997 Turbo - big bills
Discussion
A friend of mine has a 2007 997 Turbo, and very nice it is too.
It was at a specialist for a scheduled service today and they have reported back that the car needs:
Near-side, off-side and centre radiators replacing due to stone damage;
One new replacement turbo due to a seized actuator; and
Investigation of a damp patch around the nearside A/C condensor.
Expected bill £5k. I assume this does not include a replacement condensor as no specific fault has been confirmed.
The car has been pretty gently used for all of 23,000 miles (my pal has had the car from new). It is very well cared for garaged when not in use. He has not noticed any drop in performance, but then he doesn't give it the full-beans very often. He is not aware of any incident that could have led to damage to all radiators.
So a couple of questions...
Is it unusual for a turbo on a car of this age and mileage to need replacing? If so, is there any prospect of a Porsche goodwill gesture in respect of the replacement item? Is a repair possible rather than replacement?
Is it highly unlikely or just random bad luck to have all three radiators damaged to the extent that they need replacing, or is it well within the realms of possibility?
Is £5k about right for such repairs and would an OPC be much more expensive?
It was at a specialist for a scheduled service today and they have reported back that the car needs:
Near-side, off-side and centre radiators replacing due to stone damage;
One new replacement turbo due to a seized actuator; and
Investigation of a damp patch around the nearside A/C condensor.
Expected bill £5k. I assume this does not include a replacement condensor as no specific fault has been confirmed.
The car has been pretty gently used for all of 23,000 miles (my pal has had the car from new). It is very well cared for garaged when not in use. He has not noticed any drop in performance, but then he doesn't give it the full-beans very often. He is not aware of any incident that could have led to damage to all radiators.
So a couple of questions...
Is it unusual for a turbo on a car of this age and mileage to need replacing? If so, is there any prospect of a Porsche goodwill gesture in respect of the replacement item? Is a repair possible rather than replacement?
Is it highly unlikely or just random bad luck to have all three radiators damaged to the extent that they need replacing, or is it well within the realms of possibility?
Is £5k about right for such repairs and would an OPC be much more expensive?
I think the principle of goodwill is that if you've shown it by having the car serviced in the network, they may return it with a contribution towards out of warranty repair costs. I'm not saying they won't help, it's definitely worth a try - perhaps if the OPC get the radiator work they may be more inclined to push Porsche GB for help with the turbo cost, and you may be better off overall?
your comment about light usage may be the issue for the sticking actuator.... in my experience, turbos used gently tend to have more problems than turbos that are used hard... and i don't mean unsympathetically hard, rather as the car was designed to be used - maxxing the car from time to time is to love it 
MacG said:
A friend of mine has a 2007 997 Turbo, and very nice it is too.
It was at a specialist for a scheduled service today and they have reported back that the car needs:
Near-side, off-side and centre radiators replacing due to stone damage;
One new replacement turbo due to a seized actuator; and
Investigation of a damp patch around the nearside A/C condensor.
Expected bill £5k. I assume this does not include a replacement condensor as no specific fault has been confirmed.
The car has been pretty gently used for all of 23,000 miles (my pal has had the car from new). It is very well cared for garaged when not in use. He has not noticed any drop in performance, but then he doesn't give it the full-beans very often. He is not aware of any incident that could have led to damage to all radiators.
So a couple of questions...
Is it unusual for a turbo on a car of this age and mileage to need replacing? If so, is there any prospect of a Porsche goodwill gesture in respect of the replacement item? Is a repair possible rather than replacement?
Is it highly unlikely or just random bad luck to have all three radiators damaged to the extent that they need replacing, or is it well within the realms of possibility?
Is £5k about right for such repairs and would an OPC be much more expensive?
Is the specialist anywhere near Gatwick?It was at a specialist for a scheduled service today and they have reported back that the car needs:
Near-side, off-side and centre radiators replacing due to stone damage;
One new replacement turbo due to a seized actuator; and
Investigation of a damp patch around the nearside A/C condensor.
