On Becoming a Macan "Expert"

[FRUNKenstein]

So, one of the common problems with Macans is that the B & C pillar trim is crap. They split vertically and scratch easily. If the car is still under warranty, Porsche will replace it. There are reports of the trim pieces splitting on Macans that are only a couple of months old.

As noted above (item #5 on my sh!t list), the white 2018 Turbo came with bad B & C pillar trim (which are just plastic pieces). Here are a couple of shots:

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I read through the threads online on replacing these trim pieces. Looks like $300 or so and several hours of work to swap out all 6 trim pieces. Then, I saw some black plastic pieces on eBay. $17.45 plus tax with free shipping ($19.04 all in). Here’s a link to the eBay listing:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/155356308570

I figured it was worth a shot - if they look bad, then I would spring for the factory pieces and spend an afternoon swapping them out.

Shipping was really fast - I got them a couple of days after ordering.

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They are hard plastic, not film or wrap. They come with a clear protective film on the finished side and a white paper backing over the sticky side.

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I went slowly and it took less than 15 minutes to install. Size and shape is exact fit. The adhesive is strong, but you can pull it off if you don’t get it lined up perfectly. In artificial light, the plastic appears just a shade lighter than black.

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But, in daylight, it matches very well.

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For comparison, here’s my previous 2015 with the factory pieces.

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The most noticeable difference from factory is the little triangle at the bottom of the C pillar - the covers don’t have the seam. But, for me, it’s 95% as good as replacing the trim with the OEM pieces. I suspect they won't hold up as well as the original pieces (which themselves don't hold up all that well, apparently), but even if you had to swap them out once per year, it would still make sense.

I’m going to call this project complete.

[FRUNKenstein]

I just posted the white 2018 Macan Turbo on Rennlist Marketplace:

https://rennlist.com/forums/market/1366248

It's also listed on Facebook Marketplace. Not sure where else to list it. Hopefully, that's sufficient. It's priced at wholesale, so it should sell relatively quickly, I would think.

[FRUNKenstein]

I sold the white 2018 Turbo last night to the first people that looked at it. A nice young couple in their mid-30s. It is their first Porsche, and they were very excited about (as well they should be - that car is gorgeous). I think they are going to join PCA, so I hope to see them around at KCRPCA events.

Today, I bought a very similar one, a year older with 11,000 more miles: 2017 Turbo, Carrara White over Garnet and Black interior, 77k miles. It was sold as a Porsche CPO car in March 2023 by Porsche North Houston - just 7 months and 6,700 miles ago. I am having the auction do a post-sale inspection this time as I don’t want the surprises I got with the last one. Too bad that CPO warranty won’t transfer since it won’t be a private party sale.

The window sticker shows a build price of $98,715, so it is very well optioned: Sport Chrono, Carbon Fiber interior, 18-way sport seats, air suspension with PASM, Porsche crests embossed on the headrests, Turbo Exterior package (that alone was a $10,120 option), LED headlights with PDLS+, Park Assist with Surround View, Connect Plus, Sport Exhaust and some other stuff.

I will keep this one a few weeks, then move on. I would like to do one more after this one before I buy one to keep for a while. I am learning more and more about these very cool cars with every passing day - I don’t consider myself an expert yet, but I know so much more about the model now than I did just 60 days ago.

[32wildbilly]

I sold the white 2018 Turbo last night to the first people that looked at it. A nice young couple in their mid-30s. It is their first Porsche, and they were very excited about (as well they should be - that car is gorgeous). I think they are going to join PCA, so I hope to see them around at KCRPCA events.

Today, I bought a very similar one, a year older with 11,000 more miles: 2017 Turbo, Carrara White over Garnet and Black interior, 77k miles. It was sold as a Porsche CPO car in March 2023 by Porsche North Houston - just 7 months and 6,700 miles ago. I am having the auction do a post-sale inspection this time as I don’t want the surprises I got with the last one. Too bad that CPO warranty won’t transfer since it won’t be a private party sale.

The window sticker shows a build price of $98,715, so it is very well optioned: Sport Chrono, Carbon Fiber interior, 18-way sport seats, air suspension with PASM, Porsche crests embossed on the headrests, Turbo Exterior package (that alone was a $10,120 option), LED headlights with PDLS+, Park Assist with Surround View, Connect Plus, Sport Exhaust and some other stuff.

I will keep this one a few weeks, then move on. I would like to do one more after this one before I buy one to keep for a while. I am learning more and more about these very cool cars with every passing day - I don’t consider myself an expert yet, but I know so much more about the model now than I did just 60 days ago.

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That one looks very nice.

[02TX996Cab]

I sold the white 2018 Turbo last night to the first people that looked at it. A nice young couple in their mid-30s. It is their first Porsche, and they were very excited about (as well they should be - that car is gorgeous). I think they are going to join PCA, so I hope to see them around at KCRPCA events.

Today, I bought a very similar one, a year older with 11,000 more miles: 2017 Turbo, Carrara White over Garnet and Black interior, 77k miles. It was sold as a Porsche CPO car in March 2023 by Porsche North Houston - just 7 months and 6,700 miles ago. I am having the auction do a post-sale inspection this time as I don’t want the surprises I got with the last one. Too bad that CPO warranty won’t transfer since it won’t be a private party sale.

The window sticker shows a build price of $98,715, so it is very well optioned: Sport Chrono, Carbon Fiber interior, 18-way sport seats, air suspension with PASM, Porsche crests embossed on the headrests, Turbo Exterior package (that alone was a $10,120 option), LED headlights with PDLS+, Park Assist with Surround View, Connect Plus, Sport Exhaust and some other stuff.

