Crappy PPI from EPE in Natick Mass

Hey guys, I just picked up a car that supposedly had a PPI done at EPE in Natick Mass, I heard from another Rennlister that they had good reputation, when I said the PPI did not have documentation and I felt that they were just in a hurry to get rid of me. Supposedly they did a compression test. I was told verbally that they were all 4%, however on the receipt were the 3 words 4-6% variance, well that is within specs but why not be specific when I talked to them? Also upon receiving the car, there is a major engine idle problem, how does one not notice that? Then there is the malfunctioning rear wing, and the warning light is lighting each time car is started. One of the tires is so badly bent that replacement is only option, and it was wacked totally out of alignment. There was a major shake while driving at anything above 35 mph.... And those are the problems I have noticed the first day owning it> It seems like they could not have test driven the car, or spent more than 5 minutes looking it over, The lack of documentation and lack of specific info when I talked to the owner on the phone were indications I should have went with my gut and got another opinion.

...warning light is lighting each time car is started. i have the same problem, however, my wing seems working fine. can someone clarify this is normal? ...and it was wacked totally out of alignment. There was a major shake while driving at anything above 35 mph... i have the same thing, balance all tires fix the problem. however, the car still doesn't feel solid > 75Mph. i may do a alligment when changing tires in next 3K mile. is it a p-car dealer? if it is, talk to the service manager over there. you paid 2 hours laber, you should expect something better. good luck!@

The spoiler warning light always lights up when started. It will stay lit until the car reaches a speed of 5mph (forward or reverse). Completely normal and working properly. With the PPI...did you pay for it with a credit card? First complain to the dealer and see where you get. If no where (which is likely) dispute the charge with your credit card company. Have the car inspected from another qualified dealer and have them note the problems that were over looked. Supply this information to the credit card company. This works...had this same thing happen to me on another vehicle purchase.

MY PPI also did not include a drive.....of course I wasn't buying the car until I drove it Car was 1500 miles away BTW On the spoiler, I get a failure light while driving once every month or so. But the spoiler always retracts at low speed afterward (light stays on) and the light does not reappear the next time the car is started. The bent wheel probably caused the shaking.

I'm shocked that Dave Maynard would broker a problem car and even more shocked that Jerry would let it go out the door without noticing those problems. How was the car transported the 3hrs from Natick to your place? Have you called Jerry @ EPE (508)651-1316 to complain? What did Dave M. say?

Its funny how dealerships "miss" things like that when your looking to buy a car from them. Would you have bought the car from them if they told you the truth about it? I learned that you really need to have the car inspected by a shop that has NO affiliation with where you are buying it from. That way you are more likely to get the true facts about the car and not just what the seller(dealership) wants you to know. I would call the sales and service manger right away and let them know your findings. Good luck.

scam artists they all just want to sell the car...no matter what..while if they would just put a mechanic on each car they sell..have him really inspect it and drive it for 15 miles (including sidestreet and highway) fix the problems....dealers (independend or Porsche) would get such a better reputation and how much does it really cost them to replace parts?? The mechanic hourly rate for the shop is a lot less then it is for us.........it would give them so much back in costumer satisfaction!!! How great would it be to own a dealership where all (almost all...because you can't make everybody happy!) costumers are happy and come back for their next purchase????

Not on my '03 C4S. It comes on before the car is started with all the other warning lights and shuts off as soon as the engine fires.

I guess the thing that pissed me off was that nothing was done to the car while it was at EPE, they basically made something up... With the problems found there was nothing major and would not have affected my purchase. Jason, I did not call Dave (Broker), bacause he sorta said that it was unusual for Jerry (the owner of EPE) to be so laid back about it. He also said Jerry was busy and needed the car out ASAP. Putting 2 and 2 together I doubt he did much of an inspection. I didn't think it was Dave's fault (he leaves the inspections to the experts) and didn't want to be a complainer since overall I LOVE the car anyway. I think I will have to have it looked over when I get the oil changed on Monday at a Porsche independent here in CT. I thought I would wait a few weeks and send him an email explaining that Jerry screwed me. Oh and about the spoiler, it is not going up at 75 mph. The light comes on when car is started and goes off after a minute or so, in the instruction book they say that is how it warns of malfunction. Pg 75 I think.

