Timing Chain Cover Oil Leak Fix DIY

[FRUNKenstein]

So, I was doing an intermediate service (oil/filter change and a bunch of inspections) on the 2018 Macan Turbo this week. When changing the oil, I could see an oil leak on both sides of the front of the engine - classic symptom of a timing chain cover leak. The driver's side looked like it hadn't leaked in quite a while (dried oil residue, nothing fresh), but the passenger side looked like it was still leaking. Previously, this was a $12,000 engine-out repair. Flat Six Motorsports came up with a DIY repair that consists of replacing the broken aluminum screws on each side of the timing chain cover with stainless steel (stronger) ones. The cost for the kit (2 screws) with shipping was $43. They say you should have a mechanic install as the screws are a little tough to reach, but I think I can do it myself. They estimate 2 hours for the job. The kit arrives on Friday. Once I get it installed and detail the Macan, it will be ready for sale. So, hopefully, I'll have it up for sale on Saturday. I will keep you posted on the DIY process in the meantime.

Here's a picture of the "kit" description from Flat Six's website:

Timing Chain Cover repair kit.JPG (79.27 KiB) Viewed 757 times

Timing Chain Cover repair kit 2.JPG (96.25 KiB) Viewed 757 times

[FRUNKenstein]

Following up on this, I was able to install the repair kit. As I mentioned above, the driver's side really wasn't leaking currently, and sure enough, the screw was intact when I removed it. The passenger side was leaking, though, and, as expected, that screw was broken in half. Getting the broken end out was actually easier than I expected.
Rather than going through the entire process here, I am just going to link to the MacanForum.com thread where I posted my experience with this repair:

https://www.macanforum.com/threads/2-bo ... 916/page-8

My comments start with Post #157 on page 8 of that thread (which is where the link should take you). It's a good thread if you can ignore all of the posts on how Porsche should be fixing this problem under warranty.

Also, I did a YouTube video DIY for this project. That can be found here:

[FRUNKenstein]

So, the 2018 Macan Turbo was sold to the first person who looked at it (so far that has been the case with all 3 of the Macans I've had). And, I now have a 2017 Macan Turbo (very similar to the 2018, just 11,000 more miles, but better optioned). Last night, I put it up on my lift and did an oil & filter change. While up there, I when through the "intermediate service" checklist, inspecting a number of items. Overall, the 2017 is in better condition than the 2018 was (although both are quite nice). But, I see a small leak on both sides of the engine. Today, I went to Porsche Kansas City and picked up the parts from the Flat Six Motorsports timing chain cover oil leak repair kit. Actually, while I was there, I picked up 2 sets of the screws and spacers (washers) since they are only about $16 per vehicle. Here are the part numbers:

Screws (1 per side, so 2 total needed per vehicle):
N 91097101 steel screw
99902519330 aluminum spacer (or washer)

The screws are $2.53 each and the spacers are like $4.73 each, so with sales taxes, about $16 per vehicle. These are the exact same parts that Flat Six Motorsports sells in their repair kit. Even though Flat Six Motorsports is charging more than double the retail price of the parts, I have no qualms as they were the ones who figured out how to do this repair without pulling the engine (like Porsche was doing). So, if you are only going to do this repair on one vehicle, then buy from the Flat Six Motorsports guys so they get some return on their efforts.

I'll be doing the repair on the 2017 Macan Turbo either tonight or tomorrow night. I don't think it will take me more than about an hour since I've done it once already and have all of the tools and know the shortcuts and techniques.