How many miles on your 996 with "original" engine?

well i'm on my third engine at under 50,000 miles (99, so out of warranty), as many of you know from my previous horror post... I pick up the car tomorrow... decided this time on making sure this new engine comes with a 2 year unlimited mileage warranty from porsche... that way, next time it goes, (not if) porsche will cover the cost... I'm curious, I haven't heard of many high mileage porsche owners (I consider high mileage with this particular car, 60,000 miles) with original engines still .. and am curious as to the resale value of these vehicles as the years continue and the mileage continues to rise, with the problems in relation to the engine, rms, etc.. now that the 996s are coming out of warranty in masses and racking up the miles.. Sofar my luck hasn't been so good... running on my third engine in less than 1,000 miles.. new one has a 2 year warranty, so i'll give it one more try.. The Porsche Experience, Like No Other: Total miles driven since ownership: Under 1,000 miles Total out of pocket expenses on vehicle failures in these -1000 Miles: $33,500.00+ Porsche Customer Satisfaction: Priceless (I Will NEVER Own Another P-Car Ever Again...<g> ) Attached is my bill for my third engine... (I can't help but just laugh at it now... i'm so used to bills like this... ) And yes this post is a bit cynical towards the 996.. I think it's an excellent car, and the most fun to drive that one can have (especially with the top down.. see I said something nice <g>) but if you have gone through what i've gone through, would you have anything good to say about porsche, nor would you ever trust the porsche marque ever again, having only owned the vehicle for 1,000 miles... being on your third engine, after experiencing two engine fires, and having your car be in the shop for 90% of the time you've owned it... i'm pretty peeved at this marque.... we'll see how the next few hundred miles go... regardless, the fourth engine will be paid for by porsche... so i can't be too upset about that... I've also posted a poll, as I'm curious to see how many high mileage p-cars still are running on original engines...

I have read your posts and found them to be quite entertaining - sorry about your bad luck. I too have a '99 (a C4) - purchased in Oct. '03 with 29k on the odo. It now has just under 50k, still on the same (original) engine and going strong. This engine has never had an RMS problem, and the car was into the dealer less than 10 times for warranty work before I bought it. It was a one owner car, originally sold at the dealer I bought it from. The one major problem, a transmission failure, was covered by my extended warranty. I have also had an abs sensor go, and the driver's seat belt buckle sensor for the srs go. The transmission repair was just over $5k.. so it would have been a drag if the warranty had not covered it, but not the end of the day. If the warranty had not covered the repair, a reman C4 tranny would have run around $4200 with my PCA discount..... I would have done the install myself. In these almost 20k miles, the car has visited Blackhawk Farms raceway for a driver's ed (which is where the tranny failure happened), as well as Road America for a very spirited track tour (got going fast enough to expericence some decent brake fade with my ****ty, amaturish braking technique - hitting 125mph a few times into turn 5 - woo!), and a handful of auto-x events. Considering my use of the car I have considered it to be rock solid. You know... no sports car is perfect. If you want reliability go get a Camry. My past has included 3 other Porsche's and 2 BMW's - they all had their weak points. But then again, for me wrenching on these cars is just as fun as driving them... it's a lot of fun to get dirty and work on these things. The most reliable sports car I've ever owned? A Miata... absolutely bulletproof. I know many, many people who get over a 1/4 million miles out of those cars.... Prolly be able to get a nice, new Miata on trade for your '99.... t

Sorry to hear your bad luck... wow, with 33K invested, at what point do you just say.. um, I'll get a new car?

