Car at dealer, RMS replacement... clutch too?

Guys, the dealer just called... they said the RMS is being replaced and asked if I wanted to replace the clutch too. They said it's "not worn" but that they think it's got 5-10k left on it. They quoted $800 for parts and no labor. What should i do?!

Without doubt replace the clutch. But $800 for the clutch is real expensive. The seals can't be more than $50 max. Great pic BTW.

yeah, i just got a quote from another dealer for $611 for the clutch parts.

definitely do it. you might try and push them about this since i've heard numerous stories of clutches being ruined by the oil leaking from the RMS. maybe they could do it under warranty if yours had any oil on it. either way, the labor on replacing the clutch is a lot so you should have it done!

yes, yes and thousand times yes! you WON'T want to pay the 8 hrs labor when it "needs" to be done next year. when they did mine, it was $600 for parts -- the same parts you can buy for yourself for $450. $800 is way too much unless something else is wrong.

That is a great picture. Can you send me a high res copy?

They said that there is no oil on the clutch... I ok'ed the replacement and got a quote for $611 from their competitor... I'm going to call them back and tell them that their parts pricing is too high... i'm hoping they will match prices with another area dealer.

Called the dealer and asked them again on the price, this time they said $850!!! I told them that I had a quote from a local dealer for $611 and they looked up the price and saw to their supprise that they had it down as $702! That's a bit of a shift. I told them that all the dealers I spoke to quoted me $611 for the clutch and they told me that the parts manager was out today and they would call me back... they are going to finish the work tomorrow... I bet they haven't started! I also bet they will forget to do it and then I'll need to pay labor! boooo!!!!!

Ross, Sorry to hear about the RMS. Which dealer did you take it to? Manhattan Motors? Since they have your baby in pieces it may be tricky to get them down on the price of the clutch. You coming this Sunday to the Palisades meet? 80+ porsches meeting on the NJ side of the GW bridge, then a run up to Bear Mtn, and some other stuff...

The RMS on my '03 C4s also went - what year is your car?

His car is an '01 C4

Why don't you just order the part from Sunset Imports in Portland OR, and have it drop shipped via FedEx to your dealer? The price Sunset quotes on the web is cost +%15 for anyone outside of Oregon or Washington. I bought my car from them (even though they're 600 miles away) because I got tired of dealing with all the attitude in at Porsche dealers in the Bay Area. They were fantastic to deal with. I picked up my car on Saturday and their parts guy stayed around after his normal closing time just to make sure I had all the accessories I wanted with my new C2. Tim

JOL sorry to hear how many miles did you have on it?

26k on the odo. I should go to the palisades meet! Where do you all meet up?

I just bought a '02 C4S with 12k mls and this talk of RMS failures got me worried. What are we talking about? Is this some sort of seal that tends to go bad? Any way to tell if there's a problem or prevent it? I got a Porsche certified car - wouldn't this kind of thing be covered by warranty? Mateusz

4k on mine

Ross, Here's the full scoop. I'm just going to the first bit. If you want to attend the whole sha-bang call Michele, her number is down towards the bottom. Hopefully see you Sunday. Alex Sunday, April 4th GW Bridge - Bannerman Castle � HOOTERS Run + Bonus Paterek Brothers Concours Workshop!! Alright ladies and gentlemen, this is the first big meet of the 2004 season and boy do we mean BIG!! We have a great time planned for you all!! AGENDA: 8:00AM As the name suggests, we will be meeting at the Palisades State Park on Henry Hudson Drive just north of the GW Bridge on the NJ side of the river. The entrance into the park is via East Palisades Avenue as it passes under the Palisades Interstate Parkway in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. We will assemble n the parking lot a short distance down the road in the park.be set up to take photos of cars both individually and as a group. We can meet with all of our old acquaintances as well as some new ones. ARRIVE WITH A FULL TANK OF GAS and bring an FRS Radio Tuned to Channel 7 Sub 0 9:00AM Sharp!! We will depart the park and proceed up the Palisades Parkway into New York State. We will follow the PP to the end and across the Bear Mountain Bridge to follow Route 9D north along the eastern shore of the Hudson River. There will be a location to temporarily park along the way to grab some Castle photos. If you are interested in some good Castle pictures, bring a pair of hiking shoes because you will need to take a 5 minute walk that can be a little rocky and muddy. The Bannerman Castle can be viewed from that location. We will continue north on 9D into the town of Beacon and across the Route 84 bridge into Newburgh and then head south on Route 9W to Bear Mountain. Once in Bear Mountain Park, we will follow Seven Lakes Drive to Route 17 and then onward to Hooters. 11:00AM Arrive at HOOTERS located at 393 Route 17 North, Paramus, NJ. http://www.hooters.com Get ready for "Cold Beer, Hot Wings & Fun Girls" There will be dedicated parking roped off for the 6speed group and a 15% discount off the checks. We also have lots of giveaways & raffles!!!! 12:15 PM Depart Hooters to attend the Concours Workshop. 1:00 PM Arrive at the �World Famous� Paterek Brothers Concours and Preservation Workshop sponsored by the Porsche Club of America. Paterek Brothers are nationally known for their expertise in the restoration and preservation of Porsches. They are located at 13 Commerce Street in Chatham, New Jersey. You will have an opportunity to meet many more Porschephiles as well as join PCA if you are not already a member! Excerpt from PCA Porscheforus monthly magazine��. Ray and John will conduct an on-the-fly seminar for both Novice and Veteran groups. Emphasis will be on the Preservation and Preparation of Body, Paint, Interior, Storage and Engine. http://www.nnjr-pca.com/concour.html If you can't make the start of the event, contact Michele and she will provide estimated arrival times for the other locations. DUE TO SEATING AVAILABILITY AT HOOTERS, ATTENDEES MUST RSVP TO PORSCHEBABE-MICHELE @ [phone removed] OR [phone removed] BEFORE MARCH 28, 2004. We would like to extend a sincere thank you to all of our sponsors: Cargraphic USA Bumper Plugs Hooters 6speedonline Pepe Porsche PES Tuning European Car Magazine

mat-- you are covered for 100k mi with a porsche certed car--better than a new car rms failure occurs in about 40% of 996's-- see recent poll--not usually a big deal with some notable exceptions e.g. scouser

Ignacio, thanks. I need to read up on this a little more... can you recommend any good sources? People refer to technical bulletins - where do I find them? Specifically, I'm wondering if I can drive the car to a dealer if this ever happens to me, or should it be trucked over? Is the oil leak from the gearbox or from the engine sump? By the way, like the contents of your stable!

Mat, You should swing by the gathering over in NJ this Sunday if you're not busy. You can drive your car to the dealer if it has a leak. No need to truck it there. The leak is from the engine. The drop the engine, mate it to a machine that tests the engine itself to see if it is within a certain tolerance, ie will a new seal fix the problem or will it just blow again after some time. If the engine is out of tolerance...you get a new engine. You can just look on this board for RMS. TONS of info on it.

Thanks C4Cab - I'll see you this Sunday at the Hooters run. Hopefully the weather will improve by then....