996-997 wet-sump engine reliability: enter your stats here!
Discussion
OK - here it is.
996c2 facelift 2002 36k miles
19 months ownership
3 RMS replacements
1 engine rebuild - intermediate shaft bearing failure - new blocks, piston rings, int shaft & bearings, and RMS. Otherwise original components re-installed.
All the above done foc under warranty.
No real complaints there except that I switched to Porsche in the first place because of their famed reliability
996c2 facelift 2002 36k miles
19 months ownership
3 RMS replacements
1 engine rebuild - intermediate shaft bearing failure - new blocks, piston rings, int shaft & bearings, and RMS. Otherwise original components re-installed.
All the above done foc under warranty.
No real complaints there except that I switched to Porsche in the first place because of their famed reliability
The Griffalo said:
Not quite, Griffalo, something slightly more thorough.Kay
xTVR said:
OK - here it is.
996c2 facelift 2002 36k miles
19 months ownership
3 RMS replacements
1 engine rebuild - intermediate shaft bearing failure - new blocks, piston rings, int shaft & bearings, and RMS. Otherwise original components re-installed.
All the above done foc under warranty.
No real complaints there except that I switched to Porsche in the first place because of their famed reliability
2001 C2 3.612 months ownership. 30k start. 55k finish.996c2 facelift 2002 36k miles
19 months ownership
3 RMS replacements
1 engine rebuild - intermediate shaft bearing failure - new blocks, piston rings, int shaft & bearings, and RMS. Otherwise original components re-installed.
All the above done foc under warranty.
No real complaints there except that I switched to Porsche in the first place because of their famed reliability
1xRMS
No other issues
All 3 996's i have looked at have had RMS done, 1 C4S claims to have a re-designed component that stops it from ever re-occuring.
I guess the warranty is the only way to go when buying a 911 which either tells you allot about the car OR the fear being on this forum has instilled in me.
I guess the warranty is the only way to go when buying a 911 which either tells you allot about the car OR the fear being on this forum has instilled in me.
Wanta996 said:
I guess the warranty is the only way to go when buying a 911 which either tells you allot about the car OR the fear being on this forum has instilled in me.
This is what this forum has done to me too, but where I live, warranty is not an option, and plenty of 996s are wandering around getting sold and resold without one, it's strange. OPC can't reinstate expired warrantees, no 111point check around here.Kay
Testarossa said:
out of 12 cars and a combined mileage of over 500,000 miles we did not have any engine failures, nor any warranty work.
sleep envy said:
have yet to buy a warranty for a porsche in over 3 years of being an owner 
gents, are we talking about 996s? (non-GT2/GT3 at that)tonikaram said:
Wanta996 said:
I guess the warranty is the only way to go when buying a 911 which either tells you allot about the car OR the fear being on this forum has instilled in me.
This is what this forum has done to me too, but where I live, warranty is not an option, and plenty of 996s are wandering around getting sold and resold without one, it's strange. OPC can't reinstate expired warrantees, no 111point check around here.Kay
Here's a gentle challenge to this forum's members: There's a certain Merc UK forum that I regularly watch, with two Merc insiders who give info about this kind of thing. Merc have tidied up many of their issues and apparently raised the bar with their newly launched C Class (we shall see if this is true).
We need Porsche AG to do the same, for all of our sakes! So please post numbers. If you've run fleets of cars, then let's have the total numbers of cars, duration, mileage, etc. If the stats suggest an engine failure rate of much less than 5% over a lifetime of, say, 100k miles, this might be deemed good and give some encouragement.
An alternative, Tonikaram, is to contact:
1. Warranty Direct
2. Hartech
3. Autofarm
4. Others of this ilk
and see if any insiders there will share some figures, confidentially of course.
Then share the results, making sure you keep the data sources anonymous so they cannot be traced. Maybe an incentive for them would be to share the consolidated data with some of the smaller players.
For my contribution, five out of six of the OPCs in Germany that I contacted about buying a new 987S admitted there were still problems with porkers (I mentioned RMS and intermediate shaft failures), but they would not (or could not) quantify this.
Good luck!
Good idea to try and establish numbers or percentages but I don't think it will mean a lot for all the reasons stated.
Previously, despite both the 911 and 944/968 range being gradually developed and modified over many years - there were still failures - but no Internet then when they were relatively new - so we didn't find out much about frequency. If we had there would have been outcries about 944 16 valve top ends, 944 big ends etc - but these are now regarded as very reliable bullet proof cars!
Now the 996/Boxster is not a gradual development but whole new car and concept yet many (most) are running well right up to and over 100K - perhaps with better cylinder compressions, bore condition and valve condition than anything that preceeded it.
Whether the few that fail are actually any more in number than previously we may never know - but the combination of the Internet forums and the engines being different with less people able or comfortable working on them - seems to have resulted in more focus on the problems than they deserve (in comparison to the older models).
With a Porsche warranty available up to 10 years old (and plenty taking it up - to pay for the few failures anyway) solutions are availble.
We have not yet come accross an engine we could not rebuild and are now doing so in whole or part for others - so if a serious problem does occurr fixing it is becoming easier.
Our own warranty/maintenance plan covers the labour to repair such faults and we even offer 12 months/12K cover with the 996's we currently have for sale (and a free service at the end of it), so there seems little reason to be too concerned about running one of these superb cars especially as we have no age or upper mileage limit.
It does seem to me a shame that some weak spots seem to be turning up on newer models again and again and never getting sorted but then again it is a very high performance sports car and not a family run about.
I guess we will eventually be able to suggest mileage limits to replace some weak and vulnerable internal items too avoid premature failures altogether - as all specialists now do for cam belts, rollers, cam chains etc.
They are great cars - enjoy and try to stop worrying too much!!!!!!!!
Baz
Previously, despite both the 911 and 944/968 range being gradually developed and modified over many years - there were still failures - but no Internet then when they were relatively new - so we didn't find out much about frequency. If we had there would have been outcries about 944 16 valve top ends, 944 big ends etc - but these are now regarded as very reliable bullet proof cars!
Now the 996/Boxster is not a gradual development but whole new car and concept yet many (most) are running well right up to and over 100K - perhaps with better cylinder compressions, bore condition and valve condition than anything that preceeded it.
Whether the few that fail are actually any more in number than previously we may never know - but the combination of the Internet forums and the engines being different with less people able or comfortable working on them - seems to have resulted in more focus on the problems than they deserve (in comparison to the older models).
With a Porsche warranty available up to 10 years old (and plenty taking it up - to pay for the few failures anyway) solutions are availble.
We have not yet come accross an engine we could not rebuild and are now doing so in whole or part for others - so if a serious problem does occurr fixing it is becoming easier.
Our own warranty/maintenance plan covers the labour to repair such faults and we even offer 12 months/12K cover with the 996's we currently have for sale (and a free service at the end of it), so there seems little reason to be too concerned about running one of these superb cars especially as we have no age or upper mileage limit.
It does seem to me a shame that some weak spots seem to be turning up on newer models again and again and never getting sorted but then again it is a very high performance sports car and not a family run about.
I guess we will eventually be able to suggest mileage limits to replace some weak and vulnerable internal items too avoid premature failures altogether - as all specialists now do for cam belts, rollers, cam chains etc.
They are great cars - enjoy and try to stop worrying too much!!!!!!!!
Baz
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