jcdriller

Good evening. My wife and I are having our first child soon and we've been keeping our ears to the ground for a SUV. A friend of mine called and his boss is trading in his single owner 2004 cayenne S w/ 55k mi and offering to sell it for trade in value ($9k). I don't know much more than the few photos and short description he sent.

Can anyone run the VIN to see if the coils or coolant pipes have been replaced?

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you.

VIN**WP1AB29P64LA61883

19psi

Only way to be sure is to get in there with a camera and look. If you do your own wrenching, you could change out the pipes for under $600.00. Coils packs are cheap and simply done when replacing the spark plugs. If there are no misfires, I wouldn't worry about them.
Also, if the guy is the original owner, he should know what was replaced and have the receipts.
Downside with buying a Cayenne with new pipes is that a previous owner most likely replaced them after a catastrophic failure. Now were they a moron who kept driving while the engine cooked itself? Did the starter and torque converter seal drown in coolant?

The price for that mileage sounds like a killer deal as long as it hasn't been in any accidents or been beat to hell.
I recently bought mine with 52K miles and quite a few people assumed it was brand new. It took a few years of on/off searching to find as most in my area are used up turds with 100K+ miles.

That said, if you don't have a lot of expendable income, no Porsche is going to be right for you. At $9K it's a lot of bang for the buck but upkeep is astronomical compared to a common SUV like an Explorer.
There is also the risk of cylinder scoring. Odds are it won't happen but the probability is always there...and it happens to normally aspirated as well as the turbo models no matter what some may claim.

v10rick

^^^Agree^^^
The Porsche service network is not interconnected, you cannot access the rap sheet by VIN unless its from the servicing dealership.
Try obtaining the service records through your friend or find out where it was serviced and contact them. Carfax could help with this, the servicing dealer may be listed on their report.

Please do not be blinded by the msrp vs the asking price. Even if this CS was a gift it could turn into a nightmare that will drain your wallet quickly. Unexpected expenses are likely.

I purchased a 2004 CS with 40K mi from the original owner. It was dealer serviced from day one, the seller provided the complete service history. In the 4 years of ownership, with about 50% DIY wrenching, repairs and maintenance totaled $5K+. It left me stranded once when without warning a transmission seal failed.

With a newborn on the way a RAV 4 would be a better option IMO.

AGARubberDuck

Great price for the mileage, but what others say is true. The cost of maintenance and repairs on these vehicles is crazy-high.

My 04 has been a complete blast to drive, but has left me stranded on two occasions. Bringing it to the dealer was going to cost me upwards of $7000 (flat-bed 300 miles, replace both front shock assemblies because they only come in assemblies and they only do them in pairs, even though only one air spring blew. I chose to DIY and made that repair myself for $800 but it was a month before it was back on the road since I had to wait for parts and a decent weekend to go do the work and retrieve it.

I couldn't recommend an 11-yr old Porsche as any household's main vehicle. It WILL cost you time, money or both. As a second vehicle, absolutely!

Dilberto

That is a smokin' deal! Here is the heads-up. Be prepared for:

~ Brakes(rotors/pads)
~ Fuel pumps/fuel filter
~ Coils/spark plugs
~ Power Steering pump
~ Cardan Shaft
~ Coolant Pipes?
~ Water Pump/Serpentine belt
~ Transfer Case Stepper motor
~ Battery
~ Fuel Vapor Canister Purge Valve
~ Rear hatch struts

matt_o_70

As an owner of 04 S purchased with 45K that 4 years later needs its engine rebuilt due to No fault of my own (cylinder scoring/Extreme Cold).. I echo the sentiments of others here.. I love the car - for family use - but it will require all the repairs that you read about on the Pig T-shirt..or other threads.

Do you research and decide for your self.

endless_corners

I love my cayenne. If you get one just know you WILL spend a couple grand (or more) on it. This isn't like buying a Japanese car where you trade intangibles and driver enjoyment for supreme reliability and lower cost of ownership. You have to pay to play with German luxury vehicles. Keep in mind that mileage is not the only cause of wear. Rubber and other materials also degrade with age. Again, I LOVE my cayenne but I have spent thousands on it.

Oh, and usually in life if something for sale seems too good to be true it usually is. There may be hidden surprises built into that specimen so get a good ppi.

v10rick

Re: my 2004 CS

The original owner supplied a stack of service invoices for the first 5 years of ownership. About half the warranty invoices were return visits because the fault was not fixed on the first attempt. Aside from brakes and tires year 5 was calm. Thinking I would escape the common issues reported here the CS was purchased.

