doing your own service or going to dealer

[mountainman]

Just finished replacing a faulty windshield washer pump on the 04 boxster S and I realized that I not only save a considerable amount of money by doing most of my own routine maintenance, but I actually enjoy it. The washer pump took a total of about an hour and a quarter which I am sure a dealer would have stretched to 2 hours. The pump itself I got new on the internet for $15 shipping and all and the dealer wants over $50 for the exact same brand part. Simply said, I did a $250 job for $15 and a bit over an hour of my time and It was not at all technical and something anyone could do. I am retired now, but I don't ever recall making close to $200 an hour when I was working.
If the high cost of Porsche maintenance turns you off, try doing much of it yourself. Not only is it economical, but you will learn a lot about your car that will be beneficial to you in driving and maintaining it in the future.
Other than internal engine and transmission work, these cars are not that hard to work on and with the wealth of information on this forum and others like pelican you may be surprised what you can do yourself.

[rondocap]

Exactly! I've been learning to do things myself too. Started with filters, wipers, and belt. Next on my list are brakes and plugs.

[coreseller]

Ditto everything above. My Boxster was the first German car I worked on, I had substantial wrenching experience prior. For whatever reason I was very tentative about touching it, once I started and got into various projects I realized it was a fairly simple car to work on.

3 Invaluable Resources:

-Bentley Manual
-Waynes' 101 Projects book
-Websites such as this

With those 3 things, basic tools, patience and initiative you can tackle most projects.

[san rensho]

I've found that almost any repair at the dealer is going to be around $1000.00. Lots of money to be saved by DYI.

[thstone]

I've always worked on my cars but was apprehensive about it when I bought my first BMW. You know, its a German performance car and sure to be way over my skill level. Only technicians in white lab coats with laptops know what to do.

Well, after a few big repair bills from the dealer, I was convinced to try it myself and found that working on a BMW or a Porsche wasn't much different than working on a Toyota.

[stephen wilson]

It's not just Porsches. I just replaced a faulty climate control on the wife's RSX with a $50 used ebay unit. It would have been $800 from the dealer, and who knows how much $$$ for labor to diagnose.

[Perfectlap]

Everytime I work on the car myself I end up banging or cutting my hand.
Wear mechanix gloves...

[Chuck W.]

You are so right. I have "some" mechanical abilities. As a result of the net, car forums and YouTube, I have done things I would never have dreamed of. This last weekend I changed the transmission fluid on my Boxster. And yesterday my son-in-law and I did rotators and pads on their Suburban.

An example of savings was my wife's Mini Cooper. It needed to have the brake fluid flushed. The dealer charges $260. I did it with a Motive Power bleeder for $11. I have used the bleeder at least 10 times. So easy.

And, and, there is just something about doing it yourself. A satisfaction thing.

Now the big stuff like clutches and such, I am toast.

[coreseller]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

Everytime I work on the car myself I end up banging or cutting my hand.
Wear mechanix gloves...

Great tip. I started doing that a few years ago, should of started many years prior.

HINT: In order to wash the grime and grease from the gloves I simply use GoJo hand cleaner in them and wipe and wring my hands as if I were cleaning them. Afterwards rinse with warm water in the utility tub and let air dry, as good and as clean as new.

[rondocap]

After I got quoted $1300-1600 for new pads and rotors, that's when I really got into doing my own stuff. You save on the labor, plus you can source cheaper parts.

Instead of getting Porsche parts - you can get equivalent OEM parts like on Pelican, which end up being massively cheaper for nearly the same part. I got filters like this at half the price that looked the same as the filters I took out of the car.

So, instead of spending $1300 on pads and rotors, basically I can get the parts for around $500-600 and save $700 dollars for a few hours work.

[Bryan topping]

I have always done my own work, except a few oil changes now & then & A/C work.
it's not just the money savings, but as much the satisfaction of fixing something.

[com3dorm3]

Originally Posted by coreseller

-Bentley Manual
-Waynes' 101 Projects book
-Websites such as this
With those 3 things, basic tools, patience and initiative you can tackle most projects.

Agreed. I started wrenching about a year ago and will not look back. Projects can look daunting at first but with good instructions and patience, one can tackle most things.
Having another car to drive while you wrench your Boxster also helps tremendously.

[stateofidleness]

I'm to the point now where, if I have to take it to my Indy for something, I feel defeated... aside from some things like transmission issue (Tiptronic) and chasing a vacuum leak with a smoke tester, I do it all myself now!

[mountainman]

As I suspected, a great many Porsche owners are forced into doing their own maintenance by the unbelievably high prices the dealers are charging, but like myself they also take a lot of pride and satisfaction in doing it themselves. I personally have been been able to put together a pretty nice garage complete with lift and lots of tools on the savings. Why pay for the dealers facility and equipment when you can have your own. Any of you guys that may be close enough to drop by are welsome to make use of my tools and garage. And maybe even a cold beer after a nice drive on some great mountain roads.

[CoBeerToad]

I was very nervous when my brake pad wear light came on. I've done some mechanicking before, but lately have just brought everything into a shop when it concerned my other cars. I didn't trust my indy with the Porsche though so I attacked the pads myself. It was crazy insane how easy that was. I would have been done in 45 minutes for all four wheels including jacking up each wheel individually except I mixed the pads up. So it took me 75 minutes instead.

Now with my clutch going I was ready to tackle that myself until I saw that I should replace the RMS and IMS while I'm in there. I breifly read the instructions for the IMS replacement and realized that that may be over my head... for now...

[Chuck W.]

Originally Posted by mountainman

. Any of you guys that may be close enough to drop by are welcome to make use of my tools and garage. And maybe even a cold beer after a nice drive on some great mountain roads.

That is one kind offer. It is a shame you are on the right coast (or that I am on the left one ).

[j.fro]

+1 on everything said so far about DIY. I find the 986 to be far easier than my 90 Ranger or any of the early '70's Camaros that I grew up working on.

[WhipE350]

Originally Posted by mountainman

Any of you guys that may be close enough to drop by are welsome to make use of my tools and garage. And maybe even a cold beer after a nice drive on some great mountain roads.

Same here if you are in Charlotte. I'm up for the mountain run, I try head up for a fun run at least once a month. We may have met if you attend the Wayneville Inn show each Aug.

[WhipE350]

Originally Posted by CoBeerToad

Now with my clutch going I was ready to tackle that myself until I saw that I should replace the RMS and IMS while I'm in there. I breifly read the instructions for the IMS replacement and realized that that may be over my head... for now...

If you found the brakes easy and feel you can handle the clutch then you can certainly do the RMS and IMS. I owned my car for exactly a year before I did the clutch and IMS. See my thread from Dec 2011 if you want to see what is required.
Cheers! Hal.

[mountainman]

Originally Posted by WhipE350

Same here if you are in Charlotte. I'm up for the mountain run, I try head up for a fun run at least once a month. We may have met if you attend the Wayneville Inn show each Aug.

Usually go to waynesville just for the day as the focus is car show, not driving event. We are trying to change that and add a good rally or driving tour this week. We do attend just about every event in zone 3 PCA if you would be interested in some of them. Also there are a group pf us that do a " drive of the month " where we each take turns and plan a good drive and lunch for the group. Sometimes a 2 or 3 day trip. Last week I led one with about 4 hours of choice mountain roads and lunch at ridgewood BBQ in bluff city, Tn. Some of us are leaving sunday for the outter banks for 3 days. We have a great west virginia trip in late april for 3 days. If you are interested in getting in on any of this give me a call at 828 385 3100 anytime. Be warned, we are into driving not polishing.......