Para82

14,000 USD? Holy moly let me step back a minute here. Would selecting this transmission over a proven manual be a mistake?

So far I know of 2 cases of complete failure on these boards so far...

chris.hanle

I am hoping for far less expense with my pdk (~0 I hope). Which would be 1000-1500 less than someone with a manual WILL spend on clutch work.

porterror

I don't understand who would want the PDK. It's less involving, hugely more expensive to replace and only saves you milliseconds on the track. If I had to choose tiptronic vs. PDK it would be a no brainer, but I don't want that time bomb in my car.

rjshar

I'm looking at buying a CPO car which had the PDK replaced, from what I could gather after scouring the forums, PCNA makes the dealers replace the entire unit, even for what may be the easiest of problems to fix. Dealer techs aren't approved to open the transmission for a car under warranty.

If they were, I'm wondering what the actual replacement rate would be. I hear the PDK transmission is actually quite durable, so I don't think I'm going to shy away from it.

porterror

What is durable? 50k miles / 100k miles / 200k miles? When should I allocate 15-20k for replacement?

3Series

Personal preferences aside. PDK has been very reliable. Of course some will fail, just like any automatic transmission. But for the most part regular transmissions with a torque converter are reliable, just like PDK has been.

Auto's are the main type of tranny used, if they were breaking down all the time, you would see a lot more cars with a manual. (All makes and models)

Yes, it's an expensive piece to replace. The issue is that they are new and dealers aren't fixing them, if they fail. They send the whole unit back.

If you don't want any chance of a PDK failure, buy a manual. If you want 100% certainty your Porsche won't break down, buy a Toyota.

SpeedyD

Lots of threads on this topic. All the early DCT systems had teething probs and PDK is probably still the best of the bunch. I wouldn't let it scare me away from PDK if that's what I wanted (I didn't/don't) but I admit that it's a bit scary to see the cost of replacement...

halo777

Recently purchased a 997. Since I wanted a car without warranty (for budget reasons) the PDK reliability and high replacement/repair cost was a concern, and just one of the MANY reasons I ended up going with a manual car.

I figured, the 6speed manual in the 997.1 should to be the best of the best in that category, after years and years of refinement. Resale should be good too, as the manual cars become more rare as each year passes.

The PDK in the 997 is the first generation. It is only going to get better, and better, with each new generation of 911s. So, over time, the 997 PDK cars will probably be known as the 'old' less desirable PDKs, where they were still working out the bugs in reliability and performance.

Another comment that stuck with me, was from a 911 owner who said driving PDK car was just as exciting as driving his 6speed 911 on the streets. But that he had to go WAY faster to get that same excitement. Not good for the driving record.

The other reason was the level of engagement of manual vs PDK. PDK is quicker on the track. We all know that. Because it does a lot of the work for you, at racecar-like speeds. So what's even faster? A car that steers for you too, and controls your acceleration and braking! Would that be better too? If we could just sit back and fly around the track at twice the speed that we could normally drive it ourselves?

Don't get me wrong... I'm not saying I don't like PDK. It seems very cool to me. But those were just some of the thoughts I had personally when I was choosing my car.

Everyone should base their decision on what they want, and not worry about others. I know you already have some manual cars, so PDK would be something different. I have an Automatic car, which is another reason why I chose the manual (for variety).

Anyway, you can't go wrong with a GTS whatever you choose.

So, good luck!

BrakingBad

Don't worry about it. Bore scoring will kill your entire 997.2 engine long before your pdk fails.

sambb

1st year of first generation might not be wise, all things considered

Mumbles

That would be from early 2008

CPT Obvious

Just my $.02 here and granted I'm a bit jaded because I had to replace a PDK but I plan to sell the car and buy a manual before the warranty expires unless Porsche trains the mechs here in N.A. to tear down and rebuild the PDK. It makes NO sense at all to send a transmission back to Germany and charge a customer $14070.40 for what amounted (in my case) to the failure of an electronic component. Absurd!

gotgolf52

It unethical for Porsche to charge the customers for the entire unit when it might be just some minor electronic or components need to replace. I would hate Porsche forever if I must pay out of my pocket to replace the unit and they get to keep my tranny to resale it later on.

sandwedge

That's exactly what happened to mine on the -09 C4S. The dealer managed to pull a fault code related to the busted PDK which indicated some kind of electronic component. As my SA said...."could be a $200 part but there's nothing we can do about it". At least mine was under warranty.

Can't imagine being asked to pay $14K out of pocket for a replacement unit because Porsche, almost 7 years after introducing the PDK can't (or won't) train techs outside of Germany how to do repairs. Completely absurd but who's surprised given the way they refused to own up to the failed designs of the IMS bearings. Not sure why I'm sticking with the brand. I absolutely detest their arrogance and corporate culture.

gasongasoff

I can bet you the failure rate of PDK is a LOT lower than the ENGINE LOSS rate from manual transmission "money shifts."