Porsche ripping off its own (long)

[Beethoven]

Here's the situation. Yesterday I'm driving my car on Lake Shore Drive when the radio suddenly loses power, and then the engine. I continue to press on, and it seems to recover. Then, after about 5 miles, the engine loses all power and stalls. I just made it into a parking lot. After two hours I return to the car; it starts right up, but loses power after 3 minutes.
I call AAA and they flatbed it to The Porsche Exchange. All the while I'm in email contact with that Glorious Group of Illinois Porschephiles (GGIP) Souk, Christ Streit, and Kevin Lehman, who diagnose the problem, devise strategies, and generally keep me from going bonkers. This morning comes the call from The Exchange: alternator kaputt. Their remedy: new alternator, $700; new battery (allegedly overcharged), $350; new light switch (which was fried), $275; oil change (for which I had asked), $169. Labor ($119/h) included. I was so perplexed that I gave them the go ahead.
When I shared this with the GGIP, they were outraged and immediately made plans to drive up there, tow that baby out of waterpumper hell, and do the work themselves. The flurry of emails takes about 90 min, then I call The Exchange back, and tell them to stop everything, the fellas would come round and pick the car up. Not so, says the service manager, we've already ordered the alternator, put in the battery, did the oil change, and installed the light switch. How, I asked the good man, could you do that in such short time when you're charging a full hour alone for the oil change?? Words were exchanged (hence, it dawned on me, The Exchange). Only with difficulty can the GGIP be restrained from hurtling up there and "lean" on the man.
I find the attitude of these Porsche dealers insuffrable. Have they now regard for people who drive their cars out of passion, not because they want to show off? The whole shop was crawling with 20-year olds with too much gel in their hair, bringing in their 2004 turbos to be dynoed and detailed. Lord knows how they make their money. Oldest car in the shop was a 2001. Couldn't they just have given a guy in a tough spot a break? I'll speak with the manager tomorrow, but I'm too disgusted with them to raise a stink.
On the upside, I got a demonstration of the real power of the GGIP. What a bunch of guys--except for Kevin I haven't even met any of them! Next time I break down I know whom to call.

[Wayne 962]

Dealers - one of the reason why Pelican is in business and 101 Projects is on MBI's best seller list.

-Wayne

[MotoSook]

I'm sorry we failed you H. I'll buy you a beer when we meet..feel better?

After years of watching my father write checks to the dealers for fixes that he couldn't do as he got old and his cars got younger...I have developed quite a distrust of dealers...hence my addiction to automotive tools and thinkering with 911's. heck anything really...if I break it, oh well...it'll still cost me less in the long run.

I'm really sorry you had to got through the mess..


Tell you what, you drive that car over to my house after you pick it up and I'll make the alternator have probelms again...we'll keep sending it back, the dreaded "return" as Peter Egan puts it. So in the end, they'll not make any money off you in their books. Just kidding...

[geof33]

Well, first off, I'd almost bet money it was simply your voltage regulator. My car did the same thing, and the symptoms your describing is the battery regaining just enough power to allow it to fire up, but that's it. Your getting bent over without lube dude.

Good luck, enjoy writing the check. BTW the local dealers in Denver just suck. About as helpful as a dead cow. But, the salesmen sure did like my car....

[RoninLB]

Originally posted by geof33
Well, first off, I'd almost bet money it was simply your voltage regulator.

$1,800...
Holy Mackerel Andy

[MotoSook]

Funny thing, I have a spare VR...but Beethoven did state in an e-mail that a noise had developed in the back...chances are he needed a new on anyway..or get it rebuilt.

I think I'll open up a real shop...1800 bucks and the parts were probably 1/2 that from my various sources....

[Beethoven]

Yeah, I think the alternator was on it's way out... there was a whining in the back (not the wife!) which, come to think of it, stopped before the thing went broke.
If they put in a new alternator, do they automatically put in a new VR?

And why are you saying $1800? It's 'just' $1494.

[MotoSook]

That's what I get for trusting Ron...Ronnie..you owe me a beer!

Your car should have an onboard VR that came on the new ALT

I would order a headlight relay kit from Mark Sucro so you don't burn up the new switch again.

[Sonic dB]

Sorry beethoven...I was on your side...till I read that you agreed to a $169 oil change. Hopefully you were just living up to your namesake and thought that you heard something much less.

[FenderGuy]

$169 is about right for a oil change geez dont you guys realize it takes to money to go the middle east to fetch that oil?

[Beethoven]

Yeah, I guess the oil change is the clincher. When I realized what he was saying it was too late. I asked him about that and he said they calculated one hour of labor...
But you have to admit, $350 for the battery isn't bad either...

[RoninLB]

Alt - $700
Bat - $350
Lite sw - $275
Oil - $169
Misc - $100
8.5% tax - $136
sub total - $ 1730

Tip - $50
Lite relay and bulbs - $ 75
Sedatives - $ ?

[exc911ence]

$350 for a battery?!? When mine went, it was a $89 visit to Sears for their biggest DieHard...

[sammyg2]

I've owned 4 porsches going back to 1980, but I've never set foot on a Porsche dealership. I need to get down there one of these days. Do they have a cover charge?

[911jon]

Porsche Dealers...... mixed experiences. Sorry to hear of your unfortunate incident, but you can't tar them all with the same brush. OK, I know I'm in a different country, but my local dealer Dick Lovett of Swindon, recently helped me out no end. And their workshop was full of aircooled metal, including some exotic stuff.

I had a locking wheel nut seize onto the stud, then break. I was perplexed, and thought I'd try a dealer since at least they would have a new locking nut key (mine broke). They had my car overnight, loaned me a BMW 3 series to get to work in, drilled the nut out clean with an annular drill (nice trick and beyond my toolkit and skill!) without damaging Fuchs or stud, replaced the set of locking wheel nuts and key, removed and copper greased all the nuts. They even dressed all the tyres, something I never bother with!

The bill was around $150, capped I think by the service manager because I think he likes older 911's!

[bigchillcar]

new alternator? - $700
new battery? - $350
oil change - $169
satisfaction of torching dealer's corruption-ridden establishment and then relaxing in your car, watching from the street and sucking down adult beverages with a couple fellow pelicanite brothers?

.....priceless

in a perfect world....

[stefang]

That's why they're called $tealers. You have to remember that you (we) are not their target clientelle. They cater to people with lots of money who don't care about the cost. So no, they don't steal from "their own"
I just bought an '88 Targa and have two points to make from that:

1. The car came with full records and both previous owners had all work done at dealers. The bills are mindboggling. There is no way I'd buy that car if I wasn't into DIY.

2. The airbox was broken and there was some back and forth about whether they would replace it since it's expensive (I happened to find the car at a Porsche dealer). Anyway, the point is that the list price of the airbox is $270, but dealer cost is around $150. That's an insane markup! Esp, since dealers don't bother carrying inventory.

Anyway, end rant. Happy Friday!

Stef

[DavidI]

I volunteer to take the robbery report!

[sundaypunch]

I did a Lake Shore Drive commute for about 5 years. Chicago is a great city but that's just part of the cost of being there. I don't know how many times I was raped by a dealer or mechanic when I lived there. I'm surprised they didn't hit you for more actually.

That sucks

[n8marx]

RoninLB,

I'm a bit confused by your post. What do you mean by tip? People don't actually tip mechanics do they?