Dave951M

I can see how he arrived at this attitude, but to blatantly put down 944 owners in general is poor business practice. Suppose the 944 guy is a young person, into the car because he likes Porsches, later in life, he has more disposable income and has purchased a 911 variant. Think this kid will ever go back there? I wouldn't.

This is just another reason to learn to DIY. For what you'd spend on the job, you can buy a good set of tools and the experience would be priceless.

Dan87951

Totally agree!!

When I first read this post I didn't think it was going to be literally.

M758

Guys...
For the most part 944 owers are cheap. A large portion own the car because it is a cheap car. Alot of the time these owners do not have the money to fix them right. So a shop owner who needs to make is living off of the labor see 944's as problems.

Here is why...
A job on a 944 will take lets say 10 hours. A simliar job on a 911 takes maybe 10 hrs. Parts are parts, but the labor is where the $$ are made. So most 911 guys gladly hand over the money for the 10hrs labor. The 944 guy? Well he bitches and moans that the 10 hour labor bill is like 1/2 the value of the car. Well which would you rather deal with?

Another example...
Shop here closed down and moved on particially because 944 owners are so cheap. A younger 951 owner comes in with a "problem" is then told it will take $1500 to fix properly. Car Owner becomes pissed off and leaves. Shop owner figures why did he waste time with this guy who clearly was never going to be able to afford his services anyway. Figures is much easier to stock to 911, 993, & 996's guys as they gladly pay for the same labor rate, yet ever other 944 guy out there is looking for a deal and that is just a pain to deal with day in and day out.


So I can understand how it happens. Clearly in this case the shop should have just kept their mouth shut, but they may been screwed 10 min before you called. Anyway for me I do everything I can myself and when I do need service I just pay the price. I know will be expensive, but understand that and doing most of the rest myself goes along way to being able to pay when I need to.


Oh,,, the worst is to be nice guy and help a young fellow out and give him deal only to have him bitch & moan afterward about being ripped off!

Rich Sandor

99% of used 944 buyers do buy the car because they realise they are getting a good "bang for the buck car"

However that "bang for your buck" is reversed come maintenance/repair time.

I KNEW how much my car would cost me and I was prepared for it. When I had to get my clutch done, I couldn't do it myself at the time, and had the shop do it. I knew it was going to be expensive and I didn't want to take any shortcuts, but the bottom line was the bill was already at $4500cdn and I COULD NOT afford a new clutch fork at $450cdn. I also could not afford a new wastegate and exhaust (they were badly rusted during removal). Thankfully I had a friend (and rennlister) who GAVE me these parts for free.

Was I being cheap? Hell yes.

Does that make me a bad customer? I don't see why not, considering I've already put $4500 of work into the car!!!

How much money would Weissach have lost over the last 2 years if they did not want to deal with me as a customer? A LOT More than that!!!!

Thankfully here in Vancouver we have a couple of shops (SCAN and Weissach) that have excellent customer service and are very helpful and understanding towards 944 owners. HOWEVER, we also have a 911 oriented shop with a very friendly and very helpful owner who hates working on 944's. He pointed me towards the other shops who like to work on 944s, and gladly welcomes me into his shop to look around anytime, even though I have a 944!!!

Red1

I agree with George. I've had a similar conversation with a shop, but he didn't vent on me. He just told me he wasn't interested in working on anything other than a 911 or 911 turbo. "Ok" I said. He'll never hear from me again. You think this is my last Porsche? No. Is it my last 951? Probably. He'll never get another chance to get my business. God knows I've spent some money on this car. On the next car I'll stick with the guys that've been helping me with this one.

The shop owner has made a choice. Don't take it personally. Just find a different shop, and be somebody else's good customer.

icat

Brian - was that Sam? Never did hear how his "club" worked out. And I never got an invite either?!

pete944

Truthfully, if a mechanic would have told me that I probably would have said " That's ok, I heard that your work sucks anyway" and left.

Mongo

ok, its not a good thing to avoid fixing other problems on these cars but come on, some of us are not well off like others, we don't own 993s or 996s or Boxsters or Ferraris even! Why is this guy so judgemental? I personally think that what he's running and his personality contributes to bad business and lack of friendship and proper reccommendations to his place.

I am scraping the barrel for money right now because I am paying $1000 a month to attend National University, paying 50 bucks for a cell phone bill and 2 payments to credit card companies. Gimme his number and I'll give him a piece of my mind. This guy obviously is a ***** if I ever heard of one.

Andy

Red1

No, it wasn't Sam. In fact he's been very good to me lately. I'll have to get you guys up to date with that.

I got the low-down on that club, too. Don't sweat it. That wasn't Sam's idea. I don't think it's going to fly.

Tony K

I have a lot more respect for someone who lives within his means and takes good care of an old car nobody wants than someone who drops a sum on a 944 and cuts corners, strung out on owning a "Porsh"...

Boobers

I can kind of see how this Guy was somewhat offensive, BUT-He doesn't have to do business with anyone he doesn't want to. It's his right. It's also his right to be an *******, if he chooses.
I bought my 944 for $3500 last year and have put in about $500 so far. I realize that keeping ANY car going will cost X dollars per month on average via payments to a bank or repairs. It's just a fact of life.
I will say though that I've encountered far more people trying to gouge me because they think it's very expensive car and I have money that I don't.

The bottom line is that if you have limited time to give to your customers, why bother with someone who is likely to be a pain in the ***?

silver44

Although I don't know Pat personally, I know plenty of people who do know him. The Pat I have heard about isn't the ***** or a**hole that you might believe you think you know or have experienced before. He is very well known and respected here in Memphis. His experience with race cars is extensive and is someone you want to be able to consult as a resource in you ever need it. It would be well worth it in my opinion, to swallow your pride and help him change his mind about 944 owners or at least be the exception to his rule.

My personal experience is with Memphis MotorWerks. I do know the people there and they are very nice and have been always very helpful to me. I have the confidence in them that they will get the job done right.

Just my $0.02 but I had to jump into this one.

Don

Mike C.

I have no doubt this guy has had bad experiences with some 944 owners who are trying to maintain the cars on a shoestring. I find it hard to imagine that there are not also (older) 911's out there with owners in similar circumstances. Anyway, it seems quite bizzare to me to generalize about such things, at least overtly, as this guy does. Unless he really doesn't need/want the extra buisness, why not quote on the high side, (listen for the silence) and then if necessary, make it clear there will be no negotiating labor/price. Perhaps require a 50% deposit, etc. It could certainly be done in a manner that wouldn't alienate customers who can afford the work. No matter how you slice it, it's pretty damn arrogant to come out with "bah, you 944 owners can't afford me" before they even get in a word...

Dash01

Well, I hate him too.

Chris_924s

Must be a nice thing to TURN away prospectve customer-

Any other business have this problem?