PPI feedback

[Mike_Yi]

Hi all. I'm new here. I've finally found the right Boxster for me. I looked at the car and drove it, and I'm happy with what I saw. It's a '99 (01/99) with 46k on it.

I had the PPI done today. It was done by a dealer. That wasn't my choice, but all independent specialists are over an hour and half away from the car's current owner. Anyway, the results have me thinking that the dealer is trying to screw me. Here's what they said....

The previous owner did, what the dealer called, a "pad slap." In other words, he just replaced the front pads. They then went on to say that this is not right. He should have changed the pads, rotors and sensors. They say this is a must. I say BS since it's the first change of the pads. BTW, the guy hasn't tracked it at all.

Oil Fill Flex Tube is leaking. Whatever.

He said the clutch is VERY stiff. This is, he said, and indication that the clutch is going out. The worn clutch material builds up around the actuating rod and makes the clutch feel stiff. My first reaction was, "BS." That's mainly because I drove the car the clutch felt fine. It didn't feel stiff at all. My other car is an '02 Pontiac Firehawk (special edition Trans Am), and the clutch in the Boxster felt softer than that. That may not be an indication though. My only reservation is that the owner mentioned that the last time he had it in for maintenance, he had them look at the clutch. That makes me think that maybe he noticed something that made him have it looked at. Records (he has full records) didn't indicate any clutch work.

It needs its 45k maintenance. I will negotiate the price based on that needing to be done.

So what do you guys think of the brakes and clutch thing? I don't see the brake thing being valid. However, I have no idea about the clutch. I've only driven two other Boxsters, and that was months ago, so I have no idea what it should feel like.

[fragdude]

Boxster clutches are only meant to last 30-45k miles, so it may be time for a clutch replacement. And if the previous owner told the mechanic to look at the clutch and the car had ~30k miles (I'm assuming thats probably the last time the guy went to the mechanic because thats what the service manual says) then the clutch would have been replaced. Changing or looking at the clutch requires a fair amount of labor (the transmission and muffler need to be removed). So if its the original clutch, it probably needs to be changed soon.

As per the comparison between your Fire Hawk and the boxster, the boxster is going to feel softer. My brother had an 01 camaro SS and that clutch was heavier than my boxsters.

You don't need to change the brake rotors if you change the brake pads when they get low. However, if you drive the car with the pads worn out you can cause damage to the rotor. It may be light damage which would just require the rotors being "turned" (resurfaced), this is not possible on the Boxster S with drilled rotors, the rotors would need to be changed. But the damage can be so bad that the rotors warp. You would feel the steering wheel shake under braking if the rotors are warped.

As for the sensors, you may have to change those when you change the brake pads. I am not 100% sure about that. But even if the sensors are bad on the pads or not, who cares? you just wont get the warning indication on the dash when he pads are low and would have to keep an eye on the brakes after 30-40k miles of driving. And if you want the indicator light, its like a 20 dollar part. I think you would be able to put it on a slightly used part...I dunno

Hopefully this helps, and if anyone notices something wrong in my post feel free to correct me. I would hate to have a guy misguided by myself.

And congrats on deciding to get a Boxster!

[fragdude]

On a side note, if you do/did buy the car and decided to change the clutch or when you do replace it, it would be a good idea to install an updated Rear Main Seal at that time. The part costs 10-20 dollars and should be close to 0 Labor

[Lil bastard]

30k-45k mi. on the clutch is a little early (if the guy knows how to drive a manual).

Pads last usually 35k mi. or so (exclusive of tracking the car). Rotors typically last through 2 sets of pads... or approx. 70k mi. So Rotors should be good, but to check, mic them and make sure that they are at minimum 22.0mm (Fr) and 18.0mm (Rr).

Wear Sensors are replaced as needed - if they've been worn through, they need replacing to eliminate the MIL on the dash (many people eliminate them by cable tying them out of the way so they always indicate OK).

[Lil bastard]

Originally Posted by fragdude

On a side note, if you do/did buy the car and decided to change the clutch or when you do replace it, it would be a good idea to install an updated Rear Main Seal at that time. The part costs 10-20 dollars and should be close to 0 Labor

Have to disagree. If the current seal is good - don't mess with it. Seals often fail due to improper installation and you run this risk unecessarily if you swap the seal when it's not needed.

[fragdude]

Originally Posted by Lil bastard

Have to disagree. If the current seal is good - don't mess with it. Seals often fail due to improper installation and you run this risk unecessarily if you swap the seal when it's not needed.

Hmm, interesting idea. Haven't heard that before, but it kinda makes sense. I would consider a seal swap because the new ones are supposed to have finally fixed the RMS leak issue. I would prolly do what a mechanic says about that though.

[Mike_Yi]

Of course, the dealer recommended the RMS update "since the trans would be off anyway." It's not leaking though .