I apologize in advance for the long post.

First the background: bought 2005 C2S cab 6 weeks ago with 9700 miles (from non-Porsche dealer... big mistake!). Had some problems, but they said the car is still under warranty so don't worry (i'm a fool, yes, I admit it).

1500 miles later, I finally find time to take it to a local dealer. I paid for oil change, inspection, new tires, and alignment, and two major problems addressed.

Problem 1: broken tail pipe (I posted this earlier). Replaced under warranty.

Problem 2: My real question. There is a loud screech when the clutch engages from a standing start. Dealer says clutch is okay but probably a "flywheel failure". He said it is possibly due to overheating from riding the clutch. Or it could be a bad flywheel. (I'm not sure what this means) Regardless, I have to pay $1200 just to have them open up the tranny to DIAGNOSE the problem. Then I may have to pay another $2000 to replace the flywheel. If it really is a bad flywheel, then it would be covered under warranty; otherwise, I have to pay the whole amount. He said the likelihood of that is about 50/50. I decided to wait on this.

With all the money I paid for repairs, I could have bought a NEW 2007 C2S. Well, be that as it may be, I'm not sure if I need to put in the money to go forward with this. Can you really ruin the flywheel with just 10k of driving? I trust you guys more than I trust my dealer. Perhaps I need to find another dealer? (there's 3 within 1 hour) Is it safe to ignore this problem? It doesn't seem to affect the performance, but the noise is a little embarassing when taking off from red lights. I don't want people to look and say "what's wrong with that Porsche?"

Thanks again,
Jimmy

 

Jimmy,--from some of the posts that I have read herein I think it is entirely possible to screw up a clutch, pressure plate, and flywheel in less time. Some new Porsche buyers think they're buying a car that you can just drop the clutch in for a rapid launch off the line. These cars are not designed for that. Plus, many people just don't know now to drive a manual trans car.

Since you never stated what you paid for the 2005 cab it's not enough information to determine whether all your out of pocket expenses would have added up to a new 07 model.

 

ya don't wanna know...

Well, live and learn, I say. I guess I still ended up with a pretty nice car.

Jimmy

 

You're probably right. The dealer said the previous owner probably caused the problem while tracking the car. I've driven manuals for 20 years and always baby the clutch.

Jimmy

 

Flywheels don't go bad; they're solid metal. It's possible it's scuffed, but then so would the pressure plate--common among clutch riders. Resurfacing or rebalancing is the usual step. I've never heard of a flywheel going bad. Someone needs to weigh in on this as I've never heard of this. The clutch plate or pressure plate could be defective or the throw-out bearing (if there is one).

 

I don't suppose diagnosing this is a DIY type of project?...Sounds very complicated. The repair, of course, I'd take to an expert.

Jimmy

 

Jimmy...I think it's time for a second opinion! Take it to another dealer. If the warranty is still good (which it should be), this certainly sounds like something that should be covered. A fairly new Porsche is not supposed to squeal every time you start off the line....period.

 

ok............ Fly wheels can and do go bad they are not solid metal, the flywheel on - pcars are dual mass they are mulitpile pieces and are held togheter with a center hub do they fail .....not very often can they absolutly have i seen it yes. can you ruin it in 10k yes you can ruin it in 10 miles. clutch and flywheel failures are NOT the result of tracking or hard starts ( i dont care what anyone here tells you thats not the case) It is the result of poor technicque, bottom line.


now my opinion, noise is most likely a throw out (release) bearing or a glazed disc.
I Dont see it being a flywheel, not saying it cant be. but i dont see it.

The dealer may just be covering them selves, if they pull the trans and it is a worn or glazed clutch
then you would be responisble, if that was the case and you decline the repairs the technican pulled the and reinstalled the transmission for free and the dealer lose'es. If its a warrenty repair you wont pay anything but the dealer wants you to be aware that if its not your gonna have to pay up.
If however the dealer is giving you a bad feeling try a diffrent one , see where people in your area go and who they recomend as an advisor

 

Thanks everyone for your good advice! I think I'll try a different dealer nearby.

