What would you do here?

My new to me 2012 Boxter S has 77K on it. I have decent records regarding the work that’s been done and what has not. As of now it appears the drive belt was last replaced in 2016. The water pump has not been replaced. I purchased the car from a Porsche dealership and it came with a 2 year CPO warranty. One of the independent mechanics who did the lions share of the maintenance told me that if it were his car he would pay to have the water pump done as a preventative measure. A new drive belt would make sense here also. I don’t generally drive it long distances, but if I needed to I would first like to have that pump replaced for peace of mind. Tomorrow I am seeing my local Porsche dealership to inquire about the minor issues related to the worn out top elastics and the HVAC foam breakdown. I will ask them if the water pump is a covered item(it has to be). So would you pay out of pocket to get the pump done or wait until it gives a signal that it’s on its way out or fails altogether to hopefully get it covered under the CPO. I know many on here would prefer to tackle the job on their own and I enjoy doing some of that my self. I just don’t know if I want to do that or have the time to. Appreciate any advice here!

In my experience CPO warranty covered failing items not preventative maintenance. I can appreciate your angst regarding the pump. I take my Ford on 2000-mile round trips which include stretches through rural areas where service would be difficult and perhaps take more than a day out of the travel. With this in mind I replaced all the key components. When I removed the water pump with 76K of usage on it, the impeller was without surface flaws. When I checked the bearing play against the new one I could not distinguish a difference at all. It shocked me that the pump showed zero wear but of course I already had a new one and the old one was off so I replaced it. So, if you're doing mostly close to home driving with the occasional romp to the twisties there would be nothing wrong with waiting. If you feel inside like replacement would bring you solace, then conversely you should replace it. It's really a personal decision. The thing about our cars is visual monitoring of said pump and picking up the early signs of failure is harder due to location and covers so early isn't a bad call as the mechanic suggested.

I just replaced my perfectly working original coils at 50k miles for that very reason. If the 981 's WP was suspect like the 987's, I would have replaced that preventatively as well. With that being said, if it were me, I would replace the WP.

I replaced mine at 76K. The impeller looked good and there was no play in it, so it was probably a waste of effort to do it so. Were it me I'd verify if the water pump were covered by the CPO warranty (as you said, it should be) and then just leave it at least until the warranty was up, make the call then. The 987.2 water pump won't damage the block if it starts to get play like the earlier cars. If it starts to go most likely it'll make noise or weep from the seal first to warn you.

I'd have to agree with everyone who suggested waiting for it to fail (if it ever does) under CPO. It's a covered item, as is the drivebelt. Having said that - I did a 60,000 mile service on my Boxster (which had been maintained by the son of the last owner who worked at a Porsche dealership as a mechanic) - and at that time I replaced the water pump, the serpentine belt, the idler assembly and some other items that aren't coming quickly to mind. I wanted those items back at zero miles so I could be assured they'd be good for at least another 60,000 miles. NONE of them showed the least sign of impending failure. They looked perfect. The 987.2 engines - as noted - mount the water pump on a replaceable plate that bolts to the engine. The original 987.1 engine waterpump bolted directly to the block, and if the bearings failed it machined out a recess in the block, meaning a new pump isn't going to pump as well as it should. That's why Porsche went with a plastic impeller (which had its own issues.) This isn't an issue on your 2012 987. The other thing is - the later water pumps aren't really known as high-failure or endemic failure items. I can't recall the last report here of a failed water pump on a post-2009 987. It's one of the reasons the 2009+ cars are so desirable IMHO - Porsche really tried to address recognized issues when they went at an engine with a clean sheet of paper. Kudos to the engineers for this - the design wasn't dictated by bean-counters, it was dictated by engineers trying to do the best they could. As someone said - if you're going on a long trip in an area with a paucity of Porsche dealers - for peace of mind it might be worth doing the job (I've done that a number of times for known-issue items) - but for puttering around locally or in areas where a dealer is readily available I wouldn't be quite as enthusiastic on doing it preventatively.

I've had the mechanic change the water pump, and thermostat while he was in there for the drive belt and front motor mount.

Thank You, and yes, I meant to imply that a water pump would be covered under the CPO if it were to fail only, not as PM..I will ask them when I go this morning to be sure. In reading about these water pumps it makes me feel like they are a wear item.

Update: My visit to the local dealer was a pleasant one. They are inquiring with Porsche CNA to determine next steps wrt the air box foam issue and the worn out top elastics, but seem to take it seriously. I asked the service advisor if he’d be willing to take the car out to see how it drives and if there’s any concerns there. He obliged and returned after a trip around the block with no concerns noted. TBH I don‘t have a baseline to compare to, but am enjoying the heck out of every drive with this machine. When I asked him about the water pump issue he responded more or less just as Don related above. He thought it unnecessary to do it at this time as it would be a covered repair as well as the tow to the shop if necessary. I believe he also said they have not seen one of this vintage come in with a failed pump so for now I think I will wait and drive it. This will also prevent the uncomfortable conversation with “accounting” which is enjoying the new car nonetheless. As an aside, I spoke to one of the salesmen at the dealer who I know because our sons were in grammar school together. He very recently was able to get a car through a special program that dealers have that allots certain salesmen a new car that does not take away from customers allotments. Here’s a cool short video of his Christmas morning. I hope you enjoy! Porsche Waukesha on Instagram: "Unwrap a 2023 Targa 4 GTS with the new owner!" 167 likes, 2 comments - porschewaukesha on June 26, 2023: "Unwrap a 2023 Targa 4 GTS with the new owner!". www.instagram.com

Water pumps seem to always go out, in the most worst of times. 3 AM, Sunday night, halfway between Elko, NV. and Reno.

Just like your homes air conditioner or furnace. Only on the coldest night or hottest day. And always on a weekend, likely a holiday weekend…

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