Gaspasser19

Hi folks. I wanted to call attention to a problem that I've been having with my CPO '03 C4 cab. Please bear with this long painful story, my therapist says it will help me to get it out. Kidding!, ...sort of. I think it is relevant for anyone considering a CPO purchase.

Sometime in mid-October I was caught in a storm and had to put the top up for the ride home. Being a humid day, I turned on the A/C. I discovered that it didn't work! Fan yes, A/C no. Took it to my local dealer who attempted to solve the problem w/o success. It seems the computer wasn't recognizing the A/C because of a problem in the stereo wiring. As the plot thickens, I learn that my car has had an aftermarket stereo at some point which has been replaced with a CDR-220. (MY03 should have a CDR-23 and the MOST system) The service writer charges me $400 for their time and sends me packing to the dealer who originally sold me the car. The good news is that I was able to have my leaky RMS done while it was there. (Would you believe this SOB tried to charge me $1800 before I told him I was aware of the RMS history in the 996?) Thanks Rennlist!

My salesperson at said dealership no longer sells Pcars for them but still works on the BENZ side. He sends me to the CPO Sales Manager. Sales Mgr. says sorry, it's a Service issue. Service Mgr says make an appt. and we'll have a look. First, they tell me it's aftermarket wiring and not covered by CPO. I explain that this is how they sold it to me and if they didn't put the 220 in themselves they should have known it was the wrong headunit. They finally see my point and attempt repair. After a week in which they farm the car out to a specialty auto electric shop they tell me the problem is solved "just some jumbled up wires". I brave the DC beltway at rush hour a second time only to find that, not only does the A/C still not work but now the instrument cluster doesn't light up. Not very confidence inspiring! So, I get another dirty rental car and drive home(4 hr. roundtrip at this time of day). They play with it for another 2 days and this time offer to drive the car to my place of business to make up for the last time. I was unable to inspect the car at time of delivery due to work issues. That night on the way home the A/C works! Hooray! Instrument cluster...not so much Worse, now my CD changer doesn't work! Are you F-ing kidding me?? Service writer makes me bring the car to him this time because they are sure they fixed it and it must be ME! I ask to speak to Service Mgr. Not available right now. Never calls me back but, I'm assured, he's aware of the situation. Again with the pilgrimage to Mecca. This time they tell me the light switch is the culprit for the instruments and the CD changer has died. These are, of course, not CPO items. I tell him I think he's full of **** but he insists that their previous attempts at repair had nothing to do with these issues and I finally pay for the switch and the diagnostic fee(I didn't let them do the CD changer). Another $400. A week later I pop the trunk and discover that the floor panel and wind deflector storage bag are gone! I'm nearly homicidal at this point.

The next day I put in a call to PCNA. They informed me that aftermarket wiring does void the warrantee and my issue was with the sales department at the dealership. They were nice about it, but no help. They offered to call the dealership GM and regional mgr. for me, FWIW.

First of all, I was operating under the misconception that if you bought a CPO you didn't have to worry about a PPI. The car must have been thoroughly checked to qualify for CPO right? This is a sentiment I've seen repeated by others on the board. I hope you all realize this is a potential problem as I now do. Please be careful!

Second, does anyone have any suggestions for how to pursue this further? It's not just the CD changer or a few bucks out of pocket. I'm concerned that I have a car with some potentially significant electrical problems and I think this dealer CPO'd this car inappropriately. There are a few other issues I've omitted that reinforce my point (this post is long enough). Is my only recourse litigation at this point?

BTW, my RMS still leaks...

jyoteen

it sure sounds like a nice letter by a not so friendly lawyer is in order.

OCNYPORSCHE

I wonder if you have been a victim of a flooded car. The electrical gremlins with the A/C and cluster, IMO, are not caused by the stereo. I know that CARFAX is not always accurate, but did you run one before you bought it?

salayc

All the wires are in the same place. I have seen lots, (probably most) stereo installers trash cars when installing a stereo. OEM wires should not be cut to install a stereo but that's commonly how it's done. Chances are they either tried to tap into 12v at the climate control, or they wrapped their spliced wires with electrical tape and something shorted.

Gaspasser19

I guess anything is possible but I have seen no other evidence of flooding. The Carfax is clean for what that's worth.

Gaspasser19

This is apparently what's going on. Would it be that difficult to just replace the factory wiring?

