Flat 6 Innovations, a division of Raby Enterprises Inc., was founded in the early 2000s to support the development and specialized repair for the Porsche M96/M97 family of engines fitted to Porsche Boxster, Cayman and 996/997 series vehicles. Flat 6 Innovations, in partnership with LN Engineering, developed the first performance engine program to effectively reconstruct the M97/M97 engine which included development of Nickies, IMS Retrofit, and IMS Solution, and countless other products to repair and upgrade these engines.

Flat 6 Innvations and LN Engineering also developed the first exchange longblock program outside those replacement shortblock and longblocks offered by Porsche for SSF Imported Auto Parts which is now operated under the RND Engines brand.

About Flat 6 Innovations

Following enormous successes with these engines, Flat 6 Innovations further developed the Porsche M96/M97 engine, pushing the limits to allow displacements of to 4.4L in its R-series engines. Flat 6 Innovations was also the first to create a 4.2L based on the 9A1/MA1 engine, years ahead of Porsche, which debuted in our Cayman X Project, featured in the December 2013 issue of Panorama magazine.

Raby Enterprises’ Aircooled Technology was established in 1992, offering engine rebuild services for aircooled flat six engines, specializing in the VW Type 4 engine which was originally used in the Porsche 914. The Porsche 914 is the air-cooled mid-engine predecessor of the Porsche Boxster. A target of scorn, the Type 4 engine was the “black sheep” of the industry, ignored and misunderstood until Aircooled Technology, headed up by Jake Raby and a team of innovative hard-chargers, changed its image. When embarking upon our quest for a more highly developed variant of the Porsche 914 engine over two decades ago, Jake’s response was the same: innovate, adapt, and overcome any obstacles he encountered along the way. Over the period of two decades, his efforts with the 914 engine have finally been recognized worldwide and the 914 is no longer considered the “Black Sheep” of the Porsche world. Raby and his team proved the Type 4 could both provide performance and longevity, even rivaling six cylinder aircooled 911s of the time. Jake has applied the things we have learned and processed developed while recreating the Porsche 914 engine to Flat 6 Innovation’s M96/M97 engine program, elevating the M96/M97 platform to one that rivals that of the revered Mezger engine.

Likewise, the next generation, M96 water-cooled horizontally opposed flat six engine used by Porsche in the Boxster and 911 was designed to be less expensive to mass-produce than the high-performance engines utilized in the 911 Turbo, GT2, and GT3. Porsche never intended the M96 and later the M97 engine fitted to 986/987 and 996/997 models to be the ultimate in performance, just as the VW Type 4 was the lesser of engines offered for the 914. In fact, Porsche utilized the “higher performance” six-cylinder Mezger 911 engine in its 914-6 model. Jake Raby’s Aircooled Technology managed to delivery six cylinder performance, doubling or even tripling of the original horsepower of the Type 4 engine without any loss of reliability or longevity. In fact Jake Raby was the very first to use LN Engineering’s aircooled Nickies, producing over 200 horsepower from a 2563cc VW Type 4 engine. Likewise, his Flat 6 Innovations was the first to utilize LN Engineering’s Nickies sleeves for the M96 engine over 15 years ago and has has partnered with LN Engineering to develop the IMS Retrofit, IMS Solution, and many other products and solutions used and relied on by the Porsche aftermarket.

Porsche currently offers rebuilt shortblock and longblock engines with trade-in of your tired or failed core engine, but outside of the X51 power adder package, does not offer any performance upgrades nor do their rebuilds address any of the problems associated with the M96/M97 engine. The FSI program is intended to address known and yet to be discovered flaws in the 986/987 and 996/997 engines while providing upgrades to push the performance limits of these undervalued workhorses of the Porsche stable while further improving the reliability and desirability of these vehicles in the process.

So why should I consider purchasing an engine from Jake Raby’s Flat 6 Innovations?

• Expertise:Jake Raby’s Flat 6 Innovations is a renowned Porsche engine specialist with over 20 years of experience in rebuilding Porsche engines.
• Quality:Their engines are rebuilt to meet or exceed OEM standards and undergo extensive testing to ensure reliability and longevity.
• Customization:They offer a range of custom engine building options to meet specific performance and budget needs.
• Warranty:Rebuilt engines come with a comprehensive warranty, providing peace of mind and protection for your investment.
• Positive reviews: Flat 6 Innovations has received positive reviews and recommendations from satisfied customers and industry experts.

Flat 6 Innovations is best known for rebuilding Porsche engines, specifically for the Porsche Boxster, Cayman, and 911 models, with a focus on high performance and reliability. They are recognized for their expertise and quality workmanship in the Porsche community. We recommend checking out Hagerty’s feature on Jake Raby and Flat 6 Innovations to learn more.

If you are interested in a Flat 6 Innovations engine, we are currently offering Stage II Street/Track Performers for the following engine m-code designations:

• M96.01/02/04 Porsche 911 996 3.4 Liter Engine
• M96.03 Porsche 911 996 3.6 Liter Engine
• M96.05 Porsche 911 996 997 3.6 Liter Engine
• M97.01 Porsche 911 997 3.8 Liter Engine
• M97.21/M97.22 Porsche Cayman 987 3.4 Liter Engine

Flat 6 Innovations engines will be available on exchange, however there is a very long wait list. If you would like to be added to the wait list, you’ll need to open a support ticket on the Flat 6 Innovations website. You will be notified when an engine becomes available for purchase.

---

Since the beginning of our program we have been constantly asked: Why are you doing this, Porsche sells new engines?”
Our response to this is simple: “They won’t be doing it forever. We can do it better, make it last longer, and best of all, it will be faster!”

Jake Raby
Owner, Inventor, Developer

---