1999 Porsche Boxster Recalls & Complaints

Incident: December 12, 2011 · Filed: January 10, 2012

MISFIRES DURING WARM UP, AFTER WARM UP THE ENGINE RUNS SMOOTH WITH HIGH RPM OF 1200 TO 1300. I HAVE TO TAP THE ACCELERATOR PAD TO LOWER THE RPM,AFTER COUPLE OF SECONDS THE RPM GOES BACK UP. WHEN IT REACHES 190 DEGREES RPM GOES HIGHER TO ALMOST 1500, TEMPERATURE GOES TO 210 DEGREES FAN TURNS ON FROM THE RADIATOR ON THE DRIVER SIDE BUT NOT ON THE PASSENGER SIDE, FAN ON THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT SOMETIMES TURNS ON AND SOMETIMES NOT . THEN THE ENGINE STOPS RUNNING AT 210 DEGREES, START UP BUT WON'T RUN. YOU HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE TEMPERATURE TO DROP DOWN TO 160 DEGREES, SOMETIMES ALL THE WAY DOWN. START IT UP THEN THE ENGINE RUNS. *TR

Incident: May 18, 2009 · Filed: August 29, 2011

THIS LOW-MILEAGE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED A CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE AT FREEWAY SPEED. THE VEHICLE WAS CRUISING ON LEVEL FREEWAY WHEN THE ENGINE LOST POWER AND WHITE SMOKE BEGAN POURING OUT OF THE EXHAUST. THE ENGINE DIED AND WOULD NOT RESTART ON THE SIDE OF THE FREEWAY AND WAS TOWED TO A SERVICE FACILITY. AFTER COMPLETE DISASSEMBLY IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE ENGINE WAS NOT REBUILD-ABLE DUE TO A SLIPPED CYLINDER SLEEVE WHICH RESULTED IN PISTON, CYLINDER HEAD AND BLOCK DAMAGE. DETAILED PHOTOS ARE AVAILABLE.

Incident: January 27, 2011 · Filed: February 7, 2011

THE AIRBAG LIGHT HAS COME ON FOR THE THIRD TIME. THE PROBLEM IS IN A SENSOR IN THE SEATBELT. EACH TIME IT IS THE SAME PROBLEM AND PORSCHE WANTS ME TO SPEND $550 TO REPLACE THE UNIT WITH THE FOURTH SENSOR. I HAVE DECLINED TO DO THIS AS THEY WILL NOT WARRANTY THE NEW UNIT. THIS IS A WELL KNOWN DEFECT IN THIS CAR ACCORDING TO SERVICEMEN AND THERE ARE SIMILAR COMPLAINTS ON YOUR WEBSITE. I HAVE CALLED AND WRITTEN TO PORSCHE WITHOUT RESPONSE. *LN

Incident: October 11, 2010 · Filed: October 12, 2010

PORSCHE BOXTER AIRBAG ( SRS) MALFUNCTION. SPONTANEOUS DEPLOYMENT. MONDAY, OCT.11 2010 APPROX. 2:00. VEHICLE HAD BEEN UNUSED FOR 4 WEEKS. I ATTEMPTED TO START THE VEH. BATTERY WAS ALMOST DEAD. NO ACTION FROM STARTER. VEH ALARM SOUNDED. ALARM REMAINED BLARING UNLESS KEY WAS IN #1 POSITION. I WENT INTO MY HOUSE ( TO CALL FOR ASSISTANCE. ) I HEARD A LOUD " BANG " . UPON RETURNING TO MY CAR I SAW THAT THE LEFT (DRIVERS) AIR BAG HAD DEPLOYED. I REMOVED THE KEY FROM THE VEHICLE. THE ODOR FROM THE AIRBAG WAS NOT PLEASANT. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. NO ONE WAS IN THE VEHICLE AT THE TIME OF THE SPONTANEOUS DEPLOYMENT. *TR

Incident: January 12, 2010 · Filed: February 12, 2010

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1999 PORSCHE BOXSTER. THE CONTACT HAD MASSIVE ENGINE FAILURE WHILE DRIVING 20 MPH AND THE CRANK SHAFT BROKE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A MECHANIC AND THE ENGINE WAS REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER ADVISED THE CONTACT THAT THE WARRANTY WAS NOT VALID AND THAT THERE WERE NO RECALLS FOR THE FAILURE. ROUTINE MAINTENANCE WAS PERFORMED ON THE VEHICLE PRIOR TO THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 42,000.

Incident: July 15, 2008 · Filed: August 24, 2008

AIRBAG LIGHT COMES ON IN 1999 PORSCHE BOXSTER. THIS SEEMS TO BE A COMMON AND RECURRING PROBLEM WITH PORSCHE BOXSTERS. IT WAS TAKEN TO A REPAIR SHOP WHO DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS A SEAT BUCKLE PROBLEM. THEY INDICATED THAT IT IS A COMMON PROBLEM. THE ISSUE IS THAT THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL ISSUED TO FIX THIS PROBLEM SINCE IT IS DANGEROUS TO HAVE THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT COME ON. PORSCHE SHOULD FIX THE PROBLEM IN ORDER CLEAR THIS PROBLEM. *TR

