I have been told that there is no way of fixing this. That the engine could go on for a few months or years. Once it goes i would need to replace the entire engine. Is there any way to fix and or help to prevent it?
I’d ask that question in a very specialized Porsche forum. Years ago, when they were aircooled, they were relatively simple engines but times have changed.
Those cars are no joke as far as complexity goes and room for very little error, the way I understand it.
Edit - perhaps a forum like this: http://986forum.com/forums/performance-technical-chat/30890-knocking-ticking-head-please-help.html
I second RemocoW’s suggestion - Porsches have several excellent forums, I bet this problem has been thoroughly addressed in several of them. But get it figured out quickly, repairs = $$$$ here.
Or let the NEXT owner deal with it…How many miles on this car?
98K
I’ll give you $1500 for it, cash. 
Thanks RemcoW and Texases. I have been thinking of selling, might be the best choice.
They are nice cars but very expensive to maintain, as you’ve obviously found out. A friend of mine in Chicago has one and he’s done some stuff to his but for the most part, it has to be done by the dealer.
Is your car a daily driver or a car you drive for fun?
Porsche considers your engine basically a “disposable power unit” They drop them out the bottom of the car and replace with new units… They had to do this over and over because of …get this…Porous engine casings…as in…the oil was flowing THROUGH the Aluminum casings of the engine…not the seals the actual metal!!! LOL… Thats when they were doing Many Power unit replacements… During the first year run or something like that…you would know if you had one of the offending units.
Unless you are a mechanic and can handle dropping your power unit so that you can at least turn a wrench on it… Because you cant even touch your engine…let alone SEE it…in that vehicle.
As far as the actual issue? Its cake to remedy…its STEP ONE…of dropping the Power unit…thats the Deusy… Kinda like step one on replacing my drivers side upper A-Arm on my Saab 900’s…step one…Remove Engine! I near hit the floor when I read that one…
You can do this yourself, sell it to one of us…(depends on where you are located I guess)_…or you could find a guy like me who can do this sort of thing and just forget about Porsche service…
Up to you…I’m sure you realize what you are facing at this point…it is repairable tho, just takes the right tools and skill.
Blackbird
Lol, HB - so true.
I remember my Saabs with both fondness and grinding of teeth for those same reasons.
A fun car to drive but a pain to maintain - much like a Porsche, in a sense.
LOL…yeah I let my brother take out my PRISTINE…89’ Saab 900 Turbo Cabrio…lowered, custom wheels, remapped Saab APC (by me) for 18psi of boost instead of just 8psi… FAAAST Saab… He decided to imbibe a few too many Crown and Cokes that night and took a turn (that was NOT THERE) on a road near my house. He broke 3 wheels…as in BROKE them…so bad they hit the calipers on their way round…and folded my A arms up but good… He parked it out front and while he was sleeping it off…I was on my way to work in the AM and saw my Saab listing badly with grass and dirt and glass scattered all over in front of the car…I took one look at it…shook my head and continued on my way to work. If I were 18 at the time I would’ve FREAKED OUT…but I was like 28 or 30 or so… Mature and all that… LOL… I freaked when I read step one of the A-Arm process tho…lol…real mature. My bro? Yeah he flew back to Colorado and left me to deal with the aftermath… He did buy me new wheels and tires tho. But If I wasn’t skilled this car would’ve been DEAD… for sure.
I should post a pic of that car…I sure do miss her. How do I post a pic here darnit?
Blackbird
BTW…I will be one of the first in line to snag myself a Boxster… It will start happening soon…the owners and buyers will realize that their “Encapsulated Engine” is only serviceable by Porsche and the bills will be astronomical… We should start seeing Mechanic special Boxster deals soon…real soon. I’m game. It’ll look good next to my 73’ 914S…considering a WRX engine conversion on the 914 also… but I’m dreaming till I get another shop…and money.
Sucks going from 80K+ a year down to…uh NADA…kind of a hard adjustment for me…not fun
They sure are quirky cars, with that ignition switch between the seats. I’ve had to wash that thing out so much because my kids spilled stuff into it, it wasn’t funny. I had an 82 900 Turbo and an 84 900S.
Sure were fun cars to wind up and whip around corners on backroads, especially the turbo. The handling is unequaled in a similar class car.
Not sure how to attach pics.
Maybe like other forums, you use the tag or with that ‘attach a file’ button?
About porsches, I’d love to find a 356 basket case. I like the classics.
Finding one of those…especially with all the TV shows getting people to look all over the place for cars now…is going to be a tough one. The media let the cat out of the bag in a major way about cars and fixing them up and such…
Seems that overnight everyone is a car guy…mechanic, restorer, ressurector…etc. Thought I was the only one naively.
How much is the car worth NOW??
How much will it cost to replace the engine?
How much will the car be worth with a new engine installed?
Do the math. Make a decision.
… and then sell the car. Honda Blackbird and I will armwrestle over it.
Seriously, good advice, Caddy.
Yep those are the calculations that need to be done…for sure. I’m doing dumbell curls now to get ready…
You might define this valve knock a bit better. The valves will not knock. There may be clatter on acceleration (spark knock) or the engine may rattle at idle and so on with different causes for each symptom.
This engine should be a hydraulic lifter engine and since the car has low miles for a 13 year old vehicle I would ask what type of oil change regimen you go by. Maybe this valve knock as it’s described is a hydraulic lifter rattle due to engine sludge.
IF that is the case then an oil change followed by the addtion of an additive may help clear it up. (I only use SeaFoam or Berryman B-12. Both are great products.)
This is true…If we were there to hear this we may say…yeah that’s a lifter tap…sounds like clicking sort of? Diagnostics on the internet without sound, smell, sight are a work in progress… I just took you at your word and went with… “this cant be fixed” type of judgement… what to do then? OK is right though…could be a simple stuck or sticking lifter… Rislone is a great product too for the same…
I’m not a mechanic so doing the job myself is out of the question. I am going by what my mechanic said. I change my oil every 6 months (I only put about 6K a year on the car). I will try the additives and see what happens.
Thanks again for all the advise from everyone.