Porsche 991 PDK Failure - 'Distance Sensors'

[smith5284]

Hi All,

I'm looking for some advice,

I have a 2012 911 Carerra. Recently I had an error message appear on the on board computer, 'Gearbox fault, Poss no R gear, Drive on poss. I got the car transported to the nearest Porsche dealer and the results of their diagnosis after checking the wiring system was below,

The fault with the gearbox are the distant sensors, these are situated within the gearbox and they 'talk' to the gearbox control unit to determine which gear the vehicle is in. As the gearbox is a sealed unit & it is an internal sensor fault within the gearbox, these parts are not serviceable. Therefore it requires a new complete unit.

The quote has come in at £7,418.17. Obviously I was not impressed as the warranty only ran out at the end of March. I made contact straight away, the service manager soon stated they would contact Porsche GB and make a goodwill claim as the car has FPSH, I have previously owned other Porsches etc. less than hour later, they confirmed that would pay 50% towards the cost, leaving me to now pay £3709.08. This car was serviced at the same dealer in January this year and also had an 111 point check carried out.

Basically, I do not want to pay a penny as I do not believe a 6 year old PDK gearbox should need replacing, especially as the apparent failure is a non serviceable sensor due to its location!! I understand the car is out of warranty and this will be Porsches main argument.

Anyone been in a similar situation and have any advice how I should proceed?

Thanks in advance.

Edited by smith5284 on Thursday 28th June 20:29

[Krikkit]

Speak to Porsche head office - the dealer has nothing to do with it except applying to HO for a contribution.

Failing any further good will from Porsche you could consider:
1) Paying for the fix, then taking it through the small claims court to try and recoup some costs
2) Get the car fixed elsewhere, chances are a transmission specialist would be able to sort it, but they'd need the full suite of Porsche diagnostic/dealer equipment

[swagmeister]

Things break or stop working on cars, its what they do, its life.
Regardless of what checks have been done and how impeccable the cars service history is Porsche could spend all day checking and rechecking your car - you drive 50 yards and something could cease to function - that's life, thats cars, that's mechanicals, that's electronics.

I think that your bill being halfed should be grabbed with open arms.

[anonymous-user]

They've offered half of the bill when in reality they should / can offer nothing grab it with both hands), its an expensive car, you get big bills, pay it and drive on.

What you want / expect doesn't really matter, they've gone above and beyond on their obligation, be happy in the knowledge you'll have a nice new gearbox with a 12 / 24 month warranty?

Other option is to go to a specialist who "may" be able to replace the sensor only ...

[928]

Have a look at Rennlist, similar issues with some getting 50% contribution on the exchange unit.

Unless you can find someone other than an OPC to repair, you've don't appear to have much choice. Not a nice place to be

Edited by 928 on Friday 29th June 10:35

[LordGrover]

I feel your pain, but it's an example of why buying an extended warranty may be worthwhile.

[RevsPerMinute]

The car is out of warranty. They offered to pay half. I think that is more than fair!

You must have made a conscious decision to 'self insure' when you did not take out an extended warranty?

[Dr G]

Try Milta in Bristol

http://milta.co/

I've not used them for Porsche work specifically but they've done various other VAG group boxes for me at prices considerably less than the dealers would ask.

[Rich_AR]

Frustrating as it is, it's a 6/7 year old car, out of warranty (by choice) and the OPC is offering 50% off for a new PDK box fitted. Hard pill to swallow, yes, and you'd not expect a failure on this car, but personally I'd cough up and pay it and move on. Porsche will give 2 years warranty on a new PDK box I believe (they did with mine)

Even 'if' a specialist could fix it, you'd be looking at plenty of ££ for them to take it off the car, fix and refit. No guarantee it's going to be 100%.

[ZX10R NIN]

OP read your post breath & then come to the logical conclusion that paying half is better than paying the full amount, your car is out of warranty end of, why didn't you renew your warranty if paying for things that break wasn't on your agenda?

[MrBarry123]

LordGrover said:

I feel your pain, but it's an example of why buying an extended warranty may be worthwhile.

It's a horrible lesson to learn however unless you're prepared to accept the potential costs, which the OP obviously isn't, then an extended warranty is an absolute must.

[Testarossa]

Not knocking warranties and in this case, hindsight would have been great - Buuuuuuut - how much would have an extended warranty cost? For a 911, £1k plus - take that figure away from what you have to shell out on - it doesn't feel so bad now, so don't be too hard on yourself.

If it's £5, ignore.

[culpz]

Them paying half seems more than fair. It's just one of those things, i'm afraid. Put it this way, it's much better than nothing and taking on the full bill yourself.

[KDC-NZ]

Assuming you like the car and want to keep it - I would begrudgingly pay the the bill.

But I’d make a big deal about how you’ve lost confidence in the car and the brand because a failure like this should not happen at this age. I’ve seen this first hand work a treat, get them to throw in an extended warranty on the whole car for 2 years to “restore” your trust and help rebuild the relationship.