I will keep this one a few weeks, then move on. I would like to do one more after this one before I buy one to keep for a while. I am learning more and more about these very cool cars with every passing day - I don’t consider myself an expert yet, but I know so much more about the model now than I did just 60 days ago.

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FWIW, Porsche North Houston is the only Houston-area Porsche dealer that gets generally good marks from the Lone Star PCA crowd. When I chose to work with a Houston-area dealer, PNH was the one. Fingers crossed that they lived up to that reputation and sold a solid car to the folks from whom you bought it, and that those folks didn't trash it.

[Dr_Strangelove]

What are the qualities you're going to look for in a keeper - if this isn't it?

[FRUNKenstein]

That one looks very nice.

Thanks. I've gotten to be picky about the options & color combos & condition as I'm watching the market. It passed the auction's post-sale inspection with no problems, so that's a good sign. If it shows up in less-than-advertised condition like the last one did, then the auction has to answer for that.

FWIW, Porsche North Houston is the only Houston-area Porsche dealer that gets generally good marks from the Lone Star PCA crowd. When I chose to work with a Houston-area dealer, PNH was the one. Fingers crossed that they lived up to that reputation and sold a solid car to the folks from whom you bought it, and that those folks didn't trash it.

That's interesting because Porsche North Houston has a very good reputation in KCRPCA, also. A lot of our guys buy their cars there rather than Porsche Kansas City. I think there are several reasons for that, but still, they have to drive past a lot of other Porsche dealers between KC and there, not just Porsche Kansas City. So Porsche North Houston must be doing a lot of good things.

What are the qualities you're going to look for in a keeper - if this isn't it?

Well, I'd love to have this car, frankly. I like the color combo and the spec. I'd really like to have the carbon fiber steering wheel, also. And, I'd like to get a 2015 model, rather than a 2018 model, just for the depreciation advantage. So, rather than driving a $36,000 car, if I could find a 2015 Turbo spec'd similarly, it would be more like a $28,000 car. Not a huge difference, I realize, but when it comes time to sell a year or two later, it's less of a depreciation hit that I'll take than if I bought a 2018 or even 2017 model that for all practical purposes is identical.

I originally thought I'd like to get a GTS model, but I think I'll stick with the Turbo model. It would be great to find one with the same options plus a CF steering wheel in Sapphire Blue over Black interior. My second choice would be same spec in Volcano Grey Metallic over Garnet interior. Third choice is the Carrara White over Garnet.

[FRUNKenstein]

The next Macan (Carrara White over Garnet 2017 Turbo) finally arrived yesterday. I bought it out of the Dallas auction back on October 4th, but the shipper took 9 days to pick it up. It arrived in much better shape than the previous one. I paid for a post-sale inspection ($205) as soon as I won the auction, and it passed without any issues.

For some reason, the seats look a little darker shade of red than in the last one (although they should be exactly the same). My guess is because this one has a lot more black in the interior - the previous one had a red console, for example.

This one is better optioned. It has the PZ0 "Turbo Exterior Package", which is a $10,120 option. The window sticker shows it to be a $98,715 build (with a $76,000 base vehicle price). The 2018 was a $92,720 build (on top of a $77,200 base vehicle price). This one has the Porsche crest in all of the headrests, air suspension, Surround View and the carbon fiber interior trim. It also has Porsche Sport Exhaust (me likey that one).

It came with Continental ContiSport P5 tires, which are nice tires. The rears are OK - probably have 6 or 7/32nds remaining tread. But the fronts only have about 4/32nds tread. The auction condition report said 4/32nds all around, so I was planning to replace them anyway. They make a significant amount of tire noise, plus they are summer tires (it's a Texas car), so with winter setting in, I've got a set of Falken Azenis all seasons coming to Discount Tire on Friday for install. I put a set of those on the 2018 Turbo, and I really liked them. They won a 4-way comparison test of Ultra High Performance tires that Tire Rack did last year, and although I didn't get to drive them much on the 2018, I really liked the way they look, drove and the noise level was very low.

The brake rotors have a pretty good lip on all 4 wheels. The brake pads look OK both front & back (see attached), but I may replace pads & rotors all around. The work isn't that hard to do, but the parts are about $800. So, still deciding on that.

It came without a rear window wiper, and I put one on it on the way to work this morning. Also, the left side headlight washer cover came off when I used the washers on the way home yesterday. So, I need to replace that ($35 at the dealer, so not a big deal).

[02TX996Cab]

It came with Continental ContiSport P5 tires, which are nice tires. The rears are OK - probably have 6 or 7/32nds remaining tread. But the fronts only have about 4/32nds tread. The auction condition report said 4/32nds all around, so I was planning to replace them anyway. They make a significant amount of tire noise, plus they are summer tires (it's a Texas car), so with winter setting in, I've got a set of Falken Azenis all seasons coming to Discount Tire on Friday for install. I put a set of those on the 2018 Turbo, and I really liked them. They won a 4-way comparison test of Ultra High Performance tires that Tire Rack did last year, and although I didn't get to drive them much on the 2018, I really liked the way they look, drove and the noise level was very low.

Nice car!

I've always found new tires to be much quieter than old tires of similar type.

I wonder if the darker appearance of the seats could also be due to them being more recently cleaned/conditioned. I know that there's no noticeable color change to my dark blue or black leather seats when I clean and condition them, but there's a very noticeable darkening of my tan and brown western boots for several weeks when I clean/condition them.

[FRUNKenstein]

I wonder if the darker appearance of the seats could also be due to them being more recently cleaned/conditioned. I know that there's no noticeable color change to my dark blue or black leather seats when I clean and condition them, but there's a very noticeable darkening of my tan and brown western boots for several weeks when I clean/condition them.

Good point. I hadn't thought of that.