World's Most Unreliable 996.....?

[ianwallwork]

Can anyone beat mine for never-ending problems? Failures are listed in my signature and all this in 4 months!!!

Car is currently at the local Porsche Specialist having the hydraulic tappets on both banks replaced, the second replacement RMS fitted and the cam cover seals renewed. (Oh, and the front suspension strut tops replaced too). Another week without the car.

Pi**ed at Porsche is a major understatement!

Would like to get everyone that has had a number of issues with the cars to list them here as I intend to send the lot to Porsche AG.

Anyone thought of a class lawsuit regarding the design faults in these cars that Porsche merrily allow their customers to pay for?

Ian W

[percymon]

Ian, did this come from an OPC with approved used scheme - if so tell em you want your money back, obviously not up to your, or the schemes, standards.

You could also try getting an independent inspection and presenting this to the garage.

RMS and cam cover leaks are common. Overheating could be blocked rads at front (leaves etc). Suspension top plates maybe just a consequence of 60K miles on UK roads with big wheels and hard suspenion (something has to give !)

Sounds like the car needs a good going over and sorting tho - and not at your expense.

[CoreyNJ]

(Only 60k miles. 1 previous old lady owner and full Porsche Main Dealer History)

or as we say in the states, only driven on the highway by a little old lady from pasadena.

Seriously, I would say your experience is not typical. I would also try another dealer for the repair work. You never know how much the service manager may be making off his latest "sucker" I mean customer.

[LVDell]

I think I am with Corey on this one.

By the way, what does the old lady reference in your signature mean? Is that for real or a joke? If it is for real, do you honestly believe that? And if you beleive that, what bearing does that have? I would say worse since I would not trust some "old lady" to maintain a P-Car properly.

I saw this post over on the Rennlist board and while I sympathize with you, there is some point in time that you have to realize that "stuff" happens over time to a car and this falls into you have "to pay if you want to play".

But, with all that said, I would definately try another dealer and start fresh. That may be your remedy. It could very well be the dealer.

Just remember, you are NOT the original owner and will NEVER know how it was treated, maintained, etc., etc., etc., no matter how much "paperwork" and "documentation" you have.

Please don't take this as an attack at you but rather a reality check since these boards are for technical help, etc., and an invaluable resource to help YOU (or point you in the right way) fix your car and advice not to see "who can claim to have to WORST car".

ps. with regards to your class lawsuit idea......you already have the strongest action you can give Porsche....it's called don't buy their product. It amazes me the number of people (albeit very small) that just complain and complain yet still own this "car" that is such a sore spot for them. Not sure I quite understand.

Edited June 20, 2004 by LVDell

[ianwallwork]

Thanks for the responses.

Some points to note

1) The car was sold privately and I know the previous owner's family (she is a woman in her late 50s who drove the car relatively gently)

2) I know the Porsche dealer where the car was maintained and they confirmed the service history

3) I had the car inspected by a very reputable local Porsche specialist (owned by a fully Porsche-trained technian who used to work for the dealer that serviced the car) The specialists also prepare and race 2 of their own GT3s and also offer technical support to Porsche motorsport in the UK.

4) The car was in reasonable condition when I bought it! There were a couple of small issues, yes, but it is a 60k miles car so these were expected.

5) I don't track the car but drive it reasonably hard on the road (where appropriate). So it's hardly heavily stressed!

6) Pay to play.....Umm. Yes I agree to a point. Had I bought the Ferrari F355 I was going to buy then i would have expected very large maintenance bills - fair enough. And with a 60k miles Porsche I would have expected some component wear and tear (new disk rotors, suspension bushes, clutch, wheel bearings, etc. etc.) and would have no problem whatsoever with this. High performance cars cost , I agree. But this brings me to the core of my argument...

What I have experienced is not normal wear and tear!! I have been unlucky, sure, but that is life. My point and the reason for my 'pissy' first post is that all the problems I have had to deal with (and it's been the inability to use the car, not the cost, that has really annoyed me) have not been down to usage of the car. They are almost all design flaws!!! If a car has been used gently by a first owner and serviced religiously in-line with the manufacturer's guidelines then itt is not unreasonable to expect it to work correctly; perhaps other than items that one would expect to wear or have a tough time with the miles the car has done.

RMS, header tank, cam cover seals, bellows, strut tops, oxygen sensors, windshield surrounds etc. have all been the suject of re-designs and Porsche are having you, me, third-party warranty companies, whoever, pay for their less-than-perfect engineering. My car is only this unreliable because it was designed that way!!! It wasn't the previous owner's fault or mine or the garage's or the person who inspected it - it was Porsche. Isn't it about time they took some responsibility for known issues and had a proper policy of assisting owners who experiece these failures?

Ian W

[percymon]

Ian, do sympathise, and on paper you did all the right pre purchase things (check history with dealer, independent expert inspection etc), however, the truth is that in the UK we do not get the warranty back up and customer service the guys over the pond get.

Get the leaks sorted, a full suspension geometry setup and the smile will return.

One consolation is that if yoy'd bought the Fiat, you would have shelled out at least twice as much by now, and had the car off the road a lot longer.

[ianwallwork]

I think your comments about the smile returning will be correct - I've tried so hard to keep a sense of humour about all this! Just wish the **** car would work properly as I'd prefer to be driving across Europe in it rather than just to the nearest garage!!!

Think you are also right about the level of warranty and good-will offered by Porsche GB.

Love the comments about the 'Fiat'. Hilarious and true!

Ian W

[LVDell]

Just keep a positive outlook, things can ONLY get better. A few words of wisdom though. Change your signature to show what you are proud to own not what is the problems with ownership (I see you have already taken the old lady out of the signature). Get the problems fixed and if a P-Car is what you want to own, sell it and purchase a new one (or a certified/warranty) for worry-free ownership.

Best of luck and happy motoring!

Dell