TSBs and Recalls

Even tho my 996 Cab has no sign of RMS (or other problems) I continue to be concerned about the number of replacement. If PAG has info on the bad manufacture/assembly of the related parts IMHO they should issue a limited recall similar to what they did on the wiring harness on the 993 series where they identified a range of VIN numbers and issued recalls. Here's a link to some information on how NTSB operates, courtesy of The Car Connection. http://www.thecarconnection.com/index.asp?article=4371

Here Here Don! I wonder how 996 owners have had transmission problems too. From what I can gather it is also fairly common.

Don, For what it's worth, My warranty ran out 3/31 of this year and I noticed an oil leak in September. Sure enough it was the RMS. Went to the local dealer, and spoke to the PORSCHE rep for my area and received no hassle at all and they fixed it out of warranty free of charge. On my receipt it said Porsche replaced the RMS as a good will gesture!! Known defect in these cars. Needless to say I was thrilled.

My only point is if PAG can identify the poor castints they can follow thru to VIN numbers and issue limited recalls covering the suspected VIN numbers rather than waiting for problems to happen. As I said PAG did this with the infamous wiring problems on the 993s, so why not thr RMS on 996s and Bosters? Would save a lot of owners waiting for something to happen! Just. my .02

Hi Don, recalls are normally issued on problems pertaining to the safety of the vehicle. The wiring harness issue on 1995 993s could result in the car burning down, which would clearly be detrimental to the owner's safety, particularly if he/she was in the car whilst it occurred. There is no safety issue with the RMS leaks, which is why there are dealt with through a TSB. Also, the RMS problem is a consequence of the engine design and unfavourable tolerances. It is therefore impossible to tell from the outside which engines are affected. As a Porsche owner, I'd be in favour of Porsche recalling all 996 Carreras, throw out the M96/01-02 engines and give us a naturally aspirated Version of the M96/70 (Turbo) engine. And whilst they are at it, they could also take out the rubbish G96/00-01 gearbox and give us G96/50 gearboxes. As a Porsche shareholder, I think differently. Cheers, Uwe

Uwe, as a matter of interest do you know if it is possible to use the G96/50 as a replacement for the G96/00-01 gearbox or are we stuck with only one choice? Cheers, Berny

It wuld be interesting to know if Porsche AG read rennlist on the quiet ;-)

I hope they do... they are a sponsor

YEAH! WELL READ THIS DR. ING, THE 996 HAS SOME SERIOUS DESIGN FLAWS AND MINE SEEMS TO HAVE ALL OF THEM AND PUK DON'T GIVE A DAMN! WHAT YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT? OR SHOULD MY NEXT CAR BE AN ASTON MARTIM AMV8. THE CHOICE IS YOURS!

Hi, I don't know if it would fit. Since the G96/50 has a limited slip differential, it definitely wouldn't work with your PSM. The gear ratios would be OK. Cheers, Uwe

Uwe, you're right about the safety issues and recalls. It's just that with so many TSBs issued for the 996, (I count 170 thru October, and with 72 supplements ( that doesn't include the Boxster) it would appear that the 996 will take it's place next to the 74-77 911 2.7 as a white elephant. As I said, maybe I'm too cynical, but to spend 80-100K on a car with all of Porsche's engineering "expertise" one would think the 996 would stand out as an excellent example of the 911 series, rather than what it appears to be... RANT OVER! TO BERNY: Do they have "lemon laws" in the UK?

FWIW I work for a large multinational that makes big yellow machines that push dirt and haul rocks. I'll leave it to you to guess which company it is. When we have a technical problem with a product, depending upon its impact on us or our customers, we may issue a service letter. The highest priority is for safety items or areas we know will fail and cause significant cost to the customer. We will inform the customer that we will rework his machine with the latest design parts at no cost to him. We try to do this work ASAP. We also issue service letters that are to be administered "after failure only". These are for problems that may occur, but are limited to a small part of the population. After a failure, even after the normal warranty is over, we will pay in full or in part for the repair depending upon how much value the customer has received. If it is after warranty, and the part achieved 90% of it's expected useful life, we will repair the machine on a pro-rated basis. In this case the customer would pay 90% for the life he received, and we would drop in a new engine, giving him 100% additional life. The final decision on the customer's participation is between our service rep and the dealer. We also issue "before or after failure" service letters. This gives the dealer and customer the option of repairing now, or waiting until after it fails. Quite frankly it's cheaper for everyone if the repair is made BEFORE FAILURE. This lowers the amount of contingent damage that results. I would guess that Porsche is handling RMS failures on my "after failure only" scenario. This allows them to replace only the engines that fail, and to make a fair settlement with the customer for value received or not received. Cheers,

Hi Don, I completely agree with you, it's not the kind of quality you'd expect. Incidentally, they have very tough lemon laws in Germany now (since January 2002). Two failed attempts at fixing a problem within the first two years and you can return the product. Cheers, Uwe

Aston Martin is really looking like a nice alternative... but not sure how the do on the track... ..not that I take mine to the track anyway... I want to use the 951 for that.

