986 second gear pop - most vulnerable parts?

Hi Guys,

My 2004S has a terminal case of second gear pop under load(<30K miles). A good indy has taken a look at all the exterior possibilities and now needs to move to opening the gearbox.

To give me an idea of my parts bill, would be interested if anyone can indicate the most likely internal parts that need to be replaced? From a few searches also on 996’s I believe this is such a common problem that the second gear syncro etc are available as spares.

Is this also a good time to fit a new IMS bearing?

Cheers,

... if your car is a base or an S.
The transmissions are different.
Sometimes you may have a failing shift cable or bad linkage which doesn't allow the gear to be fully engaged and it tends to pop out.
If it's determined that the tranny's gears, synchros, selectors, etc. are worn and/or damaged, many times it's more economical to just replace the complete transmission assembly rather than trying to open it and fix it.
A used transmission with s warranty can be easily found at a decent price. All you'd need to do is flush it and service it when installing.
Once you pull the transmission, clutch and flywheel, most of the work to install the DOF has been done.
I would put it in.
Good luck.
Happy Boxstering
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

Hi Pedro,

It's a 2004 986 S 6 speed manual. Unfortunately I'm not in the US or anywhere where I can get a decent supply of used transmissions (or economically shipped) at a reasonable price.
They opened the transmission today and I'm going with a repair to the second gear gears and guides. Apparently my shifting is not as good as I thought :-)

Out of interest, once the transmission is dropped how many hours is reasonable for a clutch replacement and the IMS change from there?

Many thanks for the info

Or maybe it is. It is very important the 2 year brake/clutch fluid flush be done.

With my 2002 Boxster and its 5-speed transmission I have experienced degraded clutch action - hard to near impossible to get a smooth take off -- and shifting problems -- feels like I'm not pushing the clutch in all the way -- and due to the miles -- the clutch is original with 293K now -- I suspected a failing clutch or a failing transmission (also original and with the same mileage) only to have all behavior gone following an overdue (I let it go 2.5 years) brake/clutch fluid flush.

Also, the transmission gets its fluid changed every 60K miles or so and since I have this done at the dealer I believe in all cases the "factory" fluid is used.

I'm not sure I did the clutch fluid flush. Personally I believe the damage to the second gear wheel/syncro may have been mainly caused by the grinding that used to occur after the pop when this first occurred.

On a slightly different note, what's the average clutch life in a 986 boxster?

Quote
ouroboros
On a slightly different note, what's the average clutch life in a 986 boxster?

You are asking the wrong guy. My 2002 is on its original clutch with just under 294K miles.

Depends heavily on the driver and the type of driving being done. There's no wear on the clutch while you're driving on the highway. The wear happens when the clutch gets slipped, like changing gears and starting from a stand still. Hold the car on a hill by slipping the clutch instead of stepping on the brake. Floor the accelerator, then let the clutch out. If you don't shift properly and allow lots of slip on every change and you could see a clutch lasting a short time. A really hamfooted driver can probably wear out a clutch in 10 - 20K miles (and should seriously be choosing a PDK on their next car.) Shift properly and a clutch should last a long time - like Marc's 290K+ miles. I've driven a number of cars 150k+ miles and have never had to replace a clutch.

When the motor was replaced at 45k (eccentric crank bore) I opted not to have the clutch changed.
My CRX was beginning to slip at around 160k and had its clutch replaced at about 165k.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/22/2015 11:30AM by Laz. (view changes)

I have seen clutches destroyed, by the wrong driver and technique, in hours.

I have had clutches ~250k miles

The clutch in my track car, not a nice environment, feels new with about 25k, mostly track miles, on it. I heel and toe.

For amusement, after 221,000 miles the shifter cables, bushings and ends wore out and are being replaced. Dont ask what THEY cost. Grrrrrr.

Grant

Grant

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