Broken camshaft

[sam_0020]

Hi, i recently bought a face lift cayenne turbo 2007 which the warranty just ran out in last year.

The car has been serviced by porsche dealer and has done 54k, and the engine management light came on before christmas and the the engine power was lost and the car would take much longer to start.

So i called up the porsche dealer and booked the car in to be checked as soon as this happened, they checked the car and they came up with the high pressure fuel pump sensor, so i gave the ok to change and then they said that the fuel pump needs to be changed too, and they agreed to pay 79% of the parts and no labour, i wasn't happy but i told them to do so, after two day they called again and they said that the problem is deeper and the camshaft has broken!

i went down there and they showed me the camshaft! about 3 inches of it has broken completely and they told me that the fuel pump has seized and has caused the camshaft to brake, i personally drove the car down to the porsche and it was fine, no vibration, no extra noise, only loss of power and engine management light was on, can some one tell me how is this possible?

I'm shocked as my car engine is the new 4.8l turbo, which is the new engine, they has accepted to pay 79% for all the parts but no labour which they want to charge £3000! if they have accepted to pay for the parts why they can't pay for the labour?

my car has been with them since before Christmas, i have had my worst customer service, and i need help to fight with them to get this sorted out, can any one give me some ideas on what to do, by the way there has been a recall on fuel pumps on the 07 cars but my car is not included in that recall, could it be they missed my car?

Thanks.
sam

 

[sam_0020]

thank you for your reply, but it seem like you work for the porsche dealership!

I took the car to the porsche dealership to extend the warranty before any of these problems but they rejected as they said u need to own the vehicle for 90 days, so don't give me this crap when you don't know about how they work and they give excellent customer service, coz they don't!

It took them 3 weeks to find the broken camshaft! what sort of engineers they have? and this is the only service centre that they have in london!!!!

If they have accepted that they pay for the parts, why they can't accept the fact that they have to pay for the labour, its the fault of the fuel pump which is the same as the ones thats been recalled!! i have had bentley, lamborghini, mercedes, bmw, range rover and i never had a problem with a 3 year old car that just ran out of warranty!!

such a high performance 4x4 and the camshaft should brake? it doesn't make sense!!!! how can the fuel pump seize up and cause the camshaft to brake! if the fuel pump seize up then the car should not run and it should stop! if the camshaft brakes then the car should vibrate and make stupid noise, and give out smoke!!

The car had only one owner from new, full porsche service history and just done the first mot by porsche and since he mot the car has done 500 miles and this happens!!! it's really strange!!!

this has happened only 500 miles after the warranty was ran out, this is why i'm upset and it shouldn't be like that for such a prestige car.

 

[tscaptain]

ORIGINAL: sam_0020

by the way there has been a recall on fuel pumps on the 07 cars but my car is not included in that recall, could it be they missed my car?

Sam, the best I can suggest is that you contact the dealer that was carrying out the servicing on the car before you bought it and check to see if the recall was carried out. In fact I think any Porsche dealership should be able to do this using the car's VIN.
IF the recall was missed and IF the broken camshaft was caused by a seized pump which should have been changed then I think you should be contacting Porsche GB headquarters. I am not familiar with that engine but it seems unlikely that the fuel pump is mechanical and driven by the camshaft and more likely electrical. Perhaps someone with more technical knowledge of the Cayenne can help here.
There have been many instances recorded on this forum where cars have been out of warranty yet Porsche GB have shown a degree of goodwill towards repair. Unfortunately their goodwill would appear to be somewhat random and the support you get from an individual dealership may vary considerably.
I think if you can also demonstrate intent to take out an extended warranty but were refused solely on the premise that you had not owned the car long enough, then there may be some sympathy from PGB.
Also, in your first post, you do not say how long you have owned the car before these problems started. Was this a private sale? If not you may be able to go back to the seller. I sense that you have owned the car a very short time so is it possible the fault was present when you bought it?
I understand your frustration but if you buy a car, and in particular a premium brand car, from a source other than a reputable dealership and without some form of warranty (Porsche dealerships give 2 years on used cars) then it is generally the case of "buyer beware".

 

[sam_0020]

I just went down to the dealership and they are not happy with the service they have received from porsche in germany, they feel my pain and they are on my side now, finally!