C4CRNA

First: Carfax can be doctored up so an adverse event never gets put on it.
You should have gotten a checklist from the dealer showing that everything met CPO standards and works upon delivery. You need to find out who did the aftermarket stereo if it was the dealer you may have a case if not you may be screwed. Is there any way you can contact the previous owner? That may help a lot, it's always a good idea to do this before the purchase you can learn a lot about the car.

Gaspasser19

No CPO checklist. One of the issues I brought up with PCNA. At the time I bought the car, I was unaware of many things Porsche that I've subsequently learned here. Other issues include aftermarket mufflers, non-N spec all-season tires, laser diffusers front and rear but no control unit.

I can't help but think that the dealer received the car with an aftermarket stereo and replaced it with the CDR-220 because they had one lying around. Why would someone flip their $96K cab after 2 years and take the time to put in the wrong stereo back in before they turned in the car?

C4CRNA

That car was not qualified to be sold as a Porsche CPO. It is supposed to meet ridgid standards required by Porsche.That is a very bad dealer!! What is their name?

SH || NC

That was my first thought as well.

Sounds like you need to first clearly establish whether or not your car is Porsche CPO'd or not.

I would call PCNA to ge them involved; inquire as to the CPO-status of your car; have them send you a letter stating it is or is not a CPO car.

Did you get a binder of CPO documentation a couple weeks after your purchase? You should have. Check your purchase documentation as well - see if the dealer claimed if was a Porsche CPO car.

GL

salayc

I doubt the dealer received the car that way. If someone put in a nice aftermarket stereo, they probably took it out before returning it, then stuck in another car or sold it. I think many RLers do the same.

I also doubt there's anything a stereo installer did that would require replacing the harness, although there's a good chance the OEM connector was cut out. It's tough to say without seeing it. You can get the CDR-220 tools for pulling the stereo for a couple dollars on eBay, or probably from the dealer. Pull it out and see, and / or take some pics.

Be prepared to be horrified. When I pulled my steering wheel, someone working on the car before couldn't figure out how to get the OEM clips back in so just twisted and shoved everything back in there resulting in my Tip controls not working if I tried to telescope the wheel.

Too bad, this should be a pretty easy fix for the dealer.

Gaspasser19

While I appreciate your input, you haven't read the previous posts in this thread very carefully. It is CPO, I've had numerous repairs including cats(x2), and RMS at a different dealer w/o paying a cent. I also received the CPO documentation from PCNA but no CPO checklist from the dealer as I didn't know this was part of the process until I'd owned the car for a year. PCNA is involved BUT, and this is the main reason I posted this here they say that since the car has aftermarket wiring, they will not honor the CPO. They say it's a sales issue, and while they've agreed to talk to the GM and file a "Poor sales experience" report, their hands are tied. I want all Rennlisters to benefit from my misfortune in this situation by protecting themselves in the future. To my way of thinking this is a huge failing with the CPO program that I had not previously considered.

Think about it: You purchase a car from an authorized Porsche dealer and the dealer CPO's the car giving you what amounts to a complete factory warrantee. The caveat being that if anyone has altered the car in any way, at least the altered system is not covered by PCNA. While this seems obvious to me when you put it that way, it never occurred to me to have the car inspected by an outside source to make sure there was no adulteration of the Porsche systems. I thought that was implied in the CPO process. I accepted that they were the experts in evaluated their own cars. Perhaps my situation is the result of ignorance by the dealer or perhaps it's fraud. To be fair, I don't know this yet. I'm still in the (painful) process of pushing it through the Porsche chain of command. But, again, I wanted other potential CPO buyers to consider getting a PPI even on a dealer car. And, i promise, if the GM at the offending dealer gives me the same song and dance that I've received from the frontline troops I will shout their name from the rooftops.

Gaspasser19

Actually, the MY03 began using the MOST fiber optic system so any aftermarket stereo would require a new harness. (Something else I've recently learned.)

ivangene

I have not read EVERY word... but man, sounds like a rough start over there... I hope things calm down and you get some enjoyment out of your car!!!!

Here's to a bright future!

Gaspasser19

OH, I LOVE the car. I've put 20,000 miles on it in the 2 years I've had it, driving it year round. I just NEVER should have put the F-ing top up! If I hadn't tried the A/C that fateful day I'd still be in a perpetual state of Porsche bliss. Instead, I have the queasy, uneasy feel of damaged goods and a (weak) warrantee that's about to expire. Pass the Mylanta...