salraf

Hello all,

I am in the process of purchasing a 04 TT cab. 39.5K miles

Overall the car is in very good shape per dealer PPI. They did note the following:

1)Front diff is seeping oil
2)Clutch master cyclinder is over flowing.

Per the service dept..They recommend a new clutch accumulator since fluid from the power steering reservoir is transferring to the clutch master cylinder reservoir.

He however said that this was not a big deal and if the car was under warranty then porsche would not allow them to replace until it had gone completely bad.

I am looking for some advice here as to the seriousness of these issues.

thanks

Road King

A leaking front diff seal isn't a big issue, my 43K mile car also had that ID'd on the PPI. The previous owner paid to fix that as well as torn CV boots before I took possession (at an indy Porsche shop, not dealer).

I think the question you want to ask is where is the diff leaking from and what's the cost to fix (indy price vs. dealer price).

Clutch accumulator seems to be a very common wear item, and it isn't too expensive to fix.

Were you able to get a DME ignitions readout with the PPI?

Atrox

Warranty? Get a quote on repairs needed and use them for negotiation.

leftlane

Price?

salraf

Accumulator replacement is $1300 and $1000 to replace front diff. Don't recall where they said it was leaking from but will ask.
There is no warranty on the vehicle.

There was not any ignitions read-out that was provided. Just a checklist box as far as I can tell

Macster

$1000 doesn't get you a replaced front diff. That probably gets you new front diff axle flange seals and a refill of fresh fluid. I had the front diff axle flange seals replaced on my 2003 Turbo and while I know I didn't pay $1000 for the job it involved IIRC 4 hours labor and parts/supplies. Gee back of the envelop that's got to be close to $1000, so maybe I did pay that much or close to it. I had this work done at the same time I had some other work done and the cost was "buried" in the other work.

Accumulator and slave cylinder were replaced under warranty. If fluid is showing up around the front reservoir the one under the bump in the front driver side plastic cover under the front trunk lid the slave cylinder should be replaced. It has failed.

Be sure the front diff is free of any noise. If it has run low on fluid too long it can be on its way out. This costs way more than $1000 to replace. Way more.

Shadetree930

Front diff is $3,000 dollars plus labor if you source it from a used parts dealer.

Bill for a new front diff is closer to $5,000 from Porsche plus any labor.

I agree, a leaking front diff is not a deal breaker. Many of them show signs of seepage yet may go for tens of thousands of miles in that condition.

Just keep an eye on the fluid level every so often. Even then its unlikely that you will have to top it off.

If it really bothers you, I have one on the shelf (no leaks) I may be persuaded to part with.

Kevinmacd

Overflowing front master cylinder is not the accumulator but the slave cylinder. Your powersteering fluid is being transferred to the the front master clutch cylinder due to a bad check valve in the slave cylinder, common issue. It is advisable to replace both the slave and accumulator. The accumulator holds enough assist pressure from the power steering pump to allow easy clutch depression when the enginge is not running. One have to assume the 1300 for accumulator includes the slave. One would hope. You need to question what the 1300 is replacing other than accumulator.
Accumulator is around $200 msrp
Slave is around $600 msrp

"02996ttx50

it's the clutch slave and it IS "completely bad" and it IS a big deal. its the mechanics that operate your clutch! to say nothing of the fact the fluid and system are shared for the power steering reservoir as they said. it will only continue to puke pentosin from under the bonnet as its an unsightly dangerous mess, and highly flammable to boot ( sorry lol ). then it can/will migrate into the CABIN under the steering column! this is not to be left alone.

...but what warranty from porsche could still be in effect? this from porsche:

the limited warranty covers up to 6 years or a cumulative 100,000 miles whichever comes first if the vehicle is still under the new car limited warranty. The limited warranty covers 2 years from the date of sale, years or up 50,000 miles to a cumulative 100,000 miles. For vehicles outside of the new car limited warranty.

but slave and accumulator failure go hand in hand. though the accumulator could well be also failing, that doesn't cause fluid migration to the master. the master isn't bad necessarily, more like the SLAVE which is an $600 part http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/...pg4.htm#item20

front diff is gonna be more than a grand to mess with if leaking. agree with macster, its a refill and seals agreed.. maybe = $

salraf

Just spent some time talking to service rep-very nice. Per the report that he has provided:

"found almost empty power steering fluid reservoir and an overflowing clutch master cylinder reservoir-signs that the accumulator is going out"


I did drive the car for half a day. After about 5 minutes in the driveway, I noticed a psot in the drive way coming from under the drive side section. It was less viscous than oil but more than water. I mentioned this to the service rep as well but he days that when they lifted the car after a small drive (which is probably from where it was parked to the garage) they found nothing.