If I wanted a miata, I would have purchased a miata... in terms of reliability, I didn't expect the best reliability, it's a 99 C2, I did my research, and knew what I was in for... as it would only be driven a few thousand miles a year... and I could afford the repairs, I didn't really see a problem... but $33,500+ in repair costs in under 1000 miles? wouldn't you say... that's a bit excessive in maintenance for a car with less than 50,000 miles? That's $330,500 in repairs for every 10,000 miles... if this luck continues... kind of adds up after awhile when you put it in that perspective don't you think? this porsche is a fourth vehicle for me, money isn't a major concern for me.. i've lost all respect more or less from porsche by the way i've been treated and their lack of responsibility for the problems i've encountered.. the first engine blew while driving 70mph on the freeway in 4th gear with other traffic, it just randomly poured out a huge plume of smoke, threw a rod out of the core and made the engine as valuable as a boat anchor.. no check engine light, no warning... nothing... it just blew up on me.... nothing i could have done to prevent it... the second engine, an authorized porsche rebuilt from germany, from an owner that had his first engine blow (theft recovery) had only 9,000 miles on it, encountered a head gasket leak and from porsche authorized service, an indication of an internal cylinder that came out of it's sleeve lining... how could I have prevented any of these problems? According to an authorized porsche dealer, there is nothing I could have done. I didn't do anything to cause these problems, it's simply a fault of the engine.. A discount on a replacement engine? no. A discount on labor on a replacement engine? not in a million years. In essence, porsche gave less than a crap about me, my car, or the tens of thousands of dollars I was pouring into their lemon... they didn't even offer me a free car wash for heavens sake... money isn't a huge concern for me, (yet I don't like to throw it away either) and I would never own a miata, thank you very much... but the crap i've been through by owning this vehicle, and the treatment i've had through 3 porsche dealerships, 1-800-por-sche, and every other resolution i've tried to encounter, i've met at a dead end... basically, too bad, so sad... if i wanted to be treated like this, i would have bought a miata. It's a matter of respect for me. I've lost all respect for the porsche marque. If you are out of warranty, they could give less than a f**k about you, or any problems that their faulty engineered products have caused. I've owned hundreds of thousands of dollars in bmws, mercedes and various high end japanese sports cars, and even some american cars (shutter), and i've never had any engine ever need to be replaced or any other major problems, let alone, any attitude. Right now I have a 96 750iL with 150,000 miles on it, running perfectly on it's original engine.. had it for years, and it's only been in the shop once... with the technology car manufacturers have now, consumers expect more... and i'd only expect the same type of respect and reliability from a car company that's making more profit on each vehicle sold than any other car manufacturer in the world... I suppose, one would have to go through having their engine going out on them, not due to a fault of your own, but due to faulty engineering, that nothing could have prevented, and then having to pay $12,000 to fix a problem, porsche is at fault for, to truly understand the frusteration i've been through... (not once for me, but twice, in a few hundred miles of owning the vehicle. also keep in mind, I haven't mentioned the additional countless thousands i've spent replacing the clutch, flywheel, starter, radiator, srs seatbelt fault, coolant hoses, coolant box, etc... once again.. all in under 1000 miles...) I really wish I could love this car... because it's a blast to drive... but after what i've been through, put yourself in my shoes... would you still be a porsche enthusiast? Would you ever trust the reliability of a 996+ porsche ever again? would you ever trust your life in such a vehicle that has been on fire 2 times in less than 1000 miles? all i can say is... put yourself in my shoes... and look at the receipt i posted... imagine that times 3.... in under 1000 miles of owning this vehicle... would you be a happy porsche owner?

No, I've had a lemon before and I definitely understand your sentiment. I'm sorry about your frustration... really I am. I just purchased my 996 and had a few minor glitches, but even that bummed me out a bit. I can't even fathom what you're going through. The lack luster customer service you received is not acceptable either. Best of luck in your near future... hopefully, Porsche can win you back one day.

they should just replace the $ value on the invoice to be RAPE, that way the customer doesn't have any doubt.

Did you ever take any legal action against the Ford dealership where you bought the car? ( which still amazes me)

Sorry for your bad luck. I bought mine new on 2000. It has 42,000 miles on it. I drive normal on public road and very hard in DE. RMS broke at 17,000 miles and has not happen again yet. I do 6 to 8 DE each year. The car has been very solid for that matter.

