Originally Posted by mikstew

As much as I would like to believe what you are saying, sadly it just isn't true. I have had many a discussion about German car manufacturers unscrupulous ways of making profits and they all seem to tread the same thin line between purposely making crap/junk parts designed to fail, and poor, but not deliberately poor, design.

To say that the parts that go into german cars are of higher quality or perform better thus making a better car is for the most part completely untrue. In fact, you'll often find much better parts in Japanese autos, especially in electronics. However I will concede that the parts on German cars are usually designed in a unique fashion, thus making their construction more expensive, but I really do question how much more expensive. I believe there is a lot of BS going on here about exclusivity - i.e. Porsche knows that if they make up funky shaped parts, odd fasteners, and unique designs, they will be difficult for after market companies to replicate and/or install, and thus all parts and service revenue go directly to Porsche (Most glaring example of this was the advent of the "service interval"). On top of this, sometimes I believe that certain parts have a prescribed lifespan. In other words, Porsche makes them knowing they will break, and thus they are a big revenue stream. This is CERTAINLY the business model for BMW/Mercedes. Possibly also for Porsche. The AOS is a good example -- it does not take 5 revisions to make one that doesn't fail in 20,000 km. A simple fix would have been to use better materials from the outset. Instead, they used crap knowing that this would be a common service on the car and hence reap the profits from repairs.

So the OP can feel better in knowing that the majority of the people on these forums have suffered the consequences of ownership of a german luxury auto. The only way you can avoid such costs is to buy the car new and use the warranty for what its for. However this is not a perfect fix since the downside is that your cars parts are still going to break and you will waste coutless hours at the dealership NOT enjoying your 100,000$ car. Trust me, I know. Alas, these are just the prices we must pay to enjoy luxury. I know I could have an Acura and be problem free (or much more so), but it just doesn't have the same feel and thrill as the Porsche or BMW. 'Tis a tough world... I wish someone would just make a luxury car that isn't made from cheap crap parts. I've heard that old Bentleys are good for this, but I think I'll need to work on my Law career a little longer before I can get one of those :)

Originally Posted by Mark_T

I heard that in heaven they have French cooking, German cars, and English humor.

In hell they have English cooking, French cars and German humor.

Originally Posted by WhipE350

San, how many miles on this car...I've done a ton of stuff to my car but it didn't 'have' to be done, in fact all the 'repairs' on my car (2000 S) at 55k miles were minimal. I think I have done more early maintenance and unnecessary repairs then all those from the previous owner and I got the car at 53k miles in Nov. Do you have to do the gas filter and transmission fluid? If it is at that scheduled maintenance point then of course it makes sense. Like gschotland says getting it up to snuff can be a pia but in the end the piece of mind and the fun in doing it is worth it. I still have the water pump, engine mount, clutch, rms, ims on my list and look forward to doing it when the weather cools down. It gets really expensive when you start adding mods :). I will say I probably won't be so positive if my coolant tank goes ;)

Originally Posted by clickman

Cars break down and have to have parts replaced. Some parts are poorly designed. There's a couple of revelations. At the end of the day it's what you get out of it. Cost / benefit. If that balance doesn't work for you, buy something else. Simple. :cheers:

To the OP, having just finished the jobs myself, I concur with the earlier post to combine some jobs if you have to do your water pump. I did the front engine mount and low temp thermostat and fuel filter, and it sure opened the area up and made the jobs a lot easier.

PS, if you don't know what coolant you have and have to replace it, and want to avoid the possibility of gelling, either buy a lift for your garage or have the pros do the flushing of the old coolant. Ask me how many times I had to put my car up on jackstands...
:mad:

Originally Posted by san rensho

Just turned 116k miles. The gear oil was done at about 50k and I didn't see a record for the fuel filter. I'm trying to get all the major maintenance out of the way and start fresh. Luckily, the tires are new, glass window top is new, suspension is tight, clutch feels great.

Next step is to check the cam timing at the dealer (ouch, $145) to see if the IMS is in good shape, if not, then its clutch, IMS and RMS for me too.

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

Then you should definitely do the IMS/Clutch/RMS. Your rear axle boots are probably both ripped as well.

On the brightside the previous owner was obvsiouly easy on the machinery. I'm guessing he probably performed regular oil changes as well.

Originally Posted by san rensho

Boots are good, tranny mounts good, suspension tight as drum, no shakes at any speed. Previous owner put new Bridgtones on it (paid over $1300 for them). He was an older guy and his widow said it was mostly highway miles. But yes, the IMS has me worried, the internet has made me paranoid. If the cam timing is good, I may just wait till the clutch goes. Although since I only paid $7500 for it, I guess I can afford to put some money into it.