Where to get service - Melbourne

[Aircon]

A few months ago I bought a lovely 997.2 Carrera S PDK with a perfect PCM service history and 35,000km.

I have a dilemma... where to service it! Of course, it would be great to continue with the PCM service history, but I'm far from convinced that that's actually the best thing to do for the car.

Anyone got any suggestions about the pros and cons of changing from PCM and what alternatives are available, and why?

Thanks in advance.

[Pokiou]

I get my service done from Weissach in Coburg. Possibly the best work shop i have stepped in and owner i have met. Once you go past there, you will see why.

[GTP911]

Hi Aircon, congrats on your 997.2 purchase. 

My background is similar to yours, e.g. bought my 996 GT3 in 2013, it had an exclusive Porsche Centre service history (13 services stamps) and the full PC service history was a favourable considerations when I was looking for a GT3. 

Therefore living in Victoria I choose PCM for my 1^st (major) service and continue to use PCM (service and repair), the experience has been sensational e.g. I have enjoyed competitive fixed price scheduled servicing, loan vehicle provided at service day (Macan, Boxster etc. worth organising a day off to enjoy) factory trained techs which I have been surprised appear to  have long employment histories with PCM (not kids) and often work on PCM race vehicles (my GT3 is always serviced by Peter B. with passion), free breakdown towing service provided and additional surprise has been gifts such as umbrella, mobile phone chargers  etc. with each service and furthermore PCM keep you up on latest drive days, events by e-mail.

 

Above not an ad for PCM of which I have no allegiance, just my 4 year ownership experience. I’m certain there are passionate/skilled independent service options also.

 

[Lucky Phil]

Ditto to all the above.  I feel the same about PC Brighton.  I love the fixed price and the loan car and the free road side assist for the next 12 months.  

Aircon, PCM would know your car very well if they have been servicing since new so seems like a no brainer to me.  Obviously there is another reason you wish for a change that you are not sharing with us.

If you want a recommendation, Nine Auto are a sponsor of the forum so try them if still not considering PCM

[Aircon]

Ditto to all the above.  I feel the same about PC Brighton.  I love the fixed price and the loan car and the free road side assist for the next 12 months.  

Aircon, PCM would know your car very well if they have been servicing since new so seems like a no brainer to me.  Obviously there is another reason you wish for a change that you are not sharing with us.

If you want a recommendation, Nine Auto are a sponsor of the forum so try them if still not considering PCM

Hi Phil,

I've seen evidence of the official dealer of other marques not worrying about doing things like gearbox oil, coolant and brake fluid changes, despite them being on the service schedule, and had very poor service with Hamiltons in the good old days. Whilst I'd love to keep the service book looking pretty with PCM stamps, it's more important for me to know that the mechanic is thorough and that all the scheduled work is being carried out in accordance with Porsche recommendations.

Peter

 

[Lucky Phil]

^^Fair point.  For me I have taken out the extended warranty option on my car for the next two years so I suppose for me if they do not do the scheduled servicing by the book and something fails then it will be their problem.  Maybe we can have another chat about the pros and cons if you are coming to the SMT on the 17th.  If you do go with someone else make sure that you keep the forum updated as it would be good to have your views on alternative servicing options

[JB]

Ditto to all the above.  I feel the same about PC Brighton.  I love the fixed price and the loan car and the free road side assist for the next 12 months.  

Aircon, PCM would know your car very well if they have been servicing since new so seems like a no brainer to me.  Obviously there is another reason you wish for a change that you are not sharing with us.

If you want a recommendation, Nine Auto are a sponsor of the forum so try them if still not considering PCM

unfortunately my experience with PCB has been the opposite. Missed simple things, plus well know issues that have been reported told all is fine then they eventually go.

stopped going there when they badly damaged my car (very obvious) when they had it for 4 days, denied outright they did it and when I requested the video footage of the site for the 4 days they didn't have it anymore, only 2 days later..

eventually repaired it as goodwill but still would not admit fault . Goodbye. Problem with dealer serving in any premium marque these days is they are all show and image with no substance. 

