Good luck what ever you decide to do, I'm with you in spirit *NM*

So had the Boxster in for its annual oil change to prepare for hibernation at 54,000 miles. I ended up driving more than I expected in the last part of the season, so it was a little over 8,000 miles since the change last year.

No oil used (at least not enough to drop a bar on the gauge) since the last change.

My Indy mechanic cut open and spread the filter and we looked through the whole thing under a light and found 2 tiny (size of a pin head) shiny flakes and one dark sliver about 1/8" long which my mechanic said was from the chain guide. He didn't think it was anything to be concerned about. (He's familiar with IMS bearing and has done about a dozen LN IMS replacements.) Should I be worried?

Also showed me the waterpump is seeping. I've never had coolant on the floor. He showed me the litte pink "stalactite" that had formed under the pump. So I figured I would wait until I pull the car out in Spring and have the waterpump and serpentine belt replaced. Figured after 6 years and 54 K miles, the serpentine belt would be a good preventative maintenance item to replace while the waterpump is being replaced. What say the experts. Safe to wait until Spring with the car in storage for the next 4 months?

Front pads are nearly done and I'm planning to have them replaced in the spring.

Rear pads are still at about 40%.

So over all, not too bad

I don't think the tiny bits(two) are anything to be concerned about, but it is good to check the filter after each change anyway. At 54k, I'd replace the following:
-water pump (factory)
-t-stat(factory)
-coolant (factory)
You might consider at that mileage, checking the condition of the fuel injector o-rings(these take a lot of abuse) and the drive line mounts. When the brakes are done, it is probably worth flushing the brake and clutch fluid out(if manual). It not a bad time to change out the gearbox oil.
regards

I should change it. I noticed a few drops of coolant on the ground after an errand to the store, and by the time I got home, it was leaking pretty good. In my case it was the pulley bearing seal. Not a terrible DIY, you just need to have a swiveling socket extension to reach one of the bolts.

My Serpentine belt looked like this at 60k, so changing it at the same time as the pump makes sense.

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BoxsterBob - San Carlos

My Serpentine belt looked like this at 60k, so changing it at the same time as the pump makes sense.

I had been thinking of changing it anyway, being 6 years old. In this case, it will just be the cost of the belt as it has to come off anyway.

It may not be perfect, but could prevent being stranded on a road trip.

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BoxsterBob - San Carlos
It may not be perfect, but could prevent being stranded on a road trip.

Good point. I don't see it taking up much space in the trunk anyway with all the storage space you have in the Boxster.

Guenter
2014 Boxster S
GT Silver, 6 Speed Manual, Bi-Xenons, Sports Suspension (lowers car 20mm), Porsche Sports Exhaust, Porsche Torque Vectoring, Auto Climate control, heated and vented seats, 20" Carrera S Wheels, Pedro's TechNoWind, Sport Design steering wheel, Roll bars in GT Silver
[www.cyberdesignconcepts.com]

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por911(bc)
I don't think the tiny bits(two) are anything to be concerned about, but it is good to check the filter after each change anyway. At 54k, I'd replace the following:
-water pump (factory)
-t-stat(factory)
-coolant (factory)
You might consider at that mileage, checking the condition of the fuel injector o-rings(these take a lot of abuse) and the drive line mounts. When the brakes are done, it is probably worth flushing the brake and clutch fluid out(if manual). It not a bad time to change out the gearbox oil.
regards

Yes. I hadn't mentioned the brake fluid flush. I have that done every two years and it will be part of what I have done this spring.

I haven't heard too much of thermostats going on these cars. Most of the discussion has been about getting a lower temperature thermostat. Just wondering why you would change that, although I guess it's not a high cost item.

Thanks for the suggestions.

It is just inexpensive insurance and having them fail on these cars can be a pricey mistake. Even with cooling systems mods(GT3 center rad, 996 heat exchanger) on our car, I personally view the safe range for service life is 50k. Having said that, each to their own. I did not mention it before, you might consider replacing the tensioner, roller, and serp belt while in there. I find the rollers on these cars don't like to be re-tensioned with a fresh belt. They seem to show signs of failure shortly after installation of a new serp belt(ie bearing noise and or seizure of the part itself).
regards

There's little benefit to premature replacement. You don't save much labor, and if they fail, nothing else is damaged (unless you drive without, say, coolant, but then your brain is broken, not the car). If it ain't broke, don't fix it. The only hedge is the rate of seepage that you see. Maybe its worse than i imagine.

