Not directly relevant to your experience - full disclosure is good - but to put things in perspective.

I sold my 912 to a good friend who'd already bought my 356 years ago... We're buddies, no issues.

I'd owned that car for 15y and everything worked A-OK, the car NEVER broke down. The day after he picked up, he broke down (carb spring snapped), the day after the driver window dropped in the door, and the third day something else happened that escapes me (electrical)... $#%$ happens on old cars, with the best maintenance and intentions... I fixed all that for him incidentally... Then he got home and his bike rack fell on the car (it's him, not me!!!)

It's your duty to inspect a car. I once bought an early 911 w/o inspecting in person, that turned out to be a spliced car with 3 VIN and a dead rat putrefied on the engine cooling fins... PPI mechanic lied thru its teeth. My bad, at the end of the day...

Anyway, it happens.... Make the car right and enjoy it if you still can, it'll be worth it in the end !

Sorry about your car...

Reading threads like this reminds me why I do all my own work, including engine rebuilds. It may take me forever, may cost more than I wanted, and may involve a lot of cussing. But when it's done, I know, it's done right...

Fixing an old car is ungodly expensive. Hundreds of little thing come up, all of which need attention, repairs, and money. People who are prepping a car with the intent to sell, probably won't fix everything. Wouldn't make financial sense.

With these old cars, it's better to buy one that needs work, and fixing it right yourself...

I have probably have a thousand hours into my 930 over the years... Still not done...

Good luck

I'm sorry, buy you seem very nitpicky. Carbs will have problems periodically and the fact it broke a week later should not fall on the shoulders of him. The heat issue too can be overlooked. There's lots of systems and things get overlooked.

Interesting thread! As the founder/former owner of Red Line Service (in the very capable hands of Marc Bixen since 1999), I can offer that I've personally performed hundreds of PPIs. I used to discourage people in the market for a used Porsche from having the seller do the PPI, and that alone was responsible for saving many thousands of dollars for potential buyers. I have inspected 356s that were more Bondo than metal, diagnosed countless oil leaks, located faulty alternators, discovered frayed shoulder harnesses, seen incredibly poor accident damage repairs, found worn out brakes, noisy wheel bearings, low oil levels, non-functional w/washers, sunroofs, window switches, misc. lights/switches, clutch cables and clutches, along with other things including bad past workmanship. I have warned buyers about rust issues, oil consumption, shock absorber life expectancy, service/maintenance schedules, etc. I would also NEVER check the function of Targa roof panels, or Cabriolet tops because of possible liability, but would assess wind noise levels during a test drive. Leak down tests were done regularly, and were an important part of a PPI.

As time passed, and the cars grew in complexity, I realized that only so much could be done during a PPI. It all started with the possibility of broken cylinder head studs, and I had to charge extra to do a physical inspection of them by removing the rocker arm covers. Then we discovered that a 911 with a tweaked chassis could be repaired to look great, but could never be aligned correctly. A/C issues were common, and on the minds of most buyers, and each issue required an estimate and a disclaimer. More and more cars showed up that had been lowered, or had suspension bushings replaced, all of which took lengthy periods of time to explain to a buyer. Then we learned that a curious dent near the bottom of a rear shock could mean that that car had been rear-ended in a collision.

By the time I sold Red Line to Marc I was happy to get the PPI monkey off my back, because Marc taking over pretty much happened about the time the water-cooled 911s showed up. If it was my decision to make, I would still do PPIs, but only on 1989 and earlier Porsches. Marc would have to deal with the stress of a very steep learning curve.

I mentioned disclaimers. Many, many PPIs had one, or two, or more. Sometimes we had no way to tell how much it would cost to repair/improve 2nd gear shifting, or if a valve adjustment would cure the ticking engine, or if barrier hoses would fix the A/C, or if brake hoses would fix the 'brakes pull to the right' symptom. Everything I found was recorded on an invoice, and each problem was accompanied by a disclaimer. PPIs; sometimes a nasty business, but always a feeling of satisfaction upon completion.

