rrich49132

Hi all,
I have been looking for an SUV for a few months and have looked at BMW and Mercedes. I just came across a 2004 Cayenne S for $21,900 which is a one owner vehicle maintained well at the local Porsche dealership and has a full warranty till the end of 2011.

Is this a good price and how are these cars in terms of reliability and maintenance? I know it is not cheap and I know these are not like Toyota in terms of reliability and such. I own a Mercedes CLK430 so I know what things cost.

Good buy? Have not driven one and been reading the reviews and it seems in terms of drive ability these are great cars with 340HP and great braking and handling. I was impressed with the BMW 4.6is and did like it but never could agree upon a price with the last one I looked at.

ltc

Miles?
Is the warranty a CPO from Porsche?
Service history...cardan shaft, coils/plugs, coolant tubes, miles left on brakes/tires?

rrich49132

I don't think it is a CPO car as it is a one owner vehicle. Trying to get info on the warranty which I don't have as of yet. I asked about brakes and such and they said they where done two years ago along with tires but have no clue about anything else. They had all service done at the local Porsche Dealership so can get records pulled easily they said. The mileage is 63K and asking price is $21900. Here is a list to the posting:

http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/n...171554930.html

I just drove a 2005 at a dealership today to see how I liked it and I loved it compared to an X5 and a ML Mercedes. Just am in the early part of my research to see the common issues and the cost to maintain.

Dealer was trying to tell me it is much cheaper than a Mercedes or BMW but I dont trust what any sales people tell me. I find out on my own.

Would love to hear from owners who have had one for a while and how it has been over the years.

SCOTITUDE

read through the forum. your questions have been answered.

rrich49132

Will check over the maintenance records to see if the known issues have been taken care of. If not will factor that into buying the car. Car would be warrantied till the end of the year but would be on my own after that.

mellowyellow-atlanta

If it's truly under warranty until the end of the year then it sounds like a potentially decent deal... I guess it must be a transferable extended warranty (not CPO) if 1-owner, or perhaps a demo car that dealer took title on and then sold to its first "real" owner as a CPO.... given that this car is a 2004. See if you can get repair records to review before purchase, since it was all done at that dealership.

As others have mentioned, key repair items which will go sooner or later are plastic coolant pipes, coil packs, and the cardan shaft.

Tires and brakes don't really cost any more than the ML or the X5.

But... Porsches are more expensive to maintain in general, mainly because of the high labor costs and higher parts costs. Overall however, I think it would see less shop time than the BMW X5. I am not sure about the ML, as I don't know about higher-mileage service issues with them (although I almost bought a used 2007 ML63 before we finalized on a nice used 2006 Cayenne S a few weeks ago).

rrich49132

I am trying to get specifics on the warranty and the VIN number so I can call the dealer and get the records. I do think it might have had the coolant tubes done they mentioned it had a coolant leak and was unsure what was done to fix it but it was covered under warranty. This was the only thing they used it for so I assume the coils have not gone nor the cardan shaft. I wonder if a PPI could tell me if the cardan shaft is about to go? I am thinking not? Would like to get the car under $20K. Will look at it over the weekend. Seems very nice and well cared for.

rrich49132

I just found out the warrany is through a company called Warrantech:

http://www.warrantech.com

I also found out the the coils where done under warranty 3/10 and the coolant tubes where done 10/10. Warranty runs through 11/11. Am going to try to call the dealership to see if they will send me all maintenance records as I have the VIN number. Some wont do this but worth a shot.

Would of liked to of had the cardan shaft done as well. Given the car has 64K on it when would you anticipate this going out?

rrich49132

Darn,
just got back from looking at the car. As per the post and such my expectations where very high. There are a 3 small imperfections on the car which 2 could be fixed fairly easy. The drivers side door handle was scrapped up pretty bad as I would have no clue what it would cost to fix. Outside of that the tires where border line passing inspection and the sticker expires at the end of the month so if they failed would have to be purchased right when I get it. The owner said the tires where about 3 yrs old and where done with the brakes so the brakes could need to be replaced as well would have to have a PPI to see how much life they have left as I could not tell.

Outside of that the car drives great, interior in great shape but think I am going to pass. He said there was a bit of wiggle room on the $21,900 asking price but I am looking at about $1500 for 4 tires, probably somewhere between $400-$800 to get the dings fixed as well as that handle. Cost to put a tow package on which is up in the air and potentially brakes and what a PPI might find. With all that I don't want to low ball him at $18,500 which is what I would take it for.

I am very **** about my cars and know what I like and how it would be if I owned it. Back to the search. No rush just want to take my time and get the right one.

Was very excited about this as the coolant pipes and coils where already done and I would have 10 more months of warranty.

Shawn Stanford

I bet you can find a set of tires cheaper than that! Here's a set of OEM 19s for $500 in your neighborhood: http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/n...174252420.html

rrich49132

He is not willing to budge much on price so am going to pass all together. Was nice but not exactly the condition I would like.