Hey Porsche Gurus,
Sorry to add so late to this, but I just found it! I'll share my info regarding my warranty. I purchased a warranty through AA Auto Warranty (a broker) for Warranty America. I got the Bumper-to-Bumper coverage for $2275. It lasts 60 months or 80,000 miles on any car less than 6 years old & under 50,000 miles. My car is a 2001 S (I got the warranty in late 2006 with 38,000 miles on the car.) I now have 55,000 miles and several repairs (naturally!)
The warranty pays up to $100/hr, which is fine for my Porsche Specialist because that's what they charge, but the local dealer charges $150/hr. Sometime, I have to go to the dealer because they have done a slightly better job diagnosing the car (they charge 1 hour shop time even if it takes them multiple hours to find the problem.) The specialist pretty much give it an hour and if they can't find it, they just tell you "we couldn't find it." Lots of Boxsters have phantom creaks & groans that don't always make themselves apparent when they're in for service! Also, the dealer does give free rentals (Merc C280, Cayenne, or Pathfinder.) That has been nice as twice my car was in for 2 weeks (backlog & waiting for warranty authorization.) There has definitely been a big difference in my share of the bill based on who works on the car. The dealer ALWAYS comes up with a ton of hours, and the warranty company only pays based on their guidelines. So sometimes, I have had to pay the $50/hr difference on top of 1 or 2 additional uncovered hours at $150/hr!!! The specialist seems to match the # of hours that the warranty company comes up with so I only pay the $100 deductible with them. They are my facility of choice naturally (even without the rental.) Like I said, sometimes, they have been unable to diagnose my suspension groans. Here are a few sample bills:
DEALER
*Catalytic Convertor replaced under Porsche warranty
*Driver's side wheel bearing
*Total Bill $889.68
* I had to pay $489.77 (they could not agree on # of hours)
SPECIALIST
*Alternator & drive belt
*Total bill $570
* I had to pay $100 deduct.
DEALER (only because specialist could not make the car creak during diagnosis)
*Driver side shock, trailing arm, as wishbone
*Total bill $1952.07
* I had to pay $571.40 (once again warranty came up short on # of hours)
SPECIALIST
*Ignition Lock
*Total bill $375.60
* I paid $100 deduct.
DEALER (more noise up front - tried to take it to specialist but warranty company said I had to go back to the dealer that worked on the suspension in case it was the same problem. It was under 12 months & Porsche would have to cover the repair.
* 2 trailing arms
* Total bill was $817.93
*I paid $345.01
Has the warranty been a slight pain? You betcha! But it has basically paid for itself & I have until 12/31/11 or 118,000 miles, so I will undoubtedly get MORE than my moneys worth. In a perfect world, my specialist would be able to pick up every repair, because they work fairly well with the warranty company - hours match & so does labor rate. When they miss something, though, I end up going to the dealer & paying quite a bit more than the deductible. In all, the dealer is not that bad - they have knocked off 10% a couple of times because they understand my frustration with the warranty when it has to be serviced by them. I use Midwest Eurosport as a specialist & Loeber Porsche as a dealer. Eurosport is considered the best in IL by far and a lot of guys who race 993's, 964's, and 996's service their car through them. I think they take good care of the customer and it seems they're the best route for people like me, who have a decent, but not great aftermarket warranty. They did not require an inspection before covering the car. Although, naturally I paid for a PPI through the Porsche Exchange in Highland Park, IL before I bought the car. Let me know if you want any more details about Warranty America.
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