The Return Of The Clutch Killer

Had this 2004 in the shop a few weeks ago due to a bad clutch, so we took the opportunity to go through the car (70k miles) and get everything up in tip top shape. Gotta laugh, but the owner’s son has killed two clutches in spectacular fashion with their cars, so now he has earned a nickname 😉 It’s all good, stuff happens, and with 70k on the clock, it was nearing replacement anyway.

Since I knew we would be doing the clutch, the other while you are in there decision to make is to do the IMS. Since this is a 2004 with a higher failure rate than the other years, we decided it would be best to take care of it before it became an issue. In order to do so though, you really need to run the car through a gambit of tests to determine if the car is qualified for a bearing replacement. If it fails the list, then the motor is disqualified from bearing replacement, due to the fact that other issues in the engine will just cause the new bearing to fail (such as a bearing already coming apart and throwing metal into the engine). So I spend a couple of hours going through the cars before we give it the go ahead. Many people just replace the bearing without doing any predirectives, and then they blame the bearing when it fails in 6 months.

While not all of the list, a couple things you should do on a regular basis anyway. Cut open the oil filter and check for ferrous debris.

Drop the sump plate and check for debris. This car hasn’t had an oil change in a while (or has been on extended intervals), so there was some staining and light sludge, but no ferrous metal of any kind found. Of course it is all cleaned when going back together. We will get it on a 6 month oil change schedule from now on.

Sump was nice and clean as was the oil pickup tube screen.

Swirl pots removed and opened up to check for debris inside.

Checking manometer readings of the oil air separator

And couple that with reading ECU information and a host of other items before giving the go ahead.

And the clutch removed, notice the leaking IMS shaft, though in the first picture everything looked nice and dry….

And our failed clutch pressure plate. Ooops 😉

The waterpump was also starting to show signs of dry crust leakage, so that was a must replacement as well. Unfortunately with 70 miles on the clock, exhaust hardware rusts, so you have to cut off the bolts to get it out of the way to access the waterpump.

And the new waterpump and belt in place.

And installing the new IMS bearing.

And the oil separator while in there.

And leaking heat exchanger seal o rings. Perfect time to replace them. Lately I am seeing the o ring closest to the clutch leak on almost every transmission I pull, either 996 or Boxster. They leak just enough to cause a crusty residue, so I am starting to replace them more often as well.