Hi all. I really blew it. Took my baby to be smog checked. I had to stay out of the bay and got distracted by a phone call. The guy put it on the 2W dyno and ran it up. By the time, looking into the bay, I realized what he was doing it was too late. Took to the dealership and they said I probably destroyed the viscous coupling. One of the codes that came up also said ABS failure. Will repairing the viscous coupling fix the problem or should I be aware of other damage besides?

 

I'm confused by your statement "I probably destroyed the VC". This is something the smog check place is on the hook for.

You might want to post this in the 996 Turbo forum as well since there might be somebody that went though the very same thing.

 

dell - i think he means he put a AWD car on a 2wd dyno, and it spun the back wheels but the fronts couldnt spin. That is friggin horrible; especially on a turbo S! Good luck, the garage should clearly pay.

 

I know what he meant (4WD on a 2WD dyno) but I am confused why he thinks, as he said, that HE screwed up.

 

I think it is pretty clear the garage is at fault. Did they say anything?

 

Crystal clear. If they don't even ASK if the car is 4WD or 4WD capable in today's day of car offerings in 4WD when they clearly know their dyno is for a 2WD car only then they are clearly at fault.

 

I'm willing to bet his mistake was taking it to that garage - one screwup that he will probably never do again. (grin)

What a pity, however. Some mechanic should get flogged.

 

kellyT: does the car drive OK?

 

Damn ... which shop was this?

 

Isn't that the two wheel mod???? Sorry, for the joke but I've seen a few asking how to disassemble their awd. I'm sure the shop will pay for the damage, it's clearly there fault. Let us all know the outcome, please.

 

I hope so, but I think this story is going to continue for a bit. I'll bet they either won't have the money or will come up with some BS excuse to try to get out of it. Here in CA, these smog check places often only do smog checks and they don't appear to be places that have a ton of cash sitting in a bank account for something like this.

 

I think last year here in California they passed a new even more strict SMOG check. I just had my BMW done and I went to a SMOG test center only. The machine had 2 rollers and since my car is only RWD, the guy backed it onto the machine and ran the test. But the new machines that all shops have to buy for the new test include 2 rollers so that they can accomodate AWD vehicles also.
Sounds like the tech just did not know that this particular Porsche was AWD, or asked. The technician I went to asked me if my car was RWD before driving it onto the roller.

 

I've done a SMOG check only twice and both times the shop has been small, dingy and dilapidated. I don't know what insurance these guys carry... but I suspect they will have a hard time paying for major repairs on a Turbo S.

 

They should be insured if they are authorized smog facilities operating under state law, no?

What would they have done if you drove in there with an SUV? They should have asked. For crying out loud, isn't the ENTIRE line of Subie's 4WD???

 

Thanks for the replies. After the fact the guy said it was ok since he had turned off the psc. I wasn't buying it inasmuch as the computer was displaying all sorts of errors. He got on the phone with what must have been the boss and were speaking some foreign language. He came back and said everything is fine the car just threw some codes and if I drive it a bit they will go away. I wasn buying that either. I drove down the street to the Porsche dealership and the service manager just shook his head in disgust. It was part of a 76 station and was all certified and everything else. However, as I pulled in I got a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach and of course I just rationalized it away.

The service manager said it might take weeks because they have to get the parts from Germany.

You bet I am going to make them pay. We can do it the easy way or the hard way. Their choice!

You can bet I won't make that mistake again.

Best,

Kelly