Portiacraft - any good - Page 2 - Porsche General - PistonHeads UK

Has anyone got any experience of Portiacraft in North London - I am thinking of getting a Boxster or 911 C2 so I would like some advice/experience please

/ radio silence End.

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In truth I have bought and sold Porsche's to Portiacraft over the years and friends have done likewise. Never had a bad experience and no complaints from mates either. I consider them one of the good guys in the market place.

graemel said: In truth I have bought and sold Porsche's to Portiacraft over the years and friends have done likewise. Never had a bad experience and no complaints from mates either. I consider them one of the good guys in the market place. +1 You won't get posh coffee (or any), but the prices reflect that

Get the car checked indipendantly, and get a person who knows Porsche. You get what you pay for, Harry does work on tight margins, but he's been around for a bit with Martin and Ollie, so the business model must work... Some people dislike them, some don't... Don't flame me, I have delt with them in the past so all IMHO... Mr F

Is Harry the guy who was on "Come round and eat Supper at my House" or whatever it's called?

Have bought and sold 4 cars of them in the last 6 years and never had a single problem , really great guys to deal with. Most negative comments are from people who have never bought from them as they are sometimes too laid back especially Harry never any dramas they just get on with it and the guys in the workshop are brilliant a lot of times I turn up and get my oil topped up etc and they never charge me for it. However no coffee so if you want to deal with plush showrooms and people in suits they will not be for you.

They're ok by all accounts - a couple of my mates have purchased from them - worth getting an independent inspection though. Also you might have to pay for a test drive unless they've changed that policy. I wanted to buy a C4S of him a few years ago, but failed to proceed as tehy told me they don't take non-porsche as part ex (car was a mint BMW E60 530i for about £15k - so approx 50% of C4S cost)...so again something to bare in mind unless they just didn't want that car.

g7jhp said: +1 You won't get posh coffee (or any), but the prices reflect that +1

anniesdad said: Is Harry the guy who was on "Come round and eat Supper at my House" or whatever it's called? Yes.

no comment

They mended a car of mine hours before I was due to go to the 'ring. The mechanic is a nice fella too.

steve singh said: Also you might have to pay for a test drive unless they've changed that policy. According to their website, it was a £20 donation to a cancer charity after a mate was diagnosed. £4k donated. I spoke to them on the phone today and am visiting tomorrow. The guy I spoke to gave me the time of day and some good advice. The guy from Herts Sorts Cars didn't. I wil try and visit both, but Portiacraft are top of the list and have 2 cars I am interested in.

I've bought a couple of cars from Harry in the past. Honest, no nonsense approach. If he has the right car for you it will be well priced. I have also popped in when passing and had the workshop look at things as a favour, even with cars I have not bought from them. Never had a coffee tho!!

When I was looking I found father & Son top fella's! Test drove two of there Motors...didn't buy but would consider when in the market again.... no coffee though...I had been to Starbucks first!

Bought a 996 ffrom them last year. A big thumbs up from me. Straightforward, decent guys and very helpful mechanics. Dont expect fancy showrooms (a plus for me) or much off the sticker price.

lmellman said: no comment If you really meant 'no comment' you would not have done so!

