Leafgreen

I would like to get an idea on a fair price for parts and labor from an independent Porsche repair shop for the following for my 2004 Boxster S with 44k miles. Sure would appreciate your feedback

1. "BRAKE WEAR" light came on 3 months ago. The repair shop I spoke with said they'd have to look at the rotors too. No sure why. Anyway, what should I expect for the pads alone, and then for the rotors to be replaced.

2. Red light on thermostat temp indicator came on 3 months ago. Just replace coolant.

3. I hear a rattle coming from the front right side undercarriage at low speeds when driving over bumps. That repair shop said it is common for the ball joints to go bad.

4. The "CHECK" engine light came on a few days ago. No symptoms. Drives the same as before.

No HTwo O

You should stop driving the Boxster with CEL's and red lights flashing. You may be doing more damage.

1) Learn to DIY for brake pads. I hear it's pretty easy. Just pads woiuld be about an hours labor at an indy. Figure about $120/hour depending on location.

2) Check your coolant level. Check your trunk carpet. Wet? Pretty common to have a cracked res.

3) True, ball joints or maybe a motor mount.

4) You need to get the CEL code read. Don't drive with a blinking CEL! Flatbed to shop.

No HTwo O

A mod should move this to the 986 Forum, for more play and info.

TexasRider

As above I would flat bed this car to the chosen shop before something really bad lets go inside that Bpxster. What is it maybe $100 to transport one 50 miles. That pales in compairson to anything Porsche inside that car.

Leafgreen

Ok guys, got the message on ECL loud and clear. What about parts and labor for #1 through #3? After all that, I got $120/hr for labor. Would like the specifics I asked. Thanks.

No HTwo O

Look at parts prices at Suncoast Porsche's web site.

TexasRider

Any of those guys regularly doing Porsche work can probably tell you very close what it will cost. That is before you start and OK the job.

But in general I would think that the rotors would be in the $150-200 max per rotor. I think mine were about the $150 and that seems about right. Pads can vary a lot. I think my Pagids were $400 or so. I cant remember exactly as that was last year and I dont have the file here. I have done a lot of work and a lot of parts have flown throught my head. And my car is a 951. But the Porsche OEM pads could be in that range too.

It is likely no more than 3 hours of book time complete for 4 wheels with rotors and change fluid and ABS etc - but have him tell you. So at $120 an hour it looks like $1500 at least. A couple of liters of barke fluid or more. And I dont know about the bleed and ABS on the Boxster. But fluid is another $50 or more. And the ABS specialty service if any.

I always seem to need to tires about the time of a brake job. Then alignment. So you see where this is. Tires could be $800 or $1000 on your car. Maybe more depending on what you like. But I would think a selection of good tires is available at $250. Alignment maybe $300. Probably repair the ball joint before all of that. That ball joint and bushing work is something I let the shop do as I flat dont want to do it.

Macster

The shop wants to make sure the rotors aren't worn down to their too thin limits. That the shop told you is reasonable.

For the pads, rotors a dealer (this a few years back) quoted me around $1000/axle and that was before labor rates climbed to their current $150/hour.

It has been awhile since I've replaced pads but IIRC they are about $100 per axle. (Rotors run about $250/axle, roughly.)

But I also replace some of the brake hardware which adds about $30 to $40 more. (The factory manual calls for this brake hardware to be renewed when the pads are replaced.)

Of course whether just the pads are replaced or the pads and rotors unless it has been done in the last 2 years, budget to have the brake fluid flushed and bled.

Coolant light on steady signals coolant level low. Cooling system has a leak. Could be a cap or the coolant tank has a crack or the leak resides elsewhere. It is not wise to drive the car with a cooling system leak because with the leak the system can't build pressure and it is pressure that keeps the coolant from boiling. If it boils localized overheating can occur and in severe cases can ruin the engine. I'd get that low coolant problem cause looked into and taken care of pronto.

Common for ball joints to go bad? Not my experience. Checked my Boxster's front wheel play the other day and there is none. And the ball joints have 245K miles on them.

If the ball joints are bad there'll be clear signs of it.

The rattle can be most anything up there. For instance, an anti-sway bar link comes loose, but it could any number of other things too. I'd not replace the ball joints unless it was clear they needed replacing.

Check engine light on can be any number of things related to a loose or leaking gas cap to well just about anything. Either buy a code reader and read the codes and post here or let the shop read the codes and tell you what they mean and what is required to make the errors go away.

Sincerely,

Macster.

mikefocke

I'd think a better question with all these problems is where near my location is a good independent shop that has excellent diagnostic capabilities. Labor hour rates vary by location and since we know nothing of where your car is, hard to tell you much about the reasonableness of any quote. A good mechanic who fixes symptoms right the first time saves you time and money.

Ray H

+1

Stay away from the dealers.