CDH911C2S

Does anyone have comments on the business practices/reputation of Rector Porsche ? Basically, would you recommend buying a car from that dealer ? Thank you for your input...I need to make a decision very soon.

gravedgr

I have had excellent service at Carlsen. Stevens Creek is also good. Stay away from Rector. Rector services Caddy and have poorer reputation...
https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...ghlight=rector

Quote:
Originally Posted by mooty
"sonnen porsche in mill valley... NO one there know one end of a porsche from the other.... "

That goes double for Rector Porsche in Burlingame, as far as I'm concerned.
https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...ghlight=rector

mastiffdog

I thought that they had rectorfied their service department?

msh26

I bougt my 987S there in May '05. They are better than my local dealer in Seattle.

When I asked to have them NOT put a front license plate on the car, they followed instructions. I also had them put a 3M clear bra on and it wasn't installed exactly like I wanted, but they comped it when I picked up the car.

My only other problem was that I bought from out of state and getting the title and registration straightened out didn't work as well as I had expected.

Other than that, I felt pretty satisfied with my experience and got a really nice deal from my internet inquiry. I may buy from them again if they price is right (again).

discoganya

Have been to: Carlsen, Stevens Creek, Moddermann (older 911 shop) and Devek (928 Shop). All were pretty good.

Dave I

Where is ojpimpson when you need him? I thought he had posted Rector would give 12k off any C2S cab in stock a few weeks ago...

Personally, I would never buy a car from Rector. I have visited their sales department twice, (once for Cayenne S, once for GT3), and was treated like crap both times. One visit to service dept. was equally pathetic. Their parts department is very curteous and helpful, though.

On the other hand, my neighbor just bought a C2S cab and was very satisfied.

djantlive

I think Rector has better facility and staff in their service department since 2006. Stevens Creek changed owner. My old faithful Carlsen is still good but I haven't been there for a while now.

As for buying, I think selection, price and service are good at most of these dealers. Of course, experience varies depending on salesperson. Mike at Rector is a long time salesperson. He is knowledgeable but I'm not sure if he can get you good deals.

Stephenkng

Any comment as for Stevens Creek services recently?

discoganya

I think they are alright, but expensive. Parts are generally twice the cost from Sunset in Oregon. E.g. Brakes (rotors and pads), Sunset = $500, Stevens Creek = $1100 ! Also 4 hours of labor for a brake job, which is more than some indys.

PogueMoHone

Excellent, and they helped sponsor the recent local autocross school. My current dealer of choice...they consistently earn my business and do things correctly for me.

djantlive

I needed new tires recently and Rector offered the best prices. Stevens Creek's prices went up 2-3X. I ended up going to America's Tire but would go to Rector next time since I wasn't happy with America's Tire. They damaged one of the tires I brought there and made me pay for an extra one at their prices.

DTMELM

Do not (IMHO) go to Stevens Creek. If your car breaks down in the front lot, have it towed. If they offer to come to your home and wax your new car every week, turn away.

We bought our new 997 in April from them and have also used them for service for 3 years. Stevens Creek managed to have our Boxster more than we did for a 5 month period (and finally got past the "you're not driving it enough" (we were having dead battery issues) to "gee...maybe there is something wrong").

When we purchased, we were told any later accessories would be 20% off. So imagine my surprise when I contacted them about adding PSE and not only would they not honor the 20% off but their best "deal" was nearly $800 more than Carlsen (and SC was where we bought the 997!). I escalated to the salesman and then to the sales manager and parts manager. I stopped short of the General Manager as I honestly decided that since everyone else in the dealership acknowledged they had made the 20% offer but couldn't honor it, what was the point. Also note that we got a decent deal on the 997 purchase and I was never upset about our price paid. I will say that of the five dealerships I've purchased vehicles from in the last 5 years (Acura, Subaru, Honda, Chevy, and Porsche), they (Porsche) had the worst pre and post delivery customer satisfcation that I've seen. For a $95k+ cash deal, ya'd think they'd actually call sometime after the sale to make sure all was well (gee...Acura, Subaru, Honda, and Chevy do!)...

No way, no how will I ever return to SC. Carlsen has been professional, honest, helpful, and straight forward. I can't honestly speak about their sales dept, but I can say that every aspect of their dealership that I've dealt with has been 100x better than SC on their best day.

Best of luck and of course, your mileage (and experiences) may vary...

Derek

blake

Tidbit #1: I don't know how you guys can afford to service your cars in the Bay Area! When I lived in Palo Alto and bought my 94 Speedster back in 2000, Carlsen charged me $1562.43 for my 15K service plus brake flush. Just last month (July 2006 - with 20K on the odometer), I had another 15K service (w/ brake flush) conducted at Ken Garff Porsche in Orem, UT. Total cost: $623.43. Is that crazy or what? Now with respect to Carlsen, I hit it off with their Porsche service tech back then. He was recommended to me by Bruce Anderson. Hell of a guy!

Tidbit #2: Back in 2000, I was looking for a dealership to use to place an order for a 996 Cab. I visited Rector (Burlingame), Carlsen (Palo Alto), Stevens Creek (San Jose), Claridges (Fremont), Sonnen (Mill Valley), and Mike Stead (Walnut Creek) and was treated with attitude at all. Of course, I was in my late 20s and didn't look a day over 15 - so perhaps it was par for the course. Also, it was the dot.com boom, and people were buying Porsched off the showroom floor at over MSRP. Those were crazy times! (Perhaps they still are....)

IMHO - Don't worry so much as to where you buy it as long as you get a good financial deal. The service end of the equation is much more important and in my experience is COMPLETELY removed from the sales process.

ryssyr

I'm taking my 997 into stevens creek on friday.

I'm having these items done/looked at:
*Change oil
*inspect squeaky brakes--see an old thread i started
*investigate musty ac odor and change any filters
*investigate vibration at 80-90mph (tire balance most likely)
*quote cold air intake installation

i'll post my experience when i get my car back from them.

I moved to the area last year and i took my 997 in and they topped off the oil for free. They seemed nice, but these last posts make me nervous.

Dr 997

I just returned from Stevens Creek with the following:
1. oil change--they overfilled and charged about $160
2. Alignment--charged $199 and still leans to right. They said bring it back in.
3. Clutch check--$75 for squeaky noise. They want $1200 from me before going further (see my thread on this)https://rennlist.com/forums/997-forum/296432-need-advice-from-the-experts.html
4. Basic inspection $225 (discounted to $125)
5. New tires--charged $1980 for Mich PS2s
6. Replace cracked muffler--warranty
They had the car 5 days and loaned me a Hyundai.
Overall, not very impressed.

I'm going to try MY Porsche in Seaside. They said they would not charge me $75 just to look at my clutch, like Stevens Creek did!

Jimmy