991.2 - Turbocharger Replacement (Smoke)

[JCT911]

991.2 GTS 22000 miles

mine is currently having its drivers side turbo replaced. Was smoking periodically on start up but then lost all of its oil when redlining in 3rd. Being changed under warranty

what are peoples thoughts on not changing both turbos? They claim nothing wrong with the other but it feels inevitable that it will go in time. I havent bought the car to cruise round in, who does?!


are the replacement turbo and feed lines an upgrade or the same oem parts ?

The amount being changed is a bit of a joke for a precision German sports car, I still love It but I don’t trust it !

 

[Design-Icon]

Hi JCT911,

Meeting many people through the club who have had their 991.2 turbo's or a single turbo replaced under warranty.

Do you know if the new fitted parts are re-engineered to last?

P

 

[fellfaller]

Had both my turbos replaced last month at 73,000(ish) miles on my 2016 C2S. Not smoking but the wastegates were sticking so both turbos and oil lines were replaced (along with a whole host of other bits), just another potential failure point to be aware of!

 

[widrybu]

My car (gen2 gts) at 16k had smokey exhaust…initially OPC replaced turbo oil drain pots and pipework. First drive back in car ,bit of revs and huge plume of smoke so straight back to OPC…new turbo fitted to drivers side. They explained the turbo oil drain pots and associated pipework was Porsche’s first fix "package” when cars reported as smoking. Pretty frustrating as turbo failure in this model is not uncommon but garage was adamant the "package” was the fix….which it wasn’t and car needed duplicated work to fit new turbo. Had the car back for a month now and it’s started smoking again. I suspect the other turbo..the one that was deemed "all good” when I seriously questioned at the time of repair. As my car now has the new drain pots/pipework hope not too much hassle getting second turbo replaced. ….all work done under OPC warranty.

 

[Timrice]

Although both my Turbos were replaced (and it sounds like it was one of the early incidents, when I had plumes of smoke being emitted), I am not sure that they were root cause of the problem. There was certainly oil leaking from the pipes and connections, which subsequently got into the turbo/s, damaging them. Prevention may have been possible, previous to the incident, without changing the turbos.

However, it does seem that Porsche is tighter on warranty claims than it used to be, possibly in the interest of profitability rather than customer service.

 

[steven.cox]

Just had both my turbos replaced under warranty by Porsche Silverstone. Can't praise Silverstone enough they were great. They also changed the oil and changed the plugs also. The car had just covered 31,000 miles.

 

[911TCarrera]

31k miles owned from new Carrera T
We started to noticed smoke on every other start up. A plume of smoke that would fill the garage.
Car ran fine with no smoke when driving or under load that we noticed.
spotted oil residue/blow-by around the plastic pipe from turbo to intercooler.
Car under extended Porsche warranty and dealer first replaced oil air separator unit, and cleaned pipework, still smoked so they replaced drivers side turbo. Also they spotted a leak behind waterpump and replaced a pipe and gasket.
500 miles since and all seems well.
It does seem to be a common fault on the 991.2 model. A possible design flaw.
Happy with service received from my Porsche dealer. Was in for around 2 weeks.
If buying a used 991.2 get a Porsche Warranty If it concerns you.

 

[driver71]

One of mine is being replaced at the moment under warranty - started smoking on start up at 45,000 miles. Did anyone get to the bottom of whether these replacements are an upgrade on the original that fixes the problem or just a like for like replacement?

 

[steven.cox]

One of mine is being replaced at the moment under warranty - started smoking on start up at 45,000 miles. Did anyone get to the bottom of whether these replacements are an upgrade on the original that fixes the problem or just a like for like replacement?

I assumed it was just a like for like replacement to be fair I didn’t ask but will when the car goes in for a service

 

[driver71]

Thanks Steven. I've asked but no response yet.

 

[ajp4185]

I had my passenger side turbo replaced last year. Mine is a 991.2C2S Cab.

The turbo hadn't failed , but the corrosion had eaten away and the oil feed fixing and it was impossible to repair, so a replacement , with new pipework was installed.

Sadly, corrosion on the studs , fixings etc due to the location of the turbos is shocking. I have had all offending items replaced now and coated them with a ceramic grease, that apparently is ok to 1400c . Only time will tell!

