Should I do the work???

[elliotw]

Guys

I took my car in to a non-OPC Porsche specialist to have a water leak fixed (see my previous post). This cost me about £500 and it hasn't even fixed the leak!

When I went to collect the car, they said they had performed, free of charge, the standard 111 point Porsche check. Lo and behold, they came up with a number of problems and a big quote to fix it. Other than the water leak, I don't have any issues with the car and it runs perfectly. It is a 7yr old 987 Boxster S with low mileage (30k).

Here's what they wrote in their advisory note and I'd very much appreciate some thoughts as to whether any of these are worth it (in brackets are the labour hours and the prices including parts, labour and VAT):
1. Rear Main Seal Leaking. At the same time, intermediate shaft bearing upgrade recommended. (6hrs labour, £702)
2. All 6 ignition coils recommended change. (1hr labour, £338)
3. N/S from the rod end and track rod end requires replacement. Geometry will be required. (1.5hr labour, £439)
4. Exhaust bolts require replacement in due course. Exhaust will begin to blow. (2hr labour, £216)

In respect of the RMS for 1, I have not noticed any oil leak from the car. When I told them that, they said that it is in the early stages and leaks will be hidden because it is in the tray under the car.

They also suggested I replace the front tyres due to cracking, however a trusted tyre specialist has suggested I probably have another 2k of mileage left before replacing them, so I will leave this for now.

One other thing, I took the car into an OPC about 4-5 months ago where they did a free minor check and they did not pick up any of the above points.

Please let me know your thoughts as to whether these sound like they are necessary or not.

Many thanks

Elliot

 

[Glyn]

So what confidence do you have in them if they failed to identify your leak?, You have concerns already so give them a swerve.

OK - the points raised.

RMS - not a real issue, this is just a rubber seal that fits over the crankshaft end behind the flywheel, the part is very cheap but obviously to get to it is a huge amount of labour - They all weep a little and if you have no obvious drips ignore it, many many times the RMS is reported as leaking and this creates worry with owners to the point they feel they must have it done, many times the diagnosis is wrong, The underside of the engine does get a bit oily and oil does attract dirt - this makes a gooey swarfy residue that gets reported as an RMS failure, - If your concerned simply get underneath the car and clean off the swarf, the area to look at is where the bell housing and engine meet -its where the steel braided earth strap fits - clean and have a look in about a month - chances are it will stay clean and any oil leaking will be obvious.
This job is simply a great little earner for the garage.

IMS - The paranoia of Porsche owners - The fear of IMS failure is completely over the top to the amount of failures, I would say ignore this, Sure if it lets go it takes out the engine but, with the prices quoted you could get warranty cheaper and have piece of mind - take a look at warrantywise.

Ignition coils - another Porsche paranoia issue - yes the outer plastic sheath does tend to crack with age but this is not a problem - unless this allows the high tension spark to leak to earth - then you will have a missfire- to change these yourself its just two bolts and an electrical connection plug to pull off, Ignore their report and deal with it if and when a problem occurs, coils are quite cheap and can be bought seperately, Their advice is like changing all the bulbs in your house because one has blown.

Track Rod End - Changing this part is dead cheap, easy (Two nuts to loosen) and you dont need a geometry check afterwards - just a simple tracking check.

I would seriously give whoever you are using a big swerve - they are taking you for a ride, sure, they have advised potential defects but its a 7 year old car - Did they give a large intake of breath before presenting you with their findings and after their last flop of a fix you would be mad to hand over more cash to them - its people like them that give everyone a bad name.
Even the OPC reported none of their findings and OPCs usually find stuff as its their speciality - go on - name the gits.

 

[jeegnesh]

I think they cover there back, what they mentioned could be possible issues but you may never have them. I got to say I have stopped going to OPC quite sometime ago after getting these type of reports, which I did nothing about and never incurred any problem they thought may happen, it surely has made the running costs alot cheaper or you could say when I have a real issue I am still able to get it fixed and be well below what I would have spent at OPC. But then mine is a 986 1997 (or is 1998) so pumping so much money into it does not seem right anyway.

 

[elliotw]

Thanks for the responses - very helpful and much appreciated.

Don't want to name and shame for now! They have said they will have another look at the car to fix the leak. I won't be getting any other bits n pieces fixed that they suggested though as I think your comments are correct.

 

[pauljmcnulty]

My own position would be that I'd prefer to get new tyres fitted as we're going in to winter. If they are old (they do need replacing when they've aged), is there any real advantage waiting a couple of thousand miles? Wet roads, slippery conditions, and nearly-worn tyres seems an economy too far. [8|]

 

[Motorhead]

Sound advice from Glyn and Jeegnesh here Elliot. It sounds as though the specialist could be eyeing you as a potential cash cow.! It's a pity that forum rules don't allow you to name and shame.

I'm sure that if they're recommending RMS and IMS bearing replacement they'll also be suggesting that they replace the clutch while everything's stripped down (more expense!).

It sounds to me that the only thing requiring attention is the worn track-rod end, followed by a tracking check.

Hope that you sort out the water leak problem.

Jeff

 

[tex]

hmmm at £108 an hour for labour you would be as cheap going to a OPC but then again mine is older (2000) they lowered their prices earlier in the year i was quoted £85 an hour but i can't remember how old the car has to be to be classed at the lower price.

saying about the rms and ims (they won't replace the bearing just the seal) is a given for easy money as you can't see them... leave them till clutch change.

seems abit odd to me that they would pick these things up and porsche wouldn't, i got told by porsche i needed tyres, exhaust bolts, top mounts and a non porsche battery was fitted and it was just in for a service they said they check over all cars during the service as a matter of course

 

[jeegnesh]

Don't get me wrong I'm personally not saying you don't need these done, but I'm guessing from OPC point of view if they done a check and didn't mention that then went wrong in a few months after the check you may well be asking them "You checked the car and said there was nothing that needed doing", bit of a catch 22, been there far too often, think its one of things where you decide yourself what suits you best for peace of mind, may be worth asking an indy to inspect.

But defo agree on tyres if it was summer no issues run the 2k, but with the nasty weather coming and assuming your planning to use it through that period you may well find the tyres not adequate.