Now, this is very different scenario from, say "the gearbox is out, do i replace the $20 rms?" or "i have my audi's timing belt off, do i replace the water pump and tensioning roller?" where in the former you save $600 labor on a $20 part, and in the latter the water pump failure is the most common cause of TB failure, and, similarly, the labor is free now, $700 later.

I have not heard that either is a trouble spot either.

maybe i'm wrong.

Grant

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com

internal surface area exposed to oil and oil splash (some of it violent) which will over time dislodge bits of alum. These bits after going through the high pressure pump will be smashed to a thin flake and then thin flake can break into 2 or more smaller flakes.

Was the sliver of material soft or hard? If soft it probably is a piece of the sealant used when the engine was assembled. This stuff squishes out and almost certainly a bit of it will squish out into where it will eventually break free and end up in the filter. The filter element and housing oil at the engine's first oil change was probably loaded with pieces of that stuff.

If the material is hard then I agree with your mechanic.

My info is the water pump can seep a bit and still be ok. The techs tell me though at no time should any wetness be visible and even the stain size has a callout. However, if there's a stalactite present, I think the water pump is seeping way more than what is allowed/acceptable and replacement of the water pump is called for.

At the time the water pump is changed it would not be that onerous to spring for new anti-freeze and thus effect a cooling system fluid change. The anti-freeze does act to lube the water pump seals.

While you can wait to do the water pump next spring, I can think of a reason why it might not be a good idea to wait.

The water pump can go from leaky to catastrophic failure in no time at all. (When I determined my 02 Boxster's water pump was noisy I elected to not even drive the car the 20 miles or so to the nearest Porsche dealer but instead have it flat bedded there, simpy to avoid the water pump suffering some mechanical failure that could result in more serious damage to the engine.)

If you put this water pump job off, you might be lulled into thinking you have plenty of time next spring to get this taken care of and drive the car some because of course you're excited to be able to drive the car again after a long winter of not being able to drive the car. Understandable.

However, the water pump's seals, even bearings -- if the seals do not seal properly -- might deterioriate due to the exposure of the coolant and the fact it is not circulating and thus less resistant to corrosion. In the worst case scenario the water pump could suffer a mechanical failure that could cause the impeller to come apart and put impeller material in the cooling system.

Thus, I'd be inclined to get it taken care of *before* putting the car away for the winter. While the risk of a catastrophic failure of the water pump come next spring is admittedly small, it is not zero. Since the job is not elective you're going to spend the money anyway. And come next spring after a bit of a shakedown drive just to ensure all is ok you have the car for the full driving season. No need to interrupt this with having the car in the shop for the water pump and other work.

Sincerely,

MarcW.

Thanks Marc. I see your point about not waiting. Just at this point there hasn't even been a drip on the floor and everything looked dry. The little stalactite was flaky and dry. That looked like the only clue that had the mechanic check it further.

My thinking was that the materials - specially the belt would be 4 months newer (maybe) and I was planning on having it looked after as soon as I take the car out. I like to have those things looked after so I can enjoy the rest of the season.

I didn't feel the dark material. My mechanic did and he was the one who said it looked like part of the timing belt guides.

Guenter
2014 Boxster S
GT Silver, 6 Speed Manual, Bi-Xenons, Sports Suspension (lowers car 20mm), Porsche Sports Exhaust, Porsche Torque Vectoring, Auto Climate control, heated and vented seats, 20" Carrera S Wheels, Pedro's TechNoWind, Sport Design steering wheel, Roll bars in GT Silver
[www.cyberdesignconcepts.com]

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Guenter in Ontario
Thanks Marc. I see your point about not waiting. Just at this point there hasn't even been a drip on the floor and everything looked dry. The little stalactite was flaky and dry. That looked like the only clue that had the mechanic check it further.

My thinking was that the materials - specially the belt would be 4 months newer (maybe) and I was planning on having it looked after as soon as I take the car out. I like to have those things looked after so I can enjoy the rest of the season.

I didn't feel the dark material. My mechanic did and he was the one who said it looked like part of the timing belt guides.

should be visible, that is any signs of wetness meant the water pump was leaking and needed replacing.

But they also told me that a stain -- the whitish residue from when coolant evaporates -- was ok but the max. allowable size (and possibily the location but I don't recall this specifically being mentioned) -- was also spelled out. Neither provided me with any details and I didn't think to press.

It is only my opinion -- based on what I was told -- but the presence of something more than a stain says to me the water pump is past the point the seepage is acceptable so the water pump is due to be replaced.

