Porsche_nuts

I guess it is "lucky" that your dashboard lit up like crazy after a few minutes. Cannot imagine if that would have happened a few hours later while driving it back home.

Never ever trust a dealership for a used car. Never.

Was ready to buy a used Mercedes a few months back. Really like it as did the wife. Talked to the sales guy for a good hour about the car. He said everything was perfect. While we went out for a second test drive, I asked him to get me the Carfax. When we got back from the test drive he told us the Carfax reported that the car was in an accident. He said he did not know why the accident did not show up on his computer. Do not know how major or minor the accident was, but it was enough for the previous owner to trade it in.

So again. Never ever trust a dealership for a used car. Never.

FlyDL757

So… I did do a test drive, but not the PPI - assumed a newish car and CPO was good to go. Not! On the test drive, I noticed a seeming brief rear wheel spin, I assumed it was traction loss as it was a bit icy(DC area). As the roads were still kind of slushy, I didn’t want to push it. On the way home, as I was accelerating to the on-ramp, that same “jumping” happened followed by PSM fault, See Dealer IMMEDIATELY, Engine Control fault warnings, plus several dash lights. Significant vibration/shaking occurred when giving the car gas - felt like a flat tire but worse(tires were fine).

I was already disappointed about the dent, but considering they had had this car for a few weeks, and this is the condition it came out in, I just did not feel comfortable taking it… Last minute flight home is a bit pricey, but better than any alternative, so I guess I am ‘lucky.’

CSK 911 C4S

What dealer were you dealing with?

TSO__

This is disappointing to hear. I am also in the market for a 991.2 and given the current market am considering buying CPO cars sight unseen outside of my area. With your experience, seems like the need to fly out and test drive or PPI are worth the cost even for CPO...

FlyDL757

responded to your PM…. And unfortunately, yes, worth the cost.

TSO__

Thanks!

ducktails

Crappy situation all round, and thank you for sharing it - it helps to get the word out that that at the end of they day CPO is a warranty program - not a mark of excellence or a substitute for an actual PPI. Dealers are incentivized to take and sell whatever inventory they can get at the moment and like homebuying in a hot market buyers are incentivized to rush through without doing inspections in case they lose the deal.

This car will be remediated and sold to someone else pretty quickly I'd bet, although if it's a real problem child the dealer might move it on to another dealer via an auction.

Calling out the name of the dealer won't help, we should probably assume that most dealers are letting the odd lemon slip through CPO. I will however give the dealer enormous credit for taking the car back and voiding/refunding after you drove it off the lot though. At least in California 'there's no cooling off period' - once you leave the lot it's your problem.

When buying a used car (CPO or no), google the VIN, get the CarFax, and do an independent PPI and you'll catch 90% of any potential problems.

h22hatch

Dealer begin with a T?

996scott

That's a bummer things didn't work out with the car but i think i would definitely say you did the right thing in walking away.

Bud Taylor

Eric Beitling with Roslyn Porsche in NY pulled the same crap with me on a CPO car with only 5K miles years ago. CPO means crap. In my case they had already shipped the car so I would have been out thousands in shipping had a returned the vehicle. In my case it was only a bumper respray which they begrudgingly paid for half of but what a friggen rip off. You are always better off buying from an honest individual than a dealer in the long run (even if you take a tax hit).

GSBruce

Thanks for outing the dealer and individual involved in your case. So few here have the decency to help the other rennlist.com members avoid such trash.

PJ Cayenne

The internet makes it relatively easy to locate a car that's closer to your price point and preferred equipment list. But for heaven's sake, get on the road or a jet and check it out in person. Even the best pictures don't show scratches, indicate engine noises and you can't smell the interiors. Even if the trip cost you $1,000 and a day of work, in the long run, money well spent.

RPA911

I would post the VIN of the vehicle so anyone else looking will know its a problem vehicle. That way if you don't want to out the dealer your aren't directly doing so.

fluid15

I wouldn’t consider naming the dealer an issue. It would be stating facts and not opinions. What happened was actual and no one, including the Dealer should have an issue. He also explained how they ultimately gave his money back, which they may not have been required.

PP13

It's Amazing what a dealership does with a high end car like Porsche. Sales are all fundamentally the same across the board; just sale a car at any expense. I never thought a Porsche dealership would be representing Porsche in this fashion. I had an experience similar with my current 2013 991 purchased in 2020 with CPO. the driver side door panel was warped the entire area was lifted off the main door panel, poor manufacturing bond I suppose. I had no prior knowledge of this issue and they told that the CPO will cover it. I asked them to put it on paper to show it. I bought the car in NY and I live in NJ so when it was delivered I called my local Porsche dealership and they said it is not covered under CPO so now I am back dealing with the dealership in NY 100miles away trying to fix this issue. I ended up driving the car there leaving it there and they gave me a loaner to drive as they try to fix it Several days later got a call to come get the car they can't fix it and the door panel needed to be replaced, in their defense they went and replaced both door panels as the other door may have the same issue at some point in time. It wasn't covered under CPO so the dealership paid $3000 to replace them both. I ended up driving back and forth since they had to order the door panel's and a month later I had finally got it installed. You see where I am going with this. The car should have been fixed prior to putting it up for resale. We are not talking about Joe's auto sales around the corner, this is Porsche. I was very disappointed to see a dealership represent a high end car like this. 1st impression are so important and I definitely learned that 1st hand.
In your case, they should have enclosed all the details regarding the vehicle no exceptions. The dent would definitely bother me not knowing about it ahead of time. As the SHARK TANK show goes, for that reason I am out.
I would have shopped around at another dealer and hope you have a positive experience. BTW, PDR, only works on metal surfaces not fiberglass or composite material so I don't know how they were going to fix the dent.
Here is a link to a video that showed the door problem was wide spread.

Good luck Bud.
Fatola