Have had one singular good experience at Doncaster recently. Stuart at NINEAUTO has always been very accomodating as has nick at cascone. No affiliation to any of them.

cheers

 

 

[symsy]

PCD ..  A+++

I took delivery of  GT3 997 off the train from W.A … Drove it two days and was having my brother fly in from UK to drive it , had a scary rattle up front 3pm Thursday, they saw me and looked at my car 4pm Thursday afternoon, just asked me to wait. Invited me upstairs to workshop to see the issue and confirmed it would all be ok for my weekend drive.

 Served me coffee and offered me opportunity to look at their stock whilst I waited. Told me they could fit me in Monday, would sort anything out next week and to have a great weekend , they probably spent an hour or more taking a look at my car. Monday came the emailed and quoted and I asked to keep the car as I still had my guest they moved me immediately to Wednesday. It turned out when I went back the week following expecting a bill for the diagnosis  work , this was all for free and only charged me for the part and 30 min fit. - Happy Boy!!!

Friday Am later that week another litte noise occurred , again straight in and then found I have additional front strut issue , they looked through warranty and prior repairs and took up an agenda for me with PCA around the fact that it shouldn't be missed. Car just out of warranty.  The spent 2 days diagnosing and quite a few hours , I went and talked to the tech team.

I ended up again walking away with a strut replacement, a low labour charge in terms of hrs spent and unfortunatley the bill for a strut, however overall felt that they had taken all my needs on board and supported me all the way.

I will add at this point my car had done approx 1000kms since a full PPI from Chellingworths in Perth.. Whom with their lack of accountability,  I probably would now suggest to any WA people.  Dont trust em..  They clearly had missed the issues , the prior owner paid shit loads servicing and running warranty on my car. They have repaired many things multiple times .. looks to me like they love to do lots of Warranty work , that im not sure they actually do just charge PCA for.  Their accountability just isnt there so beware, shit happens in this world , bit their shit dont smell , they wouldnt even entertain a conversation.

PCD Therefore Get my vote  - Mike the service guy is a true gent and very helpfull

[teknostar]

PCM for me. I have used others in the past with previous cars.

I never fail to be impressed with the whole experience at PCM. They have also been very accomodating letting me source my own parts (massive saving), which they have then fitted without any dramas at all. Best of both worlds IMO.
 

The fixed price servicing at $695 including roadside assist, is not much more than i have paid elsewhere, and worth the premium to keep factory stamps in the book.

[Aircon]

• I'm a little unnerved by the fact that even though I bought this car soon after being serviced at PCM, every tyre had a different pressure, and every wheel bolt was done up differently as well. How does anyone know if they really bleed the brakes and change fluids when they say they have or when it's due? It's all very nice to say that you have a wonderful experience and like the loan car etc, but how do you know that the work is actually done, and done properly?

[Lucky Phil]

^^I think that servicing of all cars has this doubt attached to it.  Have they really done everything that they should have done in a proper manner with no short cuts?

There are only 2 ways that I know of to ensure all scheduled work is done by the book:

1 - be allowed to stand there and watch them do the work, or

2 - do all the work yourself

[DT]

   2 - do all the work yourself

I had a few bad experiences with mechanics early on in my car nuttery, 25 years ago, so made the decision with my 'hobby' cars to do all the work myself. Steep learning curve, but then 70's and 80's Fiat's, Alfa's and Pugs are a great way to learn coz they're always breaking down!

With space, the right tools and a methodical/patient/inquisitive/stubborn nature, they (early 996's at least) are very DIYable. Last job was replacing a power steering line, requiring disconnection/lowering of the front subframe/suspension/brakes/front coolant lines. I chipped away at it over a few weekends and in the process found/fixed a few things obviously forgotten/missed by a previous 'mechanic'. The car's had good shake down since and I've checked and re-checked everything... bolt torques, fluid levels etc etc. To me this process is vital, nobody's perfect and this re-check process picks up anything before it turns into another issue.