If your mechanic thinks the water pump is ok and advises waiting to replace it, that's between you and your mechanic. If the mechanic believes the pump needs to be replaced and you want to wait until spring to replace the water pump and your mechanic has no objection, that's between you and your mechanic as well.

The cam chain guides/tensioner rails are surfaced with a very tough composite plastic. In the few engines I've seen teh insides of at least one cam chain rail/tensioner (the one that drives the IMS from the crank) is surfaced with the darker material. The cam chain rails of the cam chains from the IMS to the exhaust cams in the heads and the VarioCam actuator have a lighter colored material, a dark caramel colored plastic. (I can't post pics from the office any more and have no 'net access when away from the office or I'd post a pic. I can email you a couple of pics that show the colors of the various chain guide/rails if you want.)

But in both cases of the cam chain rails/guides this material while plastic is very tough, hard, and a fingernail does not dent it. (The VarioCam actuator from my Boxster's engine even after over 200K miles of use, which involves constant contact with the exhaust to intake cam shaft chain showed no signs of any wear. The plastic is tough and if the tensioners are working ok should last nearly forever.)

Fragments of sealant are dark, almost black (but it is possible this color could change from production run to production run), but are a bit softer.

Based on what you said was found, though, I do not think anything serious is going on. Two tiny bits of what is probably, based on your description, alum. from an engine with an interior surface area that is huge and almost all alum. is normal. A single small piece of what is probably either cam chain guide/tensioner rail covering is not enough material to worry about.

The oil and filter has been changed so both are fresh and should be free of any debris, though of course even normal debris shedding can occur right after the oil is changed or just before it is changed. You've driven the car some since the oil/filter service. If there's any concern on your part that abnormal debris shedding is taking place, arrange to remove the filter housing and dump the oil filter housing oil and filter element into a *clean* drain pan and see what you see. Run a magnet through the oil. If you find nothing then you can relax. If you see more fragments then there might be some cause for concern.

Sincerely,

MarcW.

When the water pump fails, I thought that just meant that the water stopped circulating and it rapidly overheated. I figured that if my Porsche waterpump failed, I'd immediately shut down the engine to prevent overheating and just have it flatbedded back to the mechanic for a new pump. That was my Dad's experience with his old Buick and it was not really that big a deal. I would never run the car with a broken waterpump, I'm not so stupid to let it get overheated. However, it sounds from your post that WP failure alone in my Cayman would result in catastrophic damage to the engine aside from overheating ("When I determined my 02 Boxster's water pump was noisy I elected to not even drive the car the 20 miles or so to the nearest Porsche dealer but instead have it flat bedded there, simply to avoid the water pump suffering some mechanical failure that could result in more serious damage to the engine." ). I'm not understanding how the WP failure could cause serious damage to the engine aside from running it while overheated. Sorry if this seems like a stupid question but please bear with me. Can you elaborate on this? What happens? Can the WP disintegrate and spray parts into the engine?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/22/2011 09:30AM by paulwdenton. (view changes)

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paulwdenton
When the water pump fails, I thought that just meant that the water stopped circulating and it rapidly overheated. I figured that if my Porsche waterpump failed, I'd immediately shut down the engine to prevent overheating and just have it flatbedded back to the mechanic for a new pump. That was my Dad's experience with his old Buick and it was not really that big a deal. I would never run the car with a broken waterpump, I'm not so stupid to let it get overheated. However, it sounds from your post that WP failure alone in my Cayman would result in catastrophic damage to the engine aside from overheating ("When I determined my 02 Boxster's water pump was noisy I elected to not even drive the car the 20 miles or so to the nearest Porsche dealer but instead have it flat bedded there, simply to avoid the water pump suffering some mechanical failure that could result in more serious damage to the engine." ). I'm not understanding how the WP failure could cause serious damage to the engine aside from running it while overheated. Sorry if this seems like a stupid question but please bear with me. Can you elaborate on this? What happens? Can the WP disintegrate and spray parts into the engine?

occur it is often due to a loss of a belt. The water pump is ok.

If the belt remains intact and remains driven by the main pulley on the end of the crankshaft, but the water pump stops turning, then the water pump shaft is seized.

Another failure is the pump impeller comes apart. This can be due to material fatique or the shaft has excessive axial/radial play due to one or both bearings failing. While the pump may continue to turn it is not pumping water nearly as well as it was before the impeller came apart.

In this case that material can only remain in the cooling system and it can lodge in places where it might block or interfere with the proper flow of coolant through the engine's coolant passages.