Oh yeah, my fiance drove it back from Natick, so she was the first to notice the warning light, bad idle, and shaking and pulling. You know it must be bad, because she far from a car expert, and she was right on. After I had alignment and balancing done, it still shakes a bit because of bent rim, but much smoother overall, it took the shop 2 1/2 hours to do and said it was in bad shape because of whatever previous owner hit that killed the rim. Oh and as a plus the K40 radar needs to be taken back to the factory for servicing because the front radar will not beep. I took it to local car audio place he tried to replace the pezio but it didn't help. These things are not major, but they are OBVIOUS, so my big fear is that there may be larger problems lurking, that would have been found by a PPI. Now its too late.

I feel your pain. I had a PPI done before I bought my car. I got "thumbs up", "great car", "clean car"," atta boy" from the shop that did the inspection. And I believed them. Why wouldn't I? I drove the car, and it performed and felt great, so I bought it. I bring it home, had some new rotors put on it (because I wanted them) and found that an oil line was rusted and needed replacement, a sway bar mount was cracked and needed repair, and a heater motor was broken and needed replacement. $1,500 later the car is great, and I love it. I just wish I had known all this before I bought it because I could have negotiated the price down a bit more. In any case, I know how you feel, but you won't get a lot of compassion around here. I had a similar post on one of the other forums and just got a lot of "buyer beware" responses. Live and learn, I guess.

Can't speak for your '03, but in my 00 Cab, that was one of the first things the used car dealer (not a Porsche dealer) pointed out to me on the test drive .... so that I would not think something was wrong. He handed me the Owners' Manual, open to page 46, where it said: "Warning light lights for a lamp check when ignition is switched on, and goes off when the vehicle moves off". In my car, "moves off" equate to 3-4 MPH. Reading in the Service Manual reveals that the system checking the spoiler position cannot deliver a verdict (and turn off) until the speed sensor establishes a speed for the vehicle .... since the proper position may be up, down, or in between .... depending upon vehicle speed.

What happens when you try to manually raise the spoiler from inside the car? Does it go up/down? I have the 02 c4s and the light only stays on for a second or so when you start it. Goes off before the car even moves. If the light stays on then there is a problem. Have it looked at. Could just be a fuse.

Is it the dash(idiot) light or the 'spoiler failure' warning on the computer. Really shouldn't see any light staying on.

Did you not ask to see the PPI report before you bought the car? I don't really understand why you'd buy the car on the dealer's word that a PPI was done without seeing some proof of the results. What kind of idle problem does it have? I notice that under some circumstances my cars idle will bounce around between 650 and 800rpm before settling down to just under 800, but usually it's fairly smooth. As for the wing, how does it malfunction? Just no movement or the light malfunction (which as has been noted isnt bad, mine does the same thing, stays on until moving the car)? It seems you didnt test drive this car before you bought it or I assume you'd have asked about the massive shimmy before you bought it. It begs the question of WHY?!?

I would be pissed off to if I was in your predicament. Try to get a credit (in writing) for parts..not service.

Low, I did ask about a form and he brusquley told me that it was on the receipt, which he was going to put in the car, except I was in CT and he in MA. Work had supposedly been done, I called the broker and he said it was unsuual but said not to be worried about it. It was an independent shop, although he knew the guy. I knew in my gut he didn't do a good job, but didn't act on it. The idle problem is intermittent, It will idle ok at some stops then other times it shakes, and rpm's are like you described but a bit more severe maybe 450-800? But it doesnt settle down until I engage the car again. I think he may have been using cheap gas, as he didn't take very good care of the car, I could not find oil change recipts past 2004, and the sticker in the winshield as a reminder, had the mileage and date erased.... I'm bringing it Monday for oil change. and I already had alignment and tires balanced since picking it up Tuesday evening. The wing light stays on, and I couldn't see it raised up as I followed the car home in my Boxster from Ma to CT. But it was dark (no lights on Merrit Parkway), I will have Susan drive it 76 this weekend and check it out for sure. But it looked like it did not go up at 75. And no didn't test drive it, we had to mail checks and title so I could get a temp plate before picking up car...Oh well, part of the problem of purchasing interstate. But for same car would have been 10,000 more at the local dealer. So I guess its a trade off.