this porsche is a fourth vehicle for me, money isn't a major concern for me .. i've lost all respect more or less from porsche by the way i've been treated and their lack of responsibility for the problems i've encountered.. the first engine blew while driving 70mph on the freeway in 4th gear with other traffic, it just randomly poured out a huge plume of smoke, threw a rod out of the core and made the engine as valuable as a boat anchor.. no check engine light, no warning... nothing... it just blew up on me.... nothing i could have done to prevent it... the second engine, an authorized porsche rebuilt from germany, from an owner that had his first engine blow (theft recovery) had only 9,000 miles on it, encountered a head gasket leak and from porsche authorized service, an indication of an internal cylinder that came out of it's sleeve lining... money isn't a huge concern for me , (yet I don't like to throw it away either) and I would never own a miata, thank you very much... but the crap i've been through by owning this vehicle, and the treatment i've had through 3 porsche dealerships, 1-800-por-sche, and every other resolution i've tried to encounter, i've met at a dead end... basically, too bad, so sad... if i wanted to be treated like this, i would have bought a miata. . I've owned hundreds of thousands of dollars in bmws, mercedes and various high end japanese sports cars , and even some american cars (shutter), and i've never had any engine ever need to be replaced or any other major problems, let alone, any attitude. Right now I have a 96 750iL with 150,000 miles on it, running perfectly on it's original engine.. had it for years, and it's only been in the shop once... with the technology car manufacturers have now, consumers expect more... and i'd only expect the same type of respect and reliability from a car company that's making more profit on each vehicle sold than any other car manufacturer in the world... would you ever trust your life in such a vehicle that has been on fire 2 times in less than 1000 miles? all i can say is... put yourself in my shoes... and look at the receipt i posted... imagine that times 3.... in under 1000 miles of owning this vehicle... would you be a happy porsche owner? There are a few posters who are claiming to have had horrible experiences with the quality of their Porsches, and I'm having a hard time keeping the details straight, but aren't you the guy who got a great deal on a used 996 from a Ford dealer? The reason I ask is that most people who buy used cars do so because they don't have the funds necessary to buy new ones. But in your posts you tell us "that money isn't a major concern" and that you've spent " hundreds of thousands of dollars in bmws etc." Also you've spent over $33K in repairs in a very short time frame on your 996. Now, my question to you is why would anyone who according to his own accounts has lots of money, buy a suspiciously low priced Porsche from a Ford dealer with no warranty? Also although I've never bought a used car, my understanding is that almost any used car dealer gives their buyers at least a 30 day warranty unless the car has a salvaged title. Didn't your problems occur almost immediately? I'm sorry but your story has too many inconsistencies to be taken seriously.

Sorry to read about you plight. I'm not sure I would have stuck it out for as long as you have to make the car run. Then again what option do you have but to get it back to running shape? I'll have about 15k miles in the first year of ownership and the only problem that I've had is a broken passenger window switch. The car did come with a completely blown PCM which was blamed on an improper jump start (delivered from the ship with a dead battery). My dealership has a very poor maintenance department so my car gets special treatment at a local Porsche expert's garage. The dealer only gets to fix warentee problems.

Bob: Most Porsche owners know your story is not typical. You bought a thrashed car without a warranty. The same thing could happen with BMW, Mercedes, Chevy, etc. And, you would have mitigated the situation if you had bought the Porsche engine with the 2 year warranty the first time. Good luck with your car and I hope you get to spend some time enjoying it instead of bitching about it on the internet.

i'm approaching 90k miles--and it still pulls like a freight train. original engine (and clutch!). never leaked anything. does i track the car? yeah, on occaison

gotta agree with fast1...if money was no object no one in their right mind would buy a 99 over a brand new one.

i'm in the same boat as him although with far fewer kilometers, 34180 kms... the only problem i've had is a loose clutch spring i think that once in a (very rare) while will give me a sort of screeching noise comming out of first from a standstill....i don't consider this to be too much of a big deal since i'll be putting in an aftermarket clutch anyhow if/when this one goes..

Over 30K of mostly hard driving. I never let the car "warm up" before driving, hit triple digit speeds daily, change the oil every 10K miles, (yes 10 thousand miles) track the car every chance I get, hit the rev-limiter numerous times on the track and streets. No problems/leaks. Ever.

I really hate to chime in here...afraid I will jinx myself. I have 40,000 miles and 8,000 supercharged miles and have no problems with the 3.4 or tranny. I never go more than 3,000 rpm until the engine is 180 degrees +. Then there is no limit. Regularly, I bounce off the rev limiter. Change the oil about every 3,000 miles and filter every other time. Other than that, I drive it very hard and enjoy it. No oil usage between changes and no leaks, When it goes....it goes, but I'm having fun in the meantime.

"...I have 40,000 miles and 8,000 supercharged miles..." are 'supercharged' miles like dog years? (7 dog years for every human). by that reckoning, you'd have 96k miles

are 'supercharged' miles like dog years? (7 dog years for every human). by that reckoning, you'd have 96k miles They might be - only time will tell. However, I am very hard an my cars and increasing the normally 13.3:1 compression and then adding 5 pounds of boost has created no oil leakage or other evidence of wear on the engine. Knock on wood. I'll be pushing it hard for 4,000 miles in a few weeks and we'll see how it holds up.

