Potential buyer needs reasuring

[andy_k_1]

I am ready to buy a ~2000 year carrera c4 or c2 coupe, do not like the ragtop. I live in Canada and have some snow every year, that is why I would prefer AWD. From reading about the porsches 911 reliability I was sure that after I will find one I will fly there, do the inspection, jump in and drive back home. If it will be car from Florida for example I will have to make almost 3000 miles home. I do not mind driving long distances, and I was confident about the plan. I have done it once when I bought my motorhome - that time it was only 1300 miles. But since I found this site I am a little scared. What if my P will die somewhere on the way? It is realistic to expect P-car to make 4 000 kilometers without problem? My question is how big chance do I have to run into some of this horrors other guys experienced? Should I not attempt to do it? I compared the reliability statistics between P911 and Corolla. Porsche has better statistics!!! I have always dreamed P car and now all this issue makes me really angry!!! Any thoughts about it? Thanks

Andy_k

[White987S]

Get a good Pre Purchase Inspection (PPI) done by a qualified Porsche mechanic or dealership.

Porsche's roadside assistance phone number is- 1-800-767-7243 in case you run into trouble on your way home.

Good luck & congrats!

[jsmirand]

I did a shorter drive, 1000 miles from Colorado Springs to Tucson, with a car purchased at a Porsche Dealer through their Porsche Certified Program. My thought on that, as a CPO car, its a good exercise of the car to expose any issues early on while its under warranty. I wouldn't hesitate if the car has lower miles and warranty through Porsche. There are dealers in every state (pretty much) providing coverage as you work your way home. If something were to go wrong, you would just need to be prepared for some extra time required to make your trip back. My drive from Colorado back to AZ was wonderful, and a highlight in my new Porsche ownership experience.

John

[viper501]

I put 126k miles on my car before I had a real problem. The dealer in Tennessee where I broke down was *very* helpful.

[jsoto]

What was your real problem at 125k?

[deanslist.us]

I picked my 99 C2 up in LA, drove it to El Paso, TX, (800mi.)

then...

El Paso to Denver (and back) - 1400 mi.

El Paso to San Antonio (and back) - 1100 mi.

El Paso to Tucson (and back) - 630 mi.

El Paso to San Antonio again (and back) - 1100 mi.

..then tracked it at a DE...

two months later the water pump popped, then the alternator went..both of which were easy fixes.

Edited January 10, 2008 by deanslist.us

[viper501]

Jsoto, the best we can tell is that I probably lost an exhaust valve spring. Car was misfiring horribly but would still run. No compression on number 2 but no indications of a failed cylinder. A scope exam of the cylinder showed no debris or liquid inside so no indication that the cylinder liner failed. Also, the failure was 'instant' but no buildup prior to the mishap. I replaced the engine myself with a 'new' Porsche reman'd unit. Including the flywheel and clutch, as well as some miscellaneous incidentals, I spent about 10k.

The biggest pain was the horrific experience I had with Brandywine Porsche telling me they ordered the replacement engine and assuring me it would be in and on its way to me while completely, totally, and absolutely lying.

[RF5BPilot]

Remember that the posts on Renntech/Rennlist are not representative of the majority of owners. A relatively small number of Porsche owners participate and even among those, the ones that post are ones who are more likely to have had problems. It would be challenging to have to read through thousands of posts of people saying, "No problem, here."

Not unlike the evening news. If you base your entire view of a country or the world based on the evening news, then the whole place is falling apart. Even the posts about the Infamous RMS issue in 996's, if you look at the actual posters....relatively few people have experienced problems--but many have talked about it. (In some ways, it's stories of ghosts and boogey men around a camp fire. Often, more entertaining than factual.)

Most people own their Porsches through a service-life of use with no major problems (that's why I prefer them). One of the good things about Porsches is that they are not high-wear cars. I have owned some Italian cars where it is assumed you will need to rebuild the engine every 15K-25K miles depending on how hard you drive them. Very gentle driving might get you 25K miles. I think most Porsches, with normal use, can get well over 100,000 miles before significant rebuilds are necessary. Will the occasional water pump, etc., go bad? Of course. It's a car.

