RMS & Contacting PCNA...

As I have had four RMS leaks in two cars, I was thinking of writing a letter to PCNA to see if I could get a response regarding their point of view on the subject primarily regarding after warranty coverage. I really don't expect to get an answer, but I thought that it would be worth a try. So I went to the PCNA website for contact information and guess what....there is nothing there! Unless I want to send a letter to Germany. So I decided to check out what the competition has for contact information. I went to MB, BMW and Lexus websites. All of them have USA contact information. At a minimum addresses and some have phone numbers and email query forms. I guess Porsche really doesn't want to hear from their customers........

Welcome to the club Dave. Your only hope is to send the letter to your countries Porsche Customer Service Department. Failing that, hang in there for my "RMS Club" web site. Should be up soon. Hopefully the media will latch on to it and then Porsche AG will have to say something formal to its customer base. Cheers, Berny

Mr. Mike McMain Manager, Customer Commitment Porsche Cars North America 980 Hammond Drive NE Atlanta, GA 30328 [phone removed] Don't expect a call back. He'll simply forward your note onto the District Service Rep serving your area. And while you're at it, copy the letter here: Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking Chief Executive Officer Dr.Ing.h.c.F.Porsche AG Porschestra�e 42 D-70435 Stuttgart Best of luck.

I had never heard of RMS problems until I stumbled across this board a few weeks ago. Has it ever been discussed in Pano or Excellence? If so, I missed it. Steve 99 996

Steve, Don't know about Pano or Excellence. They are not mags we tend to get here in the UK. The 996 RMS issue is discussed in British mags though. Quite regularly. Basically most (not all) car engines have a Crancshaft Seal. One in the front of the engine, one in the rear. In the 996, they keep leaking, But what do you expect from a $80,000 German engineered car Cheers, Berny

i've talked with mr mcmain about problems i had with my 996. he was difficult to track down though! the only reason my name got to him was because i sent a registered return receipt letter to the CEO of PCNA. i found that worked very effectively in getting their attention. i ended up getting a free 30K service ($800). if you're in the northeast, you can also contact this guy: Mr. Bill Lundy District Manager, Northeast Region Porsche Cars North America 980 Hammond Drive NE Atlanta, GA 30328 I don't know his direct number, but you can call the general line at [phone removed] and ask for him! he was very helpful and a really nice guy to deal with.

FWIW I had a fuel pump fail on a new TT at 5000 miles. I had to be towed to the dealer. I could acccept the fact that things fail, but what got my goat was that it took Porsche 10 working days to locate and deliver a replacement fuel pump to my dealer. While that pales in comparison to a RMS failure, I'd suggest that you right to Mr. Peter Schwarzenbauer< PCNA's new CEO at the PCNA headquarters in Atlanta. I sent along a copy of an ad that PCNA had been running titled, "The hours your Porsche is parked are hours you can't get back". The irony was perfect. I received a nice, fair financial goodwill settlement from PCNA. The squeaky wheel gets the grease. Don't hesitate to write to the man at the top, and send your letter by registered mail so that you can see who signed for it. I work in a Fortune 100 company, and I can tell you even the little guy gets heard if he writes the chairman. Cheers,

Guys why are we still talking about this RMS thing? I had an RMS leak on my car, but my dealer looked after it. I never had the time to waste in sending a letter to the president, really what for? Do you really have nothing else to do with your time? While you are at it, why not send a letter about the squeaky plastic, or the weird sound you hear. Unless they refuse to address issues, or address them in an unprofessional matter, you are wasting your time, and removing the impact of one of us sending a letter for something that is much more serious, something that does required attention.

Let me see if I understand you correctly.... We have owners that are potentially paying hundreds of dollars (RMS repair) to thousands of dollars (engine replacement) for after warranty repairs for something that is a MANUFACTURING DEFECT. This is not "squeaky plastic or the weird sound you hear." That is normal wear and tear. This is not. It is not caused by lack of maintenance or driver abuse - It is inherent in the design of the engine. I never want to pay for any RMS work, not do I want to have an issue with possibly selling my vehicle because it has had RMS repairs. I will grant you that it is not a life threatening defect such as the GM pickup truck gas tank issue, but is is an important defect and needs to be addressed fully and completely by Porsche.

I doubt that you will get a blanket statement from PCNA or PAG. Firstly, it's not a safety issue like the delayed recall of wiring harness problems on some 993s, so there is no obligation. My guess is that they will be handled on a case by case basis.

DaveMo, what possible issues could you have with selling a car that has had a RMS replaced? It's effing ridiculous is what it is. NOT covered by warranty is one thing, or addressed in a poor manner, but by reading your posts, I don't hear ANY evidence of that. So just what exactly would you be writing the letter for? I would be interested in knowing more about your RMS leaks.

I want to believe you arrived at that conclusion out of ignorance on the matter (otherwise it would be even worse) so I suggest you do some reading up on all the issues with the 996 RMS leak before you post. Just a polite advice from an out of warranty RMS leaking 996 owner.

