27 replies to this topic

[Langley968]

If you pay the PPI fee on five cars, and only buy the fifth knowing what you're getting into as a result, it will be $500 well spent.

So true...

[flash]

i'm not a big fan of PPIs. i know that flies in the face of common wisdom, but i have a rather unique perspective on this.

when you take a car to a shop for a PPI, if they think they might get the work, they might be motivated to find things. however, they may only find the things that will profit them. i've seen a bunch of shops say the trans needs a rebuild, when it was just fine.

if they are told they aren't going to get the work, they may not find anything, as they are not motivated.

the bottom line is that if you want to have somebody look at the car, that's fine. however, it needs to be a shop that does 968s, and not just 944s. further, it needs to be a shop you have a relationship with. otherwise, how will you know if they are telling you the truth?

also, a compression and leak down test should be done, as well as a variocam inspection. most shops won't do that, and without it, you really have no idea what's going on inside the single most expensive part of the car. any idiot can look at brakes and suspension. you don't need to pay a shop to do that. nobody but a shop who has experience with these transmissions can diagnose that part, and even then unless it's making noise, they won't find anything, and you would have already deduced there is a problem if there was noise, thereby doing that part for them.

that leaves very little for a shop to do in a traditional PPI. none of that will get done for $100 either.

[Rap]

Yes I saw the $100 and wondered!

[Qfrank]

Any PPI I have ever done has been in the $300 range, including compression check. $100 inspection can be done at any tire/front end shop.

In one case a BMW technician, from a dealer, came to the house and did a 3 hour inspection on a 72' 2002.

[flash]

yup - you get what you pay for on these. having had a shop, i am keenly aware of the amount of time involved to thoroughly check a car. unfortunately almost nobody would pay for that if billed on an hourly basis. it's a lose/lose scenario.

that's why people need to rely on themselves and our members for the initial reviews, and then only when they are sure that they have found the car they want, should they then take it to a shop. but they should expect to pay for 3 hours of labor.

[Cloud9...68]

I second Flash's thoughts on PPI's. I had one done on mine at a "reputable" Porsche shop when I was trying to sell it, and they came up with thousands of dollars in items that were completely bogus, including a supposedly cracked firewall ( described as an "8-inch gash" with a $2000 repair estimate) that wasn't - I and a very knowledgeable neighbor inspected it when the engine was out, and couldn't find a hint of a crack. There were several similar items. The PPI ended up killing the sale. Buyer beware...

Edited by Cloud9...68, 31 January 2013 - 12:52 PM.

[Rap]

Reputable? Having a mechanic that was thoroughly familiar with a 968 helps and not just a Porsche shop. I was fortunate with mine in August, although it was 2 hours away from me and I had to convince the owner to drive one way and wait 3 hours. It certainly made a difference for me and gave me an idea of what I might have fixed in the future. Using the knowledge of the forum helped narrow my selection and make sure I was on the right track and not wasting my time. I suspect there might have been some luck involved!

[flash]

it really is all about who does it, and the relationship you have with them. a good PPI can save you a lot of time and money. a quickie is worthless. unfortunately so few people know what to look for on these cars, and is willing to do it, that most people end up finding out shortly after purchase that there was a lot more needed than they bargained for.