Porsche Panamera - high mileage - mad???

[AES14]

I have reluctantly ditched the idea of getting a classic Porsche at this stage (young children etc) and have decided to go for a Panamera as will suit the family better at this stage.

Have fallen in love with a 2012 (Dec 12) diesel platinum edition with every added extra you could imagine. It has 2 previous owners (including the seller) and has been lovingly looked after (full Porsche service history etc). The only downside, and it is a big downside, is that it has done 84k miles.

I have never had a high mileage car before and am incredibly nervous about potentially spending a not insubstantial amount of money on a high mileage car both from the perspective of potential problems and also, but less important, resale value in the future.

Any thoughts/experiences would be most gratefully received. Would you steer clear or is the fact that it has been impeccably looked after enough of a mitigating factor?

I do low mileage (6k a year so if I keep it for three years it will be back to average mileage) and would not purchase any car without having it fully inspected.

Could get a lower mileage 2012 but with significantly lower spec and without the platinum package.

Many thanks in advance.

[Cheib]

If you’re worried about maintenance costs you can get an official Porsche warranty after you’ve owned the car for three months. They’ll cover cars up to 15 years old and 125k miles. It’ll cost at least £2k for two years...maybe a lot more on a big expensive car like a Panny has to be absolutely standard though including battery, tyres, wipers etc! It’s a very good warrant6 though. Spec is all important on these cars so I’d be going for a big spec car personally

[AES14]

Thanks - had been looking at getting a warranty direct warranty but wanted to get the engine retuned up to 300bhp which would apparently invalidate their warranty. May be worthwhile asking Porsche is they would give a warranty if engine retuned.

Do you have any experience of high mileage diesel porsches?

[Jaybmw]

It's a diesel. That's baby mileage unless porsche engines are made of ste but I'll assume it's not their own engine ? In any case 6k a year will do more harm than good on a car like that your much better going petrol

[EGTE]

I wouldn't worry about that mileage at all in a diesel (in fact, it's about right). They should do 200,000 with ease (I know of some diesels that have done 3 times that....).

However, as mentioned above, 6000 per year is a bit low for a diesel (unless it's all in long journeys) and diesels from VAG are hardly a safe bet right now. If you do go ahead, get a damned good deal, because whatever you "gain" in mpg over a petrol (and at 6000 miles, it won't be all that much), you could well lose much more in repairs or depreciation.

[AES14]

[quote=EGTE]I wouldn't worry about that mileage at all in a diesel (in fact, it's about right). They should do 200,000 with ease (I know of some diesels that have done 3 times that....).

However, as mentioned above, 6000 per year is a bit low for a diesel (unless it's all in long journeys) and diesels from VAG are hardly a safe bet right now. If you do go ahead, get a damned good deal, because whatever you "gain" in mpg over a petrol (and at 6000 miles, it won't be all that much), you could well lose much more in repairs or depreciation.[/quot

Thanks for your input, as per others, much appreciated. Entirely take your point re diesels not being a safe bet in current climate and therefore understand the depreciation point but less clear re losing in repairs if the mileage isn’t a cause for concern, unless you mean only using for 6k a year may in itself cause issues on the repair front?

[EGTE]

Yes, low mileage in short trips can cause big problems.

[DJMC]

Poor fuel can also cause problems, even if doing average miles and motorway runs.

Stick to Shell, BP, Texaco and not the supermarkets. I know from experience. Less than a year old BMW X1 2.0d had EGR valve clogged up by poorly refined supermarket fuel. Sorted under warranty.

[Chainsaw Rebuild]

84k is nothing, one of my clients has several Skoda taxis in service all above 200,000. If you can get the car at a good price due to the high for its age mileage, then bring the mileage down to average during your ownership, you should reduce the depreciation.

Alternatively you could buy a Mondeo as a family car for a few thousand and keep the savings towards a proper Porsche later on.

[EGTE]

What, like a Cayenne?

[xjay1337]

187k Ml in my 2.0 TDI VAG engine
Running well over 300hp had no issues.

The 3.0 V6 used in the Porsche engines is the same engine my friend has in his, he is running over 500hp at 125k+ , be running over 400hp for 30k miles no issues.

[George Smiley]

One day the world will wake up and stop thinking 84k is a lot of miles. Its a huge Diesel engine in one of the best put together cars do you seriously think that in 6 years at an average of 14k a year that is too much? It isn't a Morris Marina.

Edited by George Smiley on Thursday 1st February 19:40

[Paul O]

My Cayenne is still going strong at 124,000 miles (touching lots of wood!). Petrol one though, but I bought at 100k miles.

But 84k wouldn't worry me at all personally. Buy cheap, sell cheap. The depreciation will be relative to the miles, just don't pay over the odds.

Enjoy!

[nickpan]

Isn’t the fact that it’s a diesel more of a worry?

[xjay1337]

nickpan said:

Isn’t the fact that it’s a diesel more of a worry?

Why on earth is that a worry?

[996TT02]

Anything is perfect as long as it is at the right price.

[nickpan]

xjay1337 said:

Why on earth is that a worry?

I suppose it comes down to where you live. I understand that the ULEZ is being extended to the north and south circular by 2021 which will surely impact the values of these sorts of cars?

[philipbrown123]

When I read the topic title - high mileage, I assumed you meant circa 150K miles. As others have said it is only just run in.

I have never bought an above average mileage porsche but have bought Jag XJ, Audi A8 and currently Lexus LS460 all with 6 figure mileages. No major problems with any of them. All superb value second hand.

[matfinch]

I am the proud owner of a 2011 Panamera diesel, I’ve had it 3 years, and currently on 106k miles. I do around 20k miles a year.

It’s my daily drive, doing a 60 mile round trip daily and then longer runs at least once a week. It’s a superb every day car, comfortable and practical enough, but still feeling special and fun. I have swapped the wheels for a set of 20” Porsche sport wheels which look a lot better than the weedy 18” standard rims.

Fuel economy is excellent for the size/weight, mid 40s average, and 50+ on a long run. In the 3 years I’ve had no mechanical issues at all, and servicing has just been usual stuff like oil, filters, discs and pads, tyres, air-con recharge, PCM software update. It has a variable service interval on the OBC, mine seems to require a minor service/oil change once a year, and a major every 2 years.

I’ve just had the gearbox oil changed, due at 120k but decided to have it done earlier as cold-start changes not feeling as tight as they once did. OEM gearbox oil very pricey, but managed to source alternative at much lower price.

Build quality is excellent, after 100k miles it still feels tight and no rattles. I plan to keep it at least another 3 years and put 200K+ miles on it. Go for it!

[George Smiley]

OMG 100k miles your car is going to explode