DCAZ

I purchased my 2006 911 Carerra S Cabriolet in July of 2020 from a local Porsche dealership. It had 36k miles at the time and I had a pre-purchase inspection done at a independent shop. Nothing was noted about the transmission at the time and it drove without issue until a few weeks ago when it cooled down. I now have about 39k miles on the car and have done one oil change.

I live in the Phoenix area where overnight temps can get into the low 30s but the car is garage kept and it never gets that cold in there. I am working from home these days and not doing a lot of freeway driving lately, but I noticed the problem after the car had been sitting for a couple of days and I got onto the freeway right after leaving my house and got up to speed. No issues shifting through the gears until I hit 5th. That's when I noticed both a feel and sound of grinding. I down shifted into 4th and back into 5th, which caused it to grind again. I upshifted into 6th without an issue. If I continue to drive for about 15 more minutes the issue goes away and it doesn't come back unless the car sits overnight and I don't warm it up before getting on the freeway.

I had the transaxle oil changed by the dealership when I purchased it. They only use the Porsche OEM oil and I saw the container they used to confirm. I have seen some discussion about how that oil doesn't perform well in cold weather. Maybe this is the issue?

I have an extended warranty on the car, which I purchased at the Porsche dealer with the car. It says it covers the transmission case and all internally lubricated parts plus: torque converter; flywheel/flex plate; vacuum modulator; electronic shift control unit; transmission cooler; transmission mounts; oil pan; slave/clutch master cylinder; pilot bearing; and throw-out bearing.

I took the car back to the dealer that I purchased the car from and they verified the grinding into 5th gear. The classics gold certified tech says that it could be one of two parts causing the issue. Either the synchro or input and output shaft. The repair will cost between $7-8k but could damage the roller bearings, which would add another $2500 to the bill. Alternatively, a new transmission would cost $9350. While they have it open, a new clutch would add $1850 to the bill and both a new clutch and flywheel would add $3850. They have contacted the warranty company, who is sending an inspector out Monday to test drive the vehicle to verify the grind. After he verifies the grind, they will drop the transmission and try to determine the cause of the issue. I am on the hook financially for the teardown until or unless the warranty company agrees there is a warrantable failure and will pay.

My concern is that they will tear the transmission apart but not see any visible signs of the problem and the warranty company will deny the claim. I don't want to be stuck with a bill to just drop and reinstall the transmission, with a grinding 5th gear, for a bill in the thousands. Alternatively, I don't want to pay $10k for a new transmission. I am crossing my fingers that the warranty company sees what they need to see and covers the repair.

Since the transmission has to be dropped either way, what components are recommended to be replaced so I can avoid a future repair bill. The dealer will not be double dipping on labor so things like replacing the clutch seem like a good idea. I see that Suncoast is selling that clutch kit for just under $800 and plan to ask for a price match. They want one hour of labor for a new clutch, which seems fair. Anything else I should be considering? Does the engine have to be removed in addition to the transmission for this work? If so, maybe motor mounts should be replaced? Appreciate any thoughts and insights here.

Quixotic1

What company is the warranty with? It seems to me the Porsche dealer should back you up on this issue.

Ironman88

Don't really fully understand the situation.

The dealership service personnel (qualified personnel) have verified that the transmission has an abnormal grinding condition. The warranty company inspector will come out to drive and confirm this on Monday. That part I get.

If the inspector verifies that the grinding condition is present - then to me, they are obligated to correct the concern - regardless of the source of it (if it's sealed inside of that transmission case, it is certainly a lubricated component.) The cost for the tear-down is part of the repair (whatever that ends up encompassing in total.) And the warranty company should be on the hook for all of it. Period.

I think you're being jacked around on this. Hopefully all of it will be sorted out properly in your favor as it should be.

Good luck with the process.

DCAZ

The warranty company is MileEdgePlus with Warrantech Augomative, Inc. The Porsche dealer said they would work with me if the warranty company declines the repair, which I took to mean they would give me a discount if I had to pay. They have been good to work with so I believe they will do what they can to get the repair covered.

DCAZ

Yes, the dealer's classic certified tech verified the abnormal grinding situation. He even recorded a video on his phone during a test drive. The warranty inspector will come to test drive before the teardown. Even if that inspector verifies the grinding, I am still on the hook for the teardown unless they physically see a worn or failed part. So I don't understand why they want to do the test drive if they won't accept the claim until they see a failed component. Seems like an unnecessary test drive since it won't determine the warranty claim's disposition.

I am hopeful that the warranty company will not jerk me around and just accept the claim. Thanks for the support!

Khloesdad

My 06 does the exact same thing. Changing the fluid does not help. Only until the trans fluid has warmed a bit. If I shift into 5th slowly its ok. Normally I just go from 4th to 6th until then. Hasnt really bothered me.

Ironman88

Here's some additional comments on the issue from some older threads...

(One thread mentions replacement of the 5th gear synchro and that solved the problem...)

https://rennlist.com/forums/997-foru...-5th-gear.html

https://rennlist.com/forums/997-foru...when-cold.html

https://rennlist.com/forums/997-foru...hro-issue.html

https://rennlist.com/forums/944-turb...s-are-bad.html

https://rennlist.com/forums/997-foru...n-grind-2.html

https://www.6speedonline.com/forums/...-5th-gear.html

HUGHES996

If you don’t mind me asking are you using the dealer in Chandler? The reason I ask is I’m in Phoenix as well and wanted to get your opinion on them. I’m looking at them to do some possible work for me on my 2007 997 C2 Cab Thanks

DCAZ

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing!

Khloesdad

Mines done it for the 2 years I've had it. Its rare, certainly not going to address it out of pocket. I'm quite gentle on the car anyway until temps are all up. Mobil PTX did nothing for the issue so unless its just time to service it trans, then wait until its time.

DCAZ

Thanks for the links. Read through them all and appreciate the help. Seems like the synchro is a top suspect but so odd it wore out before the earlier gears. I am not a mechanic, but I am assuming use is what would cause it to fail unless there was a factory defect/flaw that caused so many other 997 owners to have similar issues with 5th gear.

DCAZ

Yes, that's the dealer. The GM's name is Jered and he is really good to work with. I can recommend them much more than the Scottsdale dealer. I called Scottsdale for a competitive quote on an alignment a couple months ago when I was replacing the tires and they gave me a quote that was half the price. When I asked Chandler to match the quote, they called Scottsdale to confirm the price and service offered. Turns out Scottsdale was quoting for a two wheel alignment, not four. Who gets a two wheel alignment? They would have ended up upselling me upon arrival and would not have saved me any money, but pissed me off instead. Needless to say, they offer a 10% discount for PCA members.

DCAZ

Thanks for sharing. Seems like quite a number of owners have similar experiences. I wonder if there was ever a service bulletin on the issue. Not sure how to check though. Also, good to know about PTX.

Khloesdad

How sweet would a bulletin be. I'm at 57000 btw.

DCAZ

Quick update. Looks like I need the new transmission, but any recommendations on other parts to replace at the same time?

Questioning: shift control cable, clutch slave/master cylinders, IMS, etc. Already decided to replace the clutch. Any thoughts would be appreciated.