perrys7342

In the latest October 2004 edition of the Porsche Club of America Panorama magazine, the 911 Technical Guru Joel Reiser give a very negative impression of the 993 in response to a question "What is the New 997 engine". (Incidentally, he didn't answer that and should have said..."I don't know").

Indicating 993's with OBD-II's are "coming down with major OBD-II failures" with some failing emissions with "mileages as low as 30,000" and indicating "Even worse for the loyal one-car owner, this car is not going the distance it should. Not even close." Adding on with "worn out valve guides with way too few miles" and "...exhaust guides worn out (or worn enough..) at 10-20,000 miles.", he give the impression these cars are pieces of rolling junk and maintenance nightmares for potential owners.

He then adds "insult to injury" (in spite of facts to the contrary) by recommending the 996 (albeit with warranty) over the 993 and even the GT2/GT3.

Strangely, Bruce Anderson, previously a longtime PCA Technical Guru and writer for Excellence Magazine, while always favoring "the newest you can afford" has said just the opposite.

No flame-war intended, but just wonder if this guy truly has the background (or I've paid PCA dues in error for over 30 years) to slam-dunk the 993 for perhaps "undecided Porsche Voters" in this way...

Perry (42 Years of Porsche Ownership)

DC from Cape Cod

If he wants to see rolling junk, he is welcome to check out my first Cayenne Turbo that was in the shop for 48 business days in the first 10 months of ownership.

Mike in Chi

I've had a number of techs, dealer and independent, say hold on to those cars. They are bulletproof.

I wonder how would Reiser explain the disaster of the early 996 engines?

Adrienne

Joel does provide an odd answer to a question about the 997 engine. Maybe he is trying to ding the 993 because so many people are comparing the 997 to it. I have not yet read the article, but based on your summary, it looks like I will be able to relate very well. Joel's comments may not be true for all the 993s, but enough of them to warrant his comments. We really should expect more from Porsche, and considering the posts on this board regarding OBD II, carbon build-up, worn valve guides, SAI, etc, I think Joel has a point.

And here is the reason for my comments:
I am about a week away from getting my valve guides replaced. I suspect I'll have worn exhaust valves as well. I reviewed my repair records over the past 2 years, and I have spent a chunk of change on OBD II and valve guide related issues, trying to prevent the inevitable. Indeed, hindsite is speaking loudly to me about my purchase 2 years ago.

However, the cool thing is, once I get the work completed, I will have replaced the parts of the engine that are known to fail, and thus my car will be all the more reliable. Maybe that's dreaming, but I remain optimistic.

One thing Joel probably did not mention is that the 993 is still fetching a fair price, as people are still willing to buy regardless of these potential problems. There is just nothing else like the 993, and the pain and suffering appears to be worth it.

Jean

It is difficult to get worldwide statistics on how reliable our 993s are, therefore it is as difficult for Joel Raiser to say they are not. This board represents a good panel of 993 drivers and it seems that most people swear by their reliability. So who do you believe? Let us give the 997 10 years of existence, and we will meet again.
But above all, Perry, "chapeau bas" for your 42 years of Porsche ownership!

Racer944

I can't comment on whether the information he provided is accurate or not. In response to whether or not he has the background though I can say that Joel Reiser does have tons of experience with the 911 and particularily the 993. He has fielded competitive cars/teams at Daytona, Sebring, etc, (partnered with Tony Callas), and he regularily runs his 993 GTR's in regional and national events. Whether this gives him true incite into the street cars or not is up to us individually to decided I guess.

jbuchsba

Mr. Reiser's tech comments on the pca.org site have been informative for me. I bought my 95 993 knowing what I was getting into....and I expect to put 2000 or so dollars at an indy shop (is it more) into valve guides if needed. For now, I am that group of users with cars that don't leak oil.

I don't over rev or do DE's (yet....but it is not likely for home front reasons....).

I like to drive fast, but not with the tail out, if you will (I don't have the guts to do so on public roads, to be honest).