johnbrace said: Most negative comments are from people who have never bought from them as they are sometimes too laid back especially Harry never any dramas they just get on with it and the guys in the workshop are brilliant a lot of times I turn up and get my oil topped up etc and they never charge me for it. However no coffee so if you want to deal with plush showrooms and people in suits they will not be for you. Bought car, week or so later sent car back and had my money refunded. So I can say here that I have indeed bought a car from them. The reason the car went back: They had stated in the advert for sale as follows: 'Wide bodied 911 to tidy at a very low price. We will do all mechanical work and get a new MOT but it could do with tidying. Interior is lovely and it will drive as it should but it could do with a respray to make perfect but if done it will be one of the best around. I think I need to be more specific re the paintwork. It is not rusty kidney boxes etc all are good it is simply old paintwork that will not just T-Cut out. However to the untrained eye the car looks great. You can probably tidy it without repainting it but I am being over the top critical. If it was an average 88 911 I would describe it as 'clean but it is an original supersport coupe'. The car will go through an MOT that will highlight any issues all mechanical work will be done including exhausts and heat exchangers if needed' I drove a 100 miles, viewed the car in damn bad weather, going mainly off description I put down a 1K deposit, it was not possible to test drive on the day.. Five weeks later I picked her up. So I was guessing any probs found would be sorted as per description. Car had in fact the following problems/decription errors: Plate had been previously RIVETED in the nearside wheel arch panel between side and back windows then badly covered over. (But obvious to the trained eye) B Posts on offside were bubbling through B Posts on nearside were poorly repaired Poor rot repairs under both headlamps Tops of both front wings rotton Just about every panel did not lign up Oil pressure 2 bar at 5000 rpm, non existant at tickover Non original engine Non original paint just about everywhere Valves sounded like they were desperatly needed adjusting. Hazard lights didn't work Accelerator pedal stuck on and would not self return (interesting at the first set of lights I was trying to slow down at on the A40 from 70MPH) Clutch was well on its way out. Also stated: 'Terrific detailed history from new'' The car had a box full of receipts. However the last service (from memory) was 1999..... 11 years previous. The receipts were mainly for wiper blades, tracking and sundry items. ie non service items. Now I got my money back, however I lost the 12 months tax I'd bought, a days labour to take it back and a tank full of gas. There will be people on here who will flame me for not having the car inspected. The thing is I went off the description supplied and that description should be honest; this one in my opinion was not. I did not expect a garage queen, but I didn't expect anything like what I ended up with. And why is it set in stone that a car SHOULD be independently inspected? I was buying from a Porsche specialist who knew/should know exactly what was wrong with the car but still sold it on like it was a cheap resto project. They are not a back street sell whatever car company. It was a shame, the bizarre thing was I really liked Harry and Martin and their setup, I really wanted a SSE, all I hoped for was a good honest car and it was not cheap. I still ended up being the mug. I estimated it needed a minimum of 10K spent on it to make it a 'Good' 911. 10 weeks later in the same condition they but it on the market again for 20K, then reduced to 18K and then finally sold it for whatever. So probs sold again for a little bit more than they sold it to me in the first place. Edited by Wozy68 on Saturday 28th May 15:08

Not fair really as they described it as needing work maybe it was more work than you were prepared to take on but it was a very cheap SSE the fact they simply gave you you`re money back when you were not happy with the purchase is fair play to them and I suspect they did not make a fuss about refunding your money as that is not their way. I remember that car it was there when I bought my 997 from them and I know a few people on here commented on how cheap it was and a couple of people who saw it felt Harry was being harsh on the car.

johnbrace said: Not fair really as they described it as needing work maybe it was more work than you were prepared to take on but it was a very cheap SSE the fact they simply gave you you`re money back when you were not happy with the purchase is fair play to them and I suspect they did not make a fuss about refunding your money as that is not their way. I remember that car it was there when I bought my 997 from them and I know a few people on here commented on how cheap it was and a couple of people who saw it felt Harry was being harsh on the car. You my friend are either connected too or just cannot see the wood for the trees. What you have stated above is absolutly full of it .... and it stinks. Not a fuss ......... lol (but to be fair, Martin was fine) Needing work, being harsh ........ lol Cheap ............... lol I have stated on here the original description verbatim. The guy asked about Portiacraft and I have told my story, I had heard mixed things abouth them in the past but gave them the benefit of the doubt. ..... My mistake, The description was so far out and incorrect from what the actual state of the car was in, that it was I'm guessing almost unlawful. For you to state that on forums, Harry was being harsh on the description condition of the car. What utter crap. The car was a dog. More work than I was expecting? Yeah you could say that, but only because I believed what the add was stating. In my line of work, you are only as good as your last job, becasue I work off mainly reccomendation. Poor recommendation = less work, unsure possible future/returning customers. Portiacraft would not keep coming up on forums, if mostly thay were doing the job right. I will not ne returning, to me that says it all. Edited by Wozy68 on Sunday 29th May 11:28

