The new car isn't perfect...or at least the seller isn't.
Posted: Sat Aug 01, 2020 3:15 pm
Or things I should have checked for before I drove it off....
The hunt now being over, I'll make some periodic notes here on my very very
new (to me) car. It drives beautifully. No complaints about the car at all. But the seller is
proving to be just like most sellers, negligent.
Got home and couldn't find the special little nut that lets you take off the locking nut.
The seller said it was in the trunk...but it is not. He's now looking in his office to find
it, but I'm going to nearest Porsche dealer on Monday morning and getting one...and then
I may get rid of all of them and put standard lug nuts in. I let the seller know that this
did not make me happy.
The seller handed me the semi-leather pouch with all the literature inside, except
when I got home, it didn't have the operating manual or the original warranty book.
It did have books on the original radio which is no longer in the car, and a service
book for a 2003 car, plus some 2003 books on roadside service. The seller said he'd
get me one and that this is what the PO gave him. Doesn't pass the smell test. I let
the seller know that this did not make me happy.
The oil is down at the bottom of the dip stick and the gauge. I added two thirds
of a quart and I'll check it later. This shows, in my opinion, a seller-dealer who is
great in the sales presentation, but doesn't really follow through in the delivery
of the vehicle. I will let the seller know that this did not make me happy.
The battery is not the right size for the car. It fills up about 3/4s of the tray. While
I'm at Porsche getting the locking lug nut, I'll show them the battery, get the part number
for the correct one, and do the job myself. I will let the seller know that this does not
make me happy.
Last complaint...the after-market Pioneer nav/radio/CD/infotainment/blue tooth thing is
just awful. The quick start little brochure is useless. Today I down loaded the 455 page
operating manual and I had to shake my head...it, and the little videos that it sends you to
look at, are like a Woody Allen comedy about the future. I will probably throw it out and
install an original OEM Porsche radio/cd player that used knobs and buttons, and doesn't
have screen. Not the seller's fault...just an example of bad technology.
But now for the good stuff...This is an analog car. Nothing happens unless your arms and
legs and brain make it happen. There are no computers trying to read your mind and then
suggest they've got a better idea. Yes, this is a 20 year old car (build in 07/2000) but for the
most part you wouldn't know it. The engine just loves to rev...very different in my opinion to
the 3.6. The clutch is great...my left leg is rusty and still getting to know the point of contact.
My shifting is not embarrassing...again, familiarity and muscle memory will happen soon enough.
No rattles that I've noticed, the ac fan has some slight noises (leaves, old dry foam?) but nothing
to deal with for now. All the doors and windows and seats and sunroof and latches are great. The
two sun visor flaps that you flip up to look at yourself in the mirrors, they broke long ago and maybe
in a year or three so I'll deal with it. The flaps currently lie in state in the passenger door pocket.
The song of the engine is wonderfully raw...like a woman on the rebound whose had one too many
drinks. I have no need for a louder exhaust...just the right amount of sound reaches into my entire
body, it isn't outside of me, it is part of me. I wear two hearing aids but I have a good ear for engines.
I signed up with Haggarty and got my insurance for $781 a year. The car's basic tool kit is all
there and in very nice condition. But I'm throwing some extra tools of my own in with them. I'll give
the tire pressure a check in the morning when the air is cold. There is a little tiny little rock chip
or pimple on the windshield and I'll see if it can be repaired or at least wait until it starts to
spider out.
There are a few stone chips on the front bumper, a small scrape on the right corner of the rear
bumper was fixed several years ago according the extensive service records. And that is about
it for day one.
The hunt now being over, I'll make some periodic notes here on my very very
new (to me) car. It drives beautifully. No complaints about the car at all. But the seller is
proving to be just like most sellers, negligent.
Got home and couldn't find the special little nut that lets you take off the locking nut.
The seller said it was in the trunk...but it is not. He's now looking in his office to find
it, but I'm going to nearest Porsche dealer on Monday morning and getting one...and then
I may get rid of all of them and put standard lug nuts in. I let the seller know that this
did not make me happy.
The seller handed me the semi-leather pouch with all the literature inside, except
when I got home, it didn't have the operating manual or the original warranty book.
It did have books on the original radio which is no longer in the car, and a service
book for a 2003 car, plus some 2003 books on roadside service. The seller said he'd
get me one and that this is what the PO gave him. Doesn't pass the smell test. I let
the seller know that this did not make me happy.
The oil is down at the bottom of the dip stick and the gauge. I added two thirds
of a quart and I'll check it later. This shows, in my opinion, a seller-dealer who is
great in the sales presentation, but doesn't really follow through in the delivery
of the vehicle. I will let the seller know that this did not make me happy.
The battery is not the right size for the car. It fills up about 3/4s of the tray. While
I'm at Porsche getting the locking lug nut, I'll show them the battery, get the part number
for the correct one, and do the job myself. I will let the seller know that this does not
make me happy.
Last complaint...the after-market Pioneer nav/radio/CD/infotainment/blue tooth thing is
just awful. The quick start little brochure is useless. Today I down loaded the 455 page
operating manual and I had to shake my head...it, and the little videos that it sends you to
look at, are like a Woody Allen comedy about the future. I will probably throw it out and
install an original OEM Porsche radio/cd player that used knobs and buttons, and doesn't
have screen. Not the seller's fault...just an example of bad technology.
But now for the good stuff...This is an analog car. Nothing happens unless your arms and
legs and brain make it happen. There are no computers trying to read your mind and then
suggest they've got a better idea. Yes, this is a 20 year old car (build in 07/2000) but for the
most part you wouldn't know it. The engine just loves to rev...very different in my opinion to
the 3.6. The clutch is great...my left leg is rusty and still getting to know the point of contact.
My shifting is not embarrassing...again, familiarity and muscle memory will happen soon enough.
No rattles that I've noticed, the ac fan has some slight noises (leaves, old dry foam?) but nothing
to deal with for now. All the doors and windows and seats and sunroof and latches are great. The
two sun visor flaps that you flip up to look at yourself in the mirrors, they broke long ago and maybe
in a year or three so I'll deal with it. The flaps currently lie in state in the passenger door pocket.
The song of the engine is wonderfully raw...like a woman on the rebound whose had one too many
drinks. I have no need for a louder exhaust...just the right amount of sound reaches into my entire
body, it isn't outside of me, it is part of me. I wear two hearing aids but I have a good ear for engines.
I signed up with Haggarty and got my insurance for $781 a year. The car's basic tool kit is all
there and in very nice condition. But I'm throwing some extra tools of my own in with them. I'll give
the tire pressure a check in the morning when the air is cold. There is a little tiny little rock chip
or pimple on the windshield and I'll see if it can be repaired or at least wait until it starts to
spider out.
There are a few stone chips on the front bumper, a small scrape on the right corner of the rear
bumper was fixed several years ago according the extensive service records. And that is about
it for day one.