Just Completed 30k mile service...

Just completed 30k miles service on my 3 year old 40th. I did the 30k, front brakes, (rear ok for another 15k), front windshield wiper, four new Mich PS, mount and balance tires, and alignment. Set me back $3125.25. Car runs great and like new. Feels tighter, and the tires are quieter than the PS2s that came with it. I almost went to Firestone for the REO50 bridgestones, but it would have only saved me about $250, and I was worried that they would scratch the rims. At least if the dealership does it, then they will replace it. Tech even showed me the front brake pads, and the sensor was almost exposed (another 1k miles, and the light would have gone off). Took it to the local SAT dealership, car was back in one full day (1 day earlier than promised). Tech and service writer went over the detailed report. Car is in good health. The dealership also detailed the car, down to leather conditioner. For today, it is perfect (until it rains or my kids get in my car). Warranty issues were driver's side window regulator. I could tell it was about to go out. Also cold start issue caused them to adjust the throtle, and the DME. Drives like new, and I now need to be good for 400 miles.

New tyres always much quieter than worn ones - for a while anyway. That, and a rebalance, often makes the car feel smoother and "tighter". Goes some way to justifying the cost! Enjoy!

what is a 30k mile service? what could possibly cost 3K+? need to find a local independent shop. stay away from the dealer. Is SAT=San Antonio TX?

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There are minor and major service intervals every 15k miles. Minor maintenance after: 15,000, 45,000, 75,000, 105,000 miles... Diagnosis system: Read out fault memory Change engine oil Vehicle underside and engine compartment: Visual inspection for leaks (oils and fluids) and abrasion (lines and hoses) Underbody panels: visual inspection for completeness, installation and damage Power steering: Check the fluid level and bellows Coolant hoses: Check condition; Radiators and air inlets at front: Visual inspection for external contamination and blockage; Coolant: Check the level and antifreeze protection Particle filter: Replace the filter element Brake hoses and lines: Visual inspection for damage, routing and corrosion. Checking the brake fluid level Drive shafts: Perform a visual inspection of the boots for leaks and damage Tires and spare wheel: Check the condition and the tire pressure Check the door locks, lid locks and safety hooks of the front lid to ensure that they are secure and functioning properly: Check lid lock, front and rear; Check safety hook, front lid; Function test, check door lock; Check door and lid tightening torques; Check inner release of luggage compartment (Trunk Entrapment) Vehicle lighting: Check function; All headlights: Check adjustment; Horn: Check operation. Windscreen wiper/washer system, headlight washer: Check fluid level and nozzle settings, pay attention to antifreeze protection in the winter months. Electrical equipment as well as warning and indicator lights: Check operation. Test drive: Remote control, front seats, foot and parking brakes (also actuation travel), engine, clutch, steering, transmission, ParkAssist, automatic speed control, heating, air-conditioning system and instruments: Check operation. Oils, fluids: Visual inspection for leaks Major maintenance after: 30,000, 60,000, 90,000, 120,000 Diagnosis system: Read out fault memory Polyrib belt: Check condition Change the engine oil and oil filter Replace the spark plugs Vehicle underside and engine compartment: Visual inspection for leaks (oils and fluids) and abrasion (lines and hoses) Underbody panels: visual inspection for completeness, installation and damage Coolant hoses: Check condition; Radiators and air inlets at front: Visual inspection for external contamination and blockage; Coolant: Check the level and antifreeze protection Air cleaner: Replace the filter element Particle filter: Replace the filter element Fuel system: Visual inspection for damage, routing and secure fit of line connections Power steering: Check the fluid level and bellows Parking brake: Checking the free play of the parking brake lever Brake system: Visual inspection of the brake pads and brake discs for wear Brake hoses and lines: Visual inspection for damage, routing and corrosion. Checking the brake fluid level Clutch: Check the play and pedal end position Steering gear: Visually inspect the bellows for damage Tie rod joints: Check the play and dust bellows Axle joints: Check play, visual inspection of dust bellows for damage, check screw connections of running gear adjustment facility, front and rear, for secure fit Drive shafts: Perform a visual inspection of the boots for leaks and damage Exhaust system: Visual inspection for leaks and damage, check suspension Tires and spare wheel (collapsible wheel): Check the condition and the tire pressure Check the door locks, lid locks and safety hooks of the front lid to ensure that they are secure and functioning properly: Check lid lock, front and rear; Check safety hook, front lid; Function test, check door lock; Check door and lid tightening torques Seat belts: Check function and condition Vehicle lighting: Check function; All headlights: Check adjustment; Horn: Check operation. Windscreen wiper/washer system, headlight washer: Check fluid level and nozzle settings, pay attention to antifreeze protection in the winter months. Electrical equipment as well as warning and indicator lights: Check operation. Test drive: Remote control, front seats, foot and parking brakes (also actuation travel), engine, clutch, steering, transmission, ParkAssist, automatic speed control, TC/PSM switch, heating, air-conditioning system and instruments: Check operation. Oils, fluids: Visual inspection for leaks

Sorry sounds high to me. I did not need brakes or new tires but I paid around 900 Euros, at the time about $995........today over $1300.