Sorry to hear of your troubles.

As the demand for these cars have risen, and more so by non air-cooled enthusiasts, this same scenario keeps popping up.

People get excited about pictures of a car that they want and throw buying caution to the wind and go for it.

I can see maybe not getting a PPI, but at least go and see the car in person to see its general condition.

Buyer beware no mater how nice the seller sounds.

Going to respond to a couple of things here.

1 - I think I've admitted a few times that I made the mistake of not getting the PPI. Honestly, this was more just about my dealings with Chuck and trying to warn people who may be doing business with him. I've seen Redline in Arizona, though not sure if Chuck is there anymore, post a few cars for sale on the board and wanted to look out for fellow Pelicans. If Chuck is no longer there, i cannot speak, nor would i speak, to the current quality of the service. However, I will note, as of today Chuck is still listed as a point of contact on the website. This is particularly odd given he told me my car was going to be the last one he worked on. I guess that tale of retirement should align with his tale of the build quality of the car.

2 - To Tippy, if you'd read the post you would have seen that Chuck told me he REBUILT the carbs. The Carbs I got weren't rebuilt at all, there was failing gaskets, clogged lines, everything. I have photos of those from when my mechanic took them apart.

3 - I never expected to get a perfect car. Hell, I never expected to get a car that wasn't without the need to fix some stuff. I think one of the great joys of these cars is being able to do the work yourself. What I DID expect is an honest representation by the wrench who sold and sent me the car. I expected him to then own up when the work he did was done in a rushed fashion and when basic things that he said WERE done, quite simply weren't.

Honestly, I don't think anyone that has responded to this thread would do me wrong.

4 - PPIs are necessary always, as I've come to find out in a costly manner. I'm just glad I was able to talk to some people on this board and also link up with Otto's and Mistress here in LA.

The biggest thing this has taught me is I'll never again buy a car off a board or Ebay, etc. I'm going to use my trusted wrenchs source things that are local. I'm lucky enough to live in LA where there are a ton of p-cars.

Are you planning to drag this on forever? Take a break man.

i second the last comment by John.W...dude you did not start the buying process corectly.So you can blame only your self.
As for the shops experience...as Marc B.has mentioned pre purchase pre purchase inspections...!!

Be realistic..you have a 1969 912 so be happy about it.And the final say i have, what are you doing on 911 forum??

Ivan

Proporsche,

To start with, I'm on here because, as I"m sure you'll know, the 912 of that vintage shares many parts, sans the engine, with the 911, so I'm able to find a ton of useful information thanks to all the great people on here.

Also, as my name states, I used to own a 87 911, so that's how I found this board and all the helpful information it has.

And I'm dragging it out because I've gotten several people that have contacted me off line telling me similar stories and that they wished someone had informed them.

Also, Chuck continues to sell on this board and others (including 912BBS where I've posted a similar story) so I want people to be aware.

Again, I've acknowledged my PPI issue, but I think that the fact that Chuck did not do many of the things he told me should also be acknowledged.

Thanks everyone so much. I do love this community and just want to offer protection for other people that might have gotten taken advantage of.

This thread should serve as an acknowledgement. Thank you, case closed, hopefully. Private messaging works to keep things like this off the TECHNICAL forum.

Who the heck is Chuck??????

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

what he said.

Newporsche,

New people will continue to share their opinions. They may disagree with something you have already defended. It doesn’t mean you need to defend it again. It means they are a new guy with an opinion. It only needs to be said once. You don’t control others and by creating this thread you are open to all opinions. As others said, unless someone specifically asks you a question there is nothing more to say.

And for god sake stop bumping it. Someone who searches in the future will find it. You aren’t going to save another buyer today. You are going to save them in a year or two when they consider a car from this guy and google his name.

/thread