You really need to call Dave M. and make him aware of the situation regarding your PPI (or lack thereof).

Hey there. A good way to test the wing is manually raise the wing at a stop by using the switch (it's recessed into the panel for the fusebox right around your feet by the driver's door) and hop out and make sure it's up, then lower it again using the same method. No matter how I adjust my mirrors, I cant see the wing when it's raised on the highway, maybe it's just because I'm overly short? As for the idle, try some simple preventative maintenance, cleaning MAF and the air intake filter are both good things to try. Make sure your car is CHARGING (ie running at ~14V) as a weak alternator or battery would lend itself to some strange idling problems.

I can see the wing through my rear view mirror. Not by much but I can tell when its up and when its down (just a slight change in the way the back looks).

Re: idle, I put a huge dose of techron and it seems to be helping. I can still feel shudder but not to the extreme it was before. But today my brake wear light went on. I have only driven this car home from Mass, to the audio shop (alarm problem), tire shop (bent tire, alignment) and the video store..... At least it didn't come on during the ride home Wing operates manually, but now that I don't have brakes I won't test it to double check not coming on at 75 mph. say, is cleaning MAF something I can do, In fact I don't even know what an MAF is In my Boxster I cant even see the engine.... I am fgoing to replace air filter and cabin filter this week too.

Jason, I did call Dave and he is going to talk to John. and John sent me a message on this board. I'll talk to him too, as I said to Dave, anyone can have a bad day, but it sucks to be on the receiving end.

MAF = Mass Airflow sensor. Check out www.renntech.org to see if there are any articles dealing with cleaning it.

I'm with Jason, I'm a bit surprised and confused. Jerry's been taking care of my 964 Euro Cup for 2 years now and I've never had a problem/issue/negative experience (and yes, you have to really trust the person taking care of your race car everytime you head out on track). I've always found Jerry (and his staff) to be very professional, competent and courteous and can't imagine him not responding to your issues/concerns and making it right.

Well LTC I'm glad for you, but its kind hard to make a PPI right after the fact esp since I live in CT. Pre Purchase was the main idea. The money has been spent, the car and unknown (and quickly becoming known) problems are now mine alone. In addition to the things I wrote about before, He told me in our one minute conversation (that was the extent of the PPI information tranferred to me) that brakes were 50% but did not tell me they had to be replaced immediately. I even asked him if it was ok to drive and he said fine. I drove the car 150 miles home (highway) Tuesday and just to a few errands (alignment and audio shop) and Saturday the brake wear light came on at the car wash. The manual says not to drive it, until fixed. I ran my fingers over rotor edge and there is pretty deep lip so I'm sure I need new rotors too.... So my experience is what it is.

FWIW, CT to MA is not a very long drive if the goal was to 'make the PPI right'. I'm very confident that if you did so, Jerry would go out of his way to discuss/address your concerns (although I must admit the K40 radar detector issue would be outside the realm of a standard Porsche PPI). A PPI is not a CPO. You mentioned that the car was $10K less than the dealer; it sounds as though the car needs much less than $10K invested in order to bring it up to your standards/expectations. BTW, you can drive on the street with 50% pad thickness/life remaining, with no immediate concern for safety.....I've seen people on track with 50% pads remaining. Best of luck with your car

The toughest part of cleaning the MAF is finding the T20 Torx security type screwdriver tip. Once in hand the job takes all of 10 minutes.

Quotes source post: 11418694

Reviving a 8 year old thread because you want to know what kind of dog? I'm guessing Pug.

With an overactive bladder?

Well if you really need an update on this saga, it seems the OP's engine blew up in 2009 (maybe from his crappy PPI) since he was looking for a reman engine. I fear the dog has since passed away but I am not able to determine the cause of its demise. The best news is that Cowhorns 98 CS has tripled in value. Old threads are a real blast.

That was a story about my '87 Carrera bought in 2006, which I no longer have. Traded it in on the RS 4.0. The 993 S was a more recent acquisition, is sweet, and is appreciating in value as well.