Spec of MY03 C2 and PCM 2 (long rant.....)

Hi Guys I went in to my dealer today in the UK to spec up my 996 C2. I placed the order in Janury of this year, and it was due to be delivered in roughly September or October of this year. My spec is: 996 C2 Coupe Polar Silver Metropol Blue Leather PCM Satnav Bose sound 6 disc CD changer Park assist Auto dimming lights Litronic / Bi-Xenon Lights Cruise Control Aluminium Dials Aluminium Gear Shift/handbrake Small Arctic Silver package Soft Ruffled leather (I think in the US this is the supple leather??) 18" Carrera Wheels Coloured Wheel Centres Sports Exhaust Several times now I have gone in to have a chat about the options and the way the model is going having read all the different posts on here and funcarsonline. Each time I was made to feel unwelcome and basically a time waster. What has become patently clear is that these sale guys: a) know nothing of the product they are selling; b) sell every car they can get; c) have the easiest job on the planet; c) don't give a toss whether I buy a car or not, because they've already sold all of next year's cars anyway!!!! I wouldn't be surprised if Porsche UK closed every sales dealership in the country (apart from servicing - another rip off) and just have a phone line where you can leave a message with your credit card number...... That would save them even more money and it's not as if the dealers actually do ANYTHING to sell the cars. So, I go in today to complete the forms and the spec and I'm told sorry, but if you want satnav PCM it will be a December build, at the earliest(!) as Porsche are "changing" the system! This was the very specific question I had asked 3 weeks ago having seen the new Boxster PCM2 with its widescreen layout and DVD based software, and the salesman told me no, it was definitely not changing in the 911 and it would all be the same, and there would be no changes at all to the MY03 car. Clearly we all know this is not the case having seen all the new revisions such as Digital Bose and PCM2. Still, Porsche UK probably pay peanuts, which results in employing monkeys..... The salesman knows so little about his product that he said he had seen the new PCM2 in a Boxster in France and that I did not need to order a 6 disc changer because there is a CD player built into the Satnav. Call me stupid (many have!) but might that not be where you put the navigation DVD given that there is now no separate CD navigation player below the satnav and aboce the Air Con?? I also asked about the sports exhaust and how it worked, he explained that is purely dependant on the RPM of the engine - NO <img src="graemlins/cussing.gif" border="0" alt="[grrrrrrr]" /> we all know (because it says on the Porsche website!) that the flapper valve is closed between 25 and 45 mph to comply with Swiss driveby noise restrictions!!! RPM is completely irrelevant. I'm sorry but in my job I have to know what I am selling, I have to know what I am doing, and if I don't know the answer, I don't guess/lie/fudge/talk complete doodoo to a customer! So, I'm still waiting, I may get the car some time next year, but the good news is I can confirm that the new Boxster PCM 2 is going into the 996 from some time around December this year. Sorry for the extended length, but it winds me up when such apathy is displayed from someone who is taking �65,000 ($100,000) of my damn hard earned money! Are we not normal customers in expecting the salesman to know something about his product????? One good point for UK owners out there, try Tesco for insurance - very cheap for me. Rory

I empathise with you. It seems the more prestigious the brand, the worse you get treated. The best treatment I ever had was from a Renault dealer - the worst treatment was by Lotus (in 2nd place) and Porsche (in first place). The salespeople in AFN Guildford are at best cold, reserved and snooty and are at worst insolent and downright f**king rude. Their service departments seem totally clueless, but blatently geared towards gouging the customer at any and every opportunity. Any idiot can plug a gadget into a socket and swap disk pads - but try getting them to fix a difficult problem - say an intermittent electrical gremlin - and you're in for a very, very expensive ride as they replace every part they can think of until they hit the right one by accident. I've always wondered how this works, because presumably most people that buy new Porsches are successful / particular / fussy / demanding. Given these attributes, how do main agents get away with it? Eventually I came to the conclusion that they don't really care for enthusiasts - they'd rather deal with footballers or lottery winners who are going to breeze in and buy a Porsche for every member of their family, with cash, and don't even particularly care what colour or spec they are. I suppose it's an easy way to do business, when the brand name does the actual selling for you...

You just described Barrier Porsche in Bellevue WA to a "T". Their most experienced Porsche salesman doesn't have a clue. But regretably doesn't need one.

RJN, Here in the U.S., the dealers have known about PCM2 in MY03 996s for quite some time. The MY03 order guide was first issued during April 2002 and PCM was NOT available (because they were switching over to PCM2). I tried to order PCM2 for my MY03 996TT (Aug 26 completion date) and was unable to. As to when it will be available, I've heard many different rumors (nothing concrete), but many are saying that September 2002 builds will have PCM2 available. The December 2002 date provided by your dealer sounds a bit late. I would call another dealer and try to gather more info. Good luck. Craig (L.A.)

Too bad about the treatment and attitude you get from the UK Porsche dealers. Being an ex-pat living in Whistler, Canada, I am very happy with the local dealer, very friendly, knowledgable and understands who writes the cheques. The attitude in the UK is not limited to Porsche dealers, its everywhere, shops, hotels, you name it. During the last year I have visited 5 Porsche dealers other than my own.. Champion in Pompano Florida score 3 out of 10 Barrier in Bellevue score 2 out of 10 Melbourne Australia score 9 out of 10 Scottsdale Arizona score 5 out of 10 Portland Oregon score 2 out of 10 MCL in Vancouver score 8 out of 10