Thank you! I appreciate all the info. Quick question for the experts. Do 997.2 cars need the coolant lines welded, or is it an issue that just afflicts the 997.1 cars?

 

Both need lines either welded or pinned.

 

Thanks! I think I’m leaning more toward the .2 car. To be honest, I prefer the rear spoiler on the .2. Most of the differences are subjective anyway, but that’s what I’m feeling right now.

Another stupid question...how the heck does anyone work on these engines?!? They are tucked under the trunk lid! Does the subframe need to be dropped for basically any service?!

 

What service work specifically? Plugs and coils can be done with engine in the car. Starter is at the bottom of the engine. Alternator can be done in the car. If a coolant tank needed to be replaced typically you’ll want to lower the engine but not drop it completely.

Coolant lines requires an engine drop and at that time It’s a good idea to do anything else age related or mileage related that may need to be done in the next 5-10 years as It’s much easier with the engine out.

 

Ok all that is excellent information. I was just thinking out loud that you cannot see much of anything with the trunk lid open. There’s probably much more access to components underneath with it being a H6.

I have a 2 post lift in my garage and a decent tool set, so for the most part I do my own repairs and maintenance. However, I’ve only owned a couple European cars, so I probably need a few specialty tools...triple squares etc

 

These engines were designed to be dropped 'fairly' easily and a great independent shop can always help for the bigger items. Since you have a lift yourself you'll definitely be able to handle 75%+ of normal maintenance, or perhaps even more if you're extremely handy as a mechanic. I recently had an engine out service on my GT2 to have the coolant lines welded and the bill was much more reasonable than you'd expect, particularly if you are used to paying repair bills for Italian or British sports cars.

 

Ok, well I guess serviceability is not like a Honda but not horrible either. In terms of maintenance, what is the maintenance schedule like for the GT3?

From what my friend who ran a prominent Porsche race team and service shop, he says:
1. 997.2 cars do not need the coolant lines welded/pinned. It’s still a good idea, but apparently the issue isn’t as big of a problem as the 997.1. 997.2 lines are Significantly better.
2. Clutch life is between 30-50k miles (which I think is pretty bad), obviously driver dependent.
3. Coils And plugs every other year.
4. Oil 6k miles
5. Gearbox oil every year

What is involved in the major services (15k etc)? And how much does this cost?

 

Regarding point 1, pretty sure that just isn't the case and may be showing up more due to the fact that 997.2s are newer. Meaning, I think you're going to want to address your coolant lines no matter which generation you buy as it plagues all Mezger engines. Although it's true that some never experience the failure, many owners don't properly exercise their cars. The more vigorously you drive the car, the more I'd want the coolant lines done. I mean I even have a 997.2 GT3 RS with original lines and 68k miles on it, but I'm going to get them done. I just had my 47k mile 997.1 GT2 serviced and had the coolant lines welded this year.

 

Understood. Addressing The coolant lines are a good idea regardless of the generation. I’m just trying to calculate running costs and what types of services are due depending on the year and mileage cars I am considering.

 

Minor service.
https://pictures.dealer.com/porscheo...4b4650b934.pdf

Major service.
https://pictures.dealer.com/porscheo...4bbdff4e2c.pdf

1. Both 997.1 and 997.2 lines have the issue. Maybe the glue was improved slightly, I don't think anyone knows for sure, but as Steve said, the issue is that the 997.2 is newer and the 997.1 is older, so we are going to have more 997.1 cars fail. It seems to be quite random when and how they fail. If you buy one and are driving it on the street, there is nothing wrong with waiting a couple of years to pin the lines. Just anticipate that they could fail at some point.
2. Clutch life. My car has 25k miles on it. Clutch is original to my knowledge. I think it depends how the car was driven. Also the driver as you mentioned. Will let others chime in on what clutch life has been for them. But when the engine was out for coolant lines, I think the shop inspected the clutch. I would have expected them to tell me if it needed to be done as labor is much less with the engine out.
3. Plugs are every 4 years or 24k miles. Plugs are based on a time interval as well to prevent them from getting seized to the block, from my understanding. You can also go with a Bosch OE plug for much less. Many will tell you the Genuine Porsche plugs are a higher quality and they go through additional QC. I am sure this is true, but how much it affects performance, I don't know. Just giving options. I don't think coils have an actual replacement interval. However, they are known to crack, I think the earlier ones more so and they were revised later on. When you're replacing plugs every 4 years, it probably makes sense to replace coils to save on labor. If not every 4 years, I would do every 8 years.
4. Oil I do every year, which turns out to be around 2k miles. It is not a daily driver for me. I would tend to keep oil change intervals to 4-6k miles depending on how you're using the car. If you're doing track events, I would do it after every couple of events. It is cheap insurance. I won't get involved in the oil debates, but the typical Mobil 0W40 tends to shear down quite quickly, so you may want to look into a Mobil 5W50. Oil analysis tests show this happening. You can also consider something like Motul 5W40 or plenty of other oils. But if using on track, I would probably stick with 5W50 for additional protection. It is also Porsche approved.
5. For gearbox oil Porsche says every 12 years or 96k miles. I would try and do it every 4-6 years. Around the time of a major service. Doing it every year sounds a bit much.

If your friend is running a race shop, I am guessing his figures may be based more on a car that you're tracking or driving very hard. I tend to over maintain my cars, I enjoy making cars better and making sure they're in the best condition they can be, but at the same time, there is also a point where I think you have to balance that with the finances of it. Keep in mind, I am far from a mechanic. So I would trust your mechanic/friend but I am mostly repeating what I have read on here over the years, my experience with my GT3 and talking with my friends who have owned GT3's or one that has a shop.

Also keep in mind if you're tracking, the diffs on these cars tend to go quite quickly so you'll want to upgrade that. Or if you're buying a car that has been tracked.

 

Thanks for posting the maintenance schedule! That’s exactly what I was hoping to find, and there’s nothing crazy on there. The coil and plug, and fuel filter life seems a bit short, but whatever. I agree with you, based on the service schedule, my friend’s suggested intervals do seem a bit aggressive for a car that’s not a track rat.

What’s wrong with the differentials? I assume it’s a clutch type that wears? My current and previous performance cars have all had Torsen diffs.

 

I believe you mentioned tracking your car. Many tracks won't let you in without the lines being pinned or welded. My recent search landed on 2 cars. Ultimately I paid more than I planned because the car I bought already had pinned lines as well as being current on all service including a 4.0 LWFW and new clutch. I did end up changing out the PCCB's for steel rotors so I could go to the track. I can promise you no regrets!!

 

I am a track rat, but I don’t think I will be tracking the GT3. Perhaps autocross or something with a bit less risk, some PCA HPDE stuff. This will be the most expensive car I’ve purchased to date, so I certainly don’t want to stuff it into Armco.

 

I'm in the same boat, so far I've only done PCA HPDE (I may check out NASA next year, have some friends that do that as well). But to get onto Mid-Ohio and Indy, the coolant lines are required to be pinned. Good luck with the search....Amen to the most expensive vehicle....

 

BTW, I buy supplemental track insurance for the car. It's the most expensive part of the weekend!