That said, taking any newly-purchased, used car on a long trip for the first time you ever use it, has an element of gambling to it. The newer the car & lower the miles--the lower the risk. If I bought a car at a long distance from home, I would seriously consider having it transported (at least the majority of the way)....if nothing else, because those are long, not-particularly-interesting miles to put on the car. Yet, I used to regularly buy used cars in Atlanta, GA and drive them home to Ohio (8-10hr drive); never thought twice about it and never had a problem that genuinely disabled the car. It did feel like a good way to get used to them.

Good luck.

[horseman]

Remember that the posts on Renntech/Rennlist are not representative of the majority of owners. A relatively small number of Porsche owners participate and even among those, the ones that post are ones who are more likely to have had problems. It would be challenging to have to read through thousands of posts of people saying, "No problem, here."

Not unlike the evening news. If you base your entire view of a country or the world based on the evening news, then the whole place is falling apart. Even the posts about the Infamous RMS issue in 996's, if you look at the actual posters....relatively few people have experienced problems--but many have talked about it. (In some ways, it's stories of ghosts and boogey men around a camp fire. Often, more entertaining than factual.)

Most people own their Porsches through a service-life of use with no major problems (that's why I prefer them). One of the good things about Porsches is that they are not high-wear cars. I have owned some Italian cars where it is assumed you will need to rebuild the engine every 15K-25K miles depending on how hard you drive them. Very gentle driving might get you 25K miles. I think most Porsches, with normal use, can get well over 100,000 miles before significant rebuilds are necessary. Will the occasional water pump, etc., go bad? Of course. It's a car.

That said, taking any newly-purchased, used car on a long trip for the first time you ever use it, has an element of gambling to it. The newer the car & lower the miles--the lower the risk. If I bought a car at a long distance from home, I would seriously consider having it transported (at least the majority of the way)....if nothing else, because those are long, not-particularly-interesting miles to put on the car. Yet, I used to regularly buy used cars in Atlanta, GA and drive them home to Ohio (8-10hr drive); never thought twice about it and never had a problem that genuinely disabled the car. It did feel like a good way to get used to them.

Good luck.

I purchased a 03 C2 with 27000 miles that had the Prosche Cert Warranty. When the car went in for the 30,000 mile service the tech told me that other than recomended service there was nothing that the car needed. All the records that came with the car showed the same thing. Nothing but normal service, ever. I would drive this car anywhere and if you are cautious about the car you buy, you should be able to also.

[Palting 996 C4S]

Have a PPI done to make sure the car is up to snuff, and you should be fine.

Good luck, and congrats!

[1schoir]

I am ready to buy a ~2000 year carrera c4 or c2 coupe, do not like the ragtop. I live in Canada and have some snow every year, that is why I would prefer AWD. From reading about the porsches 911 reliability I was sure that after I will find one I will fly there, do the inspection, jump in and drive back home. If it will be car from Florida for example I will have to make almost 3000 miles home. I do not mind driving long distances, and I was confident about the plan. I have done it once when I bought my motorhome - that time it was only 1300 miles. But since I found this site I am a little scared. What if my P will die somewhere on the way? It is realistic to expect P-car to make 4 000 kilometers without problem? My question is how big chance do I have to run into some of this horrors other guys experienced? Should I not attempt to do it? I compared the reliability statistics between P911 and Corolla. Porsche has better statistics!!! I have always dreamed P car and now all this issue makes me really angry!!! Any thoughts about it? Thanks

Andy_k

Andy:

Definitely get that PPI by a knowledgeable Porsche tech and then dive in and enjoy the ride!

Good luck!

Regards, Maurice.

[White987S]

Bring a good quality tire pressure gauge with you too, and check pressures each morning, and make adjustments. You might encounter several different temps on your way home. Hot/warm in Florida...cold in Canada. For about every 10 degree temp change, you will lose 1 PSI. This will protect your tires (and car) and provide for the best MPG's.

[Bronston]

If it is within your budget I would recommend getting a newer car with some warranty remaining or at minimum a Porshce Certified Pre-owned. I purchased a 2004 40th Anniversary( with 10 months of new car warranty and and additional 2 years CPO beyond that) in August of this year with 10,000 miles, to which I have added an additonal 5,000. The car was in great shape and showed no signs of hard usage, even still smelling a bit like a new car. Last week while waiting at the dealer's courtesy car wash the engine started making terrible sounds. I drove about a half/mile to the service department. When I shut if off in the service bay the engine oil began streaming out and when I left there was a large pile of absorent pads under it with the oil still flowing. The best guess is the intermeniate shaft and/or bearings has failed. See this link http://forums.rennlist.com/rennforums/show...ad.php?t=402656.