Having said all that, in a few hours she's going in for new PS2's and an alignment. I'm gonna get nervous handing her over but this is a job I always hand over...new tyres and alignment...pretty easy to tell if they've done the work, but I will be checking the wheel bolts!

[Stephen Tinker]

• . How does anyone know if they really bleed the brakes and change fluids when they say they have or when it's due? It's all very nice to say that you have a wonderful experience and like the loan car etc, but how do you know that the work is actually done, and done properly?

If I was a Porsche Factory Rep, Principal or even a tech, I would be upset with your comment. OK, sometimes things go wrong, crap happens when you have 50 people working for you @‌ the OPC (or any where else) but in 99% of cases, they do a good - if expensive - job.

If you are worried that the work gets completed properly, using the correct fluids and Porsche parts, just try taking your car to Ripoff Euro Cars Porsche Specialists and you get a bill for double what they quoted you - and no two year warranty on parts that the OPC gives you. Yep, maybe it is (supposedly) cheaper using Greaso oil, aftermarket Chinese filters and el-cheapo hardwear.

I'm not saying that the OPC's are the panacea of perfection, but.......  

[KGB]

 

I'm not saying that the OPC's are the panacea of perfection, but.......  

.....that's how they market themselves.

[Pork Chops]

Check out the videos from Cascone Autosport on Facebook of a dealer serviced car.  It's not to say they all do it like that, but for my money I'd only ever trust an independent unless the car was new.  But I'm a modifier and have older cars so I'm bound to lean that way.

[Aircon]

I had a few bad experiences with mechanics early on in my car nuttery, 25 years ago, so made the decision with my 'hobby' cars to do all the work myself. Steep learning curve, but then 70's and 80's Fiat's, Alfa's and Pugs are a great way to learn coz they're always breaking down!

With space, the right tools and a methodical/patient/inquisitive/stubborn nature, they (early 996's at least) are very DIYable. Last job was replacing a power steering line, requiring disconnection/lowering of the front subframe/suspension/brakes/front coolant lines. I chipped away at it over a few weekends and in the process found/fixed a few things obviously forgotten/missed by a previous 'mechanic'. The car's had good shake down since and I've checked and re-checked everything... bolt torques, fluid levels etc etc. To me this process is vital, nobody's perfect and this re-check process picks up anything before it turns into another issue.

Having said all that, in a few hours she's going in for new PS2's and an alignment. I'm gonna get nervous handing her over but this is a job I always hand over...new tyres and alignment...pretty easy to tell if they've done the work, but I will be checking the wheel bolts!

And how will you know if the alignment is accurate? Mechanics are the curse of car ownership.

If I was a Porsche Factory Rep, Principal or even a tech, I would be upset with your comment. OK, sometimes things go wrong, crap happens when you have 50 people working for you @‌ the OPC (or any where else) but in 99% of cases, they do a good - if expensive - job.

If you are worried that the work gets completed properly, using the correct fluids and Porsche parts, just try taking your car to Ripoff Euro Cars Porsche Specialists and you get a bill for double what they quoted you - and no two year warranty on parts that the OPC gives you. Yep, maybe it is (supposedly) cheaper using Greaso oil, aftermarket Chinese filters and el-cheapo hardwear.

I'm not saying that the OPC's are the panacea of perfection, but.......  

That's my point, Stephen, I don't want a crap/cheap job done. I want it done, and I want it done properly. I'm not concerned about saving a buck or using after market parts....that's not what I'm on about.

 

[DT]

And how will you know if the alignment is accurate? Mechanics are the curse of car ownership.

 

I watched the work being done and saw the before and after numbers. Plus of course, I will/have driven it and it feels great. Plus I will take it back in 5k for a free check.

