This is the type of stuff that is making me want to go back to Benz. They say you should never meet your idol. And after disastrous ownership of 997 and now this, I'm afraid my next purchase may not be a Porsche.
Was looking for this car for a year an a half, first week issues with opening engine cover, 4 weeks in to ownership both door panels warping to the point where you can put a finger in there. What a bunch of crock.
Very upset and frustrated.

 

Lol, you think this type of stuff or worse doesn't happen with Mercedes? I had 4, probably the worst quality control of any brand I've ever had. Actually, not probably, "definitely." And they drive like old Cadillacs to boot. #win

Porsche is far above them in QC charts (Porsche is actually at the very top).

I had my door cards replaced, as they did it as a goodwill before my CPO was up. They weren't perfect, but weren't detaching either.

 

I don't think i know, I've had 5 Mercedes ranging from C230 to S550 and although i had a couple problems here and there they were nothing like the issues i had with my 997 and now 991.

The way the vehicle drives has nothing to do with the discussion of a quality build. Mercedes is geared towards luxury and comfort not sport. Not sure why you are comparing apples and bananas.

 

I had both of my door cards replaced as part of the CPO warranty when I first bought mine last year. The passenger side was worse than the driver's side, but both were separating. My dealer pointed them out to me, and assured me they would order and replace both door cards under warranty (and they did, no drama involved).

 

I'm with you, multiple MBs that have needed things across the years but never something so disappointing as the windshield washer hose or separating door panel.

 

If it makes you feel any better, a door panel insert in my Hyundai keeps separating.

 

All 3 of my E Classes had QC issues. Ranging from extreme rattles (W212 E Class boards full of rattle trap issues), paint overspray drippings all over the inner panels (one peeled off) of my W212, fogged inner lights, my W211 had an electronic braking system that was prone to fail, leaving you with no brakes, NHTSA noted many complaints and a TSB for gas leaks inside, my W220 S Class had a rust problem in a dry climate (rust plagued those models). And worst of all, all E Classes had horrendously rough suspensions over rough surfaces, on mere 18” wheels. My lowered 911 rides smoother over rough patches on 20’s. And the M-B’s floated through turns, so literally the opposite of what you want. Imo nobody tunes suspension/chassis worse. You can say apples to bananas, but when one is smoother over challenging surfaces and handles like a scalpel....

New C Class models had tons of QC issues when they came out.

My 5 Series had the doors pop open TWICE (different doors) while I was on the highway.

Imo, peeling door cards that are fully covered even preemptively by Porsche are small beans in the grand scheme. Definitely annoying, but less heavy than QC issues I had on previous cars.

 

2018 C4S Cab. Driver side was "creaking" when I rested my arm on it. No questions asked... ordered new panel. Done deal

 

Amazed (actually saddened) that this problem has existed for what, 6 or 7 years now. Porsche either doesn't know how to remedy the problem or simply doesn't care. My guess is the latter.

 

Now that many of us are out of warranty, and goodwill repairs are somewhat unlikely I thought I’d add my experiences performing a diy repair.

I need to point out that there are actually 2 distinct failures involved here. Removing the panels to do the repairs (takes 5min max to pull ) is a must

The first is glue failure that results in the trim rising up significantly in the middle of the panel. I used 3M super weatherstrip adhesive to glue the trim back to the plastic door panel.

The second failure is when the back end of the panel is raised up. In this case the plastic sub structure has cracked - noting that it is designed to break at this location when the airbag deploys. I used Gorilla super glue gel to bond the breaks - being careful to not glue over the breakaway feature.

Result was was that the back end looks “as new”. The middle portion looks straight (no perceptible curve up) and is bonded in place to the plastic structure, but the plastic sub structure is not particularly strong and allows the edge to rise slightly such that the edge is visible if you look closely.

The repair makes it livable, as Im not ready to spend $2-3k on new panels that may fail again.

 

Thanks for taking the time to describe this. Are you confident the way you've approached the repair wouldn't cause issues with the airbag deploying correctly? If so, I might give this same process a try during the next off season.

 

When reading comments online I was initially quite concerned that any repair would compromise airbag deployment. After removing the panel and examining the substructure it was apparent that gluing the trim back down would have no effect. The plastic sub structure is somewhat flimsy, to allow it to flex out of the way when the airbag deploys. Unfortunately this also means that as it ages in the sun it tends to raise up a little. The only critical stress point is the back end where they want to encourage it to break on deployment. There are “Swiss Cheese” holes to reduce strength. I was careful to only glue the break points and not fill up the holes between. Also felt the gel superglue is a brittle glue so it should fracture if the bag goes.

 

I have a 2016 and just had my drivers side panel replaced under CPO. My SA did mention that cosmetic items are not normally covered under CPO warranty but that Porsche is aware of this issue and it will all be covered. She did look at the passenger side and said it was perfectly fine. I will keep and eye on the passenger side and try and get it replaced before my CPO runs out.

 

Someone finally did it !! Excellent, thank you for reporting back.... If you took pictures please post them ?

 

Note that the usual super glue will not endure the temperature cycling very well and breakaway rather soon, a semi flexible 2 part epoxy with a good temperature range would be better for this application.

Also some panels will not be broken but just warped, heating with a heat gun (from the back) while applying moderate pressure will allow you to return the panel to its original shape.