Specialist Servicing - Effect on Resale Value? - Page 2 - Boxster/Cayman - PistonHeads UK

At 10 years, I would go specialist, esp if you are in Manchester. Sports and Classic and Hartech both nearby and both have excellent reputations.

Surely at that age it has no impact unless you are running a warranty. Some may even prefer servicing by a good independent.

Only real point on the full OPC service history is with the warranty. If a car has a full service history including a 'reputable' Porsche specialist I don't see it as a problem. In fact it's often a bonus as the indie will often 'know' the car/owner and can comment on it. I'd imagine cars are drifting away from OPC servicing after 3-5 years. Just choose a good indie.

Thanks for the replies. Forgot all about Hartech. Awesome reputation and nearby - decision made!

I would have thought the not-Pistonheads-readers of this world will prefer an OPC stamp to a specialist they have in all likelihood never heard of. No clue how big the impact on value/buyer pool is though.

Ian_UK1 said: The OPC has quoted £595 inc. VAT for a minor service. [/footnote] Wow... I know these engines hold a lot of oil, but what else do they do on a minor? What are Porsche main dealer labour rates nowadays? I'm sure I got quoted around £350 for a minor just a few years back.

I think some buyers are on here a lot less than we are. Certainly going to get some first time buyers that appreciate full book of OPC stamps and may not even know who Hartech are. It may not come down to price, but it may mean you get more eyes/potential buyers and makes it easier for you when it comes time to sell.

This is a 10 year service the cost of which under the previous Participating Centres scheme (to 31.12.19) was £550 including VAT for oil and filter, pollen filter, brake fluid, PIWIS check etc. etc.

Trevor555 said: Wow... I know these engines hold a lot of oil, but what else do they do on a minor? What are Porsche main dealer labour rates nowadays? I'm sure I got quoted around £350 for a minor just a few years back. My thoughts exactly (and what prompted my original post). It's been about 5 years since I last ran a Porsche (a Gen-2 997S) but I never remembered minor services being almost £600. AFAIK the only 'parts' used on a minor service are oil & filter, some brake fluid, a pollen filter and whatever chemic they use to wash the thing. All the rest is a total rip-off completely justified hourly charges!

Finding OPC increasingly incompetent (had problems with two OPC services in the past 12 months due presumably to having badly trained halfwits work on them). If its out of warranty and you have a good local independent I wouldn’t hesitate to use them. OPC Reading are the exception to my argument - always had good experiences with them on CGT

Unique Porsche also in your area and have a good reputation. Maybe worth a call for a comparison?

My 2005 Boxster S, had until last year, a full OPC service history plus interim oil changes completed at the OPC & stamped in the book. I never believed in the 2 year oil change intervals. Had a good relationship with the OPC (no surprise considering the money spent there) until I was quoted in excess of £500 for a minor service on top of the near £300 bill I paid the previous year for an oil change. Up until then, they had always priced servicing based upon the ‘menu’ pricing for the 986. But then decided to get greedy & when I politely challenged the price, would not budge. Therefore decided to take it to a reputable specialist, Northway. I personally think that anyone potentially buying a Porsche will do their homework & will understand that a decent specialist does not adversely impact the value. In some instances it may increase the value as some OPC’s have an awful reputation.

It’s 10 years old, no buyer will care. Any buyer is likely to be an enthusiast, they will know. Any other other probably wouldn’t care. But at that age and value, you would probably save more than you would lose in value. Personally I wouldn’t let a main dealer anywhere near one of my cars.

When I bought mine, the history was Porsche for the first 5 ish years and Porsche specialist after that, which I kinda prefer. Keep the receipt with the breakdown of the work and 99% will be happy with it. If it was Kwik Fit or Halfords it would be more of an issue, but a specialist will be fine.

SWMBO has a 2011 987.2 Boxster 2.9. The car has been serviced, from new, by the local OPC and is due its 10-year (minor) service early next month. The OPC has quoted £595 inc. VAT for a minor service. As the cost of a minor service at a specialist would appear to be around £250 inc. VAT, I'm really beginning to wonder if the cost of Main Dealer servcing is still worthwhile for a 10-year-old car? As Other Half is worried that by saving £350 on a service she might lose several times that on the resale value of the car, I'd be really grateful for opinions on what the likely effect might be on sale / trade-in values on a car of this age, were future servicing carried-out by a reputable specialist? Thanks in advance for any insights. Edited by Ian_UK1 on Wednesday 27th January 10:33

Thanks to everyone for the replies - the car's now booked-in for service at Hartech.

Boxstercol said: Had a good relationship with the OPC (no surprise considering the money spent there) until I was quoted in excess of £500 for a minor service on top of the near £300 bill I paid the previous year for an oil change. You paid near £300 for an interim oil change?!

PaulD86 said: Boxstercol said: Had a good relationship with the OPC (no surprise considering the money spent there) until I was quoted in excess of £500 for a minor service on top of the near £300 bill I paid the previous year for an oil change. You paid near £300 for an interim oil change?! Maybe they put diamonds in the oil and that's where bore scoring actually came from...

Philvrs said: Unique Porsche also in your area and have a good reputation. Maybe worth a call for a comparison? I was going to mention Unique too, I’ve been a couple of times, Darren (the owner) was at Hartech before setting up his own business. Really nice guy and knows his stuff, as do his mechanics. My 2010 Cayman S has a full OPC history, including the 8 year service that I had done, but it will be going to Unique in future.

