German Car Ownership

[OrbitalEllipses]

Originally Posted by chrisl

I'm not concerned - Porsches do prety well in that regard (especially compared to older BMWs/VWs/Audis).

Porsche reliability? Check every model other than the 911.

[bfrank1972]

Originally Posted by OrbitalEllipses

Porsche reliability? Check every model other than the 911.

Even the 911's, at least the water cooled ones. I miss my old 73 911, back in the simple days. Not to bad mouth them - every car, even the FR-S/BRZ/GT86 has its QC issues - it's just that Porsche failures cost an order of magnitude more than these cars. I'd rather spend my money on track days

[campy]

I have a 1996 Porsche 911 c2 with roughly 100k miles on it currently, and it was a very reliable daily driver.

CEL light comes on every once in a while but I just ignore it and it goes away. It's an old Porsche thing.

[chrisl]

Originally Posted by OrbitalEllipses

Porsche reliability? Check every model other than the 911.

The 987 Caymans do pretty well, actually (as do 987 Boxsters). 986 Boxsters had problems, as did 996 911s, but they mostly fixed those with the 987/997 generation. 981/991 hasn't been out long enough to decide how reliable they are yet. On the whole, Porsche sports cars are quite reliable though, if you avoid the 986 generation.

As for Panameras/Cayennes? I have no idea, but I don't particularly care either.

[gzpermadi]

A friend of mine gave a me ride in his 2006 Cayenne.
All his instrument panel warning light up like a christmas tree. LOL.

Never had a German car before but I owned Alfa Romeo before so I decided my next car(s) should be with minimum computer interference, no semi automatic Selespeed, DSG, SMG or whatsoever. I'd rather stick with manual or just normal auto torque conv.

From what I can see in friends/family german cars, quality are great but if they breakdown they will cost arm and leg.
And they tend to breakdown after warranty is over.
So better buy used with some warranty left and ensure to check the service history.

[OrbitalEllipses]

Originally Posted by chrisl

986 Boxsters had problems, as did 996 911s, but they mostly fixed those with the 987/997 generation.

IMS bearings, derptastic.

[tdoggy57]

Good feedback so far guys. If I do go with a new German car chances are I will be keeping it for a long time.

I probably won't go with a Porsche just because I'm not sure whether I'll have kids any time soon or not, but I love the cars and I could get a nice Cayman in my price range.

I pretty much want my next car to be nice enough that it doesn't leave anything to be desired (within reason). I want it to have the power, luxury interior, and stunning looks. I love my FRS but it's still a Scion, it's still relatively slow, and the exclusivity factor is slowly fading. I can appreciate the interior for what it is, but it sure would be nice to cruise around with some more bells and whistles.

[chrisl]

Originally Posted by OrbitalEllipses

IMS bearings, derptastic.

That was the problem in the 986, yes. In the 987/997, the IMS bearing still exists, but the failure rate is dramatically lower, and I believe the 987.2 got rid of it entirely. I really think it's nothing to worry about though, except on the 986 generation.

[OrbitalEllipses]

New engine architecture with the new 981 and 991 chassis, so I agree the IMS bearing shouldn't be a concern.

[chrisl]

Originally Posted by OrbitalEllipses

New engine architecture with the new 981 and 991 chassis, so I agree the IMS bearing shouldn't be a concern.

I would hope the IMS bearing shouldn't be a concern, since the engine doesn't have an IMS.


(It didn't have one in the 987.2 either - the 987.1 was the last engine in the Boxster/Cayman lineup to have an IMS)

[OrbitalEllipses]

You said that already...

[bfrank1972]

Originally Posted by chrisl

That was the problem in the 986, yes. In the 987/997, the IMS bearing still exists, but the failure rate is dramatically lower, and I believe the 987.2 got rid of it entirely. I really think it's nothing to worry about though, except on the 986 generation.

I guess the point I was trying to make was that things like that exist. The IMS issue got a lot of press because it was catastrophic. Motor dead. Certainly we could find things like that on any new car, but given the choice (god forbid) I'll take a catastrophic (or otherwise) failure on my car vs. any Porsche. My wallet just ain't big enough. I used to own an old air cooled 911, loved it to death. It was terribly expensive to repair too, but the thing was simple and just built like a tank. Modern Porsches are fabulous, but they are built like bmws now - comfy, complex, crammed, and more stuff to go wrong. Not trying to preach here, as your wallet may be plenty big enough, but I keep reading equivalencies in price between a new frs and a used cayman, where it simply isn't true. Same goes for all the new bmws and audis, too complicated IMHO.


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[serialk11r]

Originally Posted by bfrank1972

Modern Porsches are fabulous, but they are built like bmws now - comfy, complex, crammed, and more stuff to go wrong. Not trying to preach here, as your wallet may be plenty big enough, but I keep reading equivalencies in price between a new frs and a used cayman, where it simply isn't true. Same goes for all the new bmws and audis, too complicated IMHO.

I haven't read about Porsche engines that much, but BMW's engines are insanely complicated. The S65 and S85 have 5 oil pumps. Yes you read that correctly, FIVE.

[chrisl]

Originally Posted by serialk11r

I haven't read about Porsche engines that much, but BMW's engines are insanely complicated. The S65 and S85 have 5 oil pumps. Yes you read that correctly, FIVE.

The engine in the 987.2 Caymans has 5 as well, IIRC, which helps avoid the oil starvation problems that can occur on a 987.1 if you track it frequently on R-compound or slick tires.