I just love the car, even at 1/10th of its potential...the feel, noise, look, basic sportiness and robustness...it just is an amazing car. The 996 to me is a lighter GT car..the 993 is a "sports car"...hopefully not porsches last......

The 997 is more sporty looking, but I still like my 993 more and it is a whole lot more affordable.

The real question we need to evaluate is why isn't Porsche replacing valve guides under a sort of recall/warranty campaign....if we all make noise, including the article by Mr. Reiser, maybe they'll see the wisdom in taking care of the part of the population that has already voted with their pocketbooks.....to do otherwise is dumb business IMHO.

mnmblu

Yeah, good luck. Look what it took for them to finally fess up to the defective wiring harness problem that was turning 993's into toast. Oh, look that smoldering heap of melted metal was a 993.

I vote that you start a recall campaign and I will be the first to sign.

jbuchsba

I have too much going in in my life right now....long boring story.

But, I would support anyone doing the same......where and how do we start?

Just think, all 993's would get one top end job on Porsche....with the new material valve guides.


Now, there was a thread on the fact that a weak link in an engine is not such a bad thing to have......thoughts?

jb

Adrienne

Jbuchsba, I started the weak link thread, regarding the valve guides maybe being weak to protect other more vital engine parts from breaking and ruining the entire engine. But, based on the responses, it appears that was optimistic, "Ferdi uber alles" thinking on my part.

I would be happy to spend some time helping out with a recall campaign. Not intending to steal this thread, but if enough folks seem interested, I could put down some thoughts and run it by some folks in the know regarding the issues. I've done my Rennlist homework, that's for sure. Besides, I'm about to crack my engine open, so I'll have first hand knowledge of the need for recall, although I will not actually benefit from it. Too late in my case.

mnmblu

Adrienne,

Where do I sign, on your new thread regarding this matter, I assume???? Create links on all Porsche Forums, i.e. Pelican... etc. If you build it they will come?

You are a very ambitious woman which has always shown through clearly in your threads. I really do believe that you would be the perfect candidate to carry out such a campaign. Now with the added confirmation of the problem in regard to this most recent article, you have the extra ammo to substantiate the problem. Strike while the iron is hot!!

I support your effort.

Adrienne

Thanks for the support Alan. True, it could be great timing with the article. We could individually write Letters to the Editor in response to the article. We can essentially slam dunk Panorama in response to their slam dunk. Take that!!

Meanwhile, I'm planning to take lots of pics of my car's internals during the valve guide replacement, so I can use that as a case study, depending on what we find. I'll do some work on a recall campaign and then post a thread about it in the near future. It'll give me something to do while my car is laid up and in pieces in the shop.

Jean

While I fully support such action and think it is very courageous, but IMHO (not wanting to sound pessimistic) I have some doubts about its success due to the fact that, unlike the wiring harness, this does not represent a serious safety threat, but rather a mechanical weakness resulting in a replacement of the defective parts (any mechanical failure is a hazard, but at different levels). Also, there so many 993 not having had these problems and with high mileage.
I do not know of many sports cars that are as reliable as a 993, and delivering reliably above 80hp/ltr. looking back at the ones that were available 10 years ago, definitely not the Ferrari, nor lamborghini or Aston Martin, actually even the new models are not.
This issue IS a weakness in the engine but like many others in so many other brands of sports cars and even sedans (the M3 comes to mind).
Please do not take this as a flame, and I hope I am wrong.

H. Miller

I don't totally agree with Reiser because I love 993s.
But I have had my share of problems. Some problems I've read about and eno****ered personally: steering rack, rear main seal leaks, air conditioning issues, bubbling rust in sheet metal around windshield ('95), third brake light reliability, power seat sticking, wiring harness (TY PCNA for fixing), factory audio problems, shocks wear out quickly, and a few other things.
They are expensive cars to own, but most know that going in.

Dr. No

That was the implication of Reiser's remark in Panorama - that it might be. Would be interesting to know if anyone has gotten the fix covered under that warranty.