eman991

Hi Guys,

So I found a car out in Texas (i'm in CA) and would like to get the car checked out thoroughly. I had a local place do a PPI and he found some repaint on a panel. So now , I'm thinking of having them take it to porsche to do another PPI. The only problem is, the porsche dealer just told me they don't do that. So now I'm not sure what to . Any ideas? Also what are your thoughts on buying a car that has a clean car fax but has visible signs of repaint on the rear quarter panel?

CSK 911 C4S

There are other cars out there.

Unless it's a killer deal then grab a flight and take a look at it yourself and see if you can live with it.

eman991

its is a good deal (which leads me to wonder) but jumping on a flight is a non starter due to my condition at the moment.

mreloc

In my experience, Porsche dealers frequently stay away from performing PPIs. Why do you feel you need a second one, anyway?

eman991

because I'm trying to figure out about the repainted panel. It could be a cover up for a bigger accident that was not reported on carfax

tgavem

Where in TX?
There was a lawsuit in Texas by a Lambo owner who purchased a car and had PPI performed prior to purchase. There was a problem with the car and he sued the company that performed the PPI and they lost and had to perform +30k worth of repair.
So now, most wont do it. Some still do, but wont issue a report.
If car is a good deal, check car carefully. If it was traded at dealer, sold at auction, then moved to TX and being sold by independent dealer. Most likely there is something going on. Dealer will tell you, "we don't know, unless Carfax or seller has it reported, we wouldn't know". Terrible sellers.
Anyway, there are signs in the report that may hint of something. look at history.

Post sale add and VIN here..people will help. Nobody will take the deal away from you

rsabeebe

like tgavem said, where in TX? depending on the location, i'm sure you can get some very solid recommendations on shops who can do the 2nd ppi. i have also run across dealers not wanting to get involved and it's all related to liability. if they miss something, they could be held accountable. why bother, from their perspective? i don't blame them - it's not their business model anyway. i'm sure you can get very good recs on shops for a ppi from people in TX. i'm in the dallas area.

Turbodan

take it to a body shop if paint work needs investigating.

eman991

they're in Stafford, close to Houston

Greg D.

Devil's advocate here: I've been the seller of *that* car... I had a rear quarter panel repainted on an older 911 after I found a scratch/dent on its rear fender, post mechanic work (parking lot love tap, his problem). My insurance was never involved, he had a body shop buddy fix it, no Carfax...

They had to do the panel and go over the side of the roof under the rain gutter and under the door on the sill, to blend/match properly - platinum metallic, a b$%$%ch of a color, too...So if you used a paint meter you'd think "Oh my god" but in reality the dent was 2" long and would have probably popped back by hand if the paint had not cracked... The car was A-OK, I would have hated to lose a sale on that car because of something that trivial... Wasn't an issue in my case, new owner knew the car... Just taking the opposite tack here, saying if you had a PPI done and *all they found* was evidence of a partial repaint AND NOTHING ELSE, I would not lose sleep over it... Simplest explanation is sometimes the right one...

Now if the left half of the underside is twice as shiny as the right half, because mechanical stuff was replaced, then sure... But PPIs sometimes are misleading with the shop trying not to overly **** off either side, by going overboard one way or the other. I had a long distance PPI by a reputable shop that pronounced the car "perfect" (a 1973 911) and the car came to me with 2x VIN numbers, a putrefied rat spread all over the engine, cooling issues, no idle, and was made of 2 cars spliced together. Best advice would be go see it in person if serious, make the determination yourself... I personally no longer believe in PPIs I'm not witness to - check the ECU for over revs, ask if the car looks like it's been in an obvious accident... After that, the hell with it... just MHO. If there was a huge problem, it's very likely insurance and carfax would be reporting something, but sometimes carfax misses out... Go see...

subshooter

You already had a PPI. Ask a guy on rennlist who lives near the car to go take a look at it and give you an opinion. I'd trust a stranger on this forum over a stranger at a shop. I did this for a guy on another forum.

Just a thought.

2thdoc14

Having doe this in the last 3 weeks, i will tell you to go see it. I had PPI done by independent shop and while he was detailed, he didnt describe the extent of a few issues. On my car, Porsche of Roslyn posted photos of my car when new...not as it sat. The PPI shop didnt send me pics which may have allowed me to make a better choice.

In my case the decals on the Endurance car were horribly faded and cracked. Im waiting to see o\if porsche will cover these, but I have to pay my detail guy to take them off and deal with whats underneath. Thats in process right now.
In the future, I will spend a day and fly down to see the car before signing...you are screwed once they have your money.

MJBird993

I'm with Turbodan on this one - have them take it to a reputable body shop and get their opinion.

Phil T

What's the name of the dealership? I'm in that area frequently......Phil

tgavem

Quick check on autotrader and the only 991 available in Stafford are at Texas Direct Auto, they have a 2012 and 2015.