2005 Porsche Boxster Engine cooling Problems

“My 2005 Porsche Boxster, 23k mi, had catastrophic engine failure at idle. The engine stalled;I was able to restart but a loud clanging noise came from engine. The car then died again. The mechanic said it was due to an intermediate shaft (ims) failure; the required engine replacement is $14k. The mechanic said he has heard of significant number of ims failures (but Porsche has not notified owners). There were no injuries, but certainly engine failure like this could have serious consequences at freeway speeds. …”

“I was driving on the inner lane of the freeway at 65mph. The engine suddenly stalled and the check engine light started flashing. I managed to have the car sliding toward the shoulder and get off freeway. The car wasn't able to restart again. A highway patrol came by and helped to push my car to wilder shoulder for safety. The rear bumper was damaged in the process. The car was towed to the dealer for inspection and still in the shop now. The mechanist said the engine need to be replaced.”

“This is a very well know ims failure issue with Porsche Boxster which certainly calls for a recall from Porsche. My 2005 engine will need to be replaced for 20k just because of the very obvious design flaw Porsche has in its m96 engines. I am pretty sure there have been numerous complaints about this in past but nobody has ever heeded to it. I sincerely recommend some one to please look into and ask Porsche to accept and recall m96 engines failing due to ims. Any car expert or mechanic or dealership can vouch for the design flaw Porsche has. Its potentially fatal too. …”

“Traveling 75mph on freeway when oil & engine lights came on and vehicle simultaneously came to dead stop in traffic; diagnosed as catastrophic engine failure by dealer service mgr., engine replaced at cost of $17,000+. No prior warning. No fault of my own per svc.mgr. 38k miles on 2005 vehicle, 3 mo out of warranty. Many similar incidents reported on several web sites. Service mgr reported Porsche well aware of this issue but does nothing because its too costly to repair and prefers to handle on case by case basis. Sometimes covers part of cost, sometimes nothing. …”

“The contact stated while driving 35 MPH on normal road conditions, and when stationary, there was a very distinct fume smell coming from the engine compartment. The smell was noticeable and came in through the vents. There were no warning signals prior to the incident. The vehicle was taken to a dealer several times, where they replaced the left and right cylinder head cover; cylinder head cup shield, manifold fuel gasket and the exhaust gasket but the smell persisted.”