Wozy68 said: johnbrace said: Not fair really as they described it as needing work maybe it was more work than you were prepared to take on but it was a very cheap SSE the fact they simply gave you you`re money back when you were not happy with the purchase is fair play to them and I suspect they did not make a fuss about refunding your money as that is not their way. I remember that car it was there when I bought my 997 from them and I know a few people on here commented on how cheap it was and a couple of people who saw it felt Harry was being harsh on the car. You my friend are either connected too or just cannot see the wood for the trees. What you have stated above is absolutly full of it .... and it stinks. Not a fuss ......... lol (but to be fair, Martin was fine) Needing work, being harsh ........ lol Cheap ............... lol I have stated on here the original description verbatim. The guy asked about Portiacraft and I have told my story, I had heard mixed things abouth them in the past but gave them the benefit of the doubt. ..... My mistake, The description was so far out and incorrect from what the actual state of the car was in, that it was I'm guessing almost unlawful. For you to state that on forums, Harry was being harsh on the description condition of the car. What utter crap. The car was a dog. More work than I was expecting? Yeah you could say that, but only because I believed what the add was stating. In my line of work, you are only as good as your last job, becasue I work off mainly reccomendation. Poor recommendation = less work, unsure possible future/returning customers. Portiacraft would not keep coming up on forums, if mostly thay were doing the job right. I will not ne returning, to me that says it all. Edited by Wozy68 on Sunday 29th May 11:28 WOW! sorry didn't want to get into a heated debate with you the point I made was you bought a car your were not happy with and they refunded your money. Out of curiosity did you ever find a car .

I am NOT referring to any particular seller, generally when I buy a car and if the ad says FSH, I expect to actually see paperwork to support that. Let's say I look at such a car, though only the service book is there and I (stupidly) go ahead with the purchase, the price reflecting a FSH car with no incident. a year later when I take it to another specialist for maintenance only to find the company supposedly to have stamped the service book has no such record and the car had a major front end repair ( for whatevervreason) which is not mentioned anywhere. I would be slightly annoyed. Again I am speaking in general terms!

Before someone tells me I should have had an independent inspection - let's say I have bought a car from the same seller in the hypothetical situation before which was independently inspected and several items were supposed to have been repaired/seen to before I took delivery but were not, admittedly it was a PX car. So I actually had good impression at the time . But I believe if I am buying from a "specialist" there have to be certain min expectation including "a major front end repair" would be mentioned in the sales blurb. But I reiterate-I am talking about a general situation, not referring to any particular seller, Porsche or otherwise

I think in general terms it is buyer beware. I also think that indies have far less resources than the main dealers to fight a legal battle. I bought a BMW M3 for my sister, from a BMW main dealer. The salesman lied about the number of previous owners. When I collected the car he said that they had already posted the V5. I had no proof in writing with regard to the number of previous owners. That was the good bit. In brief. My sister notices some issues when she was cleaning the car. Writes to previous owner who rings her. Car was repaired by another BMW main dealer after his wife had been hit up the back at a T junction and pushed out into the oncoming traffic. The repair bill was well over 20K. Why they repaired it I have no idea and it was not on the HPI register. This incident taught me a very big lesson. If you don't know what you are looking at get it inspected. Even brand new cars can get damaged and repaired before they are sold to the unsuspecting public.

johnbrace said: WOW! sorry didn't want to get into a heated debate with you the point I made was you bought a car your were not happy with and they refunded your money. Out of curiosity did you ever find a car . Sorry John, it just still rattles me. The car was alot of money for a very poor SSE. Yep I gave up searching for an older aircooled 911. I've had a few air cooled over the years and finally decided that most were just overpriced tat. So I totally suprised myself and bought something I never thought I'd buy. ...... a 968CS, and even more suprising is I absolutly love it. All the best.

