Dispeling M96 engine rumors - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

landrovered · 01-13-2010, 10:58 AM

The 98 boxster is long out of warranty and I do the work on it. The 2010 Cayman S is standard warranty, it is ordered and not here yet. But I am not a fan of extended warranties as a rule.

I have an 03 Range Rover HSE and I looked at an aftermarket warranty on it but after getting into the nitty gritty of it, there were too many exemptions to make it worth while to me. Like it only covered failures for oiled parts. For example a blown head gasket is not covered because it is not an oiled part.

It sounds like you like to get your hands dirty as I do. I am meticulous about my vehicles and most average auto repair shops quality of work is far below my minimum standard, so I do it myself.

I have a friend with a very sucessful Lamborghini, Ferrari, Porsche shop. He used to be a factory mechanic at Lamborghini, he is Italian. Not a "pimp my ride" kind of place but a real repair shop, he actually worked on a Veyron recently. I have learned so much hanging around his place. What I learned is that his expertise is in his head because he uses the same basic tools that I do. Nothing special, he just knows what he is doing and does it well.

I will have the Cayman S serviced at the dealership during the warranty period but after that it is mine!

01-13-2010, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by landrovered

It sounds like you like to get your hands dirty as I do.

When I have the time, I love it. I test drove a 09 Boxster a few weeks back - I remember the salesman saying it was a basic 4yr/50k warranty - but I never got the details if they had an extended "Factory" (which I'm sure they do). Normally I'd be with you on the extended warranties, but if was say, 3k for a 7year/100k for powertrain, I'd get it...but that's just me.

Sounds like your experience with 3rd party warranties is about on par with what I've heard. Which is too bad - be nice to have a good reliable extended warranty without any loopholes.

landrovered · 01-13-2010, 11:22 AM

Fred,

They had a bumper to bumper option that covered everything but tires and washer fluid but it was expensive. From the sounds of your woes, the oiled parts gig would have covered you without any issues.

Here is a page that has a lot of good info. It is not Land Rover exclusive they do other makes as well. I believe the fellow I spoke to was named Hal.

pbanders · 01-13-2010, 12:31 PM

Very interesting thread. Jake is also well-known and well-respected in the 914 community. The work he's done on understanding M96 failure modes is outstanding. If Porsche had any sense, they'd fly him to Germany to debrief their engineers. Oh, and bring Navarro, too

I knew the issues when I bought my used Boxster. I have no interest in owning a sports car that I cannot drive at 10/10ths when I want to. So that I can do this and minimize the risks and consequences of failures, I keep on top of all maintenance, and I also bought an aftermarket warranty. If I have a problem, will the warranty pay? Who knows, but having proper service records and a spotless engine with no leaks probably will help my case. I also am financially able to deal with paying for an engine replacement, if I have to.

I wish I lived near Jake, as I'd have him update the engine with his latest improvements and monitor any issues. My mechanics here know about his work and I trust them to keep on top of things.

jmatta · 01-13-2010, 01:09 PM

Keeping this civil, I have one comment, since I brought this up.

Jake and Charles are real; you can talk to them and we know where they are and their expertise is proven. JFP in PA is a known, knowledgeable contributor.

Others that chime in (with no substantiation) cannot be taken seriously, as they have zero credibility. "Brian Porsche Tech" is as real as the tooth fairy, as far as I'm concerned.

Dragonwind · 01-14-2010, 04:12 AM

Because tone is a hard thing to convey over the internet to me Jake makes it sound like every engine is about to die but if you read most all of his posts you see that he really is just trying to help everyone out. If it wasn't for him working with LN I'd never have the new bearing in my car.

One thing I'll add, and it seems to come up every so ofter, is that the more and harder you drive the car the longer it lasts. These older Boxsters with low milage seem to die young. Maybe this has to do with heat which the stock bearing cannot take very well who knows but I recall reading that even Jake's shop will tell you that.

Anyways nothing but respect for the man and what he's done to aid our passion.

Chris

cvhs18472 · 01-14-2010, 04:53 AM

When first got my 98 Boxster w/tip I had no idea about the IMS failures even though I reseaeched Boxsters for awhile. For the first couple of months I worried about the engine taking a s**t. I then realized that the reason I purchased the car was to drive like hell. I haven't worried since. If and when the engine goes south I will send it to Jake to have it rebuilt . I like my car and with the cost of improvements which I have made it will probably be a wash with money. I like having cars for a long time and getting to know them. To me the Box is worth getting to know. Going through life worrying about everything will kill you as quickly as being stupid and it certainly no fun. ED

Brucelee · 01-14-2010, 05:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmatta

Keeping this civil, I have one comment, since I brought this up.

Jake and Charles are real; you can talk to them and we know where they are and their expertise is proven. JFP in PA is a known, knowledgeable contributor.

Others that chime in (with no substantiation) cannot be taken seriously, as they have zero credibility. "Brian Porsche Tech" is as real as the tooth fairy, as far as I'm concerned.

You mean the tooth fairy is NOT real????????????????