"They might be - only time will tell. However, I am very hard an my cars and increasing the normally 13.3:1 compression and then adding 5 pounds of boost has created no oil leakage or other evidence of wear on the engine." Whoa, you're playing with fire.. Best of luck.

If I had bought the car new, it would have costed me $115,000+ if you add all the options it had (it had every option available for 99), taxes, monorail taxes, gas guzzler, luxury tax, interest, etc... I bought the cab for $39k because it was a fourth vehicle.. I didn't see the need to buy a new car that would only be driven 2 to 3 thousand miles a year... i saw a good deal and I took it... little did I know what the future had in store for me... just because money isn't a big concern for me, doesn't mean I like to throw it down the drain... I didn't get where I am in life by throwing it away, and I'd think most everyone on this board believes in the same philosophy...

Just turned 40,000mi on my 99 C4. Did get a rear main seal fixed under warrantee at 32,000mi, otherwize no major problems. About 2k miles ago I did smell some antifreeze, so I replaced the coolant tank and added the center radiator option. Operating temp fell from over 200F to about 185 and it seems the repair is fine. I did notice that it takes about 200 miles for the antifreeze level to stabilize and get all the air out of the system. So watch this carefully on any repairs affecting the cooling system. While I have never raced the car I did hit the rev limiter a few times. Just my inexperience in 2nd gear. I am quite happy with the car, have no intention of selling, fully expect the motor is good for 200K miles. I have put over 400K on an old 240Diesel and have over 265K on my 535i. It was strong at 220K but I messed up one hot day when the AUX fan failed and I overheated but did not refill without bleeding correctly. Lost the valve seat on # 4 exhaust so the head was toast. I really enjoyed the rebuild though. In the case of Porsche, It seems the engines must be hard to rebuild, and must be replaced whole. With the exception of the RMS issue statistically they seem quite strong in spite of a few owners with bad luck. The BMW M3 engine seems to have more serious cranshaft failures with many instances. Cars start as rust and end as rust. It's the glorious time in between we do battle with entropy to extract that pleasureable driving experience.

I have 97000 miles (157000km) on the clock and running like new, no rms, original machine. Sorry Bob, about your lemon histories, but personally, i can't believe you.

do you believe that I made up this receipt as well? look at the date on it.

Bob, When I saw another post show up headed� �$40,000 in repairs in 1,100 miles� � I thought �oh, is this another problem car?� Then I saw it was from you and realized that I knew exactly what it was going to say before I even read it. Here are the facts as I see them. You bought a car of dubious origin from a source not normally associated with that car (or, probably, even that �type� of car). You paid substantially below market value for it. And now you are wondering why you have so many problems. Since then you have started several threads and even a survey all trying to find out whether other people�s cars are blowing up on a regular basis. Unfortunately for you this does not seem to be the case. I wonder what would have happened if you had received a hefty number of blown engine stories? I�m sorry to say this and I don�t mean to be harsh, but�what is your point? If your stories are legitimate � and I have no reason to believe otherwise � then I feel sorry for you. However you made a bad choice. Ranting about it will not make that go away, nor will it make it anyone else�s fault. If you feel that Porsche has treated you badly then � by all means � take your money and business elsewhere and find out whether you have any legal recourse. That is your right. But, please, spare us anymore of these threads unless there is a point to it. As the phrase goes � It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness � see if you can bare that in mind the next time you are thinking of starting a thread. TIA Barry

I'm almost up to 75,000 miles on mine. So far so great.

Maybe some pf us are not doubting that your spent all that money on getting your car repaiedr, but doubt the story that caused the damage to begin with. Anti freeze has a flash point of more than 230 degrees F and I find it hard to believe that a blown water hose would all of a sudden ignite the coolant. The cooling effect of the coolant hitting whatever in the engine would have been over 230 degrees would have been fast and complete. You're not carrying a 2 gallon jug of gas in the engine compartment are you?

Jeeze I can't believe the tone of some of the posts. The guy really had a bad experience and showed everyone the bill. He wants to ventilate, allow him to do so, he paid for the right......

