Porsche warranty worthless? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

rcracer_tx · 07-02-2007, 12:04 PM

Just to start out, i want to tell you about my car. It is a 2004 Boxster S limited edition 550 spyder, has 14,XXX miles on it, never been tracked, and is in showroom condition.

I recently went to the dealer to get 15,000 mile service done, and had asked the dealer to inspect the brakes as I had been getting a vibrating feedback from the steering wheel while braking at highway speeds, which i expected to be warped rotors, as it happened to me on my fathers 2002 Boxster s.

As suspected, the front two rotors were warped, and the dealer called me telling me that they were waiting for Porsche to ok' the repair under warranty. later that day, they called back stating that because I was the second owner of the car, they would not cover this repair under warranty. After hours of talking with Porsche A.G. , they then denied the claim, giving the power of the decision back to the regional warranty officer.

My fathers' Boxster was covered under warranty, and Porsche apologized to him for having a defective set of rotors. My question is, is this normal that Porsche refuses to stand behind there car if you are a second owner, and is there anybody who I can contact to try to resolve this issue? I just find it hard to believe that Porsche can try to call it abuse when the car still has its original tires and brake pads on it.

Perfectlap · 07-02-2007, 12:12 PM

sounds like you need to contact your local Porsche Club of America.
Even if it's a wear and tear item, I think your rotors are supposed to last longer than 15K miles.

It doesn't surprise me that Porsche won't stand by their product. Allot of the 1st generation carbon rotor owners got stuck with huge $10,000+ claims for cracked rotors. And of course most of them went ahead and bought the 2nd and 3rd generation PCCB from Porsche despite getting screwed on the 1st gen.
That's why Porsche make allot of money.

Brucelee · 07-02-2007, 12:32 PM

Porsche is very spotty on warranty work.

Pedal to the metal, go after them.

porsche986spyder · 07-02-2007, 12:45 PM

Most factory warranties on any car are good for at least the first 35K. But they may consider the brakes and rotors in general as a normal "ware-n-tear" type of item which would not be covered by any warranty. That's probably what they are trying to say here. But I think your within your rights if the car only has 14K on it.

mikes_box · 07-02-2007, 12:50 PM

here's the way to get it fixed..... swap out the rotors from your car to your dad's...have dad bring it in and get a new pair and throws dad rotors back and you'll have a new set of rotors....

rcracer_tx · 07-02-2007, 01:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikes_box

here's the way to get it fixed..... swap out the rotors from your car to your dad's...have dad bring it in and get a new pair and throws dad rotors back and you'll have a new set of rotors....

I would, but unfortunately he has since sold the Boxster. I defiantly will not be putting Hundreds of dollars in rotors into a $65k+ sports car with 14k miles. They are sending me the reasons in which they refused my claim, and i will be posting it on every automotive forum I can find.

Would it be possible to take them to small claims court to settle the argument? I would rather Give money to a court than those thieves.

Oh... I forgot to mention that the first owner bought the extended warranty from Porsche that is good until 2011

Adam · 07-02-2007, 02:00 PM

Frankly, I'm surprised they warrantied your dad's rotors. Brakes are a wear item that are normally not covered by warranty. You have to see it from Porsche's side too. How do they know your car hasn't been tracked and your not just blowing smoke?

TriGem2k · 07-02-2007, 02:18 PM

I'm surprised they even considered it. Breaks are wear and tear items.

I've seen pads and rotors go out well under 10k. It all depends on who was driving and what kind of driving was/is being done.

I went through a set of front pads and rotors in a little less than what you are claiming with all street driving. It's not impossible and frankly quite easy as most people tend to drive the Boxster harder than they would say a Lincoln.

The only company I know of that would cover something like that is BMW. 4years 50k hassle free!

Looks like you will be shelling out $400-500 dealer price for a front break job.

Good Luck!

porsche986spyder · 07-02-2007, 02:29 PM

My car has 55K with the original brakes. Still work great! But I am about to upgrade to cross-drilled/slotted rotors and new red calipers and pads.

Perfectlap · 07-02-2007, 02:53 PM

find an independent Porsche mechanic to do the job for you. You'll save a ton of dinero. At least the dealership won't get more of your money.

Cloudsurfer · 07-02-2007, 03:29 PM

As much as this isnt what you want to hear, brakes are a wear and tear item, and are typically not covered by any warranty, except as has been mentioned before, BMW. BMW is awesome to deal with on warranty work, they just fix things.

Porsche is a bit of a hardass on warranty claims, but, in their defense, brake rotors are wear items and they have no idea that you tracked the car, drove it like a jackass, or gave it a garage queen life.

Its worth ********************ing to PCA and Porsche customer relations, but I'm not sure how far you're going to get.

Patrick

rcracer_tx · 07-02-2007, 03:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adam

Frankly, I'm surprised they warrantied your dad's rotors. Brakes are a wear item that are normally not covered by warranty. You have to see it from Porsche's side too. How do they know your car hasn't been tracked and your not just blowing smoke?

The problem is NOT in the amount of wear, but rather a defect caused them to warp. I'm gonna fight this one to where it will be worth it for them to just replace them. With this expensive of a car, you shouldn't even have to ask for them to replace it. Is there any way to get past the regional desk employee making the decision?