They are now accepting that this should have never happened to my car and it was the fuel pump that caused this, the recall on the fuel pump was because of this, and now they have a case that has seized up and caused the camshaft to brake!

Porsche germany has accepted to pay for the parts and now is the porsche GB which has to give the Ok for the labour as it is £3300!!!! the dealer agrees that i should not pay a penny towards the repair and they have to sort it out! they have to rebuild the cylinder head thats why there is so much labour!

I'm just wondering why this has taken more than 3 weeks to get here?

I know what u guys mean about buying outside porsche group but how should i know that? i never owned a porsche before and the car was absolutely fine and the problem happened 2 weeks after i bought it, i never had problem with cars that cost £50k! the car just ran of warranty and done about 500 miles, thats why i'm concern, if the car had done 5k or 10k after the warranty ran out i would never be upset that would have been my own responsibility and would be more than happy to pay for the repair, but this is upsetting and time consuming!

 

[dereksharpuk]

Well you bought a Porsche outside of the Porsche network and without a warranty, but expect Porsche to fix your vehicle. Is that like using this forum (paid for by Porsche Club GB), but not joining the Club?

ps I assume that you are not a member as these are your first few posts and it looks like you are just a guest. How about joining? You will get 10% off servicing which by my maths equates to a saving for you of £300!

 

[pwebb]

Sam
I would take the offer from Porsche and then get the OPC to undertake the checks and the extended warranty again. Your car had a two year warranty from new, and presumably the first owner paid for the third year's extended warranty and then allowed this to lapse before you bought it. Assuming you got a few thousand off the dealer price by buying privately, count the labour cost as the penalty and move on.

I have just had a small coolant leak done under extended warranty (my Cayenne S is the same age as your turbo) which involved a fairly extensive strip down and must have more than covered the cost of the warranty, plus the OPC discovered a minor electrical break in the rear screen which they are replacing next week.

As with all high end cars, the cost of servicing and maintenance doesn't go down as the value of the car goes south. You were unlucky with a problem that I've not heard of before on a car with over 50k on the clock. You wouldn't be offered free parts if that had occured on your Lambo.

 

[tiskev]

Hold on Peter Derek and KHUSHY.
This is a 3 year old car and you all know that too many things have
gone wrong with Kn's over the years which should not have happened.
You even get 100000 miles on a Vauxhall now i believe and for the cost
of one of our Porsches the expectation, if not the guarantee ,of trouble free
motoring is to be expected for a bit longer than 3 years .
I wonder when a Ford last broke a Camshaft ?
I wonder how this problem is treated in the USA?

 

[sam_0020]

I accept the fact that it's a car and made of million parts, i never said that i can't go wrong!

they found the broken camshaft after they fitted the fuel pump and took them 3 weeks to find the problem, i don't want to use this room as a weapon against porsche or make any false claims, i'm here coz i thought i might get some help and some answers, but it seems to be wrong and all people could pick on was the fact that i bought a porsche outside the porsche group, instead of helping some one who just joined the group and doesn't know much about how this group works and what sort of benefits i would get, i just got told off and this has proven to be the most unpleasant experience to own a porsche after the customer service from porsche and i just don't know how would you call your self a fan of porsche club!

this is only addressed to people who where not much help and they gave me the crap on buying a porsche outside porsche club! I bet all of you have made mistakes and paid for it so you are taking this on some one like me who has a problem. now i have made a mistake to buy a porsche outside the club and i'm paying for it, it looks like that it was a mistake to sell the bentley and buy a porsche!

Thank you dereksharpuk, would be glad to be a member but people like khushy has put me off, coz all they could think is to punish you for buying a car outside porsche group!!!!! don't know how people could be like this when they have just joined this forum 2 months ago!!!

 

[sam_0020]

thank you tiskev,

this is my argument, that why a £75000 car should go wrong after three years with full porsche service history and only one owner, i have had so many cars, this is the first car with this sort of problem and its just shocking for me, and all people could think is that you bought a car outside the porsche club!!!!

 

[pwebb]

Sam
Don't be put off against joining the club and the forum. There is advice and comments freely given, not always what you want to hear, of course. My point was that your particular problem (broken camshaft) is not one that I've heard of and regular issues tend to surface on these forums. So, as I said, you've been unlucky. Again, if there had been a recall for fuel pump it should have been notified to the previous owner and fixed by the dealer before you got the car.

