Originally Posted by abiazis

Nice write-up. My insights on my Porsche experience........

My customer service experience since 1999 has yielded both good and just terrible customer service from Porsche dealers in various states and from Porsche North America, when issues were taken to a higher level for discussion and resolution.

The "fine print" on their various warranties programs is an essential read before purchase, but I find there are always addendums that magically appear or surface that were never presented in the documentation, that the dealer communicates to you, i.e. like "adjustments" costs not being covered under warranty.

I have dealt with dealers in New Jersey, Maryland, North Carolina, Georgia, Minnesota, New York, California and New York. There is no perfect dealer and collectively they rate a 7 out of 10.

PCNA is basically "tone deaf" when contacted and refers everything back to its dealers on warranty (which is understandable per their contracts with dealers). However there could be a better system of support from PCNA to assist when a dealer "stonewalls" an issue.

When resistance is met at dealer level, you then must press what you believe to be a warranty item, with time consuming extensive follow-up, hoping that a Regional rep investigates. It then becomes a hit or miss as far as securing 100% coverage on a, i.e. part failure, labor cost, that a KIA or Toyota dealer would cover 100% without hesitation.

Overall, it is an estimated 50/50 outcome, whether the warranty is honored and goes as advertised, as there always seems to be a new caveat preventing total coverage under the original or CPO warranty. It always is a battle of wills, even in these days where Porsches are amongst the most expensive production cars on the market, where you would think they would stand behind more ardently. Relatively speaking, one would expect more supportive service, when a part or system fails within the warranty period or slightly beyond, say 6 months, without haggling.

The "IMS failure fiasco" with the 996 did much to erode my confidence in Porsche standing behind their product that I purchased and it took a class action suit to bring any justice to the situation albeit a decade later after ownership.

Additionally, another example of the recent 10 year engine warranty instituted on the 991.1 GT3s in the US, also took quite a follow-up effort from Rennlist members to become the "safety blanket" for many owners, going forward.

My actual experience, for example, with Toyota or Lexus products has been much better relative to customer service and warranty coverage when something breaks or doesn't function as designed, both in and out of warranty.

As the OP states, these annoyances occur, thankfully not too often, and we do seem to put up with them because we like the way these cars perform.

As the prices continue to escalate on Porsches and become more commonplace at over $150K, it will be interesting to see how loyalty is effected when warranty work is a constant negotiation.

It does appear though it will not be greatly effected in a negative way, because the competition from other high performance brands is just as lacking in customer service, if not worse in my experience, i.e. Mercedes, BMW, Audi.

We all know it is not a perfect world and just the way things are in the automotive world of customer service......Mediocrity in customer service after the sale is where the bar is set for immediate profitability purposes. When we experience excellent customer service, it is a huge and pleasant surprise.

Originally Posted by the_buch

I appreciate this thread as I'm 70 this year and now believing I'll still be driving a Porsche for a couple of decades yet. In fact, in your honour, I'm going to take it for a spin right now. Thanks, Doug

Originally Posted by Jim M.

I'm 76 and don't plan to get rid of my Turbo S for a looong time. Drives over 4 hours don't help my back, but it's nothing worth getting rid of this amazing car.

Originally Posted by tinkll1

I think that driving enjoyment doesn't diminish with age unless loss of health and mental acuity progress rapidly. I'm reminded of correspondence with Porsche GMBH in 2010 over my request to see the "marriage" of body and powertrain, on the assembly line, for my 997 Turbo S (new Porsche #8) which I described as "my last Porsche," in a vain attempt to draw sympathy from management. I went so far as to direct my comments via letter to 2 Porsche board members with the famous last name, and a Piech, but was redirected to a long chain of buffers who declared that photos on the production line, or visits were impossible and would never happen, citing the privacy of workers. I note that, consistent with this declaration, the photos that are made available, on the production line, do not show workers. So, it would seem, that pounding on the doors by enough people eventually resulted into "Track My Dream." When I set my retirement date for 2016, I assured my Porsche saleswoman, who had sold me #8, that #9, a 991.1 Turbo S would be my last Porsche, as I could have no business car without a business. #6, a 1996 993 Turbo was driven for 195,000 miles before getting a second chance with a neurosurgeon in Seattle. I was driving to as many as 7 hemodialysis clinics and 5 hospitals, working 7 days/week much of the time. Pat-time employment, as an employee, doesn't qualify me for a business car.

An interest in cars, and Porsche and its racing, is helping to keep me fully engaged in life.