Buying an 08 Cayenne S
 

Am I crazy? Yes, there is an issue with the driveshaft support and the coolant pipes which need to be remedied but is buying a low mileage S a fools errand?

Got an 04 S that the coolant pipes and driveshaft support had already been replaced. No trouble with it except the water pump (not too bad $$$) at 140K.

3 years later sold it and got a 05 turbo and have only had to fix the brake booster lines. It is also at 140K. About the same cost as the water pump.

Got each of them when they reached $10K. Upgraded to the turbo to get the cornering lights.

I replaced the driveshaft support myself on my 2008 cayenne. It is no big deal with the part made by vertex, there is no need to remove the driveshaft. Grind the old one out and bolt the two halves in for the new one.

Go for it!

I have been threatening to buy one just haven't found the right one yet . Great vehicles for the most part I say get a PPI and if clean go for it .

Yeah am really Jonesing for one of those bad boys. Since I haven’t bought a car in a while I went to Cars.com, Kelly Blue Book, and Edmunds car valuation tools and got the private sell, dealer trade value and Edmonds had a suggested dealer price. For the mileage, condition and options I fed into the tools and took the average price for Very Good condition then looked at the selling price of the Cayenne and calculated their profit. The suggested high private party sell price matched the suggested dealer price. Armed with my numbers went to the seller and told them based on the tools they were looking to make $6K on the sale. They laughed and said they were lucky to make a grand on each sale, but they sell used cars based on volume. They said $17K for an S with 65K miles, I said I would give them $15k and to think about it. They contacted me the next day and dropped the price to $16K, which according to the lying sales guy would mean zero profit. Told him it’s a no go unless they get to $15. Will see if I hear from them again in a few days. I hate car dealers.

I've had mine for about a devcade now. (Yikes!)

Anyway, they are not tirmed anywhere near the same.

Air suspension and full leather are on the top of my have to haves.

They are dirt cheap for what you get, I’ve seen clean 100k turbos at $10k. I really enjoyed my GTS, if you are in the position of needing an SUV I say go for it.

I have a 6 cyl '08. It has about 180k on it now. When I first got it at about 120k, I pulled the valve chest out of the trans and had it rebuilt due to some odd shifting (I bought it knowing it had minor issues with trans). Other than that, it has been trouble free. My wife likes it much more than her previous X5. Drives more like a car than a truck and it pulls our 21' boat with no issues. I am now in the market for a 2012 6 cylinder Cayenne with 60 - 100k mileage. My wife will get the newer one and I will likely use the '08 as my drive to work car.

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Tim Hancock what are your thoughts on the 6 cylinder vs. the weight of the vehicle ? In most real world situations do you feel the 6 is enough engine ? I know the 6 doesn't get much better MPG then the V8 but I have shied away from the six thinking it doesn't have enough grunt for the weight the pepper wagon has . Maybe I'm wrong .

I expect that in most situations you won't notice a 6 vs an 8. Perhaps notice a 10% longer span between fill-ups.

The 8 helps end those on-ramp acceleration 'arguments' with Camrys and such; the turbos end those arguments with an exclamation point.

I thought the 6 cylinder was prone to cylinder failures?

This is a problem with the V8's , my understanding is the entire engine is Alusil coated vs. the cylinders being Nikasil coated . The Alusil cylinders wear and that's the start of cylinder failures . Nikasil is MUCH tougher and wears very little if at all . That's why Nickie cylinders from LN Engineering are so popular , they are expensive but almost impossible to wear out . I do not know if the VW based Porsche V6 is prone to this condition .

The '08 and newer six cylinders have the 3.6 290hp engines. I only typically buy higher mileage vehicles and was steered away from the 8 cylinder variants of the Cayennes as they have more things to go wrong with them (air suspensions, coolant tubes etc). I like the 'S and turbos, but I try to limit my exposure to high mileage problems by going with the simpler 6 cylinder base models. My six is plenty quick and feels downright sporty when in sport mode. It pulls my approximately 4000 pound boat at 70mph without issue. I hauled three motorcycles on a trailer through the mountains in Tennessee and down into northern Georgia a couple years ago and kept forgetting I had a trailer behind me. This thing will haul anything thing the 8 cylinders are rated to haul without issue.

So the only six to buy is 2008 and newer?

What about V8's?

I also have a 2008 with the 290HP six. I have 165k on it and it's been a great vehicle so far. The six has plenty of power but it's worth noting that "sport mode" makes a huge difference.

I have a friend with about an '05 six cylinder with manual trans. He is a german indy shop owner and has well over 200k on it and pulls cars all over the place with it. He uses it like a truck and he is the one who advised me to go with the 6 cylinder if buying with high miles like I typically do. He says the fancier 8's have more problems as they age. Other than the Cardan shaft and occasional heater flap motor issues (all Cayennes can have these issues), he claims the sixes have no other vices whether the earlier body styles or the '08 and newer.

I did not know (or I forgot) that you had an 08 also. FWIW I got rid of my old 02 Tundra and now have an '11 Tundra limited with about 100k on it now.... No issues at all.

A '09 S 25 miles from me:

https://tinyurl.com/y75o6afo

I too have been thinking about buying a Cayenne since my 03 Tacoma rusted out and i had to park it this spring. I've been daily driving my 04 F-550 since. Not a real comfy ride.

Your thoughts on this one? My apology's to RSBob if i'm stepping on your toes.
https://nh.craigslist.org/cto/d/2010-porsche-cayenne/6745441614.html

I personally would not want to pay 20k for an 08-10 model. Closer to 15k for a decent one with 100k or less would seem like a better deal. I personally am looking for the newer 2011+ body style six cylinder (2012 has an even nicer interior) for my wife's next Cayenne. I will just keep looking until I find one in black with decent wheels and blacked out trim with 60-100k mileage. Hoping to pick one up for 20k or less.... might take awhile to find one, but I am in no hurry.