BTW, the reason why BMW started the no-hassle replacement is their reliability is so bad that people were going to other companies.

Adam · 07-02-2007, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rcracer_tx

The problem is NOT in the amount of wear, but rather a defect caused them to warp. I'm gonna fight this one to where it will be worth it for them to just replace them. With this expensive of a car, you shouldn't even have to ask for them to replace it. Is there any way to get past the regional desk employee making the decision?

BTW, the reason why BMW started the no-hassle replacement is their reliability is so bad that people were going to other companies.

Warping can occur if the brakes get too hot like on a track for instance. They might think you drove this car hard on a track. I'm not saying you did, just playing the devils advocate. I hope it all works out.

TriGem2k · 07-02-2007, 04:58 PM

Good Luck to You. Your chances are slim. I can not see as to how you can prove the rotors were in fact defective.

Boxter · 07-02-2007, 08:15 PM

...its amazing how we accept or are forced to accept an inferior product like this...hell, this car is designed with the track, or at the very least, spirited driving in mind.

Trigem-
Using your logic,(not a knock, just a question) if the rotors had this problem at say 5k should they or would they have replaced them?
In this scenario he could have tracked it just after the break in period and they may have warped...should they have been covered then?

That said I had a 91 300ZX with 40k plus miles on the car and I purchased it in 93, second owner, and Nissan replaced the rotors under warranty for the same reason, warping (these were notorious for warping). If Nissan took the stance you referred to in your example I would have been left replacing both front and rear rotors that were warped under street driving conditions (at least while I owned it).

Now I know that was a very good example of service and standing by one's product but it sounds to me like 14k should be covered no matter how it happened given the premium that is .

I know I am rambling a bit but this topic really gets my goat because I was forced to replace pads and rotors all around on my Land Rover after only 15k of driving from new. Yes, a very different and heavy vehicle and all that but I was absolutely shocked when they told me the truck I had owned for just over a year needed breaks all around...

...alright I'm done....sorry for the length here fellas.

rcracer_tx · 07-02-2007, 08:42 PM

What really bugs me is that the reason they will not replace them under warranty is that I am the second owner of the car. I pushed them until they are sending a written document stating that the reason is because I am be the second owner of the car, not that the car appears to be tracked. (i can prove that it hasn't from the condition and the inspection of the brake pads and the amount of wear on the rotors.)

I Will be posting the letter from Porsche everywhere i can find, as well as be reporting them to the BBB. I am convinced once i call them telling them my intentions that they would most likely "assist with the repairs".

TriGem2k · 07-02-2007, 11:03 PM

Boxter,

Maybe I have come to the point that I just don't expect much from high-end sports car companies. My car is one of several Porsches in the family and never have any of them shown the same type of wear and tear even though the same family members drove them all.

Porsche sells a high-end sports car, a car that is meant to be driven hard and also a car that costs lots of $$$ to keep properly maintained.

The way I look at it is if you (anyone, no one specific) is going to buy a high end vehicle you should know that you WILL be shelling out lots of money to keep it in proper working order and that means changing brakes.

If we were talking about Mercedes, Lexus, BMW then that would be a different story. Those cars are driven different and it would be VERY strange to have the brake pads and rotors go out that soon.

In this particular case I can see why Porsche won't accept responsibility. The gentleman who is trying to make the claim is not the same person who put 14k miles on the car. Maybe if the original owner were involved it would be a different story.

My personal experience on my car is that my front brakes go out right around 10k miles (Currently have 52k). Should I blame the dealer for this every time I have shell out close to $600 for brakes?

What happens if this gentleman does in fact have Porsche change the brakes for him at no cost and then winds up needing brakes again at 10k miles? Does he blame Porsche again?

I really believe that it is driver oriented and that it has nothing to do with a bad set of rotors. Correct me if I am wrong but I have not heard of any cases which state Porsche was/has been using defective brake components.

That is just my personal opinion. With all due respect if this gentleman does get a free brake job then more power to him. Not trying to bash anyone and I do hope RCRACER comes out with a deal that is satisfactory to him. I just think he might be expecting too much.

rcracer_tx · 07-02-2007, 11:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TriGem2k

Good Luck to You. Your chances are slim. I can not see as to how you can prove the rotors were in fact defective.

The dealer even told be that they thought the Porsche a.g. would approve it as they implied that it was a manufacturing defect. If i would have known that this warranty was worthless, i would have gone with one of the last years of the air cooled 911. Really makes me think twice before buying another Porsche.

Brucelee · 07-03-2007, 04:32 AM

Lets face it guys, how hard would it be for Porsche to replace these rotors in this instance.

Given the price of the cars and the prestige that Porsche feels the cars have, it would be a very inexpensive way to protect the brand.

I expect better from Porsche.

1JB · 07-03-2007, 06:34 AM

Warped rotors at 10k are not necessarily the sign of a manufacturing defect. You can warp the rotors for example if they're hot and you wash the car. I always let the car cool down for a couple of ours before I wash it.

The other thing about Porsche is that they will go a long way with you if you bought your car at that dealer and had it serviced at that dealer per the schedule. Same is true for Acura. Once you become the second owner of a car something liked warped rotors is a very iffy waranty item for any make of car let alone Porsche.