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I am about to have mine done as well: plate holes filled/repaint/re-PPF.
What did the shop charge you?
Also need one of the horns replaced.
Doing that while the bumper is already off should be a snap. (The quote I got from an indie shop in Los Angeles area was almost $700 to replace a $145 OEM part.)
Would you guys recommend letting a body shop do that while repainting the front clip?
You can always ask. Its one nut and a connector to do the swap. If the bumper's off, they might even let you do it yourself.
After finally having my old 996 sell on consignment after 2 years (Thanks COVID!) I took some of the money to repair a deep rock chip in my front bumper and while I was at it, had the license plate removed from that bumper where the previous owner had drilled holes into it. So those were all repaired as well.
The interior of my car was peeling a bit on surfaces like the ashtray. The gear shift was worn and discolored and the steering wheel as well. There were white wear marks on the leather drivers seat where I get in and out. I had the interior touched up by a professional here in the Bay Area and man it looks like new. Absolutely stunning. I wish I had taken some before pictures to show the massive improvement.
Altogether this set me back about $1600. Totally worth it.
Now that this is complete - going to get the wheels cleaned up from scratch marks the previous owner put on them while hitting a curb or something. Then I'm taking the whole thing in for paint correction and ceramic coating. I'm pretty excited about how it will look afterward!
You can see the position of the license plate prior to removal and fix.
Front end looks like new and no ugly plate.
Wear marks on drivers seat are gone.
Corrected peeling console colors.
Shift **** looks like new! The shop even inked the shift tree display on top of the shifter.
Steering wheel all one color now. Looks like new!
Last edited by cvtuttle; 09-19-2021 at 01:16 AM.
Reason: Forgot to add a point
Removed old PPF, unknown age but it was in bad shape ($250)
Paint Correction + installation of full PPF on front ($2000)
Ceramic coating ($800)
Replaced rear struts ($1200)
Preventative replacement (50K miles) of water pump plus install of low temp thermostat ($1400)
Last edited by 997Fanatic997; 09-20-2021 at 07:27 PM.
Looks good, and thoughts about why you didn't install the third radiator, or has that been done already?
Originally Posted by nealvaughan
Removed old PPF, unknown age but it was in bad shape ($250)
Paint Correction + installation of full PPF on front ($2000)
Ceramic coating ($800)
Replaced rear struts ($1200)
Preventative replacement (50K miles) of water pump plus install of low temp thermostat ($1400)
Looks good, and thoughts about why you didn't install the third radiator, or has that been done already?
On the list of possible things to do! It's my first porsche and I'm dutifully reading threads for ideas. A 3rd radiator and mesh grills for the radiators was on the list. Not sure exactly when the 3rd one is needed. If I was staying in Phoenix I would for sure but I'm moving to Kansas early next year.
Still need to address the ****ty finish on climate buttons and look into a steering wheel swap, I want volume control.
When my mechanic proposed replacing the water pump and swapping the thermostat I was a tiny bit proud I knew from this forum it was a good idea and not just something to pad the repair bill 😀
Looks like my attempts to make the new car better are back-firing from every direction.
a. Removed hardtop hardware from my 996 and installed onto the 997. That requires a certain amount of convertible top actuations that don't complete a cycle. Now that the hardware is installed, the top won't close all the way; the boot cover locks in the UP position. Makes it look like a neat wing, but this will take a visit to the dealer to un-fix what I "fixed".
b. Replaced pads and rotors. Easy enough, but now my dashboard is telling me that a brake pad wear sensor is kaput (they are new) and Also that the e-brake is actuated when it isn't. What to do there? Do I need the dealer to clear codes, or is there any diagnosis for either of these glitches?
c. While wheels removed, noticed rub mark on a radiator hose. I'm not going to touch another thing until my bad luck is behind me....
09-18-2021, 11:29 PM