Hey Riad, I really like the lists you posted. Very comprehensive, I will use them as checklists from now on. Toyota wanted to nail me for $700.00 for the so called 30K mile service on my Camry. I thought that was a joke.

Go to www.renntech.org they have all the service info, recalls etc.... It is a good site that is run by Loren

The check ups are very thorough, and thus, quite expensive. Look down the list and if your comfortable moving about the car the majority can be done diy! Some should be handled by trained professionals!

The price does not appear that bad considering that four new tires are worth about $1800.00 or more. On the tt the 30k mile service is even more expensive since a lot of work is required to remove the spark plugs.

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exactly. apart from the cost of the 30k service (usually around $900 at a dealer) which people may have an issue with, all the costs seem to be in line. but whether an indy or dealer, the 30k service price ain't that different.

Plus when I take my car to the dealership they give me a free ride to my offie and pick me up when the car is ready. I do not think indy's will be that accomodating. For routine maintenance I think you can't go wrong with going to the dealer. I have had a good relationship with mine and they treat me well.

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My Indy did when I did my 60k. I did the 60k major service, plus replaced the fuel filter and replaced brake fluid. Just over $900 and I had 4 new Mich PS just under $1200. I use to use the Dealer but stopped after a few problems with their service.

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Sorry, but the math doesn't work out for me. The tires are available from Tire Rack for less than $1200 shipped, which means the rest of the service was almost $2k. The alignment isn't expensive and brakes are relatively cheap as well. Just yesterday I read the Car and Driver magazine's original long-term test of the 996, and they expressed concern about being charged $629 for the 30k mile service...yes, that was in '99, but things shouldn't have changed THAT much. In any case, there's no way I'll be paying my dealer over three grand when it comes to this service, with tires or not. Heck, my engine replacement was billed out at less than $12k...that puts quite a bit into perspective for me...

More than Three Thousand dollars for tires, alignment, front pads, and an oil and filter change? Sorry my friend, but I hope that included a reach-around when you were getting it in the rear. Here is what you got done was worth: 30K for a 2002 or later 996 Oil and filter: $65 Pollen filter: $65 (the one with charcoal in it) Air Filter: $33 Change all of this and check to see there are no CEL lights on, then look underneath to see that there are no drips or other obvious issues: 1 hour of your time. (the list of things to look at (check) is on RennTech) Wiper blades: $20 (pair) 2 rear tires: $635 2 Front tires: $420 I hope that the dealer threw in some ear protection as those Bridgestones are going to sound like you have sand and walnuts in your wheel bearings after a few hundred miles. Mount/Balance $25 ea., $100 Alignment: $150 Adjust the throttle? i.e. spray some carburetor cleaner on the throttle body butterfly to clean off the gunk $2.50 Replace front pads: $65 and an hour of your time. So lets say your time is worth $75/hr, then the value of what you paid $3125 is .... $1705.50 I hope that the extra $1419.50 was used on a pleasant and enjoyable experience with the service writer and the waiting room! Gawds, I hate it when a perfectly innocent and well-meaning person gets taken advantage of like this. P.S. The reason that they had it done in a day is that they only spent about 4 hours doing all of this stuff! Knowledge is Power, and those without it pay retail with a markup!

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Uh huh, okay. But, um, what if your time is worth more than $75 per hour? At what I bill per hour, this guy's service was a bargain compared to doing it myself. Some people have time and no money. Some people have money and no time. Everybody spends what they've got to get what they don't got. Maybe give the guy a break, huh?

It's unfortunately always a question of supply and demand. Getting quotes from 3 local dealers and 2 indies in the DC area, I've had to realize 1.5 years ago that my 30k mile service was not cheap either. However, what the shops do always have to calculate into their price is warranty work. My next repair bill (IMS, RMS, clutch, waterpump, ...) was even higher at an idny last December. But in the meantime I got a second waterpump installed and now another RMS is due - under warranty, so if they wouldn't overcharge me in the first place, their math wouldn't work. Or maybe I just went to the wrong shop?

