stock stuff shouldn't be too bad, or is it?

Doesn't the Audi 4.1 V8 bolt onto the trans, or the 2.7TT, or the Phaeton W12? You can almost buy a whole donor car for the cost of the LS adapter.

This is scored cylinders and oval bores, so the pistons slap. This is a low mile car at 75,000km (47k miles) so the hope is the heads are Ok. The damage on this one is because it's a cold winter driven car, I'm seeing this as often as IMS failures.
The owner still wants to drive it winters, so he's opting for the nikasil cylinders over a factory shortblock.

IMS failure it depends how fast you can shut it down, how fast it fails and how fast you're going. Sometimes the damage is workable, sometimes it wipes out the whole engine...total carnage.

No idea if other engines will work, I'm sure subi has been done, the LS engines are a hair long and you have to hack some of the internal bodywork out of the way. You're also are wise to cut in some access panels similar to a 914/6 firewall hatch.
Anything longer than a LS engine will likely be a problem.

The other thing about the aluminum block and heads LS engine is it's about the same weight as the Porsche engine, so it doesn't affect the weight bias by much. It just raises the center of gravity a bit.

The LS conversion isn't a whole lot cheaper than a new porsche engine, using a factory shortblock I can do a rebuild cheaper or same price an an econo LS build. An alunimum 5.3 truck engine would be the cheapest donor, but it's only 300hp so really it's a downgrade.
LS6 and up gets damn close to a nickies build. Renegade charges around $30K for a conversion.

I think that describes the main difference to me, at least from a street car perspective. My girlfriend's 2009 Carrera S with the PDK transmission is a fantastic car, it does pretty much everything perfectly, but it only feels like a 911 when you get on it.

It is so powerful that the rest of the time—maybe 80% of the time—around town you cannot push into the fun zone, and it becomes like just another modern luxury car (and it feels a bit heavy.)

With a 914, especially with a four, you can—and almost have to—push it to 100% all the time and not get into too much trouble. Thats why it is so much fun—all the time.

There are times though, like when all of a sudden I am in bumper to bumper traffic and its 97 degrees, that the 997 is clearly the best option because it can slip out of performance mode into luxury car in an instant. But 80% luxury time/20% performance time is not the best ratio for me. It starts to make the car feel boring.

My 993 is a good balance for me. It is more like 80% performance time/20% luxury.

The 997—and Im sure the 996s—are great cars and I think about buying one or a Boxster, or a Cayman now and then—usually when I am in traffic and its hot and I am trying to talk on the phone. Maybe I will in the future, but for now, they have to leak a little, squeak a little, and if I turn on the heat I want to smell a little oil.

-Andrew

that would make a really nice conversion. I am interested also in line always wanted a c4