If this material is not removed/accounted for, there can be localized overheating. There is also the risk the material may case the impeller of the new pump to fail, come apart.

Really, the best course of action to replace a suspected water pump *before* the shaft seizes, before the impeller comes apart.

Now if a pump is making noise (as was the case with my Boxster's water pump) I do not know how long the pump would remain servicable. It might last hundreds of hours (doubtful but maybe) or might fail in the next couple of minutes of engine operation.

If the car is sitting stationary and the engine idling to suddenly have the pump stop working is similar to when the engine is shut off. No big deal. If the car is moving down the road at a clip and the water pump fails, stops turning, thus no coolant is flowing, the engine has considerable heat load that it can't shed through the coolant since the coolant is no longer flowing. Remember too the coolant is used to cool the engine oil which is in more direct contact with the hotter parts of the engine.

An engine can be 'taken out' by a failed water pump because this can result in localized overheating that can cause a head to warp, even crack, or worse. For a used car after a certain point a head gasket leak or other collateral damage from a failed water pump and the cost to fix this represents a considerable percentage of the car's worth.

A worst case scenario is if the pump shaft seizes or attempts to sieze it may snap or apart. The pump housing may be fractured. This will let coolant gush out the engine so the engine is at more risk to overheating since the system is no longer under pressure and it is pressure which prevents the hot coolant from flashing to steam at the hottest places in the engine. This steam blocks further coolant flow, and at the same time precious coolant gushes from the cracked water pump.

(When I struck some road debris with my Boxster and damaged the driver's side radiator as soon as I saw the signs (coolant vapor billowing from out behind the car) I shifted the tranny into neutral and let the car coast a considerable distance with the engine idling which even though it was losing coolant some coolant was flowing and helping to remove the heat load that was present. I had been driving at highway speed when I hit the debris. Thankfully the engine suffered no harm from the damaged radiator and the resulting loss of pressure and even after few minutes parked on the side of the road the total loss of coolant.)

Yet a worse case scenario is possible. The spinning water pump pulley and water pump shaft represents considerable energy. If the water pump starts to come apart not only can it fracture the water pump housing, but in doing so break the engine casting where the water pump mounts, cracking one or more holes to which the pump is attached to the engine. If this happens one would be very lucky if the damage did not require the replacement of the engine crankcase.

Cast iron engines were less at risk to damage from overheating.

However, even when engines had iron blocks and alum. heads, risk from collateral damage from overheating was increased. Alum. heads do not like to run too hot. They can get soft and the head bolts lose some of the force that holds the head down on the block. The hotter spots are subject to cracking if any coolant hits them after they get hot from lack of coolant.

100% alum. engines are doubly at risk not only from the risk to the head but to the block. A splash of relatively cool coolant against a hot cylinder's water jacket wall can crack the cylinder.

Continuing to drive one of these cars with a suspected water pump is I believe putting the engine to considerable and unnecessary risk.

It is up to you of course, what you want to do, but when I id'd a noisy water pump, even though there was no signs of any coolant leakage, I elected to play it safe and have the car flat bedded to a dealer and have the pump replaced. It seems overkill, but the cost of the tow is small compared to the cost of putting one of these engines right if it suffers from overheating due to a failed water pump. And a making a bet I could get a few more miles from an obviously failing water pump did not seem like a good bet to make to me, since if I lost I could be paying out for a new engine. $100 tow. I forget how much for the water pump (which lasted over 170K miles so I got my money out of the thing).

Last time I priced a replacement engine they were $16K (with suitable core exchange), $27K if the old engine not suitable as a rebuildable core and if one is replacing the engine due to damage from a failed and flailing water pump one can probably kiss that core exchange goodbye.

So risking $16K to maybe $27K to save $100 and get a few more hours from a water pump that had lasted 170K+ miles?

No way.

Sincerely,

MarcW.

Thanks, Marc, for a really thorough answer. Hadn't thought about fracturing the block or the localized overheating. And in no way was I intending to be critical of replacing a water pump with 170K miles on it ... probably I will be freaked out about possible failure to replace my own at 50K or 75K just as a preventive measure.

go from ok to any degree of bad let alone go from ok to bad enough to in the worst case scenario taking out the engine block.

There is a risk of replacing the old but working just fine water pump (in this case but this applies to other items as well) and that is the new water pump (or t-stat) may prove to be bad. Rare but not unknown.

I'm as much a preventative service/repair kind of guy, willing to replace items as a preventative action rather wait for them to go bad, but over time I have softened some and have moved have moved towards the let the car tell me what it needs. IOWs, if it ain't broke don't fix it.