WOW! The fixed the RMS no charge? I am hoping I have the same fortune when I go to see Sunset Porsche here in Portland, Oregon tomorrow as my RMS just started leaking too. If I am not as fortunate...they will get the car to keep becuase I won't be going back to pick it up! Porsche can have it.

"My only point is if PAG can identify the poor castints they can follow thru to VIN numbers and issue limited recalls covering the suspected VIN numbers rather than waiting for problems to happen. As I said PAG did this with the infamous wiring problems on the 993s, so why not thr RMS on 996s and Bosters?" like others have pointed out, the wiring harness was a safety issue. the RMS leak is merely an inconvenience. given the not insignificant amount of labor required to change the RMS as well as the relatively low failure rate as a % of all possible engines that could experience this problem, it makes perfect sense that they replace only those that fail. if they ever go refusing warranty repair (ala BMW whenever they get the chance) even when out of warranty timewise and with a reasonable amount of miles though...

Sorry guys what's the "RMS"?

NEVER MIND

WOW! The fixed the RMS no charge? I am hoping I have the same fortune when I go to see Sunset Porsche here in Portland, Oregon tomorrow as my RMS just started leaking too. If I am not as fortunate...they will get the car to keep becuase I won't be going back to pick it up! Porsche can have it. __________________ Yes they did and I did see the invoice with a cost of $644.00 chargeback from the dealer to Porsche. Fortunately when I went to the dealer the local Porsche Rep was in the building and I met and discussed it with him and he had no problem authorizing the fix free of charge. So if you get any hassle from the dealership service manager you need to insist on talking to the area Porsche rep or start writing letters! This has helped me in the past "sometimes". Good luck and please let me know how you make out.

PORSCHE REDEEMED! They are the tops in my eyes again. I called the Service Manager today and he didn't even "hem or haw about it". He simply said bring it in next Monday and Porsche will fix it under warrenty and, they are going to give me a Cayenne loaner! Sunset Porsche in Portland, Oregon RULES!

Beautiful!!!!! Glad to hear they came through for you. As we all know some of these dealers can be extremely difficult. Although it just goes to show there are some good ones out there also. I have had some difficult times with my dealer in the past on some minor issues ( not completly fixing the problem and having to go back to complete the job right, a 55 miles round trip, but they did this one right the first time and have redeemed thmselves for the time being!!) I still have a high speed whistle they cannot seem to fix but I keep taking it back and they keep trying. Hopefully they will get it right soon. BTW, I didn't need a loaner, they fixed it in one day. Told me it is about a 6 hour job.

I think you have all seen me moaning about RMS, gearbox etc. I honestly can't figure it. This car is an ultra expensive car. We know that even before we buy it. But we also know that for taking on that expense we expect it to be [at least] reliable. It's supposed to be top notch German engineering at its best. So how the hell can such an expensive piece of high quality engineering have so many serious problems and typically before it's done 30k miles.....and especially when its been serviced according to the book! We all bitch and moan about these problems and meanwhile Porsche refuse to do anything about it? What we need is a collective rally to front up to Porsche and demand warranty repairs for all these TSBs and issues such as RMS and gearboxes. If we do this collectively then Porsche must surely do something about it. Otherwise they will loose customers. I for one would not consider buying another Porsche. But if they did the right thing I would probably change my views and remain a loyal customer. If I knew who to go and see I would drive my car over there to stuttgart and drop it on their doorstep and tell them to inspect it and see for themselves a) what a heap of crap it is and b) what an unhappy customer I am. But who to see? I am serious about this.I am a mere 500 miles from the factory. I am prepared to drive to stuttgart and demand some answers for us all here on Rennlist. But I need to know who to go and see and who is likely to listen to me. I also need some sort of signed petition to go bounce them with. Imagine, if I turned up to see the CEO of Porsche and said, here is a signed petition of X hundred Rennlist members, members of a forum that you sponsor, each owning a 996, each suffering serious proplems such as x, y and z. We demand that you offer us some compensation or to guarantee that our cars will be put right at no charge for these problems. Do this along with Porsche magazine press coverage and the signed petition and I feel certain they will seek to put all this mess right. Basically I am saying. We all have payed a lot of hard earned cash for this dream car. So let's do something about it. Stop the moaning. Let's go and see what they have to say about it. Let's get the Rennlist Forum group together and the press and let's go and wake them up to our cries! For Don: I don't know! What's a lemon law?

Some states in the US have "lemon laws". It provides for the dealer to fix a problem within a specified number of days or the cumulative numer of days in the shop within a period of time. For example: (not actual law). The dealer has three times to fix the same problem within a month or you can return the car & get your money back. If the car is in the dealer has the car for repairs for 30days within 18 months, you can get your money back. The other lemon law prohibits eating lemons at a concert in front of trumpet players.