vividck

My 2020 Macan's 2yr intermediate maintenance is due in Sep, but it has very low mileage (less than 7000 miles) on it. I read the Porsche Intermediate Maintenance Checklist as attached, most are simple checks and visual inspections except the brake fluid change. I can do the oil change and cabin air filter change myself, and use the Icarsoft Auto Diagnostic Scanner to reset the computer.

I am fulltime WFH and not expecting a high mileage driving in the next few years, so I wonder if I skip this 2yr intermediate maintenance and wait until the 4yr intermediate maintenance (assume everything runs well), will it void the warranty?

Or if it is ok to do the 2yr intermediate maintenance at an independent shop (mainly for the brake fluid change)?

Any DPs or suggestions are welcomed and appreciated.

siberian

IMHO if you skip it and your suspension gives out or any item that's not covered in the 2 year service I would assume you'd be OK. If OTOH you either don't change the oil or have an indie do it and you loose the drain plug etc. then you probably will have lost your coverage.

FWIW, I change oil twice a year irrespective of mileage due to extreme temps between winter and summer and thus change with the tires. Autumn and Spring.

I do all my own work, so I don't worry about this. YMMV

siberian

CarGuyNVA

Skipping the 2 year maintenance won’t void your warranty, but could put you at greater risk of being covered in the future should something occur (depending on what the problem is). The dealership and Porsche could point to lack of following recommended maintenance and deny coverage (again depending on what failed).

The other thing to keep in mind is that the recommended maintenance intervals are not just mileage based, they’re also based on time/duration. So maintenance is recommended at XX years OR XXXX miles, whichever occurs first. My dealer (and other Rennlist members here) reminded me of this once when I was in the same situation as you are now.

And yes, you could also get the maintenance done at an independent as long as everything specified by Porsche for that service interval is completed and you have it documented in your receipt.

siberian

Good points! I need to start printing receipts and charging myself for my labor and parts ordered.

siberian

vividck

Thank you for the inputs. My point is if I skip the 2yr maintenance and everything runs well, then I do the 4yr maintenance to check/replace everything, and something goes wrong on the check list after the 4yr maintenance, the dealership has no reason to deny the coverage because I skipped the 2yr maintenance, right? As everything is good in the 4yr maintenance.....

vividck

oil change and air filter replacement are easy works, I do them myself and keep the receipts. But I don't think I would do the brake oil change myself which is on the intermediate check list as it is more complicated.

siberian

Bleeding brakes and checking pad/rotors is not rocket science - youtube is your friend. But plenty of capable indies if you don't trust yourself or feel your time is too valuable.

siberian

rasetsu

I think you are over thinking it. The maintenance schedule is by date or mileage, whatever comes first. There are required services every 12 months or every 10K miles, whichever occurs first. It's pretty clear. In the US, there is no such thing as voiding of the entire vehicle warranty. So you don't want to do the brake fluid service at the 2 year mark? Okay, that's fine as it may not even be necessary but if something along your brake system fails, Porsche can absolutely decline warranty coverage on brake components IF they can prove that the fluid was no good and led to the issue because you didn't have it changed at the 2 year mark. What are the odds of this? Probably incredibly slim but it would be a legitimate reason for Porsche to decline warranty coverage on say a failing master cylinder. If you don't know how to do brake fluid service yourself, just have it done by an independent or at least have the fluid tested and documented. There are test strips for brake fluid and coolant that exist.

mvmojo

Brake fluid is extremely hydroscopic meaning it absorbs water, in this case from the atmosphere from when the can is opened as well as through microscopic pores in the brake hoses, lines and piston seals. Changing it ever 2 yrs minimizes the impact of any water in the fluid (a) causing rusting of the various parts and (b) turning to steam from heat generated due to hard braking which can lead to brake failure. A fluid change every 2 years is a lot cheaper than replacing master cylinders, calipers, etc. that have rusted or having an accident because the water in your brake fluid turned to steam when you tried to stop giving you brake fade...

Prime

Fair enough trying to save a few bucks but do you have experience in servicing your own cars?
doing anything yourself when under warranty seems crazy to me, and if you can’t afford that, or skipping a service for $ you gotta ask yourself is this the right car for you?

siberian

If your dealer is 350+ miles from you or 700+ miles round trip - short of an engine meltdown whether in warranty or not, I do it myself thank you. This encompasses a 2008 V8 Touareg, a 2020 Macan S, a 2021 992 C4S and a Gehl 5460 turbo diesel skid steer. But yes, I've worked on cars for over 60 years, I'm over 70 and they are the right cars for me. The day I can't I'll call an Uber.

siberian

CapitalAL

I plan on doing most, if not all the maintenance on my Macan myself. What is the best way to ensure any problems are avoided down the road should I need any warranty work done? Just keep the receipts or is there anything else I should to do?

siberian

Keep the receipts of course but that doesn't really prove that after buying the oil you actually put it in, but it's better than nothing. Resetting the SRI is fine but again doesn't prove you actually did it just that you reset it. So no, beyond keeping the receipts not much more you can do.

siberian

rasetsu

I've done most of the regular maintenance on all of my cars myself and I have made warranty claims on nearly every car and I've never experienced an issue or been challenged by a dealership for having done my own services. It's really not as big of a deal as some people make it out to be. I'm pretty sure I've never heard of anyone first hand say they were denied on a warranty claim and request to show proof because they performed their own maintenance. A lot of this is based on just hearsay or urban legends. Things may be different in countries other than thr US though as there's a law in the US that protects consumers called the Magnusson Moss Warranty Act.

But yes, I do keep my parts and fluid purchase receipts in a folder. I buy everything online and just print out the email receipts or save the packing slip. Only time I've ever had to present receipts for anything was for the VW timing chain tensioner class action claim. I submitted the receipts for my online oil and oil filter purchases and they were accepted.

Pavegeno928

For all the maintenance I do, I keep the receipts ofr all parts and fluids as well as the receipt for the lift time at the bas auto hobby shop and I have a document for each of my cars with time/mileage/description of maintenance performed.