Sure, I'll change the engine oil, coolant and tranny fluid oftener than most but other items such as water pump, battery, starter, clutch, wheel bearings, CV boots, coils (plugs I change on schedule/time, and this is true of the engine/cabin air filters too), brake pads, rotors, and such I'll only replace any of the above when there is a good indication replacement is called for.

But you have to stay on top of things. Often what happens is an owner lets a coolant leak go on, especially during colder weather. Then come a nice warm day and the engine overheats. The time to have the leak dealt with was when the leak was found or at least suspected, not after having the engine emit a huge cloud of coolant vapor as one is chugging up a mountain grade in a long slow moving line of cars on an exceptionally hot day.

Sincerely,

MarcW.

Just ask the "King and Queen" of BRBS. I was following them on a remote road when I smelled that sickening smell of coolant and then saw the cloud emerging from the back of their beautiful 911 !

Guenther:

I've got an 06 with 39K on it and am getting close to the same maintenance items you are. During the spring visit to my Indy, I'll do the T-stat, thinking about the water pump and probably a UDP. Had the serpentine belt done this past spring along with spark plugs and coils. Also, thinking about dropping the bumper and do a thorough cleaning of the radiators because we do track events.

Front pads are an annual thing and did the front rotors this past summer-- a very easy DIY.

I've not seen anything shinny in the oil filters yet and do the oil analysis once a year--nothing extraordinary to this point. I would recommend a oil analysis next time and have your Indy do the camshaft deviation test with the durametric to see if anything is awry with the IMS. Both are only a good indicator of what is going on at the time of the sample or test.

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MikenOH
Guenther:

I've got an 06 with 39K on it and am getting close to the same maintenance items you are. During the spring visit to my Indy, I'll do the T-stat, thinking about the water pump and probably a UDP. Had the serpentine belt done this past spring along with spark plugs and coils. Also, thinking about dropping the bumper and do a thorough cleaning of the radiators because we do track events.

Front pads are an annual thing and did the front rotors this past summer-- a very easy DIY.

I've not seen anything shinny in the oil filters yet and do the oil analysis once a year--nothing extraordinary to this point. I would recommend a oil analysis next time and have your Indy do the camshaft deviation test with the durametric to see if anything is awry with the IMS. Both are only a good indicator of what is going on at the time of the sample or test.

I believe you track your car, which would explain the annual front pad replacement. My brakes are still original all around. Must be my gentle style of driving.

Good point about doing a durametric test. I'll mention that to my mechanic when I get the work done.

Guenter
2014 Boxster S
GT Silver, 6 Speed Manual, Bi-Xenons, Sports Suspension (lowers car 20mm), Porsche Sports Exhaust, Porsche Torque Vectoring, Auto Climate control, heated and vented seats, 20" Carrera S Wheels, Pedro's TechNoWind, Sport Design steering wheel, Roll bars in GT Silver
[www.cyberdesignconcepts.com]

Sounds as though you have a great mechanic. He's on top of it. And I like that the waterpump has given you some advance warning.

I had assumed that the water pump is visible only when the engine compartment cover behind the seats is removed. But I'm guessing I'm wrong, and that you and your tech were able to check it out from beneath the car?

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Roger987
Sounds as though you have a great mechanic. He's on top of it. And I like that the waterpump has given you some advance warning.

I had assumed that the water pump is visible only when the engine compartment cover behind the seats is removed. But I'm guessing I'm wrong, and that you and your tech were able to check it out from beneath the car?

Yes, my mechanic is pretty dedicated and thorough and his labour rates are a lot more reasonable than the dealer.

He saw the little stalactite below the water pump through a slit in the rear plastic panel under the engine. Once he took that off you could see where the pink stain was on the water pump.

I wish I'd taken a camera with me. I'll try to remember to do that when I have the work done.

Guenter
2014 Boxster S
GT Silver, 6 Speed Manual, Bi-Xenons, Sports Suspension (lowers car 20mm), Porsche Sports Exhaust, Porsche Torque Vectoring, Auto Climate control, heated and vented seats, 20" Carrera S Wheels, Pedro's TechNoWind, Sport Design steering wheel, Roll bars in GT Silver
[www.cyberdesignconcepts.com]

My WP was seeping (discovered Dec 10 during annual MX), I only got to drive it a bit in 2011 (was overseas) but I did have all three replaced last week (WP, thermostat, and belt) and feel good about it; sitting in your garage over the winter should not be an issue. Bob

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Motobob
My WP was seeping (discovered Dec 10 during annual MX), I only got to drive it a bit in 2011 (was overseas) but I did have all three replaced last week (WP, thermostat, and belt) and feel good about it; sitting in your garage over the winter should not be an issue. Bob

Thanks Bob. That's good to know. I just want to give the car a good wash and then put it throught the hibernation process before the s**w salt hits.

