bstrutton

I have a question & need some advice on how to best handle a situation. When replacing the alternator recently I discovered that the insulation on the harness was completely disintegrated. Sent the car via flatbed to the only local dealer that actually has a real Porsche mechanic any longer. Called ahead to arrange, assured part was in stock & told the service manager when to expect it.

Seems pretty straightforward.

Arrived on the day I said it would -last Tue. He calls me Wed morning & tells me that his (singular) Porsche tech was going on vacation starting Wed & wouldn't be back til this week. Pissed me off to no end but didn't have much recourse having just spent $200 on the flatbed transport. I figured it was an indicator of things to come & unfortunately it seems I was spot on..

Before I start escalating things I wanted to make sure I have my facts straight.

Question: Is there ANY way that the engine wiring harness can be changed without substantially removing the alternator / fan assembly? Am I missing something? Is there some other part of the engine that has to come off for the harness anyway that would yield access to the back of the alternator providing access to the 4 cone retaining nuts & three wiring nuts / screws??

The reason that I ask is this: To my way of thinking, I thought the alternator HAS to come out anyway so I didn't put the assembly back on the car -I figured it would save them at least 30 minutes so why make it more difficult for them since I already had it off.. Now the service writer / manager / whatever is insisting that they're going to have to charge me an hour of labor to put the alternator back on. Now, without getting into the semantics of whether their labor is worth $140 an hour, let me just say it REALLY isn't about the money. I could give a **** about the $140. To me it's two fold:

1) I do not BELIEVE their assertion that the harness can be replaced without substantially removing the alternator assembly.

2) Given this I do not believe that I should have to pay for something that is part of the R&R of the harness to begin with.

I know what some of you might be thinking.. It's NOT like I dropped off a box full of loose parts with the car.. The assembly is, well, assembled. From the rear cone to the front pulley -100%. I included a note for the tech as to what the story was.

Second issue: On the note to tech I clearly stated that the cab top is currently in-op and NOT to proceed with that recall yet. I had a motor or cable fail at the end of last season & have been waiting for warm weather to get into it. Given that I've read here that an alignment is part of the locking motor recall, I thought it to my advantage to repair the failed top component first & leverage the recall for the alignment. Just seems like common sense.

The service writer / manager is asserting that they MUST do the top recall while they're doing the other recall or they can't do the harness recall. While I suspect that it may be preferred for the dealer to collect both checks from Porsche at the same time, I HIGHLY doubt that it's REQUIRED by PNA.

Of course to add fuel to the fire all of this was conveyed to me on Wed (when the tech was supposedly back from vacation). I pushed back then. He calls me again this morning & I'm thinking "hey the car's ready". Not. He's calling to tell me the same thing. Asked if tech had even started on car. No, we had to order the part (which I'd been told was absolutely in stock). This guy at Lavery is a straight up liar.

Sorry to be long winded but I wanted to be clear so that I could get some input. I'm trying to be polite but firm. I'm wondering if my next step is GM then Owner or if that's likely to even do any good & should jump right to some level at PNA ? If I need to go to PNA, what does that organization look like from a contact perspective?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions regarding this.

I'm SO glad that we have Munk's here as our independent so I at least have a competent option & don't have to deal with Porsche for normal stuff.

rsr91128

PM or post your email address and I can send you the TSB with the replacement instructions so you will understand the work they need to do, it is too big to upload here (1.4m). I replaced my own, the part was $100 and I had the engine out anyway.

They do have to remove or loosen the alternator, step 31 in the TSB, and as stiff as the new wires are it is much easier to have the fan assembly out of the way. No charge should be applied IMO.

I can't blame them for "forcing" you to do the other recall, I think this is a liability thing for a dealer.

Good luck with it.


EDIT:

Dug through old posts and found a link to the TSB's if anyone else wants them:

http://members.rennlist.org/pcaracin...gharness5.html

If you ever need a replacement harness you can order the warranty kit, part # 000 043 204 61 you can buy this for around $100. Inside the box you get the new harness (993 607 016 15 list price over $900) and 6 zip ties.

budge96

I think that is all BS !!! They should be prepared to handle the recall either one when and if it's conveinent for you to leave your vehicle,there is no charge to reassemble alternator yes it must be removed in toto to do the wiring recall.
I just went through this with a local dealer in wash Dc and they handled everything although I believe I did reassemble the thing and drive it in( I carefully wrapped the exposed wiring in elec tape).
Mine was a '96 turbo and i know the tech believe me when I threatened to bring my other 993TT he
asked could he have a breather because it was no day at the park he said! Bert

bstrutton

I'm almost kicking myself now because as I re-read through the recall verbiage posted with the TSB, it appears that if one did the work previously that it is re-reimbursable. Might could have bought the part, had Munk's do the work & expensed it against the recall. Would have been out of pocket for a while but much less frustration. Doh!

FlatSix911

Here is the complete TSB for the 993 wiring harness:

Al Z

If you decide to have it done at Fred Levery's, make sure Kern does all the work. He is the only guy I would let touch any of my cars while I lived in Rochester Hills.
He is probably one, if not the best in the area.
Al Z

bstrutton

Yep. Left a note in the car asking for Kern. Based on a tip that I got from Munk's, he's the ONLY certified / experienced Porsche mechanic left at ANY of the 3 dealers in the metro Detroit area. I'm told that both of the other two dealerships have lost ALL of their Porsche mechanics and have no one qualified on staff at all. Lavery referred to their 'Porsche mechanic' (singular) being on vacation..

In the computer industry channel partners have to maintain minimum quantities of certified folks (and I can assure you it's not "one") in order to keep their vendor service authorization.. To me the situations with the local dealers are shocking & I honestly can't see how PNA allows that to persist.

TMc993

The newest of our cars are approaching 12 years of age and compared to the number of currrent models of Porsches on the road today, they are fairly uncommon.

As irritating as it may be for those of us that own 993s, they simply aren't a profit center for most dealers. It only follows that they aren't going to invest in technicians that don't generate profit.

The older the car is, the less the liklihood that a dealer will have a technician that can work on it. The answer is to learn to do what you can yourself and then find a good independent shop and support them with your business when you can't do the work.

Al Z

bstrutton, sent you a PM.
Al Z