Porsches are supposed to be immune to rust for at least a decade, right? My '07
cayman
has a small rust bubble just below the window trim above the drivers door handle. It was tiny when I bought it but, like all bad things now it has gotten worse. I've always thought, simple just take it to the body shop. Wrong, my local
Porsche
dealer does not have a body shop, so the guys they recommended told me 1) they do not repair rust 2) if they did, they would not guarantee the repair 3) if they replaced the whole door with a used one, not only would it be a lot of work to replace the door but, also they would have to re-paint half the car. Because, the Arctic white door from a 997 would not match my Arctic white car.
Is it true, that a tiny blob of rust cannot be repaired with any guarantee? Also, I can't plug in another door without the difference in shading be so small as to be unnoticeable? What I thought would be an inconsequential mending is turning into a real headache.
I thought the door skin was aluminum. If it is then you have just surface oxidation that can be sanded off, primed, and painted. I had some bubbles at the frunk hood
next
to the latch and blended the paint and a clear. Mine was carrara white.
I believe the door skin on a 07
Cayman
is steel, can be checked with a magnet of course. (
Cayman
R in 2012 was first with aluminum doors I think.) OP, suggest check your warranty manual. My 2012 booklet lists a 12 year Corrosion Perforation Limited warranty. The language says they will repair/ replace any original body panels that are rusted completely through from the inside out. Sounds like yours is outside surface rust and if so would not be covered. My experience with dealers is none of them do body work, they refer to other body shops. I would suggest call around to other shops, especially those that know Porsches. Rusty Porsches have been repaired for decades, just need to find a good shop. Aged paint will always be a little tricky to match. Best of luck.
Find a
Porsche
Certified Collision Center in Florida (there are a few) and get an expert opinion. If just surface rust, it can be repaired but would likely require full disassembly of the door, very careful prep and some expert paint matching.
From your post it seems the rust is superficial. Not a good thing, but it happens. Dealers don't do body work. If you are not comfortable tackling the job yourself, do a research in your area from high end dealers who they use for body work. MB, Lexus, BMW,
Porsche
etc. they all get repaired. Every decent body shop should be able to fix this for a few hundred dollars. It's a hassle but not something I would lose sleep over.
Morde, Thanks. your advice was the best. Lots of body shops won't touch rust and the
Porsche
dealer didn't even return my email. One guy said the car had like a four layer paint job Which they couldn't duplicate. But, I finally found a high end shop that said, come right in. Saturday when I go for my appointment I'm not even going to quibble about the price.
Great! If you have the time could you please post details after the work is done. Also couple of pics (before/after) I think would be helpful to the forum. Thanks!