The first dealer said it will cost $1200 to open the transmission and even if I decline the repairs, I'll still have to pay it either way. Doesn't seem fair that I have to pay that much just to have them diagnose the noise. Maybe I'll just have to live with it.

Jimmy

 

I'm not a gambler, but I would bet against the flywheel in this instance. BTW, that $1200 peak is more than the parts. This appears to be defective engineering rather than riding the clutch. I would prepare to make a case a against them so warranty will cover this particular service. I've done some checking with a couple of Porsche mechanics and they haven't seen a 997 flywheel go bad, this isn't to say it will not happen. I was told you should dig deeper. Here is a photo of your flywheel. As mentioned earlier, this is a two piece flywheel, but one piece performance ones are on the market and included on the GT3's so it's something Porsche does use on their cars.

 

It takes time to diagnose, how would you feel in your line of work if you did a whole days work and at the end of the day the customer decided he shouldnt have to pay and doesnt ( trust me it happens) or you spend an extra hour or two diagnosing a car figuing the customer will buy the repairs and you can break even but instead he declines them, pays his 1 hour original estimate and goes down the street to joes garage to have them replace what we diagnosed
dealer gets screwed and the tech worked for free............ FREE.......... hes got a family to feed too



"I'm not a gambler, but I would bet against the flywheel in this instance. BTW, that $1200 peak is more than the parts. This appears to be defective engineering rather than riding the clutch. I would prepare to make a case a against them so warranty will cover this particular service. I've done some checking with a couple of Porsche mechanics and they haven't seen a 997 flywheel go bad, this isn't to say it will not happen. I was told you should dig deeper. Here is a photo of your flywheel. As mentioned earlier, this is a two piece flywheel, but one piece performance ones are on the market and included on the GT3's so it's something Porsche does use on their cars."

You really cannot call it defective enginering untill the transmission is out and a qualified person has diagnosed the vechile. you havent seen the car or driven it, judging by someones comments a noise is 99.99% of the time not diagnosable over the internet. 997 flywheels is no diffrent the a 996 flywheel ( that i have noticed) and i can count on 3 fingers how many 9x6 flywheels ive replaced for dual mass problems.........ive probaly changed 30-40 for getting destroyed by poor driving technique.
Gt3s do not have single mass flywheels every one ive ever pulled was a dual mass (except cup cars but whos coutning those)
http://content3.eu.porsche.com/prod/...n/transmission

 

I'm not suggesting anyone work for free, nor am I diagnosing, but relying and relaying the information provided on this thread to a mechanic who works for Porsche in Dallas. He in turn is responding back to me. If it does happen to be a flywheel, the mechanic suggested you may be able to argue the case. Now, he has 20 yrs of experience working on Porsche and works AT PORSCHE. Do you work at a dealership? Oh, almost forgot, single unit for your...

http://www.caranddriver.com/carnews/...old-in-us.html

 

I never said you were sugesting i was just responding to "Doesn't seem fair that I have to pay that much just to have them diagnose the noise" I was just explaing why it was fair.
If the flywheels is defective it should be warrenty theres no doubt of that, i really cannot think of anything that would make a noise that wouldnt be warrenty unless the disc is glazed but it that usualy makes a diffent noise and usually slips. I do work at a dealer and have worked on a porche or 2
the rs will have a single mass flywheel you are correct the street cars still sport a dual mass

 

Once the trani is out, pressure plate removed and disc laid out, I believe the problem will be obvious-hopefully. One way or the other, your car's in for some work. Who pays will be determined once the parts are out. I will say I drive my car hard, slipping the clutch and sliding the rear all over the place. If they told me that there was a clutch problem, I wouldn't be surprised. These cars are so much tougher than most give them credit for. I have so much fun with it, I would consider it a cost of having fun. If you're not hard on it, then I would be very interested in what they find. I can't add any more to this, so wish you the best of luck.

 

I've been told that flywheels can warp.