David McNett :: 2007 Porsche 911 Carrera S Cabriolet

Unleashed?

In February 2007 I bought a Porsche 911 Carrera S Cabriolet. This page details the events and highlights of my ownership of the car including maintenance and repair issues. If you're just looking for photos, there's a 911 gallery too.

One of the lessons I've learned during my life is that it's often difficult to tell ahead of time which issues and events in your life will grow into major ordeals. Accordingly, I think it's wise to pay attention to the details for everything since you just never know when the details might become important in the future. It is with this archival spirit that the page you are reading was created.

If you are considering purchasing a Porsche of your own then I hope that the information available here is useful to your decision making. While the plural of "anecdote" is not "data", it's often nice to be able to see what another person's experiences have been.

Why a 911 and not a Boxster? It was a tough call and I don't think there is a single right answer. I posted to Rennteam.com some of my thoughts on the matter.

I used to own: 2002 BMW M Roadster

Summary of Costs

Maintenance has cost an average of $405.44 per month in hard costs.

Depreciation adds another $1787.50 in soft cost each month for a total ownership expense of $2192.94 a month.
Fuel and insurance is not included in these figures.

Maintenance cost per mile: $0.30
Repair cost per mile: $0.03
Depreciation cost per mile: $1.34

Total ownership cost per mile: $1.37
Total ownership cost per smile: impossible to calculate

Repair/Maintenance History

Date	Mileage	Description	Cost
11-Aug-2008	23,450	Four new tires all around and PCM Navigation update. I also blogged my thoughts about tire wear. [receipt]	$2,754.32
16-May-2008	19,035	Oil change and 20K service performed. [receipt]	$598
14-Apr-2008	16,962	Got the car checked out for the track and brake fluid flush & fill. [receipt]	$466
11-Apr-2008	16,789	Time for new rear tires. [receipt]	$1,067
6-Feb-2008	13,999	Also took the car to jcautospec and got an alignment. [specs]	$20
6-Feb-2008	13,999	Monica spotted a scary bubble on the front left tire, so it was time for two new fronts even through the tread wear was still pretty decent. [receipt]	$958
14-Nov-2007	10,504	My top started making a distinct rattling noise, coming from somewhere above the driver's side window. It sounded like a baby's rattle whenever I drove over a bump. Eventually the culprit showed itself -- The middle trim piece above the window lost a bolt and popped loose, interfering with top operation. Warranty repair. The passenger-side piece was also loose and headed for the same fate, so they tightened them all up.	$0
12-Nov-2007	10,377	Two days of hard driving at the track and the car was thirsty for another quart of oil. I fed it from the case I bought in July.	$0
18-Oct-2007	9,100	Took a nail to the left rear tire, on the sidewall. Replaced both rears. Front tires still had plenty of tread, but the rears were pretty far gone and needed replacing anyway. Went with 305/30ZR19 instead of the stock 295/30ZR19. [receipt]	$1,165
9-Jul-2007	6,275	Had the rock chip in the windshield repaired. You can still see a scuff if you know where to look but it's not bad at all. Probably not worth the expense of a new windshield to eliminate it entirely.	$60
9-Jul-2007	6,275	Low on oil again (eats oil like a BMW when you run it hard, I guess) and I didn't want to put another quart of 10W40 in. Decided to just get a full oil change at the dealership well in advance of the first scheduled change. Figure it's cheap insurance for engine longevity. Picked up a case of 0W40 for future topoffs. [receipt]	$264
27-Jun-2007	5,334	Oops. I forgot that my car has a big, fat ass. Didn't pull into the garage far enough and closed the garage door on the engine lid. Nice gouge down to the metal. Dang. [receipt]	$676
25-Jun-2007	5,153	Topped off with 1qt of oil, Mobil1 10W40 (best I could find at Wal*Mart).	$6
9-Jun-2007	4,500	Installed a SmartTop to make the convertible top less annoying to operate. I took a bunch of pictures and took notes during the install.	$479
25-Apr-2007	2,377	Rock chip in my windshield while driving to Houston. Dang.
15-Apr-2007	1,531	Installed a Denison IceLink Gateway 500 iPod interface from BumperPlugs and wired my iPod into the stereo. It's not great but it's the best thing going for Porsche iPod interfaces.	$516
24-Feb-2007	600	Installing the valentine one radar detector seemed prudent. I hard-wired it into the overhead light by following the directons on RennTech (requires login) and it went off without a hitch.	~$10
17-Feb-2007	397	Had (and solved) a little trouble programming the HomeLink® garage door opener.
13-Feb-2007	32	Bought car. 32 miles may seem high, but at least 20 of them were Monica and me on the test drive.