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996 / 997 owners beware

ELA

Well-known member
Joined
30 Aug 2011
Messages
1,423
My car is a very clean 80 odd thousand mile early 996. The 996 and 997 have a reputation of being very resistant to rust with no known issues, or at least that was my opinion. Well today I removed the rear arch forward and lower plastic arch liners and was very happy to have removed 760gr of mud/stones in the process. However in the lower forward corner I found some rust and it appears I have got there just in time. Now my car is never really driven in anything but perfect weather; well at least for the 6 years I've owned it. So this is just a warning and request to please go out and remove these liners and check for rust/bubbling under the seam weld, this could just save you a small fortune in the near future in welding in new sills...
Should only take you about 2-3hours per side to remove, clean, rust treat (I use Fertan) then repaint and seal. I just thought I'd give you guys a heads up whilst I'm half way through rectifying mine.
Pics below
Remove these:



Here is my LH arch:


And RH side:
 
Top work and good to get these potentially expensive issues out there. Prevention is much better than a cure

I need to remove my liners to address some cracked sill covers so will take the opportunity to have a clean and wax up

:thumb:
 
Good stuff! Will add this to my bi-annual task list. Cheers!
 
Good plan... I know mine is going just a bit where stones have chipped the front wheel arch edge, didn't think to check the back.

At 109k miles I probably don't want to as that boat has likely already sailed! :sad:
 
At the age they are now this is the main place I have seen any rust building, around the rear arches. I have treated and repainted my N/S rear arch lip and we are lucky that it's an easy to access place and not particularly hidden once checked.
It's good to be aware for the future as it's easier to nip it in the bud now than have to start cutting and welding in a few years.
 
Of the 2 hrs, how long is spent disassembling/reassembling?
 
I removed a similar amount from mine & my friends 2003 cars while changing the suspension. Both cars have the aero kit skirts which held the dirt in. I used an airline to blast all of the dirt out. A lot of dirt collects behind the plastic arch liners, these were all cleaned too.

AC187396-2AF3-4C95-9FA4-AF242442B7B1_zps4vz71oid.jpg

BEB80D83-425E-4C66-A363-85D5164725DD_zps3ye64rsz.jpg

7E3F5706-4CE2-407A-A66B-284E5C1F33C4_zps8zo8hhvf.jpg

5F235158-6DC5-49DC-8CD1-4C91197BA119_zpshwkteeuq.jpg
 
Did you have any issues with the fixing screws on removal, and what type screw heads are they
 
Captain Lockheed said:
Great stuff.

:agree: and I'll be taking a look myself. :thumb:
 
FRZ......my car is the same as your except it's an 09 plate......let me know what muck you find in your 997.1 and it will determine if I do the same this summer...thanks. :thumb:
 
This is also true of most of the aircooled cars, arch liners seemed to be an after thought for the earlier cars. As a result lots of muck and debris build up leading to rust.

I am surprised thought for a 997 to still have similar problems... Oh well.

:dont know:
 
steve1 said:
Did you have any issues with the fixing screws on removal, and what type screw heads are they

They are a mix of Torx screws (T25 & T27 i think) and plastic nuts that hold the liners on. You might need to replace a few of the plastic nuts.
 
I'm guessing the crap only builds up along the rear of the arches. I'm surprised that much has got on.
 

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