Hello,
I am looking to purchase a 996 and I was wondering if any one has had any experience with RMS and Intermediate shaft. I heard that the shaft can break it at any time, without warning. I was wondering if the shaft can be replace before it fails.
Thanks,

That’s a great question. If you do research online about '99-'04 996 Carreras, the number one complaint is the RMS (rear main seal) and the failure of the intermediate shaft. First to answer any question about the RMS, the job is a fairly routine repair for an experienced Porsche Technican. The labor to repair can vary depending on if the vehicle is a C2 or C4, Turbo or non-Turbo, and manual or Tiptronic Transmission. A manual C2 takes about 8 hours to complete while a Turbo can take longer than 25 hours. That being said, a leak is a leak. If it's minor, it's not going to cause any harm to the engine.
In regards to the intermediate shaft, this can be an issue. When the bearing in the shaft fails, metal shavings are pumped throughout the entire engine. When this happens, you can almost guarantee that the vehicle will need a new engine. 95% of the time, this bearing will fail without warning. My opinion, if the engine has lasted this long already, it's probably not going to fail any time soon. In respect to preventative maintenance and replacing the shaft before it's too late, I don't think it's worth it. The entire engine needs to be dismantled to replace the shaft. I believe it’s a 40-60 hr job depending on the year and model not including the parts.
I've been working for Porsche for 2 years and have only seen a handful of engine failures. Most of the failures occurred when the vehicles were still new.
I hope I've answered your question.

Thank You
Andy

994s87,

I'd definitely listen to Andy. He really knows his Porsches and his advice in my experience is always sound.

Hi Andy, thanks for the info.
So it's better to get one with some good milleage on it then, right?
In order to fit my budget, I have been looking for the ones around 60k + miles, with this kind of milleage are they safer from failing?
I would prefer model of 2002 3.6L, and I see that the ones before 2002 the price are much lower and is 3.4L. Are the 3.4L more prone to fail or 3.6L or just luck?
Thanks,
Carlos