WRONG WRONG WRONG

First year in my care was relatively problem free and then it started...many issues mentioned in this thread and more.

nguyenaq

If I was in the north, I would be a bit weary of getting a Cayenne S due to the rampant reports of cylinder scoring due to extreme coldness. Although there are many factors that contribute to cylinder scoring, such as length of commute, oil change interval, etc, very cold climate seems to be the biggest factor in causing this problem. This problem alone would be enough for me to NOT consider a Cayenne S. With a newborn on the way, I would not take the risk.

Wisconsin Joe

^This. No matter how cheap to buy, it's still a "high-end luxury SUV." Parts costs reflect that. Labor usually does too.

And it's 12 years old. There's stuff in there that ages no matter what.

This car will cost you money to own. No doubt about it. But getting it for cheap allows you to set aside a budget for that.

If you aren't the DIY type, I'd suggest finding a good independent shop (indy) to work on it. If you are, then you can find most of what you need on here.

You aren't the "target customer" for a dealer, so I'd avoid them. Parts and labor will be much more reasonable at an indy.

If it's a one owner car, then you should be able to get the records. That is a big plus for one of these, especially an older one. You can see how well it was cared for. And exactly what has and has not been done (pipes, water pump, LCAs cardan shaft and on and on). A lot of the time, the original owners will stay with the dealer. They start that way because of service agreements and warranty work, then stay there because they are treated well (they are the "target customer").
If it was dealer serviced, the dealer will have the records. Often the seller will keep them, but if not, the dealer will have them (might need to get the seller to release them).

Depending on condition and history, this might not be "too good to be true." There are a lot of these out there, and many (most?) dealers won't want a 12 year old car on their lot. So they just dump them to auction.
So the trade value is...

less than stellar.
That was my experience.

The guy I got mine from was seriously disappointed at how much the trade offer was. He had looked at both 8 years/80k miles and 9 years/90k miles. When he went back at 10 years and over 100k miles, the trade value had plummeted. Again, the dealer wasn't going to keep it. So they weren't offering much for it.
So I got a good (not "killer", but fair) deal on mine.

Even so, I've put well over $2k into it. And I need to put more in over the winter.

It could be a very nice car for you and your family. I'd get a good inspection on it. A proper one will cost a couple hundred. Well worth the money.
"Look before you leap." And understand that the buy-in is only the beginning.

rpm's S2

"Much more?" I don't find that broad assumption to be all that true anymore. Labor rate differences between dealers and good Indy shops are not that big. The dealer will charge you full price for OEM parts, but if it's a big ticket item you can often bring your own sourced parts if you have built a relationship. And while many independent Porsche shops have techs who have experience with older Porsche sports cars, experience with the Cayenne is not a given.

All I'm saying is, dealers have experienced techs, the right up to date diagnostic tools, and their rates are not that much more when you really look at it. Dont automatically discount them.

And, as Wisconsin Joe said, if you can't afford the maintenance a Porsche, any Porsche, may not be the right vehicle for you. If you need to save the $15/hr labor rate difference between a dealer and an Indy, that should be a warning flag. You must approach the ownership of any Porsche with your eyes wide open.

Wisconsin Joe

Labor rates vary widely. The local P-dealer charges $112/hr.
I have an indy tech (not a P-car tech) who charges $60. There's a local P-car specialist who is around $90.

An 04 is old enough that a competent indy can find the info needed and a Durametric works well on them. My non-P indy has All Data, and it covers my 05. I looked up stuff like torque spec and sequence for the intake while doing my coolant pipes (he's a good friend and let me do that). The Durametric that I just got reset my airbag warning (transient) and service reminder.

And being "not the target customer", my dealer experience has been...

Less than stellar.

As always, just my experience and opinions, yours may vary.

v10rick

Asked a local indy who uses All Data for a quote on replacing coolant tubes. I was shocked when their quote was for 12 hrs labor. As proof they showed me their AD book.

Since it was reported here that 6 hrs is typical I went with another indy who agreed to charge for the actual labor. They replaced the water pump, idler pulley, the tubes, cleaned the fuel injectors and performed a 60K mi. service all for 8 hrs.labor.

The shop owner felt bad presenting an invoice for that amount and was puzzled by the big smile when I wrote the check.

gnat

Just remember it is $9000 for a reason. You can't cheat on the price of any Porsche. If it's priced lower than market, there is always a reason and it's rarely a good one. As others have said, parts and labor are not cheap.

With a kid on the way, get something reliable and with a warranty or at least pay up when you find one with no stories (though as others have said, there will still be things).

Shawn Stanford

I'm an unashamed proponent of these P!gs, and my experience with mine (bought used five years ago with 82k on the clock, pushing 140k now) has been excellent. If you do your own wrenching or have a reliable indy who'll work with you on parts, then your maintenance costs should average out to $100-$150 a month. Considering what you get and the price you're getting it for, that's an amazing value.

A 55k Cayenne still has a lot of life left in it, easily 150k if you take care of it.

You can beat the living bejebus out of these things; they love it.