swajames

An interesting debate triggered by an article in Forbes discussing the most reliable cars.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/201...-200000-miles/

For me, two things stand out. The TTAC article glosses over the point that the Forbes article was essentially making, namely that some are still surprised that a higher end sports car brand like Porsche can turn out a reliable car. The other is that the entire premise of article seems to me to be a thinly veiled swipe at Consumer Reports with a corresponding a plug for Michael Karesh's True Delta - Karesh being an editor at the TTAC...

My own take? My 911's have been extremely reliable, far more than any other German car I've owned and I find the whole TTAC article to be a self-serving storm in a teacup...

Mike in CA

All you need to write a blog is a computer and an opinion. Bad information and unscientific analysis on the internet has become the stock in trade for people who are unable to make it in any other legitimate endeavor. This article clearly has a bias evidenced in part by the fact that it features 4 photos of wrecked Porsches, and it's primary "investigator" is a man who the author himself admits is a Porsche critic. More BS from someone with an agenda and a bone to pick.

JW911

Much, much more reliable than my former BMW...

cbzzoom

TTAC is very good in some ways, but it's definitely more about "Truthiness" than "Truth".

The author of the TTAC piece seems to have not actual read the Forbes piece, which only briefly mentions Porsche and then moves on to summarize the rest of the Consumer Reports piece.

Picking on the girl with Forbes for mindlesslessly copy-pasting from the Consumer Reports press release is facile and pointless. That's what *everyone* does in the news these days. Search for "vehicle reliability survey" and you will find 20 different "news" articles that copy-pasted that press release.

The consumer reports press releases are here :

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/c...y-findings.htm

http://blogs.consumerreports.org/car...minate-pr.html

Also, this is all from October, so way to go on the hot breaking news TTAC !

At least Autoblog gave us a nice chart when they copy-pasted :

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/10/26/2...bility-scores/

1BlinkGone

Put it this way: I used to follow CR when they were truly unbiased. Sadly, IMHO, those days have long since gone by. About the only thing I'll even both with them anymore for, is appliance reviews & reliability ratings, and even with those I only give them so much credibility. Caveat Emptor, even with CR. I sure won't rely on them for anything automotive.

Fahrer

Several years ago, one of my freinds in Germany told me that the ADAC found that Porsche is among the most reliable brands in the country. The ADAC should be a good source of info as they are generally the organization to show up to get cars running again when stranded on the side of the road.

Palmbeacher

I've found over many years on this planet that there is no such thing as unbiased journalism. All media has an agenda.

It's true on both extremes, from the mags and rags who lavish awards and praise on manufacturers whose advertising dollars support them, to the mags and rags who feature articles that are barely-disguised informercials for aftermarket suppliers trying to legitimize their fearmongering marketing strategy...somewhere in that mag, sometimes on the next page, you'll find that aftermarket firm's ad.

So what do I do if I can't trust the media to assure me of a trouble-free purchase? I buy what my heart desires, and I enjoy it. What goes wrong during the manufaturer's warranty is fixed for free. What goes wrong after that is fixed for a $50 deductible by my aftermarket warranty. It's a plan that has worked well for nigh on 30 years and a dozen cars now.

Fahrer

I have a different view of CR. I have been reading CR for about 35 years. In the past they were very unsophisticated when it came to car evaluations. I remember they compared a 1975 VW Rabbit to an AMC Pacer. They gave the VW a slight edge due to it's better gas mileage. A real joke in my opinion even though the VW was not perfect either. Today CR appreciates good handling as well as crash performance and quality interiors as well as reliability. Also, they do not accept advertising as opposed to C&D ( which I have been subscribing to for 40 years). I believe that CR is one of the good sources for info. I balance that with other sources and my own observations when buying cars, TVs, appliances, etc.

sullivas

Palmbeacher, who's your aftermarket warranty company?

Palmbeacher

For the last decade I've bought the "Gold" plan through mbadirect.com, and the policies have been underwritten by Old Republic. Unfortunately OR is no longer writing in Florida, and at present, despite what their website says, neither is mbadirect. I currently have one of their policies in effect on our other car (which has 2 yrs to go, and which has already paid out almost $1000 more than it cost me) so if they aren't writing in FL by that time I'll have to go shopping.

As for the P-car, it's still under CPO. When that expires (soon) I believe I will be going with Fidelity's (not to be confused with US Fidelis!) Platinum policy. Fidelity is the only company I've found that is currently offering an exclusionary warranty (one which covers everything not specifically listed as excluded, vs other policies which cover only what's on a list of covered items) on Porsche in Florida. It's also the one sold by the Porsche dealer where I bought the car. Fidelity is owned by JM (the late Jim Moran) Enterprises, which operates a slew of dealerships in South Florida. I've spoken to numerous local P-car owners who have the warranty and are pleased with it. We'll see....

yossarian

Since I posted twice today about issues, I may as well comment on this.

In short, they are very reliable. However, they do have issues and in my biased and personal view, when they have issues, they tend to have a lot. These cars are so interconected today that there are bound to be cascading problems.

The real question is how is PCNA customer service? My opinion, it depends on your issues..... and thaty is not a very positive answer.

russo

Reliable? As much as I like Porsche, I don't think reliability is their forte. A case in point, my 06 Cayenne Turbo has had to go in 4 times for warranty work. My 02 996 had a RMS leak that couldn't be resolved and thus a new engine was put in. 2 years later, another leak. My 997 GT3RS has had a leak for the last two years. Lets' see, out of 4 Porsches I have owned, 3 of them have had issues. Further compounding my dilemma is that the nearest dealer is 280 miles away.

sullivas

Thanks PB. You may want to read this, I did a little research: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/auto_.../fidelity.html

Palmbeacher

Thanks. I did the same research. It shows that there is a ton of misinformation posing for fact on the net. A case in point, the author contends the following:

"...You are not covered for the failure of a covered part due to a gradual reduction in operating performance as a result of normal wear and tear after 50,000 miles. If a part fails after 50,000 miles, well that's just normal for it to wear out, right? Claim denied at will."

Well, I obtained a copy of a blank contact from the Porsche dealership (the actual contract, not a brochure), and I found the clause in question and showed it to my attorney just to be certain my initial interpretation was correct. What it actually says is that parts are covered that fail due to defects in workmanship OR that fail due to gradual reduction in performance as a result of normal wear up to 50K miles. An engine bearing that breaks apart suddenly is not a "gradual reduction in performance the result of normal wear and tear".

The good thing is, if they did try to deny such a claim, Fidelity is located in FL so I could (and would) take them to court without having to travel. And my attorney fees are covered: I put him through law school

RonnieTheC

I have owned 2 Porsche 911's and 10 Corvettes. Guess which brand is more reliable!