Help, destroyed Engine

[rob111158]

Hi, A member of my family recently purchased a used 2001 Porsche Boxster-S. It has ~21000 miles not really sure exactly. When he brought it to be inspected they put it up on this machine that shook it around to test whatever they test. While driving home he heard a loud noise and the car stopped. It would not start backup. After having it towed to the nearest Porsche dealer/repair (Jack Daniels in NJ) they looked at it and said three of the pistons were destroyed from something coming loose in the block and rattling around. The pistons arent even firing anymore and have zero compression. Cost to fix it is 9200, they have to ship the whole engine back to Germany. This isnt going to happen as he doesnt have that much to spend after just purchasing the car.

My question is are there any other alternatives to having Porsche do this? I know nothing about these cars so I dont know if engine swaps are possible/how they work on them. If they can be done for a reasonable price where is a good place to get a new engine and what kind? Is it worth it or just trade the car in for a loss?

Thanks

[KRZTACO]

The price sounds about right.

Unfortunately the motor costs around $6,400 (PCNA remanufactured for a 3.2) Plus another couple grand for install. The price he was quoted sounds right in that ballpark.

KRZ

[KRZTACO]

Oh...and they don't ship the engine to Germany. It goes back to the local stealer on a core exchange and the stealer ships a newly rebuilt motor from the region's Porsche of North America wharehouse to the shop.

KRZ

[denverpete]

You can occasionally pick up a used/rebuilt engine for about $2500 - $3000.

I actually think what you were quoted sounds a bit low for a new engine. Even if the engine is $6400 - that only leaves 28 hrs of labor (@ $100.00/hr) to remove and re-install. (37 hrs at $75.00/hr).

Expect replacement to take about 4 weeks.

[Ronzi]

Your options pretty much are to have a new/rebuilt engine installed by a Porsche dealer, and receive a warranty on the new engine, or to have a used engine (from a wrecked car, typically) installed by a Porsche specialist (non-dealer), and have no warranty.
What kind of "test" was the car undergoing that required it to be shook around?
Was it a emissions test?

[clubhead]

Originally Posted by Ronzi

...
What kind of "test" was the car undergoing that required it to be shook around?
Was it a emissions test?

Exactly my question when I read this. The usual pre-purchase test involve an under-carriage chassis measurement to ensure the chassis is all aligned within tolerance limits. Cars that have been through a major accident will usually not fall under the tolerance limit for chassis alignment.

Is it possible that the engine failure is a result of the test? You could attempt to seek a recourse with the company...

[Brucelee]

That part sounded weird to me also.

[Marc Gelefsky]

Wow, I think I looked at that car at Jack Danials, what color is it?

Was it NJ inspection that you speak of? all they do is put the car on a Dyno and check emissions, than they do a hard brake and measure stopping distance on a device.

Originally Posted by rob111158

Hi, A member of my family recently purchased a used 2001 Porsche Boxster-S. It has ~21000 miles not really sure exactly. When he brought it to be inspected they put it up on this machine that shook it around to test whatever they test. While driving home he heard a loud noise and the car stopped. It would not start backup. After having it towed to the nearest Porsche dealer/repair (Jack Daniels in NJ) they looked at it and said three of the pistons were destroyed from something coming loose in the block and rattling around. The pistons arent even firing anymore and have zero compression. Cost to fix it is 9200, they have to ship the whole engine back to Germany. This isnt going to happen as he doesnt have that much to spend after just purchasing the car.

My question is are there any other alternatives to having Porsche do this? I know nothing about these cars so I dont know if engine swaps are possible/how they work on them. If they can be done for a reasonable price where is a good place to get a new engine and what kind? Is it worth it or just trade the car in for a loss?

Thanks