996 Reliability

I just had my 60K service performed by the local dealer. Despite the cost of the service, I trust the dealer and their abilities. They said the only remote problem that may arise before my next service was the Variocam seal. A $5 item. Very minor! The issue for me is despite some of the people on this board who've experienced problems, both minor and major, the majority of us have extremely reliable cars. Personally my 996 has been way more reliable than any BMW I've ever owned. Just my two cents worth. 60K and going strong!

Finally some fresh air to breathe!... Thank you for sharing your very positive experience with your 996. I look forward to enjoying my 996 to 60K miles and beyond!

My 05 Mercedes with 6K miles is sucking a half a quart of Mobile 1 every 1K mi. My 50K 996 uses almost no oil in between changes. My money is on the P-car.

Good to hear, my 986 and 996 have both been two of the most trouble free cars I have ever owned. No problems with either car.

yea I have to agree, my car has never let me down...a few oil drops but always starts and goes....hard

Never had an issue with the car. A first for me and sports cars!!!!

43k and going strong, best car I ever had.

You better ALL knock wood. I used to make the same posts - "50,000 miles and no problems. The 99 rumors are all B.S." Not any more.

Hello all, I'm thinking of selling my 1988 BMW M3 and replacing it with an 2002 996 as my daily driver. I've read mostly all the threads (alot) about engine trouble. The only things that really frighten me are the slipped sleeve or intermediate shaft problems. I could care less about RMS and the other quibbles with these cars. Question: it seems that the problems I'm most worried about primarily happened with the 3.4 (mostly 1999) cars. Is that a fair statement? TIA, Joe 1995 Porsche 993 (not going anywhere) 1988 BMW E30 M3 2.5 (240HP) daily driver

85,000 miles, driven several times a day - HARD, and don't burn or drip any oil. I need to bring it in for a few rattles around the dash, but my 99 996 is awesome and I can always count on it.

Question: it seems that the problems I'm most worried about primarily happened with the 3.4 (mostly 1999) cars. Is that a fair statement? I believe that only Porsche can accurately answer your question because they are the only ones that have all of the data. Anecdotally, it seems that the '99s have more engine problems, but I'm not certain if that's because of an engine design flaw or simply because those cars are 7 years old with high mileage.

Boy, you're a dark cloud on a sunny day. I've owned Porsches and BMW's, and Porsches are as good or better than any. All cars have issues...

Wow only 11 posts! I'm indifferent at this point. Hope I can be as happy as the 5 or 6 of you are in '07 when my warranty expires..

hey if you can't beat em, join em... 400 miles on my third engine with 20 hours of awesome driving behind the wheel and no problems yet! the third engine replacement appears to have fixed all the bugs.. just needed to work the bugs out a couple times.. but i can feel it.. this third engine is definately bulletproof and reliable as can be! the last one, lasted for 8000 miles before needing replacement.... i'm hoping for atleast another 9,000 miles on this sucker.. prolly just get it changed out at my next oil change, along with the oil filter.. ok ok i'll stop

Way to go Bob, getting on the bandwagon at last.

50,000 miles at on your watch? Didn't think so. Next.....

third engine replacement and you're just saying it's getting the bugs out? wow. i personally think that's 1000% unacceptable. i'm not high on 996 non-GT1 engine reliability.

It's very nice to finally hear some positive ownership experiences for a change! This car was rated one fo the three most reliable long term for the 2002 model year by someone (consumer reports I beleive) so there was bound to be lots of happy customers out there somewhere. Not to minimize Bobporsche's nightmare any, because that story is EVERYONE'S worst nightmare when buying a used car. I'm glad you all decided to share your experiences, as it balances out the horror stories a bit, and that was nescessary if it's indeed true

in all fairness, the 996 c2/c4 is a great car.. there's nothing like it... just realize that when buying it, you are buying an $80,000 to $100,000 car.. and just because you get a great deal on it for $28,000 with 90,000 miles.. doesn't change anything.. it's still an $80,000+ car, and expect to pay out the *** for the car when need be just like the same person that can afford the $80,000 new model when something goes wrong..... just like the person that goes and buys a $25k 80s miami vice ferarri.. don't expect to pay $25k car prices when things (which will) go wrong.. it's still a $100k+ car..

LOL how about this.... 82K mikes an no engine problems. in fact i had my supercharger installed at 78K.

Same story here. Just over 84,000 miles on my 2000, and only minor problems in five and a half years. I hope it lasts.

I am glad to see that our beloved 996s have some chance of being robsut. My experience has been different. Owned my 2002 C2 for about 1 year now, ~37k miles, and here are the problems I have had so far: Battery died on delivery (replaced) Rear pads < 50% (needs > 50% for Porsche warrantee, oversight, replaced) Warped front brake shield (bent back) Noisy spoiler (lubed) Sunroof rattle (no solution) Noisy windshield (foam cord installed) Wiring under the seats messed up (previous owner's fault) Master (maybe slave) brake cylinder squeek (replaced) Computer stalk detached (R&R steering & AB, loose screw reattached) Lifter(s) on left bank ticking (replaced lifters and seals) Right cat converter melted (replaced) Passenger door would not open (internal lock pin replaced) Passenger armrest broke upon reinstall of door panel (replaced) RMS leak (fixed with the latest gen seal) Baffle in right PSE muffler loose (replaced muffler) PSE vacuum reservoir loose (tightened) PSE Vacuum routing incorrect, tubes plugged/melted (corrected) Shifter cable attachement broken (replaced cables) Previous owner had 4 RMS failures before the engine was replaced around 25k, both cat converters died as well. This rivals the problems I have had with past VWs. Fortunately warrantee (or sales dept) took care of all of it. Local P dealer has been great so far! I guess the good news is that most of the caris now new again and I have 2 more years of warrantee. We'll see

flashingblade, you're in the pacific nw as well huih? we should leave our cars together and let them mate.. they'll be born retarded and need an engine replacement every 3,000 miles..