Incident: May 30, 2008 · Filed: June 10, 2008

IT'S WELL DOCUMENTED THAT EARLY PRODUCTION PORSCHE BOXSTERS HAD A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF ENGINE FAILURES DUE TO CRACKED OR SLIPPED CYLINDER LINERS. THERE WAS NEVER A RECALL BUT PORSCHE DID REPLACE FAILED ENGINES UNDER WARRANTY. PORSCHE HAS NOT DIVULGED EXACTLY HOW MANY ENGINES THIS ACTUALLY OCCURRED IN OTHER THAN A BROAD RANGE OF 2.5 ENGINES IN LATE 1998-EARLY 1999. NOR HAVE THEY RELEASED ANY ENGINE NUMBERS THAT HAVE HAD SLEEVES INSTALLED. I PURCHASED MY CAR 2 WEEKS AGO FROM THE ORIGINAL OWNER WITH 69K MILES AND FULL MAIN DEALER SERVICE HISTORY. THE ENGINE HAS NOW FAILED DUE TO A SLIPPED CYLINDER LINER. THE ENGINE HAS NOT BEEN RACED OR OVER-REVVED. I'M LOOKING AT A POSSIBLE $8 - $13K REPAIR BILL FOR A REPLACEMENT/REBUILT ENGINE. FORTUNATELY THE ENGINE SEIZED WHILST IN A CAR PARK. HAD IT DONE SO WHILST DRIVING ON THE BUSY INTERSTATE, THE CONSEQUENCES COULD HAVE BEEN CATASTROPHIC. WITH THE INTRODUCTION OF THE BOXSTER, PORSCHE TEAMED UP WITH KOLBENSCHMIDT TO MANUFACTURE THEIR NEW WATER-COOLED ENGINE. THE CASES EXPERIENCED SEVERAL ISSUES STARTING WITH THEIR POROSITY. IN 1998 KOLBENSCHMIDT'S CASTING MACHINE WAS DAMAGED. THIS LEAD TO LINER FAILURES IN LATE 1998 TO EARLY 1999. THIS WOULD TRANSLATE INTO ONLY THE 1999 MODEL YEAR DUE TO PRODUCTION DATES. THE TIME REQUIRED TO REPAIR THE MACHINE COULD HAVE SLOWED BOXSTER PRODUCTION DOWN SEVERELY UNLESS A FIX WAS FOUND. THE SOLUTION WAS TO RELINE SOME NOT-QUITE-PERFECT BLOCKS THAT WERE ON HAND. MOST OF THESE BLOCKS HAD A CASTING DEFECT OR A POROSITY PROBLEM IN AT LEAST ONE CYLINDER. KOLBENSCHMIDT BEGAN THE PROCESS OF THE REPAIRS UNTIL THE CASTING MACHINE WAS FIXED. THIS PROCESS STARTED BY BORING OUT THE FAILED CYLINDER TO ALLOW FOR THE INSERTION OF THE LINER. *TR

Incident: June 2, 2005 · Filed: January 11, 2007

AIRBAG WARNING LAMP STAYING ON DUE TO A POORLY DESIGNED SENSOR SYSTEM THAT RELIES ON SEAT BELT BUCKLE AND GROUNDING SYSTEM ELECTRICAL RESISTANCES BEING INCREDIBLY STABLE OVER TIME. THIS IS A DESIGN FLAW THAT HAS BEEN ADDRESSED BY REDESIGNED SEAT BELT RECEPTACLES AND REPLACING WIRES. IF YOU DON'T FIX THIS PROBLEM, YOU WILL NEVER KNOW IF YOU HAVE A REAL PROBLEM WITH THE AIRBAG SYSTEM, WHICH IS OBVIOUSLY A SAFETY ISSUE. IF YOU WANT TO CLEAR THIS LAMP INDICATION, YOU MUST SHELL OUT $500 TO $1500 TO DO SO. HOW DOES PORSCHE HAVE THE NERVE TO CHARGE CUSTOMERS FOR AN OBVIOUS DESIGN FLAW ON THEIR PART WHICH LEADS TO AN AIRBAG WARNING LAMP BEING ILLUMINATED, WHICH IS A SAFETY ISSUE IF NOT CORRECTED. MY INCIDENT IS FAR FROM AN ISOLATED ONE. I'VE CHECKED OUT OTHER COMPLAINTS VIA THE INTERNET. *JB

Incident: December 7, 2005 · Filed: December 15, 2006

I HAD DRIVEN THE CAR WITHOUT INCIDENT TO A STORE. WHEN I TRIED TO START THE CAR LATER IT WOULD NOT START. IT WAS DETERMINED BY BOTH AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC AND A PORSCHE DEALER THAT THE CAR HAD SUSTAINED CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE OF AN UNKNOWN ORIGIN. (THEY WERE NOT BE ABLE TO DETERMINE EXACTLY WHAT THE PROBLEM WITHOUT DISASSEMBLING THE ENGINE. I DID NOT ASK THEM TO DO THIS.). I REPLACED THE ENGINE. *NM

Incident: June 29, 2005 · Filed: April 16, 2006

I OWN A 1999 PORSCHE BOXSTER. THE AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON AND I WAS TOLD BY THE DEALER THAT THE SEAT BELTS NEED TO BE REPLACED AS THERE IS A FAILURE IN THE CIRCUITRY BETWEEN THE SEAT BELT AND AIRBAG. APPARENTLY THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM AS THERE HAVE ALREADY BEEN A NUMBER OF TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETINS ISSUED ON THIS DEFECT. SHOULDN'T THERE BE A RECALL FOR THIS AS IT APPEARS TO BE A COMMON, KNOWN DEFECT WHICH DIRECTLY AFFECTS THE SAFETY EQUIPMENT ON THE CAR ? *NM