2nd Rear Main Seal Problem! Advice please...

[calvani]

Hi Folks,

I replaced the RMS on my '01 Boxster early last year, and I just discovered that it is leaking again (confirmed today at the Porsche HBL dealership in VA).

The initial replacement, which included the new teflon seal was installed by a local shop in Baltimore, but the shop will no longer provide any warranty since it has been more than 1 year....This original fix was completely covered by the WarranTech extended warranty - the local shop labor duration agreed with Warrantech's estimate (a 7 hr job).

After hearing that the Porsche dealership will provide a 2 year warranty on the part/labor, I decided to diagnose/conduct the 2nd RMS repair at the dealership, but it just happens that their labor duration is twice as long (14 hrs!) as what WarrenTech predicts for the job (given the average national quotes etc). Including the $200 deductible, I will have to pay $1100 (plus the oil etc..)! And my WarrenTech extended warranty expires at the end of this month.

Under this scenario, what do you guys recommend? Go with the dealership and at least have a 2 yr warranty (especially since my extended warranty expires in a few days), or once again take it to the local German car shop, pay only the $200 deductible and hope for the best.

It is frankly, quite unfortunate the Porsche has not yet address this problem fairly! I should be given a new engine...! My Boxster has only 42 K miles, and it has been babied all along, with no track time etc. This is way too premature for a Porsche engine, and indicative of a design flaw.

Any suggestions or advice (based on your own experience) would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Humberto-

[RandallNeighbour]

If your warranty will cover it, go with the dealership replacement for 2 years warranty.

BTW, Porsche did fix the problem with a completely new motor in the 2009 boxster and cayman S. It has no intermediate shaft and the rear main seal is designed completely differently from what I've read.

We're screwed though... there seems to be no fix for poor design on our motors. The seal is not the problem... it's the unsupported, hanging shaft that wiggles and wobbles in the middle of the RMS that stretches it and causes it to fail.

[calvani]

Thanks for the feedback and for clarifying the cause of the leak - I had heard an explanation along those lines before.

I decided to bring it back to the local shop in Baltimore and get it fixed for the deductible of $200. I will at least have a 1-year warranty.... If its starts leaking again after 1-yr (then with no extended warranty), I can then bring to the dealer. I think considering the near term expenses and the chance of a re-current failure, it makes sense to follow this path.

Best,

Humberto-

[teacher]

I bought my car with an RMS leak, originally covered under warranty, which was four years ago with 41000 miles on the car. I didn't have to pay for it under warranty, but then a couple of years later on this 2001 Boxster model, I experienced 2 other leaks, which I had to pay for (upwards of $1500). The moral to the story is that, if you are under warranty with Porsche (and I do believe it's two years for all repairs), then go for the replacement. I always figured that Porsche must know their stuff, and what I did when I got the other oil leaks fixed is stress the the technician "make it tight and durable." So far so good...but a funny "cover Porsche's butt" was told to me later on, when the sales associate suggested an extended warranty, as follows:
She said that "the seals are like a rubber band, even in a car with low miles, because over time they will stretch and eventually fail." That was her description. Now, to me, this implies that "yes, the seals will fail, so get an extended warranty to cover that." In turn, this means to me probably (and mindlessly as they would like it) to buy coverage on the prospect of failure in any capacity (be it engine, transmission, electrical, etc., and that is based on the assumption that it's covered).
So I agree with everyone who had RMS leaks and beyond, it's up to Porsche, (echoing many posters) that have said "fix the problem first." I agree with that. They say outstanding service, and I feel for those who drive a 911 convertible (yet they do seem to have the money), still, why get ripped off at any price?
What I do is tell them "I'm a teacher, don't lay all this on me, tell me specifically how much it is" and let them know that you are a current and future continuing customer as much as possible. Sometimes they listen.... but only sometimes...
be alert when you deal with Porsche

I read somewhere in Excellence that the Cayenne seal has been used for repeat leakage problems, you might want to look into that.

[Brucelee]

It still amazes me that the so called engineers at Porsche can't fix this problem.

Man on the moon, no problem.

RMS, hmmm, what do we do?