This is my first Porsche and although it is still under warranty I am concerned by the fact that this and the RMS issue have persisted throughout the 996 series without a final solution. Porsches are great cars but it almost seems that they leave the engineering of the ancillary components, like seals and the intermediate shaft system to the apprentice engineers. After all, internal combustion engines have always used crankshaft seals and the intermeniate shaft is not directly involved in the stresses of making power, it just drives the **** cam chains, bicycle level technology! Why is it so difficult to make these reliable? Neither of these components involve new technology. Both of these problems should have been resolved fully years ago rather than persisting throughout the entire 996 series.

Up until last week my Porsche was like a new girlfriend, I just couldn't keep away from it. Now, thinking about it makes me wince. My dealer is Barrier and I am so far very favorably impressed with them and I am sure they will do right by me, probably with a new engine, which seems to be the usual fix for this type of failure. I suspect when I get the car back I will remain a bit worried by it. This series engines seem to have a hand grenade built in as standard equipment and one never knows if or when it will pull its own pin. These problems were academinc with me until my engine spilled its guts.

[andy_k_1]

Hi,

as I said in my first post, I am going to buy a 911 ~2000 year. I already decided not to drive it back to Canada. But I want it and I can not believe that I will be buying car that I am afraid to drive 1000-3000 miles!! It might not make it. Am I crazy? I started another topic about swapping 996 engine with corvette engine - this is nothing more than a cry of frustration. Maybe it would be wise to buy the cheapest P911 possible (~$20 000) and have financial cushion for a new engine? By the way, are there sets of new valve springs and piston rings available? From what I found here after about ~90000 miles next problem after moving cylinder sleeves and broken intermediate shafts are springs and rings.

Thanks,

Andy

[Lerxst]

If you want assurance, don't look to us, buy a warranty.

It sounds like you've done research on this, so you know the issues. I don't think anything we say can change that. When you buy a 996, it is a possibility that the motor can let go. There are things to do to mitigate this (buy newer, buy with replaced motor, buy warranty, or buy older and have a savings account). It comes down to what you need to do, based on your circumstances and risk tolerance, so you can rest easy at night owning a 996.

I had a car CPOd in Connecticut, flew out, and drove it back ~2700kms and had a great time. It's a possibility that the motor can go, so I extended myself and bought as new as possible to reduce that risk ('02 C2 w/ 33K miles). If it does go, I've got a second car, and a home equity LOC for emergencies. That's what works for me.

Based on your postings, if you're that scared to drive the car, it probably isn't the right car for you.

Good luck with your decision.

Edited January 16, 2008 by Lerxst

[KevinMac]

Certified is most probably out based on the year U are looking at. So a pre inspection,is a good way to go. Personally just because it's a Porsche it has no more risk than any other used car to make the trip.

Edited January 16, 2008 by KevinMac

[blitzkrieg]

My 99 C4 has 72K miles on it and I wouldn't hesitate to jump in it and drive across the country. ;-)

[Bronston]

Follow up on my post above about the blown engine.

It was determined that the intermediate shaft had failed as suspected. My previous research indicated that the usual fix for this was just to replace the engine. Apparently Porsche no longer does this, so my engine was removed and completely disassembled to replace the failed shaft/bearing. I am less than pleased. This is my first Porsche, well treated and with low mileage, and I had catastrophic engine failure. Sorry, but all of the talk about Porsche quality and engineering rings a bit hollow with me. I have turned over in my mind selling it and forgetting Porsche, but the financial loss of that course of action would pay for another engine replacement in the future, so I am stuck. Two weeks ago I had a low mileage pristine Porshe. It is still pristine cosmetically but it now has an engine that has experienced major failure and been repaired (when I get it back): not the same car .

My cousin is a career pilot with Delta. I met him in Portland last summer and we took the car for a long ride along the Oregon coast. He was very impressed, and had begun to think about getting a Porsche for himself, until he heard about what happened with mine. Now, not so much.

I have admired/lusted after Porsches since the late fifties when I was around them working in a imported car shop near my home. After all of those years I buy one and I only get six months before it has a major failure. I could have gotten a brand new BMW Z4 M with all options and still had thousands left over. I was really proud to show off my Porsche to my friends, now I'm embarassedd by it.