As far as the diff goes, he says that there are three grades and mine is the earliest whatever that means.

"02996ttx50

the "spot" on your garage floor..

that's the pentosin leaking from the accumulator. again, a failing accumulator doesn't migrate fluid to the master cylinder in the frunk! the failing SLAVE cylinder which is connected @ the accumulator does.

salraf

So replacing the accumulator like they quoted for 1300 will fix the issue?

"02996ttx50

i might. but it's ( the accumulator ) a $140 part and 30-45 minutes tops in labor for someone that knows what they're doing re: replacing it. ( but remember that everything is predicated upon "book time" which always favors the mechanics and is usually at LEAST 35% longer than it takes for a pro to do whatever it might be..)

..and also needed in your case is the slave which is a $575-600.00 part. so do the math. that means with both pieces ( highly recommended to swap them BOTH simultaneously and they've given you dicey info already by telling you the ACCUMULATOR is bad and causing the fluid migration up front! ( bzzzt/wrong! ) ..

but at $1300.00 ( as the parts total $750 US ) you'd be paying someone $550 in labor, which while expensive ( lets say 5.5 hours? ) would still be better than a porsche dealership at their customary $200+ per hour in labor

also, it's the slave that is harder to get at unless the car is lifted and the motor mounts are loosened a bit and motor dropped a cpl inches for clearance and to have the car on a lift is best, as the access for the slave and accumulator although quite close/connected it's the slave that needs more clearance to r&r and is harder to get at if the car is stationary on the ground, even jacked up. it's tight in there to get at. though again, the accumulator can be changed while the car is on stands.

so for $1300? you should be getting the slave AND the accumulator INCL labor both replaced, or they are ripping you off. shop around. if possible. i don't know what access you have to competent and "fair" shops where you are. it's ( generously speaking ) and given the car should be lifted, a 3 hour job, including r&r and bleeding etc. my buddy can swap em out in two hours max, even while i'm yammering at him.

i'm not so sure i trust your shop, and think they are preying upon your inexperience with the car and parts etc. so always shop around, ask for "book time" and search for part prices at all the online porsche parts places like i linked above..so you know what's what.. i mean if you're gonna get even "semi fkd"? wouldn't ya wanna know about it first?

Macster

Let me add my voice to the others. The slave cylinder is bad. A bad accumulator doesn't cause fluid migration. A bad accumulator means the clutch pedal is hard to depress with the engine off. The accumulator can't retain whatever it is retains to provide clutch boost/assist with the engine off.

Also, when the engine is running and you depress the clutch the pedal can have a mild pulsing. The accumulator "dampens" the pulsing which is the power steering pump.

That the power steering pump reservoir was low on fluid is to me a bit scary. The pump doesn't like to be low on fluid. In the case of say the Boxster a problem is a high pressure bypass valve fails and routes too high pressure to the rack. The fluid is forced out of the seals and is captured by the dust boots. The first inkling there's a problem is a noisy power steering pump, noisy because it is low on fluid.

The repair involves replacing the power steering lines, the rack and the pump, because the pump has been damaged by operating with low fluid.

Thus I would be concerned the power steering pump has suffered from the low fluid operation.

The accumulator, slave cylinder at least need to be replaced. After then I would road test the car for a while to make sure the power steering pump was quiet.

Do some slow speed u-turns with the wheel being turned first all the way one direction then the other to really exercise the power steering system.

The front diff leak needs to be addressed. I would not want to buy a "new" car and have to worry about checking the front diff fluid on a regular basis to avoid running it low on fluid.

BTW, every bit of fluid is important in the front diff. The viscous coupling is in the front diff and it runs *hot*. The special fluid requires heat to work. The front diff fluid is used to cool this coupling -- the diff fluid does not get in the coupling, that is sealed to keep the special fluid inside -- and if the front diff fluid gets low there is less cooling and this is just asking for trouble.

Kevinmacd

I Suspect the 1300 includes the slave and accumulator. But you need to makes sure, as others have said an accumulator by itself will not cost 1300 to replace. Also as myself and others have said your fluid migration is a bad check valve in the slave cylinder. if changing the slave its a good idea to change the accumulator at the same time.