BobPorsche996 is just a bombthrower. He comes to this forum, throws in a granade and then looks for a reaction. He is full of sh*t. I am an owner of a 99 996 and have never had an issue. No RMS...no leaks...no problems whatso ever. I take care of my car. Washing, waxing and maintaining the car with respect....this guy BobPorsche996 is trying to F*** with the rest us who have no problems with our cars...I am not going on Rennlist any longer...alot of bunch of fu**ing ******** with a ax to graind

No one is forcing you to read these forums and I doubt anyone notices that you've left. There's no need to overreact! If you don't like what someone has posted, you can post a reply or complain to the moderator. Let's not get carried away here. Sure we love 'em, but they're just cars...

" I never let the car "warm up" before driving " This is an interesting point. Porsche suggests this...never warm up...just drive. I remember reading this somewhere that this may be one of the reasons for RMS failure. Why some have it and some don't.

Len Stoller Porsche near Baltimore MD has a Porsche GT in their service garage. My Porsche salesman knows that I love Porsches so he allowed me to look at it. He wouldn't let me drive it however and he told me about the extraordinary precautions that the service guys took when unloading the car off the truck. Maybe I should go to the dealership again with a digital camera and take a dozen pictures of the car. If I posted pictures of the car with me inside, wouldn't that prove that I owned the car? Also, on the Porsche service tech's desk, I saw at least a dozen service bills, some of them over a $1000. If I took pictures of them would that prove that the bills were mine? By the way since the GT was there late Saturday, I'd imagine it's still there if anyone wants to take a look.

There is a difference between warming the car up and letting it idle to operating temp. I never jump on my Porsche, even in the summer I let the idle come down to normal before driving it. Then I work through the gears keeping the RPM under 5K or so until the car is about 180 degrees, I can also feel the transmission ease up at this point, then I drive it hard... I have my car over 100 ever day. I drive 120 miles a day and I'm on my second 911. My 2001 C4 had 51,000 miles on it when I sold it. My 2004 has 17,000 miles on it, neither car has ever had an RMS or engine failure. YMMV. Rob

but this guy's posts are right up there with the strangest. After several thousand words on the topic -- a couple of his notes in a related thread give "rambling" a new meaning -- I'd think this guy would find something else to do with his computer and his spare time. But what the heck, at least he's not one of those oddballs planting computer viruses on our machines. Hey what352687as98-0dsa-0 asd going on 2109qwd ascl with my asdpoi asd as[ d sd]

but 565629869-0[ d sd] also

I agree Bob is full of it. My car has 23k on it, I run it hard and put it up wet, zero problems. An sc is next! I'm glad to see a lot of you guys actually drive your cars. I can't stand garage queens either.

sensitive bunch you 996ers - not to mention downright nasty!

I almost reached for my checkbook to buy an extended warranty. But then I realized "Hey wait a minute... He makes his money selling extended warranties which is why he doesn't worry about it. I have to go find some wood to knock on now, but the tone of your thread... You're not just singing to the choir, but adding that rap type scratch "funk.. funk... funkify me..." thing to it. God help me if I have to buy a new engine for my precious. I have 23K original w/ no problems. Go see a lawyer fer cryin out loud to see if you at least have a case. Did you get a CarFax or a dealer report on the VIN #? None of this helps now if you are legit, but I am just wondering if there is a lurking reason you didn't get more help from Porsche. Did they check the VIN#?

I don't think I would be able to afford a porsche with my repair bills <g> if I made money selling extended warranties :> Feel free to read the other threads, and you will encounter Roberga vouching for me that the receipt I posted with the $12,000 (luckily they were nice enough to let me get the engine and labor at dealer cost, otherwise it would have been $15,000 to $17,000, hrmm..) 3rd engine replacement is indeed valid, as he saw my car at barrier porsche, having the transmission replaced and confirmed with the service rep, it was indeed as I indicated.. (as the dealer that installed the 3rd engine forgot to tighten down the half shaft or something, which caused a hole in the tranny? something like that, i'm not a mechanic.) I really could care less if you believe me or buy an extended warranty. Personally if I ran an extended warranty company, I wouldn't warranty a 996 porsche, too much of a financial risk.. infact, most extended warranty companies don't now due to this fact... BTW: carfax checked out perfect for my vehicle before I bought it, and also as well a full inspection with ppi leakdown was done, and no problems were found.. $33.5k and 1000 miles later, apparently that wasn't the case... I have no good things to say about porsche north america... if you're car is out of warranty, they really could care less about you... most advice i've ever had from them is to trade it in and buy a 997.... sigh... and yes, i'm still bitter... recovering, but still bitter at it all.. don't like it, don't read my posts