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Sure, but I'm not surprised to see a Land Rover owner defending a dealership's service department--you've probably had plenty of practice.

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Ha ha. Very funny. I have to admit, I've heard some stunning horror stories about US Land Rover dealers. For some bizarre reason, I have an terrific dealer. More than once, they've actually sold me OFF repairs when I've been fretting about a spot on the driveway or some such. They pat me on the head and send me home, telling me "It's just a Land Rover." And I get chauffeured around while the truck is being serviced. The truck has been pretty much trouble free, but I still couldn't live with it if I had a bandit dealer to contend with. My P-car gets serviced by an indie. He might be cheaper than a dealer, but not by much. I think I pay top dollar. But for me, it's worth it. For the time saved and for the confidence that it's done right. They're the ****-retentive types who use a torque wrench on wheel bolts, if you know what I mean... Anyway, nice one about the Rover.

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"At what I bill per hour..." Are you kidding me? I was enjoying this thread until I read such a haughty post. There are millionaires, I assure you, who won't lie down for a gang rape courtesy of the dealership. Some people have money AND 4 hours to themselves on the weekend; it's really not as mutually exclusive as you make it sound. But it is as ridiculous as you make it sound.

Ahh, a Mechanics dream, a "smart and important" person who has more money than time. We need more of these people! What is that saying, "A fool and his money....."

This is a bit embarrassing to read, guys. Seriously. Embarrassed for you, I mean. I'm not kidding, and certainly not bragging, when I say that time is the thing I have the least of, and I can afford to buy some back from people who make their livings doing something better than I can. If you don't understand this now, then I hope for you that you will one day. It's a nice problem to have. My priorities are my wife and kids, my company, my teaching, my book projects, my health, the stuff I do to enjoy life like cycling and skiing and spending time with my horse. There's not a lot left over for changing oil, especially when it's pretty painless to pay someone to do it for me. I'm happy, my family is happy, my car runs great, my mechanic can put his kids through school... not sure what your problem is with all this, and I don't really care. Because the opinion of some do-it-yourself snob on the internet is well below all of the foregoing on my priority list.

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My friend, if i was that much of a fool, I wouldn't have all that money, would I.

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Said the busy and important fool! Note to self: Be sure to bill him for an hour + expenses (but in real money not CDN)

Thanks for being embarrassed for us, Bruce. You're just such a magnanimous guy!

I actually share the opinion of Bruce! I'm in the same boat. I've a challenging job, kids in an age that they still want to spend time with me and I love driving the P car ... But I did also learn to like working on the car, just only on projects that spark my interest (I did the GT3 sway bar install myself - took me almost a full night). I'm a guy that spends money for labor on an oil change, brings the car to the car-wash ... so what. As I said, I like driving it, others may love to lay under it or detail it. Each to his own.

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Exactly. If you have the skills and the time and the enthusiasm to work on your own car, I think that's cool and I totally respect it. If you don't, and you can and want to have someone else do it for you, same goes. I was just defending the OP and arguing that sometimes time is worth more than money. I can't for the life of me figure out how that's offensive.

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.968 USD this morning. Pretty real to me. Your joke would have been funnier four years ago, before the US dollar lost 25% of its value. By the way, your car is beautiful. It's clear that taking care of it is a passion for you, and it shows. Glad you're enjoying it.

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I have had my disagreements with Bruce, but am with him on this one... C$ hit a 30 year high aginst US$ yesterday. Euro, Sterling, and many, many more curriencies hitting all time highs (or read all time lows for US$)... we do not have ANY bragging rights when it comes to the monetary value of our currency!