 

[driver71]

Thanks ajp. I am in the exact same situation. Are you able to share details of the ceramic grease - this sounds like a sensible precaution.

 

[dbjames]

I had a turbo failure on a 991.2 Carrera as well. Plumes of smoke on start up and WOT. OPC told me turbochargers on 991.2 are "are failing all the time". Car was covered by Warrantywise but they refused to pay out. I understand that on the small number of MY2019 991.2s the turbochargers were covered and that on 992 they are enclosed and so failures are less common. I wouldn't by a 991.2 again without full OPC warranty.

 

[ajp4185]

The product was K2 Pro Ceramic Grease , here is the link on ebay, hope it helps!

K2 Ceramic Grease HIGH TEMPERATURE 1400°C RESISTANT Spray ABS Braking System | eBay

Ceramic Grease for screws and connections exposed to high pressure and high temperature even 1400 ° C. Braking system with ABS, ASR and ESP. Resistant to acid and water. Shake well before use Apply from a distance of 5-10 cm.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[Nigel99]

Mine is a 2018 GTS. It had a turbo replaced under warranty just before I picked up the car circa 19k miles. Seems like a pretty common issue on the model. Another good reason to retain the warranty.

 

[ems_88]

I had a turbo failure on a 991.2 Carrera as well. Plumes of smoke on start up and WOT. OPC told me turbochargers on 991.2 are "are failing all the time". Car was covered by Warrantywise but they refused to pay out. I understand that on the small number of MY2019 991.2s the turbochargers were covered and that on 992 they are enclosed and so failures are less common. I wouldn't by a 991.2 again without full OPC warranty.

Would be keen to hear more about this? I am just considering warrantywise as I am paranoid about my turbos going ? Please share any info why the rejected the claim? As the policy states turbos are covered?

 

[driver71]

So my driver's side turbo was replaced under Porsche Warranty along with both oil feed pipes. Interestingly, the replacement oil feed pipes have been re-engineered by Porsche - this was confirmed by the dealer who stated that he has not heard of any turbo failures in cars which have the new re-engineered oil feeds. This makes more sense to me than some of the other theories. I would be interested to hear what other think of this. If the turbo is being replaced then it makes sense to replace the turbo oil feed pipes at the same time. Might even be worth replacing prophylactically for those who have never had a turbo replacement??

 

[Cyclemotor1958]

Morning guys
Sorry to see we are still having issues with the turbos on 991.2
Durring my time working in an independent Porsche workshop I came across this problem, and investigated the cause of the failures.
I can tell you that there is a Porsche Technical bulletin SY 211655 or SY126/18 that covers this issue.
It describes the fault, and the work required to remedy the problem.
On the bulletin, it says it affected cars up to the 24th May 2017, after that date, they say the fault was rectified in production.
Regards
Dave
Cyclemotor 1958

 

[dbjames]

Would be keen to hear more about this? I am just considering warrantywise as I am paranoid about my turbos going ? Please share any info why the rejected the claim? As the policy states turbos are covered?

Porsche’s recommended fix is to replace the oil lines first/AOS - which is typically an engine out job. Warrantywise specifically exclude lines/hoses and non-mechanical parts and the associated labor. The policy also excludes common or known problems - so anything with a technical bulletin they could try and wriggle out of. Sadly the problem was not sorted with MY17 as many GTSs and Ts have failed. It’s safe to assume that if you have a 991.2 this will happen at some point. Using an Indy and remanufactured turbos you might be able to sort for £4k if one turbo needs replacing and £2k if it’s just the lines.

 

[driver71]

Morning guys
Sorry to see we are still having issues with the turbos on 991.2
Durring my time working in an independent Porsche workshop I came across this problem, and investigated the cause of the failures.
I can tell you that there is a Porsche Technical bulletin SY 211655 or SY126/18 that covers this issue.
It describes the fault, and the work required to remedy the problem.
On the bulletin, it says it affected cars up to the 24th May 2017, after that date, they say the fault was rectified in production.
Regards
Dave
Cyclemotor 1958

Hi Cyclemotor - that's super helpful, thank you. How do I get hold of the technical bulletin - Google sadly failed me! Or are you able to cut and paste the relevant section here? Best wishes, M.