Hartech rebuild advice

[AlexH997]

Hey all

I have a 997 Gen 1 Carrera S tiptronic 2005 and after 4+ yrs ownership I'm now experiencing the well documented bore scoring symptoms on my car. I suspected this day would come so I'm neither surprised or upset because each year since the car's OPC warranty expired I've put the equivalent amount to contribute towards this potential repair so a modest fund is available.

I plan to keep this for a few more years so the rebuild is worth it. In fact apart from replacing a rusty tandem pump the car has been solid as a rock.

As yet the number of cylinders scored is unknown but I'm curious about what type of rebuild to go for.

Options are:

1. Fix one side of the engine (banks 4-6) which from what I understand are the only ones affected and have updated IMS fitted.
2. Fix ALL 6 banks and have updated IMS. This will cost around £10k using their online quote.

My question is, whilst it would be ideal to have all 6 banks fixed, is it necessary? The online quote suggests this would be around £10K. The car privately is worth £20k ish. My budget is around £8k

So while I don't want to scrimp on the rebuild, I want to strike a balance. My pockets (and head) aren't that deep for a money is no object approach to repair. I'm sure if I spoke to Hartech they'd advise to have all of them repaired.

Just curious if anyone else had thoughts about what type of rebuild they'd go for or if they have had a rebuild, what did they go for and why?

Any constructive thoughts welcome. I won't knock these cars because they're otherwise superb motors.

[Patrick Bateman]

I suppose it might depend on how many 'a few more years' you're thinking.

[hartech]

Great reply Cmoose - saved me a job - thanks.

Baz

[AyBee]

Think I'd tend to agree with cmoose - if the engine is apart, you might as well go all the way rather than doing a half job. As a potential buyer of your car in years to come, I'd be wondering why you only did half a job and whether that half approach has been taken with all repairs that have been needed. I also suspect that you'll get slightly more money back if you do the whole job than if you just do half.

[Pugley]

Or to put it to you from a financial point of view:-

The increased value of the car with a full rebuild will be greater than the money you save on a partial rebuild.

Quite honestly, who would buy a car with a partial rebuild - unless it was very cheap?

[MidlifeC2S]

Do you want complete peace of mind, or partial. My rebuild was 12k and it's worth it just to know it's bulletproof.
Also when/ if I come to sell it, it should appeal to potential buyers.
Hartech have such a good name I think I might get mine rebadged! Lol
911 HARTECH in chrome would look nice ;-)

[Paracetamol]

12k on an 05 tip!

Thats nuts. Sell it at auction for 14k. Add the 12k and put money toward a pdk car...

[AlexH997]

MidlifeC2S said:

My rebuild was 12k and it's worth it just to know it's bulletproof.

What did you have done on your car to price it to £12k?

[AlexH997]

Paracetamol said:

12k on an 05 tip!

Thats nuts. Sell it at auction for 14k. Add the 12k and put money toward a pdk car...

I was offered the same amount part exchange against a non porsche main dealer. Not sure of the consequences of part exchanging the car in its current condition though. Not sure how to put it through auction either.

[hartech]

Midlife C2S - Not quite what was suggested but we have recently created a badge/decal for the space left when the tax disc is removed and also a smaller one for the rear quarter window - for Hartech Customers on our Maintenance Plan and with engine rebuilds - as follows.


Any customer interested should contact Tobias on [e-mail]

Baz

[Zantaz]

I never post, just lurk but i found the OP's situation very similar to mine.

I bought my 997 C2S nearly 6 years from Porsche Mid-Sussex main dealer. 6 months after buying the car the engine was rebuilt with a new crankcase by porsche under warranty due to scored cylinders. I fitted a low temperature thermostat, engine oil replaced every year regardless of service schedule to try and keep it sweet.

Fast forward 5.5yrs and 25,000 miles later and my car is now experiencing the same symptoms and will require another rebuild. I was planning on upgrading to a generation 2 model this year but after speaking to both grant at hartech and tom @ 911Virgin (both were very helpful) I think I'll keep the car and have the full engine rebuild from hartech and keep it longer.

I did consider trading it in and buying a newer different marque but I'd probably still lose £10k-12k in depreciation on a new purchase. Either way it's going to cost me fortune so I may as well lose it on a good looking car like the 911. I applied the same principle to my first marriage too.

[hartech]

Once again Cmoose - I do think your responses are spot on

Baz

[Zantaz]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

I bought mine with 40k miles. The engine scored at 43k. With mine being a tiptronic, I always dropped to 1st gear to pull away (it defaults to 2nd). I always warmed the engine/oil to correct temperature, I rarely if ever ragged the bones out if it and avoided short journeys hoping to maintain it's longevity but that was a waste of time. Should of ragged it silly! I'm sure the scoring occurred after my trip to scotland 7 months ago. That's when I noticed it starting to use oil where as all the years before it used none.