Sh*t guys it is a porsche not a honda. I wish that they would put a few thousand more on the retail price, and include the service, but they don't (ala merc, bmw, and audi). From the top of my head, here are the prices: Tires are Mich Pilot Sports 285/30R18 $392 each and Mich Pilot Sports 225/40R18 at $303 each. I looked online, and prices are in line with Tire Rack and Discount (plus these online retailers did not have the front and back in stock, either one or the other). Not enough of a price difference to deal with shipping and mounting. Plus, you better hope that the indy knows how to install and mount, because if they don't, you will have either balancing problems which make for a very un porsche like ride, or worst, need a new rim. If the dealer messed up my rim, they would replace it. Plus, my car is driving like new, and perfectly balanced and aligned. BTW-the tires are great and quiet. Did not put bridgestones, see prior post. Balance and Mount $120. Also misc. charges for disposal, and valve stems. 30k Maintenance was $800. Wipers $68. Alignment was about $250. Front brake pads was $250. Shop charge of $20 for disposing of greasy rags (????). Sales Tax at 8.25% I went to the dealer for hassle factor, free rent a car, and most of all, since some of the posting on here has mentioned the dreaded engine failure, since my car is under warranty, if anything, they know I have serviced my car, and wont get into the argument that they are not going to cover the warranty repair because they can not verify service or the indy allegedly did not know what he was doing. Plus, the alignment would have to be at the dealership (anyway). They have a new alignment machine from porsche, which is awesome. I have an indy but he does not do tires or alignment (does not have the equipment). I met him when I had an out of warranty BMW in the 80's. So It would have been three trips (indy, tire dealership, and alignment & warranty at dealer) and many days, instead of one trip and one day. Plus, who the wants to hang out at discount tire for 3 hours to save a few hundred dollars???? Plus, I drive my car. I put the 30,000 miles on in exactley 3 years. My next service will be the 45k (probably next fall). I will need the service at $450. New back tires ($392 each). Mounting, balancing ($120), and alignment ($250). Brake flush for $250 My current schedule is as follows: Daughter to volleyball at 6:30 am Come back home to escort youngest daughter to the bus for 6:56 pick up. Dress, at work by 8am or so. Work 8-6, and then pick up son from football at 6:30. Home at 7:30, kids to bed, help with homework, and hopefully a sleep by 11. Weekends can be just as bad. If I am not in Dallas helping care for my mom, then the kids have activities all day saturday, and sunday, church and kids sunday school take up the full morning. The only way I make money is to be in my office billing hours, so if I mess around for the day (servicing my car), I am going to lose thousands. Prosche dealer, drop off, rental ready and waiting (with choice of cars so I can get an SUV or pickup to run errands requiring same.) Pick up car, have free starbucks, and then go back to work. Sure I could go to jiffy lube, discount tires, and do some of the repairs my self. But I wonder what the dealer, porsche, or the next owner of my car would say when all the stamps in my book are from either me or chain stores which maybe service a 911 once a year. At least it is not as expensive as a ferrari and it is one great sub exotic to drive daily. Bonus was that I had to drive out of town on business during the service. So I put the 400 miles in one day on the rental and not my car. So dealership service under warranty is a no brainer. Quick, somewhat reasonable, honest, and anything is messed up, they fix. No hassle. Finally, I can lust after the turbo's on the showroom floor, while I wait for my car to be pulled up.

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Time is worth much more than $75 per hour. If I have any free time, then I rather spend it at home, and not driving around servicing my car. I even pay $45 for a person to come to my office and mini detail my car. I guess I am just a fool. But San Antonio is in South Texas, and any extended period of time outside, requires about 1/2 gallon of water to rehydrate, a shower, and change of clothes. Then about 2 hours inside (AC)with no movement to bring your body temp within normal parameters.

I stand corrected aboot the Canadian dollar, and am moving some of my investments into Back Bacon and Molson immediately! Who knows, With a strong currency, and global warming making the north a nice place to live, perhaps it will be the Canadians who will be building a fence to keep the pesky Americans out soon! I did want to make one final comment on our dust up over the original direction of this thread. My original comments were not to promote the moral, virile, or intellectual superiority of the DIY'er, (those traits stand on their own), but rather reinforce the importance of getting value for your money. There is nothing wrong in having someone else work on your car, but what is wrong is not knowing the value of what that work is worth. This board is riddled with stories about people paying outrageous sums for simple procedures performed on their cars. If others can learn from these overpayments, and know what the these things really are worth, then they are in stronger position to get fair value for their money. As I said, Knowledge is power and everyone else pays retail + markup! If we can keep just one person from being overcharged for an oil change or other procedure, than we have provided a valuable public service!

I originally posted this in April. I think the advice remains valid. Shop around, prices can really vary. I am coming up on my 90,000 service for 1999 C2. I called two different dealers here in NJ yesterday and asked how much for the service. One dealer quoted $1600 and the other $700. Hmmm, I can only wonder how it can be so different for what should be exactly the same thing. I have had Porsches serviced at both places in the past and both do a good job. I have confidence in the mechanics of both places. The real difference is one dealer has a more high end address and modern showroom. I guess that gives them the right to charge more.