 

[pavesi]

Something fishy here. Broken Camshaft and / or a seized fuel pump the car would not run. IF ( very big if) the camshaft broke right next to a bearing housing it MAY still go but believe me you would know it was broken. Add to that the fact they are doing it all for free sounds like their 12 year old apprentice messed up.

I have not seen the cayenne engine layout but am surprised they still use mechanical pumps.

I HATE giving my car to the dealer.

 

[sam_0020]

to pavesi,

i drove the car down to the dealer, no vibration, no extra noise, no black smoke, only loss of power and engine man light on!, this is really strange for me and the dealer, as the mechanic drove the car from the car park to the workshop and did not feel anything.

porsche GB has not confirmed yet to pay for the labour, and my car is still sitting in the workshop! such a bad experience to buy a car and only drive it for two weeks and its sitting in the workshop for 4 weeks now, more than the time i drove it

i saw the fuel pump, i think it is a mechanical pump which camshafts rotates it, strange! apparently its the last 3 inches of camshaft, don't know if it should affect the engine on running.

 

[tiskev]

I have not seen a pump or camshaft from one of these engines Sam
But I would be very surprised if the pump seisure could break a camshaft
It must be one hell of a pump ?
I think there must be more to this problem than we know maybe one of
our experienced technical people could comment ?
It might also be worth asking a few questions on the American website/sites ?
Anyway Sam please let us know what happens as i am an interested party as it may
be my turn to have this problem next ..Who knows ? but if it does happen i wonder
if i will get any help from Porsche as my car, although low mileage ,is miuch older than yours.
Cheers

 

[sam_0020]

i keep you guys informed with my situation, i cant do anything, just have to wait and see what porsche GB comes up with, what should i do if they don't accept the liability for the labour? how come they can accept liability for the parts, it just doesn't make sense!!!!

 

[tiskev]

I am no expert in this Sam but i guess after 2 or is it now 3 years when
the warranty expires they can and very often do get away with doing nothing.
You are in the hands of the dealer and i suppose porsche UK.If you do have to pay
i would appeal to Germany and i would research the problem in the USA which
if it is happening there could give you some extra ammunition.However i would hope
that if this is a known fault Porsche would put it right for free.At moment you can
only cross your fingers
If you do not get any satisfaction I would also involve the EEC Consumers Division in Brussels
I think it was Dept DG 1V but has changed .If necessary I will find out the dept number for you
and you will have a response within 2 weeks
Cheers

 

[pavesi]

apparently its the last 3 inches of camshaft, don't know if it should affect the engine on running.

i suppose if it was at the very end of the camsahft, furthest end from the drive pulley and supported with a bearing it may well have run ok. I would be very surprised if it was still a quiet running engine though. I find it strange that it still ran though with little or know fuel pressure. I guess there will be a pump in the tank to get fuel to the main pump but it will be quite low pressure maybe it was just enough to keep it running?? Without knowing more about the engine ( until I get one) it is hard to say.

 

[sam_0020]

still no news and i'm waiting to hear from porsche GB, i just don't get it why are they so slow?
taken them 45 days and they just accepted 80% of parts liability, now there is new story that my car does not have service history! lool, this is beyond stupid! some one has put my car as without history in their claim that was sent to germany!
i'm sorry but this is the first and the last time i'm buying a porsche, such a bad experience, such a bad customer service, such a bad communication between porsche GB and germany!
if they don't do anything by the end of the week, i'm going to tell them to put the car back together the way i drove in and i take a huge loss to sell it as it is or fix it with a porsche specialist.

 

[tiskev]

Sam I think you have to call or visit Porsche UK and perhaps call germany first.
Are you based in the UK ? Perhaps you can contact "Trading Standards"
which is a Government backed organisation .
Hopefully someone else on here can make more suggestions ?

 

[tiskev]

Yeah and you are being a great help and giving a wonderful impression
to anyone thinking of joining our Club .Try thinking positive or join the jaguar club
and help them !

 

[pavesi]

ORIGINAL: tiskev

Yeah and you are being a great help and giving a wonderful impression
to anyone thinking of joining our Club .Try thinking positive or join the jaguar club
and help them !

Agree with that!!!!!