Wozy68 said: johnbrace said: WOW! sorry didn't want to get into a heated debate with you the point I made was you bought a car your were not happy with and they refunded your money. Out of curiosity did you ever find a car . Sorry John, it just still rattles me. The car was alot of money for a very poor SSE. Yep I gave up searching for an older aircooled 911. I've had a few air cooled over the years and finally decided that most were just overpriced tat. So I totally suprised myself and bought something I never thought I'd buy. ...... a 968CS, and even more suprising is I absolutly love it. All the best. I suppose in truth any factory SSE Coupe at the 15k mark is cheap no matter what the condition but still as you say overpriced tat for what they are. It amazes me when I hear someone has paid hundreds of thousands for a box of bits that they are going to spend even more restoring but that is the classic car market , the heart rules the head and they usually end up losing fortunes and the next person in line reaps the benefit of their hard work that is why it is better finding a car that someone has blown thousands on and will never get his money back. A mate of mine did it with an E type that he lost over 40k on . If as you say you spent 10k on that car then you would have had a terrific SSE that you know every nut and bolt on and you would probably be able to sell it on for only what it cost you or perhaps a small profit, a pointless exercise . Only worth doing if you are going to keep it for at least 10 years and enjoy it. Each to their own.

I would always have an independent inspection on anything more than 5 or 6 years old. I purchased a 1990 Lotus Elan from a well known marque specialist (& former franchised dealer) and let my guard down due to this. The car had a new MOT yet had needed suspension arms all round as they were dangerously rotted away, roughly £2K of work, plus some other minor issues. I got a refund. Had I been buying privately I'd have been more cautious.

johnbrace said: I suppose in truth any factory SSE Coupe at the 15k mark is cheap no matter what the condition but still as you say overpriced tat for what they are. It amazes me when I hear someone has paid hundreds of thousands for a box of bits that they are going to spend even more restoring but that is the classic car market , the heart rules the head and they usually end up losing fortunes and the next person in line reaps the benefit of their hard work that is why it is better finding a car that someone has blown thousands on and will never get his money back. A mate of mine did it with an E type that he lost over 40k on . If as you say you spent 10k on that car then you would have had a terrific SSE that you know every nut and bolt on and you would probably be able to sell it on for only what it cost you or perhaps a small profit, a pointless exercise . Only worth doing if you are going to keep it for at least 10 years and enjoy it. Each to their own. 15K for this SSE was at least 5K overpriced. The extra 10K I stated to put it right would only have put it into an ok, run of the mill condition..... it's body was that bad, let alone the mechanicals. To make it better than that would have cost alot more. Far more than even a top dollar SSE is worth.

Wozy68 said: 15K for this SSE was at least 5K overpriced. Im guessing you havent seen many then.

stripy7 said: Im guessing you havent seen many then. When begining to look, I actually saw two other SSE around the same time for around the 10K mark, and a pretty rotten Turbo for 12.5K. One SSE here on PH, the Turbo on autotrader and the other SSE in the classifieds on the IB forum ..... this was late 09/begining 10. All the cars clearly stated they needed work but were more than capable of a couple of years driving before needing a resto. Unfortunatly I did not have the funds ready to be in the market until March so missed both the SSE and decided against the Turbo. Both SSE were easily just as good (one I believe alot better) as the one I ended up with. The Turbo needed alot of work, but it was still alot more honest than the tat I bought. Remember I bought mainly off description (from a Porsche specialist) and if that description had been correct or even just somewhere near correct than 15K would have been a good price, as it was, that was not the case and thats why I would not use this dealer again; which in my view answers the OPs original question. Edited by Wozy68 on Monday 30th May 21:38

I have bought 3 cars from harry first in 2004, every thing he has said has been true even and I must say he seams very trustworthy I even had him sort the 996 problems we all know about out after the warranty had expired and will buy again from him

Good info, but 1 post in 2 years for a 14yr old thread , why now ?