Rust

I seem to have a slight bubbling of rust on the roofbar linings and the door catch The car is a 2002 model. Anyone else experience this issue?

I have not had it on the roof lining, but the door catch i have had done quite common on the older 996 cost to fix is around £100 with an improved solution. But yours being a 2002 model you should get it under the 10 year anti corrosion warranty. Let us know how you get on. Phil

Does this corrosion warranty cover alloys as well? I have a patch bubbling up on my 2002 car as well.

Nope, tried that... ...also make sure you have a stamp every two years following a free inspection (usually gets done at major service) on the Record of long-life Guarantee Condition report on page 22 (or around there) in the service book.

Porsche will not pay out for the door catch issue. They claim it's a mechanical fault. I have never heard of anyone successfully claiming for it. Also Porsche have never automatically stamped the long life Guarantee on my Service booklet...How many people actually have a perfect record in this resepct, ergo in the majority of cases it going to be difficult to claim for any rust issues.

Yes Roof R/H Bar Lining on my 2002 car is bubbling. Naturally I am going to mention it at next months service/inspection and will be interested to see what the OPC say.

Rodney's right. There have been two letters - in as many years - published in 911&P World from angry owners complaining about the "mechanical damage" get-out clause with respect to door catch corrosion and Porsches' refusal to repair under the corrosion warranty. In 1999 or 200? Porsche applied a fix to this problem by fitting a nylon gasket behind each catch to prevent paint damage due to flexing of the catch flange against the paint. So in the event the paint was damaged due to the door catch, obviously corrosion would follow and one might imagine it would be therefore reasonable that Porsche would concede to rectify damage that had in effect been caused by a (their) design flaw. Unfortunately not.

Hi My car (996C2 1998 ) has a small rust spot on the drivers door sill, almost directly underneath the front of the door / the door hinges. Porsche Centre East London took photos in November 2006, to send off to Porsche AG. After hearing nothing until March 2007, Porsche Centre East London then admitted they had lost the photos and that the claim had never been sent in.... So photos were taken again. I have since called Porsche Centre 3 times during April and May 2007, with no update, until today when Porsche Centre East London said Porsche AG will not fix the rust under the 10-year corrosion warranty. The reasons given? "The rust appears to be from the outside-in. The warranty only covers rust from the inside-out" "The rust appears to have been caused by the door rubbing on the sill" - I dispute this, but that is what they said "The car is too old" - not sure how that is relevant given it is inside the 10 year warranty!! Any advice guys? Sounds like the warranty isn't worth the paper it is written on... Nathan

Nathan, Unfortunately, you're right: The corrosion warranty isn't worth the paper it's written on. I've never heard of anyone successfully claiming anything; there is always a get out clause available.

Thanks Concept - I guess I won't waste too much more time harassing Porsche then. Best call my local independent to get it fixed... Cheers Nathan

A word of waning about getting door catch rust re-painted. I have just had a face to face argument with the parts guy at OPC Newcastle. I tried and failed to get the work done under warranty.So took the car a bodyshop that I have used in the past.They have done a fantastic job even slightly altering the catch and adding a plastic gasket to prevent it happening again. My problems began after the bodyshop removed the VIN sticker to facilitate painting. I took my car to the OPC (80mile round trip!) complete with log book, Mot,service book, various reciepts,some ID and even the removed VIN sticker. Apparently this is not enough evidence to support ordering a new VIN. My car has been serviced at OPC Newacastle, I have had numerous repairs carried out there and applied for the warranty work via them, but this is still not enough . The only way to get around this is to arrange for the car to be inspected at the OPC at a cost of approx. £100.00 to make sure that it hidden ID no's all match up!. Match what ? the removed VIN that I had in My Hand!!!! This all seems a bit stupid, and I will conceed that in certain circumstances this proceedure is necessary, but surely not when you have the old sticker, evidence the car was refused a warranty claim and you have the car parked outside with shiny new paint around the B pillar. I must also add that VIN costs about £85.00 in addition the £100 inspection fee. While I'm in a ranting mood I must also say that parts guy could have not been more un-helpfull if he had tried, his attitude has was appauling. If I am forced into this inspection, it will certainly not be with OPC Newcastle.Whatever happened to customer service??

The door striker plate was an issue on some of the early 996s. It is just movement between the plate and the body, and is usually cosmetic. On later cars they put a plastic film under the plate, which stopped it happening. Under the car they suffer from rusty heat shields, and occasionally brake pipes, but other than that body rust is very rare. You are probably right that it was as a result of a cheap repair.

Totally agree with Richard, rust is not a word normally associated with the 996 bodywork.

Thanks, that's good to hear rust is not common at this stage in the cars life. The search for a decent car continues....... Ross

Good luck keep us informed

I had rust on my front offside wing - pic attached. I ended up putting on a new one... I think that strip of foam traps mud and moisture and really doesn't help at all... The rest of the car is fine (so far)...

What did the foam do, close the gap between the arch liner and wing?

I don't know what it did, other than be a perfect trap for water.

Bottom edge of engine cover (where the outer skin folds around to join inner skin). Improved design has additional drianage holes and sealant along the seam.

Well remembered Mike - I had forgotten about that one. It was recall campaign W103, and should be stamped in the book if it was done.

I need to beg to differ with all these learned folk on this forum. I have a 1998 C2 and was shocked at the amount of rust I found. A few jobs for he MOT has turned into a restoration project. Not the body which I think is fine but a lot of the steel parts which attach to it. Radiator brackets and front struts were very rusty though superficially they looked fine. I used to spend every weekend restoring MG Midgets, MGB's and Marinas so I am no stranger to rust but the exhaust fixings were the worst I have ever seen. The rear bumper supports had disintegrated. I thought a previous owner had been parking it in the sea. It is a 17 year old car so I guess you need to expect this sort of thing and I have taken everything off cleaned, painted and/or bought new parts where necessary. It will be fine when I have finished and last another 17 years. It is a wonderful car and a keeper so I have not resented one minute of all the time I have spent in a cold garage this winter. Just don't assume it is Ok just because it appears to look OK from a casual inspection. If you find some rusty parts deal with them, it is only going to get worse.

Welcome Vaughan! We (or at least I) were talking about bodywork, rather than underbody fixings. You are right, the exhaust clamps rust dreadfully, and at 17 years of age on a car that hasn't been wrapped in cotton wool, you can't hold back the progress of water on steel. The bodywork is fairly well protected fortunately.

Yes -try Ian Wallis at Premier Panel Skills Farnham. They are an official Porsche repair centre and their work is excellent. Monkton Park, Farnham, Surrey GU9 9PA 01252 719699 Ray

Thanks Ray, I was hoping for something in London if you knew of anyone.