Guess it all comes down to trust, at some stage you have to trust someone, and recommendations on here are a great start. Rocky from Donellans Collingwood in case you're wondering.

[Aircon]

I watched the work being done and saw the before and after numbers. Plus of course, I will/have driven it and it feels great. Plus I will take it back in 5k for a free check.

Guess it all comes down to trust, at some stage you have to trust someone, and recommendations on here are a great start. Rocky from Donellans Collingwood in case you're wondering.

and how do you know their machine is properly calibrated?

[DT]

and how do you know their machine is properly calibrated?

Ok, I give up.

[Aircon]

Ok, I give up.

Ok...obviously you have never checked.

[DT]

Like I say, even as a pedant who's restored a wreck to a concourse winner, at some point you have to trust someone or life becomes unbearable.

[Ozvino]

I have had only positive experiences with PCM over two cars. Have you walked the workshop and spoken with the service team? They will let you do so if you are interested 

Luxuries aside (loan vehicles, gifts, better than average customer service, etc), with these new, highly complex electronic cars (987/997 onwards) I think some of the independents will start to struggle to keep up with the type of diagnostic equipment and backend data thats needed to maintain whats essentially a 1 tonne mobile data centre. 

[Aircon]

Like I say, even as a pedant who's restored a wreck to a concourse winner, at some point you have to trust someone or life becomes unbearable.

You're reading too much into it. Have you ever manually checked the settings after a wheel alignment?

I have..many times, and there's only one place I trust where the owner/operator is the only person to use the machine and he regularly calibrates it. All it takes is a slight bump of the heads and it's all out of whack. That's a whole other can of worms. Let's just stick to service for now!

A friend of mine bought a high performance car from the official dealer that was 3 years old and had full dealer history/servicing/log books. This particular brand requires yearly brake fluid bleeds. The car had only done 6000km. The brake calliper nipples still had the yellow paint on them from the factory untouched, and the gearbox filter had clearly never been touched. THAT'S what worries me. Stuff just not getting done.

Anyway, this is getting me nowhere. I wouldn't be paranoid if I hadn't seen or had first hand experience with this stuff, and it seems that no one on hear can personally recommend anything past "it's a great looking workshop" or "I was very happy with their service", which is understandable, but I was hoping someone might have a deeper insight.

Thanks for the replies anyway, guys.

[911barber]

You're reading too much into it. Have you ever manually checked the settings after a wheel alignment?

I have..many times, and there's only one place I trust where the owner/operator is the only person to use the machine and he regularly calibrates it. All it takes is a slight bump of the heads and it's all out of whack. That's a whole other can of worms. Let's just stick to service for now!

A friend of mine bought a high performance car from the official dealer that was 3 years old and had full dealer history/servicing/log books. This particular brand requires yearly brake fluid bleeds. The car had only done 6000km. The brake calliper nipples still had the yellow paint on them from the factory untouched, and the gearbox filter had clearly never been touched. THAT'S what worries me. Stuff just not getting done.

Anyway, this is getting me nowhere. I wouldn't be paranoid if I hadn't seen or had first hand experience with this stuff, and it seems that no one on hear can personally recommend anything past "it's a great looking workshop" or "I was very happy with their service", which is understandable, but I was hoping someone might have a deeper insight.

Thanks for the replies anyway, guys.

Mate, all we got to go by is how our cars feel and drive after being looked after, as a general rule with all the mechanics i use for my vehicles, is I have found its better to stick to a small business because its in their best interest and yours to be thorough and have you want to go back. I trust Chris @ Weissach in Coburg because he is a pedantic guy that is honest and backs me up with being flexible with times and prompt with any communications, for that reason I recommend him, and yes his workshop is a great looking workshop, which reflects his pedantic nature and that's the sort of guy i want working on my car.

[StevepGT3]

Pen mark on oil filter

little bit of grease on sump plug

Cloth lint on air filter catch

Photo of Odometer

Just to be sure