944 S2 SERVICING

[nick3814]

Hi lads, just wondering what your thoughts are on servicing and the pros and cons of doing it yourself when the cars get to this age? I've had two Luxs in the past which are obviously much simpler to work on as far as the engine is concerned however the rest of the car would be pretty similar and I did all the servicing on those apart from the belts, the belts on my S2 were done 11,000mls (3yrs) ago.

Now what I'm thinking of doing (I do no more than 3000mls a year), as my S2 has a full service history from dealers and specialists is doing an oil, filter and plugs change myself one year and then a specialist (probably Specialist cars of Malton) the next year in case there were issues arising if you know what I mean! I'm just not use to leaving servicing to a garage []

Do we think this would effect its value at all in the future?

 

[Diver944]

I don't think it will affect value but it may make it harder to sell. We all know that we 'enthusiasts' look after our cars but if you were buying from someone you didn't know and he said 'oh yeah I've serviced it all myself and everything is perfect' you have to take it with a pinch of salt.

Most of us can easily change oil, filters, plugs etc but I have no idea how to spot when something is wearing before it actually breaks, so I'm more than happy to pay a few hundred quid to have someone who knows these cars inside out look over it for me every year.

 

[pauljmcnulty]

I'd sort of agree with Paul. I'd be happy to do a simple oil and filter as an interim service on mine, but with less than 5k miles per year I don't bother. I want the car up on the ramps having a thorough going-over by an expert once each year, and it ties in with the MOT. Every year there is something that would be beyond me anyway.

Just as an aside, The belts need doing every 4 years officially but many people now suggest 3 years is a good precaution. If it were me I'd think about getting them done, and the all important 16valve extras, and then forgetting about it for the next few years!

 

[pauljmcnulty]

Just to add....

One of the cleanest and best-maintained cars in our region is Christopher Ralph's. I'd certainly put it at above average value based on the times I've seen it and Christopher's attitude to it's maintenance. I'm sure he can correct me, but I believe he does all the work himself and keeps receipts for parts as a history. I'd not think that this affected the already silly values that much, assuming that you know the work has been done properly. Lots of cars have their service history detailed on this forum! []

 

[nick3814]

Yeah I know what you mean Paul, I've owned my 911sc for 3 years now and have done everything on it myself other than the clutch and documented it all with photos and receipts, I enjoy getting my hands dirty and I believe it helps in getting to know your car inside and out but it strikes me that the S2 engine is a little bit more complicated (and perhaps more modern) than what I'm used to so I think I will take your advice on the belts and look at getting them all done this year with a full service [].

 

[zcacogp]

A good question .... it strikes me as being a multi-way trade off of various things.

The value issue - I don't think that self-servicing will knock value much, if at all. ("Harder to sell" is another way of saying "overpriced", in my book. Anything will sell readily at the right price.) Also, factor in the savings. If I self-service my car, it will cost me for the parts and fluids only and the labour will be free - I will save a good £100 each time it is done. And, at around 15k miles a year, that's a fair chunk of cash. If this then knocks the value of the car by a couple of hundred, I am still ahead.

The ability vs. relying on others thing cuts two ways as well. Having seen some work that comes out of some garages, I would trust my own abilities a LOT more than those of some others that I may pay for. I was nervous about working on my S2 when I first bought it, but it is a pretty simple bit of engineering, and if you are happy working on a multi-value straight-four engine then you won't struggle. (Having changed the alternator two days ago, I was surprised how easy it was.) I don't have a garage, and do all the work on the street; if you have your own drive (or, even better, your own garage) this will be easier for you. BUT I appreciate that not everyone is as gung-ho about this sort of thing as I am, and many will want to take it to a known, good, indie to be checked over once in a while.

The only job I wussed out of doing on my S2 in the last 2 years was the timing belt change. This was in part because the car was new (to me) and I was still nervous about working on it, it also needed doing in easrly December (not the month to be working on your car in the open air), and I needed it done in a hurry. In such circumstances I was happy to pay, but I'll have a crack myself next time 'round.


Oli.

 

[xenon]

^^^ What he said. []

 

[Christopher I Ralph]

Paul wrote:
"Just to add....

One of the cleanest and best-maintained cars in our region is Christopher Ralph's. I'd certainly put it at above average value based on the times I've seen it and Christopher's attitude to it's maintenance. I'm sure he can correct me, but I believe he does all the work himself and keeps receipts for parts as a history. I'd not think that this affected the already silly values that much, assuming that you know the work has been done properly. Lots of cars have their service history detailed on this forum! [] "

Well, thank you for that Paul. Who am I to argue with our esteemed Register Secretary?!

Seriously, yes, I do all of my own servicing although I did have to get RPM Porsche (thanks for the introduction Paul) to remove 3 broken cam cover bolts that I managed to break when replacing the cam chain tensioner a few days before going off on the Porsche Early Years Tour last September. I panicked and decided that it was better to spend some pennies rather than miss the tour. The first time I haven't done all the work in 11 years of 944 ownership although I have picked the professionals' brains a few times.

Saving the labour charges means that I can service the car at least annually, following the full service schedules religously even though I do a very limited mileage. (e.g. new spark plugs every service even if they are only a few hundred miles old, changing fluid every 2 years, again at very low mileages, etc., etc.) In the past I had always bought the Porsche Service Kits but at the now ridiculous OPC prices, last time I used German and Swedish and EuroCarParts with the filters being identical to the OPC ones.

With regard to Paul Smith's comments about the experts being able to spot that something is wearing before it breaks, this may possibly be true but I would like to think that by doing all the work and knowing the car as I do, I am in a similiar position and have changed parts long before they were due and before the experts would have done so.

Whether or not it has/could affect the value of the car, I would echo Oli's comments about the money saved (and would still expect a top price!). I must admit that when I got the car with a complete OPC history from Rivervale Porsche with every receipt I did wonder about doing the work myself but then I decided that as I was buying the car to use and keep, the cost saving, satisfaction of doing it myself, and knowing that the car was being 'properly' cared for offset my worries.