Expected bill £5k. I assume this does not include a replacement condensor as no specific fault has been confirmed.
The car has been pretty gently used for all of 23,000 miles (my pal has had the car from new). It is very well cared for garaged when not in use. He has not noticed any drop in performance, but then he doesn't give it the full-beans very often. He is not aware of any incident that could have led to damage to all radiators.
So a couple of questions...
Is it unusual for a turbo on a car of this age and mileage to need replacing? If so, is there any prospect of a Porsche goodwill gesture in respect of the replacement item? Is a repair possible rather than replacement?
Is it highly unlikely or just random bad luck to have all three radiators damaged to the extent that they need replacing, or is it well within the realms of possibility?
Is £5k about right for such repairs and would an OPC be much more expensive?
Turbo actuators on the 997 seem to be a problem, the actuator itself is a cheap/nasty piece of engineering. I know Matt at Fearnsport has had to replace them before now.
The cooling radiators and condensers on the 996 are poor quality and susceptable to damage (and corrosion) I imagine the items on the 997 are no better (and most likely of a lesser quality) and thus will suffer the same issues as the earlier car.
5K sounds a bit lumpy ! the rads and condenser (if needed) would be circa £1500 tops ? I THINK Matt said the turbo/actuator assembly was £1200 ? Add on labour and VAT and I'm stills struggling to see £5K.
The cooling radiators and condensers on the 996 are poor quality and susceptable to damage (and corrosion) I imagine the items on the 997 are no better (and most likely of a lesser quality) and thus will suffer the same issues as the earlier car.
5K sounds a bit lumpy ! the rads and condenser (if needed) would be circa £1500 tops ? I THINK Matt said the turbo/actuator assembly was £1200 ? Add on labour and VAT and I'm stills struggling to see £5K.
I'd have to go through my file for bills but i had the three rad and actuator issue. All done at opc foc but Invoices were less than 2k if i was paying i'm sure.
996 admittedly.
I'd say it's a false economy downgrading to backstreet garages with such a young and low mileage car. And that's even before the resale hit.
SM
996 admittedly.
I'd say it's a false economy downgrading to backstreet garages with such a young and low mileage car. And that's even before the resale hit.
SM
supermono said:
I'd have to go through my file for bills but i had the three rad and actuator issue. All done at opc foc but Invoices were less than 2k if i was paying i'm sure.
996 admittedly.
I'd say it's a false economy downgrading to backstreet garages with such a young and low mileage car. And that's even before the resale hit.
SM
Downgrading to backstreet garages? 996 admittedly.
I'd say it's a false economy downgrading to backstreet garages with such a young and low mileage car. And that's even before the resale hit.
SM
I see it as an upgrade (generally speaking). I'd rather see ten stamps from someone like S&C/Hartech than an OPC anyday (unless you're guaranteed Pope working on your car at reduced OPC labour rates).supermono said:
I'd have to go through my file for bills but i had the three rad and actuator issue. All done at opc foc but Invoices were less than 2k if i was paying i'm sure.
996 admittedly.
I'd say it's a false economy downgrading to backstreet garages with such a young and low mileage car. And that's even before the resale hit.
SM
997 turbos aren't the same as 996 turbos, the actuator that's seized is in this case (as I understand it) is not available separately but only as a complete turbo assembly. It alters the flow characteristics of the turbo and thus allows it to function as a variable turbine geometry unit. 996 admittedly.
I'd say it's a false economy downgrading to backstreet garages with such a young and low mileage car. And that's even before the resale hit.
SM
The actuator to which you're referring on the 996 is a simple bolt on diaphragm operated item that can be replaced with either an OPC supplied part or an upgraded aftermarket part.
Edited to show VTG actuator (arrowed)
More here :
http://www.porsche.com/microsite/technology/defaul...
Edited by Slippydiff on Friday 4th February 09:39
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