Once it's had it's full hartech rebuild, I will be curious to know whether it will definitely last another 5.5yrs and 25,000 miles, if it does great. If it doesn't it must be my driving style.

[bgunn]

It'll last, as the unsuited bore material will be replaced with an entirely suitable one.

Much, much, better than new when done.

[Searider]

AlexH997 said:

Hey all

I have a 997 Gen 1 Carrera S tiptronic 2005 and after 4+ yrs ownership I'm now experiencing the well documented bore scoring symptoms on my car. I suspected this day would come so I'm neither surprised or upset because each year since the car's OPC warranty expired I've put the equivalent amount to contribute towards this potential repair so a modest fund is available.

I plan to keep this for a few more years so the rebuild is worth it. In fact apart from replacing a rusty tandem pump the car has been solid as a rock.

As yet the number of cylinders scored is unknown but I'm curious about what type of rebuild to go for.

Options are:

1. Fix one side of the engine (banks 4-6) which from what I understand are the only ones affected and have updated IMS fitted.
2. Fix ALL 6 banks and have updated IMS. This will cost around £10k using their online quote.

My question is, whilst it would be ideal to have all 6 banks fixed, is it necessary? The online quote suggests this would be around £10K. The car privately is worth £20k ish. My budget is around £8k

So while I don't want to scrimp on the rebuild, I want to strike a balance. My pockets (and head) aren't that deep for a money is no object approach to repair. I'm sure if I spoke to Hartech they'd advise to have all of them repaired.

Just curious if anyone else had thoughts about what type of rebuild they'd go for or if they have had a rebuild, what did they go for and why?

Any constructive thoughts welcome. I won't knock these cars because they're otherwise superb motors.

The difference between having all 6 done instead of just 3 is £1100 + VAT. I think you'd be crazy to save money here when the engine is all in bits.

My take on having a rebuild, if mine were to go pop, would be to deal with the fundamentals - i.e. what's inside the engine once and for all. All 6 cylinders, bearings, IMS bearing, cylinder head basic overhaul perhaps timing chains etc. Make sure the engine doesn't need to be opened up ever again! If the budget is tight then if your clutch was OK before - put it back in. Anything on the outside of the engine that's "OK" but is one of those "nice to have" options or "Whilst the engine is out" options can simply be put back and then dealt with as and when, just as they would have been if the engine hadn't been rebuilt.

[Landshuter_997]

Sorry to bump this month old thread!

New 997.1 owner here. I came across a deal I couldn’t turn away. The car had a hartech rebuild in early 2016, but only on bank 2. Tried to do as much research as possible before purchasing, but at the same time couldn’t let the deal slip through.

So on one hand I’m thrilled to see hartech handled the rebuild as their posts on here are super informative and they do seem to be *the* place to go when it comes to rebuilds.

On the other hand, I have some slight anxiety about only bank 2 being rebuilt. The car has had about 10,000 miles put on since the rebuild, and had a borescope check about a year ago with no faults found. There is some minimal oil consumption (I have to wait and see exactly how much on my own).

Any advice or things to look out for? I’ve read Bank 1 is much less likely to develop BS but that it’s still potentially prone to the problem.

Edited by Landshuter_997 on Saturday 9th June 11:05

[Jim1556]

You could always ring Hartech?

[Landshuter_997]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Hi cmoose - thanks for the reply. I’ve also seen a lot of your posts before registering and found them quite helpful.

Looks like the crank bearings (main, thrust, and big end) were all replaced, a long with a lot of other “wearables” that are easy to access (timing chain, IMS etc). Just seems that bank 1 was left alone.

Edited by Landshuter_997 on Saturday 9th June 15:27

[ChrisW.]

If I was looking to buy a pre-gen2 997 or 996, I would without question look for a Hartech rebuild.

Look at the evidence of the Porsche replacement engine that didn't solve the original problem ...

Why, for the difference in cost, wouldn't you do the whole job ?

And if I were a buyer, what would it say about the owner that had done the whole job ... vs the owner who'd "saved" £1500 ?

I rest my case ...

[Patrick Bateman]

Would it not depend on what they were planning doing with the car to be fair?

I'm not sure what grief you're likely to get trying to sell a 911 with a knackered engine vs. paying for the rebuild and then getting shot of it.

If I was in the latter camp I certainly wouldn't be getting all the bells and whistles.

Based on my experience with selling a Boxster with a Hartech rebuild, it was difficult finding anyone that was as like-minded in regards to seeing it as a big plus. Not sure how that's likely to vary with a typical 911 buyer though.