andrewjn

Id like to get feedback/post a warning etc for everyone. Here's my story:

I love love love 993s. I just purchased my third one (1997 TT, 1997 c4 cab, 1996 C2) so I'm no stranger to these cars. I frequently read the forums but I don't post a lot. I've had the C2 for a month and purchased it from a private owner. Beautiful car cosmetically. Mid range miles in the 50s.

Here's my story: lots of conversation with the owner and PPI done (same shop owner serviced the car). PPI showed only belts need replaced and front rotors ($500). Shamefully I didn't go out and see the car and drive it in person. On delivery of the car it is just as described and represented....then I drove it. Grinding from 1st to 2nd gear unless I'm very deliberate in shifting, car pulls to the right, and a very disturbing shuttering on idle. I could tell this on driving 2 blocks and I'm not a mechanic. So I take it to my Indy. Tell him to look it over....in a nutshell his is what he finds:

Clutch is bad
Needs alinement
Air filter
Needs engine mounts
Needs front rotors and pads
Cylinder 6 not firing--needs new ignition harness

Crap; okay fix it. He gets in there and oh by the way the flywheel is warped too and needs to be replaced as well.

Crap; okay do it. Then I get a call; we put everything back together and the idle problem is not fixed although the ignition harness WAS cracked and old and needed replaced. They break it down and find that cylinder 6 has a compression of 20% and one of the valves is burned out....they recommend a top end rebuild....uggghhhhh!!!!

So now I'm going thru what we all dread. I paid a fair price but staring at a 15000 repair bill. I have a great car. And when they are done it will need absolutely nothing. Everything will be done that could possibly need to be. So I understand these cars are old. Things break and it's expensive to fix. I also realize that I should have seen the car in person before buying. And I'm still happy, in a glass half full kind of way.

But what do you all think? Did the reputable shop who did the PPI severely drop the ball? Did the lie to me? Was there negligence? What about the previous owner? I just don't understand how you could own a car and take "great" care of it and not know these things were going on....

I welcome opinions and thoughts no matter how harsh....

goofballdeluxe

PPI burden falls on the buyer, not the seller.

In hindsight, it probably wasn't a great idea to have the same shop who serviced the car for the previous owner do the PPI, since they have a dog in the fight.

That said, unless you can absolutely prove without a doubt that they acted in bad faith, you'd have a long fight ahead to recover any costs.

Sorry to hear this, but that is why one should always get a PPI from an independent 3rd party mechanic who has no interest either way in any outcome.

Good luck with your new car; once it's fixed up, it'll fit nicely into your impressive 993 stable

andrewjn

Yes I agree. Quite a few things I'd do differently. I have no intention of trying to recover any costs. But I will likely let the shop know what they missed. And stress to them how they let me down and failed at the job I paid them to do.

I would hope that everyone wil read the post and learn from my mistake!

nile13

I believe that the max liability of a PPI shop is the amount of money they charged you for a PPI ($300 or whatever). If car was sold "as is", unfortunately, that's the extent of what the shop or the owner would be on the hook for.

I'd talk to the owner and see if anything can be worked out in good faith.

For cars purchased sight unseen, a Rennfax >> PPi.

nile13

Well, name the PPI shop!

OverBoosted28

My brother had about the same thing when he bought my car. Bought it, and then had to sink another $30k into it, on a rebuild.

squidge

The list of obvious stuff you found wrong, that the PPI didn't call out, is ridiculous. It sounds like they didn't really do an inspection but just signed off on it because they've maintained the car in the past. Shady. As others have said, I don't think you'll get much out of them... the onus is ultimately on you to be thorough before purchasing.

M. Schneider

The shop's name performing the PPI of your 993 purchase?

Cheer's M/S

andrewjn

M/S and Nile....nothing would please me better than to call them out but without hearing their side I don't feel like it would be fair. I would say that I purchased this car from a fellow rennlister. And the previous owner DID take good care of the car. If you really want to know I can send you the name by pm.

clib

sounds bad. Sounds like best lesson is only get a PPI once the car has passed an experience person test drive. Not always easy long distance.
I think we over value PPIs in general probably heightened as the stakes have gone so high on our cars. My experience with PPI's has been mixed and i have never had one reveal something When all seem perfect on a good test drive and careful look around and under. On the contrary i have seen great cars that were 20-25 years old passed over after being thrashed by a PPI that scares the owner because they were done to the level of "like new " condition when cars this old if driven will have ongoing and evolving repair needs.

Ed Hughes

The BIG mistake, which you know was having this same shop ppi. If the owner relied on them to maintain the car, and they are as bad as they seem to be, he was at their mercy. Driving the actual car before plunking the final cash down is a mandatory, IMO.

Most PPI's do not include comp test or leakdown, unless you specified it and paid for it.

chsu74

Did OP specify what he wanted in his PPI? A leak down and compression? If no, then can't pin the top end issue on seller or shop. Did OP ask to review maintenance records and see when clutch was last replaced? A shop PPI can only do so much. Buyer should educate themselves on how to buy a 20 yr old used car.

LexVan

Oooouch. You are in Kansas City. Hope you did not have BHR do the PPI. See the crashed GT3RS thread.

andrewjn

Lmao! Yes I'm in KC. The PPI was done in another shop...NC to be specific. I saw the gt3 Rs article! Scared the s*** Out of me! Let's be honest...that kind of thing can happen at any shop. Anger nightmare! I've serviced my cars at BHR since 2001 and Aaron has worked on all of my cars. they've been great from what I experienced. They are settling up the matter with the owner but wow! They have been torpedoed on social media and although they were at fault, admitted the mistake, they are really being lambasted perhaps unfairly.

Chsu...it comes down to what is reasonable expected from a PPI. If the shop (who drove the car, and are experts on Porsches) can't tell it's that far out of alignment, that the clutch is cashed, and the rough idle issue should be at least part of the report then what am I paying for? Yes a leak down would have been nice but I had one available in the records rom 42 k miles.

As I said, I'm reasonable. I had full, and I mean full service history. At 57k miles I knew the clutch would be close...I accept that. But they told me it was tight? I'm okay with doing the necessary repairs on a 20 yr old car but wow.

nile13

I'm not sure I understand the acceptance of spent clutch at only 57K miles. Are we now driving so poorly that the clutch wouldn't last 80-100K miles?

As for PPI, I view it on par with Rennfax maybe lower. Just another pair of eyes. Often distracted and/or with conflict of interest. In all honesty, I can name at least a dozen Rennlist members that I'd prefer to test-drive and look at the car than I would a PPI.