RR- The issue with selling a car is that a potential buyer may be scared of purchasing your vehicle if it has a history of RMS leaks and it is out of warranty. There have been a few posts on this board about people looking at used cars and as soon as "RMS" is mentioned, the general consensus is that they should either find a car under warranty or stay away from non-warrantied cars. This is clearly going to affect the resale value of any car that is out of warranty. With regard to being out of warranty and costing $$, there is an individual on the PPBB board that just got a quote to fix his RMS for $1,425. Apparently, he is out of warranty. And yes, he should contact the local area rep and push for coverage. With regard to my RMS leaks, I have had 4 - two on my 986 and two on my 996 - all covered under warranty. But I would like to keep my 996 a long time and I am concerned about having 55K miles on the car someday and being told that I need a new engine - at my expense. Why am I writing a letter? Piece of mind. Do I expect to get an answer? Probably not. But I did have a (small) issue with my Lexus and sent them a letter. I got a very nice response from the USA president. That's one of the reasons that my family car is and always will be a Lexus. Although it is probably not going to happen, Porsche need to acknowledge this issue, take responsibility for it and assure their customers - in writing- that they will take care of all RMS issues. Time to get off my soapbox...........

RR, eat this: 996 C2 2000, on it's 3rd RMS in 8 months. First one at 24,000. It's been fully serviced and pampered by the dealer since new. 3 weeks out of warranty and the RMS fails like clockwork. I had to pay towards costs. Guess wot, its still leaking....heading for its 4th RMS next week. This will be the second this year already! I think a new engine is the answer this time. Not to mention my gearbox is shot! I am absolutely sh^tting myself that the dealer will want to hit me for the cost of the new engine. So put yourself in my position. If they fix it great! Yehaa! pokers will fly. If they don't fix it then I will sell it. Now I ask you, do you think I can sell it with a f*cked engine?......Oh yes and did I mention my gearbox is shot too. If you can't see the point at least do me a favour: STFU.

3rd time could get you a new engine!

4th! I really hope so. The big question is do I have to pay for it?

If your car has had 3 RMS, after the second one I would have gotten the DSM involved so they know about it. Don't just rely on the mechanics, or the dealer, b/c they just make more money everytime they have to replace anything, in this case an RMS. The dealer only gets 50-60% of the value of a repair under warranty. Beyond warranty they get obviously 100%. If one did really did pay something out of their own pocket WITHOUT getting the DSM involved, no offense but that person should be counseled. The dealers make their money in the back shop, not on the showroom. They could give an eff if they replaced 6 RMS on a car, short sighted as that may sound. The RMS is like a hail storm to an autobody guy - he is smiling all the way to the bank. Get your DSM involved BEFORE you pay ANYTHING out of warranty. You have to get your DSM involved, if you aren't you are being ignorant in your understanding of how a car dealership works. But Scouser, or is it "Stooge", I can see where you have problems, because if you talk to your dealer the way you are talking to me ("STF"?, real smart, "Eat this"?) if I was your dealer, I'd bilk you for everything you have. Oh yeah, don't bother even responding to this post. I'm not interested.

exactly what is the cost of a new or conditioned 996 motor?

You assume I haven't got "the DSM" (whatever that is) involved. I take it this is american for Dealer Service Manager. Well, of course he is involved stupid. How dumb do you think us Stooges are? I also take it that DMV is american for Department of Motor Vehicles. At least that is what it is in the UK. If so I am confused. I mean what's it got to do with them? Here in the UK the DMV won't get involved in civil disputes. So let me see if I can talk your language here: At the first RMS failure I contacted PUK CS and spoke to a rep as my car was out of warranty. He put me on to the SA in charge. Long story short, they fixed it under their good will scheme but I had to pay towards cost. Second RMS I called PUK CS again. Asked to be put through to a CRO. I spoke to the CRO and he agreed to fix the RMS free this time. 3rd time, I simply took it to my LPD who fixed wit without question. I didn't go backl to the CRO because I am getting tired of all this messing about. I am suspecting this 4th RMS which is to be done by my LPD may be a deciding factor on a new engine. But will have to talk to PUK CS about that to get a decision. I have also sent letters (nothing better than to have things in writing) to PUK and PAG but have had no response. So Rocket Robin, there you have it. Sorry if I upset you but your original posting made it clear to the group that you dind't know what you were talking about. And your last posting just proved it. Cheers Berny

rr most of the advice you offered scouser does not apply to england. scouser is trying to organise an effort that protects all our intrests. even if you or i haven't suffered an rms leak yet, our resale values will be adversely affected unless porsche ag acknowledges a design defect and offers us all an extended warranty with regard to rms. your comments about having nothing better to do are way out of line. most of us can easily afford the repairs involved in rms issues. the point is that most of us don't like to be cheated by an obvious design flaw that appears to affect at least 40% of 996's. i bought a turbo instead of another c4s to avoid the possibility of rms issues. now it appears the 997 is being fitted with an engine subject to the rms problems. if porsche ag doesn't address these problems we'll all be hurt needlessly.