You got me excited there - a GTS in blue with tan. but it's not a GTS. :-/

A GTS will have a V8 and air suspension (PASM)

The six cylinder VW based engine exceeds the V8 by:

Not leaking
Easy to work on
Rarely a check engine light
Lasts for a long time
Lower running costs

Man with all the love for the 6s I may have to change my search.

I suppose that if I agree with you, on the 6, you will go buy a turbo. :cool:

Seriously, the 6's are usually option limited, smaller brakes, no PASM, no full leather, interior trim plain-Jane, minimal seat memory (if any) lumbar support, parking sensors, auto-close rear hatch, power adjust wheel, auto-on lights... the list is huge.

The PASM is a big deal IMO. Mine has it, my wife's does not. The PASM allows damper adjustments, as well as ride height adjustments. It also means you have an air compressor onboard, allowing for a 911-style space-saver spare tire. (not one of those puny ones).

The Bose sound system is the best OE system they made (according to a guy I know who helped develop it)

So, I'm saying, find yourself a nice turbo.

or am I? :cool:

Though I don’t like the complexity and reliability issues associated with air suspension, the PASM does work incredibly well. My GTS lowered and tightened the suspension in sport mode and it made a substantial difference in the driving experience. If you were actually compelled to use the SUV as an SUV it can also increase the ride height for better ground clearance.

Also thinking about one...anyone have experience with the diesel?

Interestingly, the 6 has the same city/Hwy mpg as the S. I can only figure the 6 has to work harder to move the mass, so consumes at a V8 rate.

The 6 is a VW motor? Does it have in-cylinder injection? If it doesnt yet the 8 does...

The 6 is a VW based engine with Porsche tweeks added to it . I have no clue what those tweeks are .

My wife's '08 "6" has powered heated leather front seats, fancy wood appearing trim, nice sounding stereo, powered sunroof and an air compressor included in the tool kit for inflating the spare tire. TI do not know or care what size the brakes are, but they work awesome. I have no clue on what these Cayennes come with standard, but I and my wife are kind of old school and not too into most "high tech stuff" in modern cars. I typically just drive them and do care about or use parking sensors, bluetooth, dvd players etc. While our Cayenne's main purpose is to get my wife comfortably to work and back in all weather, it is also our vacation car and has done great pulling our boat or motorcycles. I have enjoyed taking it on spirited drives through the twisties in the mountains on our vacations and when I am driving on the highway on long trips, I usually find myself running 80mph + (until my wife notices anyhow). For us, it is not a race car but in sport mode it definitely will accelerate and go as fast as I want to go driving on a public street.

I am sure I would love driving the turbo versions, but I am a cheap DIY type at heart which means I selectively choose higher mileage used cars.... I am positive that my my risk for expensive repairs is much lower with the 6 than any versions of the 8.

Here’s my 09 GTS when I bought it last year. Bought it with 75k miles. Blue with the tan alcantara interior. Great tow vehicle and winter cruiser. Exhaust has a great snarl in sport mode

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Trade you a rusted out Tacoma for it:D
That's a great looking vehicle.

Nice to see all the Cayenne love. I had one of the 1st ones in the US, a 2003 S. No love back then, believe me! :D Was nearly blackballed from the Porsche community and laughed off the Pelican forums. :cool: To this day, one of the most incredible all-around vehicles I've owned or driven. Wish I needed another one.

Pete.

Make an excuse and buy one south of Maryland. Something that hasn't being exposed to our winters. Suspension components start getting noisy. You know better than me all that crap they throw in our roads

Like Tim's mine also has heated leather, NAV, premium Bose stereo and a host of other nutty luxuries I don't need. The brakes are the "small" versions but I can't imagine anyone wanting more stopping power on the street, it'll yank your teeth out at full bind. Would they likely fade if I kept that up for more than a couple corners...yea I imagine they would but I'll never know for sure.

I was/am tempted by the turbos and the GTSs just look awesome to me but for the money and ease of mind I know I made the right choice. It's a good little truck and that's how I use it. It owes me nothing

Happy Endings? ;)
 

The seller agreed to my offer, $2K under initial asking and $1K under suggested dealer retail according to Edmonds True Market Dealer Value for mileage and options. I am not patting my self on the back too hard since it is still $2500 over private party high value for one in Very Good condition. So for $15K a 65K mile S loaded with options, Bose system, including cork leather. More importantly a clean CarFax. ( Looked at several black interior Cayennes and found the black too depressing). Only thing it needs is a Bluetooth head unit with HD like I put in my SC.

Since it came from Vancouver B.C. They are doing a speedo and odo conversion. Should have it by Friday. Now I need to unload my ultra over maintained ‘10 Jetta diesel Sportwagen 6 speed just turning 70K. <- I will miss the 32/43 MPG but will get over it.

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Butt shot. Dig the amber turn signals. But what is the deal with the amber lenses inside the front wheel wells? Do they flash with turn signals or just a bizarre running lights?

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I really want a 957, especially a GTS. Almost bought a 958.1 6 banger as a daily, but there was one thing it didn't have, storage. My 1st gen Murano got totaled in April and it had cubbies galore! Drove the 958 and loved it, but there was no storage under the cargo floor, or on the sides. Nothing in the center console as well. Got an E53.1 X5 from a friend and there's a bunch of cubbies, but not as much as the Murano. I still want the 957 GTS, but not as a daily.

The SUV doesn’t have a manual. Ideas on free or low cost sources? I see some sites advertising the owners manual but am hesitant to click on the links for fear of viruses.