PaulD86 said: Boxstercol said: Had a good relationship with the OPC (no surprise considering the money spent there) until I was quoted in excess of £500 for a minor service on top of the near £300 bill I paid the previous year for an oil change. You paid near £300 for an interim oil change?! Yep, it was the last straw unfortunately for me. I liked the fact that the car had a full Porsche service history & had never gone longer than 12 months between oil changes. The previous interim oil change cost me about £180 ish from memory. I really wanted to keep the OPC history, rightly or wrongly, but to be honest after being ripped off decided to move it to a specialist. Joking aside, last year was the first specialist service & I had a minor / brake fluid change for not much more than the oil change cost me the previous year!!

OPC incompetence, lack of knowledge, cost, and damaging my paint was the last straw for me. I prefer to use a reputable indy who knows and cares. 7yr old 981C.

Ian_UK1 said: SWMBO has a 2011 987.2 Boxster 2.9. The car has been serviced, from new, by the local OPC and is due its 10-year (minor) service early next month. The OPC has quoted £595 inc. VAT for a minor service. As the cost of a minor service at a specialist would appear to be around £250 inc. VAT, I'm really beginning to wonder if the cost of Main Dealer servcing is still worthwhile for a 10-year-old car? As Other Half is worried that by saving £350 on a service she might lose several times that on the resale value of the car, I'd be really grateful for opinions on what the likely effect might be on sale / trade-in values on a car of this age, were future servicing carried-out by a reputable specialist? Thanks in advance for any insights. Edited by Ian_UK1 on Wednesday 27th January 10:33 I requested a quote from the famous Independents like Hartech, JZM, RPM Technik & Autofarm. I told them all the bit that needed to be done for my 12 year main service (full PDK service etc...) and it wasn't that much less than OPC Cambridge...I was a bit surprised, Cambridge have franchise costs...

Hi everyone .... I will be facing the same problem shortly , and would value some advice re reputable Porsche specialists based close to Dorset . Having said which i don't mind travelling a radius of 100 miles from Dorchester to get to a really caring , knowledgeable specialist . I have a very late 981 Boxster S which has been looked after in the OPC network . It needs a 4 year service + Spark Plugs + Brake Fluid Change as soon as lockdown is over . If I want to keep up my Warranty then it is quite simple .... i'll get the service done by the local OPC . What bothers me with this is the filter of having to go through the service receptionist . I like to deal directly with the person working on my car , and to have the same person work on the car time and again . This facility is simply not available with my OPC and this is driving me away from using the OPC . So i would be grateful to hear how other PH'ers would react to this situation , AND the names of any Porsche specialists that you could recommend within the range stated above Thank you

Hello Carspath, I am Dorset based too and have had good experience with Eddie at Silvertune Porsche in Christchurch. Good value and knows Porsche inside out. If you aren’t too fussed about going to a Porsche branded independent I would absolutely recommend John at Purbeck Sports cars west of Poole in Holton Heath (also benefits from close proximity to train station for journey home if leaving car). You will deal only with John and his wife Naomi who run a very professional service. He had a big following by Lotus and TVR owners in the area and is where I always used to get my TVR chimaera serviced. He used to work at Westover Sports Cars in Poole, and factory trained for Lotus before setting up as an independent. Always used to have various other marques there too including Porsche and the occasional classic Ferrari. Marque 21 are in Bridport and whilst I have no first hand knowledge of them, they seem to get good write ups in the forums. Hopefully this helps. All the best, Oldthamenisan

DeltaOne said: Finding OPC increasingly incompetent (had problems with two OPC services in the past 12 months due presumably to having badly trained halfwits work on them). If its out of warranty and you have a good local independent I wouldn’t hesitate to use them. OPC Reading are the exception to my argument - always had good experiences with them on CGT Wow, found Reading OPC to be expensive & after loads of non required work. Well I say work, which a mechanic would do, they would just replace - fixed about £2k of required 'replacements' by getting a few bolts tightened, and some replaced for about £200 by someone who fixes cars with tools not Porsche's version of YouTube training.

oldtamensian said: If you aren’t too fussed about going to a Porsche branded independent I would absolutely recommend John at Purbeck Sports cars west of Poole in Holton Heath I also recommend Jon at Purbeck Sports cars, he’s worked on my previous TVR Griffith 500 and Porsche Cayman, and I’ll be sending my 987.2 Cayman Sthere for service in the next few months, he has the necessary diagnosis equipment and can also reset the service reminder - currently he has a 6 week lead time.

I had a similar experience on an Audi RS3 ... The service came a very short time before the spark plugs all needed replacing. The Audi dealer gave me a price for the service and when I asked about the plugs they would have been another visit. I asked my local specialist the same question ... they said do you want the spark plugs replacing at the same time ? I said yes ... and the price was significantly less than the price from the Audi dealer without. Of course there are good and bad in all ... but that's why I go to a specialist who only survives on being good ! I also appreciated the relationship ... my choice in Leeds is Strasse.

oldtamensian and Dark Matter , Thank you ... that's really important information . I tend to keep any car I buy for decades , so the important thing for me is to make sure the necessary work is done correctly , and a Main Dealer stamp is very much a secondary consideration . With short-term ownership the priority might be the reverse ,as selling on might otherwise be difficult