damn, give it a rest. you didn't do you homework and bought a lemon live with it and move on or get your high priced lawyer to get your money back.

sorry about your troubles. looks like the previous owner really worked this car over. this is a perfect example of why one should get a PPI. if you did then i really don't know what to say. can you hold the people who inspected it responsible? if the previous owner had 4 RMS and cat owners then why did you buy this car? this car had bad mojo.

other than some cars with the RMS problem, which is notorious, these cars are strong runners and will take a beating maintain a porsche and it'll run practically forever - look at the old 356's that are running around, daily drivers and get engine rebuilds at only 330,000 miles

Dam, maybe your post would have been shorter if you simply told us what was working.

Just sold my 02 C4S Coupe which I owned for 3 years. I am cosidering a 997 turbo when it's released. Fantastic car - mine had the the X51 and the PSE. Mine had 4 RMS changes, new engine and subsequent RMS change (latest seal) with new coated fasterners. I would stay away from the NA M96 and go for the GT-1 based engines (Turbo). Unless you are prepared to do regular RMS changes. Great car shame about the RMS/Engine design. Thunder

The car went through P's certified warrantee check and a pre track inspection, for whatever it is worth. Many of these problems did not appear until after several months of ownership. I talked to several people before buying this car, and they all were of the opinion that a brand new engine is a good thing. (32k car with a 7k engine, with apparently also a new clutch). I am very attentive to details and was diligent to question and report anything that did not seem right. I also cross checked things with all TSBs at RennTech. Before the full warrantee ran out, I spent several hours going over (and under) the car and made a long list of suspect items. The dealer was very responsive in dealing with things (it squeeks ==> replace the whole thing) and finding things that I did not report. Generally, when they fixed something I usually did not have to go back (which was NOT the case with service on other makes of cars I have owned). I also know the previous owner, I know he tracked the car, but he also took care of things, and had everything done at the same dealer and some of the better local performance shops. Perhaps bad mojo, perhaps previous owners, but some of it is also because of design errors on P's part (e.g. RMS, squeeky windshield) or manufacturing errors (door lock pin). We'll see how it holds up while the warrantee lasts. I am also glad I did NOT buy a P car w/o warrantee or I'd have been out and additional 10k US$. BTW: I said brake master/slave cylinder replacement, I meant clutch.

people that haven't had problems with their m96 always seem to blame issues other people have on the fact that the previous owner treated it like crap... i find it hard to believe, or i have yet to meet a single porsche car owner that treats their car this way.. most porsche owners are the most **** retentive about their cars more than any other marque out there...

I agree with your assessment, but remember you did quailfy your statement with most. My son worked at a Porsche Dealership as a lot boy during the summer, and he was amazed at how some of the 996s that were traded in were beaten to hell. Of course the Porsche Dealer didn't sell those cars but wholesaled them. I'm thinking that you may have bought one of those wholesaled cars that may have been patched up by another Dealer.

Some people think they are treating their car right, when in fact they are just doing it harm. For instance: Driving around in 6th gear wherever possible to keep the RPMs down. This only LUGS the engine and, in fact, is bad for it. This is the kind of driving that will create those carbon deposits on the pistons, and those carbon deposits make their way into the engine and cause ALL SORTS of problems. Leaving the car in cruise control on minor hills on the highway day in and day out will do the same thing. Using the RPMS is GOOD for the engine- it keeps the pistons clean! Make a trip to the redline on that entrance ramp.. get it into the torque band for passing that car. USE the engine, don't baby it - and it'll last! This goes for all engines and is common sense.. but many people just don't get it. Another BAD thing is garage queen cars. These are owned by people who simply want a trophy car, and keep it parked all the time, and only take it out on special occasions- when the conditions are right. Cars like this are more prone to oil leaks and gasket failures, and I'm sure several other symptoms. The fact is- you gotta exercise your car and USE it - don't just park it and think you are doing a good thing. Gaskets and seals can get dried up from non-use, and if the piston rings haven't seated properly, than that means that oil could possibly leak by the rings as the car is just sitting there with its horizontal pistons. How about breaking the car in? This has been discussed, but people think they are doing a good thing by keeping the RPMS under 4000 during break-in, when in fact that is absolutely the wrong thing to do for break-in. Your piston rings REQUIRE high rpms in order to seat properly - WITHIN THE FIRST COUPLE HUNDRED MILES. Babying the car during this crucial period means that your rings will not seat properly, you'll burn oil, your pistons will be prone to carbon deposits, and your engine life will SUFFER! Drive it hard without abusing it - use those rpms without lugging it.