One last point about this dead horse is that yes, a 996 is not like a Honda, it actually much more like a Toyota Corolla. When the 996 was being designed, the serviceability of the platform was vetted by Toyota (under contract from Porsche) to make the servicing as efficient as possible. This is why the 996 (and 986, 997,987) is so simple to maintain. From alignment to brakes to engine routine maintenance, the effort and time involved is the same or better as any entry level Toyota. I also wanted to make all of the temporally challenged Porsche owners aware of my new time management program "Soccer, Clients, and Brake Pads, a Family Affair"

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Too bad I do not live on the east coast, but Texas is a big state. Austin is the nearest at about 80 miles away but very bad traffic. Houston is 180 miles,3 dealers, and very bad traffic. Dallas is 260 miles away, 3 dealers, and some traffic. Corpus has a dealer, but when I went by once, they did not even have any for sale. Just some used boxters and Cayennes. For me to go out of town, would require a hotel, rent a car etc.. and again too much time. I have serviced my car in Dallas, only because I was taking care of my mom. What was really cool (besides the dealership's soda fountain and coffee bar) was that my step dad took me to pick up my car. I had the 15k service, brake flush and rear tires. My step dad, came in with me, and paid the service. Totally unexpected, since he thinks I am an idiot for buying a porsche in the first place. His mantra is that porsches are only for people who are worth 10 million or more, and pay cash for their car. I always respectfully answer that if that were the case, then there would be no such thing as a porsche, because there would be no market. I understand what he is truely saying in that why am I driving such an expensive car, when I still have a mortgage etc... But he is the one who got me into porsches. He never bought one, but wanted one really bad. We would visit dealerships and dream all the time. I suspect my mother would have gone balistic, she is german and a control freak. Almost got a 944 for my first car, but my mom nixed it-she thought it was ugly and that I would kill myself. Funny, at the dealership, the a hole salesman was steering us away from the 944 and towards an alfa romeo (4dr hatch back that was ugly but fast for the mid 80's). Settled on a BMW. One X-Mass she even went to the dealership, bought a key and key chain, gift wrapped it, and put it under the tree. Outside in the driveway she placed a toy porsche. Dad opened up the box, went outside and was severly disappointed. My family liked to play jokes on each other, although I thought that this was cruel, but very funny. I got to keep the model. I always would tell him that I would buy him a porsche one day, but sadly now, he would not be very comfortable in a 911 (too old to get in and out). That is why I pulled the trigger, better be young and foolish in a porsche, than regret not every buying one. As to the maintenance, I also get to deduct it at the end of the year or at least a high percentage, since my 911 is my business car. The dealermatched the prices quoted for the tires by the local Discount and gave me $50 off the service. At least I asked. Believe it or not, this maintenance on the 911 is a dream compared to my out of warranty Land Rover. That was costing about $3k every 6 months at an indy shop. Finally dumped it and my 911 is my DD. You all have to undersant where I live. SAT is not a wealthy city. I am shocked that there is even a dealership here. So when you are looking for weird sized z rated tires, there is not a lot of choice. Also, a lot of indy's may say that they work on porsches, but they don't often, and do not have the right equipment. If I wanted something cheaper and easier, I would have bought a corvette. I knew going in that service would not be cheap. Thank God it is only every 15k miles or 2 years, whichever comes first.

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I have at least 6 dealers within fairly easy reach of where I live or work. From home though the nearest is still a 40 minute drive away. There are only 4 that I have used in the past. I would probably lose count if I started adding up all of the Porsche dealerships within a 2 hour drive of me. So in that respect NJ is a good place to own a Porsche. There used to be a dealership 10 minutes away but they burned down 4 or 5 years ago. They are finally building a replacement and I can't wait until it opens to save some driving. I figure they won't be ripping people off too much in the beginning while they try to build the business. The only problem is going to be where they find some good mechanics. My car comes off of warranty though in February and then I might try one of the mechanics at the local garage. He used to work for the Porsche dealership that burned down. If he doesn't go back, he might be a good alternative.

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That's funny...Tire Rack quotes me $338 and $222 per tire, plus about $45 shipping for all, and they're in stock. Of course, I've never found Tire Rack to have that great of prices, so I probably still wouldn't pay that. Also, balancing a tire isn't rocket science, even on a Porsche.

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Oh, sure, I'll bet it's extremely hard to find P-car parts and service in our country's seventh-largest city. Try owning a P-car in the Midwest and then let me know if you still feel the same way. At least SEVEN dealers within 260 miles? You'll not get any sympathy from some on this forum...