Guenter ,I know you are about to put the curvenator away maybe get mike to do the pump and.the coolant tank , both failures leave you dead on the side of the road. and doing them together means you could save the coolant. I think most guys get about he 50000 miles on a coolant tank. Mike knows how to properly refill the coolant . oil sounds OK ,just keep an eye on it. Hes a great Indy, we are lucky to have him.

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Alcantera
Guenter ,I know you are about to put the curvenator away maybe get mike to do the pump and.the coolant tank , both failures leave you dead on the side of the road. and doing them together means you could save the coolant. I think most guys get about he 50000 miles on a coolant tank. Mike knows how to properly refill the coolant . oil sounds OK ,just keep an eye on it. Hes a great Indy, we are lucky to have him.

I agree Dave. I think we're lucky to have Mike in the area. He seems pretty thorough when going over the car.

I'll buy the Curven8r from you at half off I have seen the pics on line of cars with problems, the oil filer is covered with bits leaving no doubt of a problem.

I think MarcW has a good point about not putting off the repairs. The thermostat is in the same area as the WP so it's a good time to put a new one in.

BTW, welcome to the busted WP club.

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Naples996
I'll buy the Curven8r from you at half off I have seen the pics on line of cars with problems, the oil filer is covered with bits leaving no doubt of a problem.

I think MarcW has a good point about not putting off the repairs. The thermostat is in the same area as the WP so it's a good time to put a new one in.

BTW, welcome to the busted WP club.

Although your offer to purchase is a most generous one, I'll have to decline for now. Besides, the WP isn't busted. It's only slightly injured, not like some 996 water pumps that have been reported to be busted.

... that there's a over-medication and CYA attitude amongst doctors and techs.
I truly believe in the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" adage.
There's no reason to change a thermostat if its working fine.
It's just a metal coil that expands and contracts with temperature.
If and when it fails you can replace it very easily.
Water pumps tend to leak a little bit on occasion, but sometimes its very difficult to determine if the leak is from the pump itself or from the gasket.
If it's leaking from the pump's seal, replace it. It will get worse and eventually fail.
If it's leaking from the gasket, make sure it's properly tightened.
The less you mess with the cooling system in these cars, the longer the reservoir is going to last.
Make sure that ALL the air is bled out of the cooling system if you ever have it opened.
I'm sure your water pump replacement can wait till spring.
Happy Hibernating,
Pedro

Pedro Bonilla
1998 Boxster 986 - 311,000+ miles: [www.PedrosGarage.com]
PCA National Club Racing Scrutineer - PCA National HPDE Instructor - PCA Technical Committee (Boxster/Cayman)

---

Racecar spelled backwards is Racecar

"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting" ... Steve McQueen as Michael Delaney in "LeMans"

"If you wait, all that happens is that you get older"... Mario Andretti

"Being second is to be the first of the ones who lose" ... Ayrton Senna

If you do replace the thermostat check the new one for proper operation. I had a new one once that didn't work properly. Testing it before installing could save you from doing it over.

Thanks Pedro,

I thought that if I wait till Spring, the parts - specially rubber like the serp belt would be that much newer. Definitely will get it done well before BRBS. Don't need no stickin' "Learn how to install a waterpump" session like you almost got to do last time.

My car is an 01 with 60k. I've had it since 05 as a pre certified car. Did all the Porsche recommended pre-m stuff till last falls oil change. (at this age I just couldn't believe that Porsche might still warranty any engine issues.) Just did all the 60k maintenance items but was convinced I needed to do the coolant, water pump, and thermostat, also. Now I'm not sure.
I garage it in the winter, being from Pa., drive it frequently in the spring, summer and fall, but mostly short trips.
I'm also frequently disabled needing a cane or even crutches, so I worry about break downs. ( I travel very remote roads )
So, what-da-ya-think ?
I was just getting ready to order the Airlift coolant pump for my indie guy I who did most of my 60k maintenance.
Oh, and thank you for your site Pedro, invaluable. My brother even met you once. He lives in Navarre Fl. and bought the brace of you.
The Motive brake bleeder worked awesome.