LP Beck

Have a 2009 997.2 C2 with 30k miles, purchased 1-1/2 years from Walters in Riverside, CA with 19k miles, CPO warranty. Took it in today for an oil change. Technician noticed what looked like an oil leak near the transmission. Pulled off the belly pan, oil everywhere, leaking from the PDK. Within a couple of hours, PCNA has authorized the installation of a new unit, shipping today from Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, from what I hear and read, this is not all that rare in 2009s, the first year for the PDK.

The great news is how quickly Porsche and my dealer got the CPO warranty claim in motion. Even better news is that I will have the newest technology and improvements Porsche has developed over the past 7 years.

Moral to this story: I might have paid a bit more money for the CPO, but in my particular case, it's certainly paid dividends. Quoted repair costs without warranty, $17k, with CPO, ZERO. Also, I will be getting a Fidelity Platinum extended warranty before my CPO expires later this year.

Just thought I would share my experience on the forum.

Wayne Smith

Glad it is working out so well for you!

vbb

Glad to hear it is working out...but what do you mean it isn't all that rare? Even on 2009, a totally failed PDK for no apparent reason is exceedingly rare. What happened?

LP Beck

No apparent reason. Car never tracked nor abused. As I stated, developed fluid leak, still ran okay. Exceeding rare? My 2009 is the second failure at my dealer within a week!

F308gt4

Curious, did you get the PDK service done (6 years/60k miles)?

Fined

Wait.. they are putting a 991 PDK in your 997? I mean.. I would guess there have not been any advances on the previous generation PDK since the end of 2011 when they stopped actually producing 997 generation cars. I'm not saying I know or have any idea about it. Is this incorrect?

LP Beck

Funny thing, I was discussing getting the clutch fluid changed today, didn't need to, lol. In talking with the technician directly, a rebuilt trans consists of the old cases with all new components, improved each year.

sandwedge

They tweaked the 997 versions, that much I know since the PDK on my -09 C4S failed (software related rather than fluid leak) and I got the "latest technology and improvements" too. To me, it wasn't an improvement at all. Hated it. The snap and pop shifts in sport plus manual mode were gone and "improved" with a smooth rollover instead, much like regular sport mode or even normal mode.

I actually took the car back to the dealer thinking something was wrong but was told that "this is the new programming. Most people like the smoother shifts". Well again....I don't and I've told the dealer not to touch the mapping of my current GTS which has the old version.

stronbl

Glad to hear it. Walters in Riverside has a pretty good reputation for both sales and service.

Did you have any PDK issues prior or was it just discovered during the service?

LP Beck

No indications, drove perfectly. Technician saw fluid on the belly pan, never even spotted my garage floor. Pan caught it all.

91469972

I also had mine replaced with 25,000 miles by Walter's using the Fidelity warranty I bought from them. What a great investment. I though did complain to them about three times as to slipping.

ktrainman

I hear you about he warranty. I haven't seen too many PDK failures and decided to roll the dice and stash the 4k to buy a warranty in a savings account.

Surprised dealer said PDK goes bad offen, doesn't seem so based on forum activity. But car is 7 years old now so things may change.

nk215

Is there any chance the leak occurred on the way there, especially the transmission works fine w/o any symptom? Oil usually find its way to the garage floor very well.

That's an impressive way they handle the exchange. Money for CPO was very well spent.

witz323

Curious how often the OP is driving the car in manual mode? I too have an '09 PDK that has about 15 more months left of CPO. Haven't had a single issue yet.

LP Beck

As far as when the leak first occurred, anything is possible. As an aside to my original post, it was strictly informational only, not an indictment of Porsches. I've had 3 P cars over the past 29 years, and truly love the marque, and moreover, the PDK in my current 997.2. I was well aware of PDK failures when I bought my car. Whether or not it is a rare occurrence is statistically unknown, however, I am not the only one who has experienced it. I can only repeat what the authorized Porsche tech told me, he's personally replaced more than a few.

Either way, the stellar customer service PCNA and more importantly Walter's has exhibited to me only serves to reinforce my enjoyment of the marque.