OPC service vs Indy??? There is a reason I ask....

911DG · 20 Jul 2017

Hi guys,

I have ALWAYS used my local Indy - wherever i might be. Recently a mate, who happens to own 3 Ferraris, a Rolls and a Bentley (so is slightly more cashed up than most of us) - told me i MUST get her at least Serviced by an OPC to maintain any kind of value or even better, appreciation.

What are your thoughts - I am at considering moving at least the 'annual service' to them based on that?

Im sure plenty of folks have opinions on here. :worship:

Cheers

Dan

Gareth64 · 20 Jul 2017

I can't comment on the value argument re Ferrari/RR/Bentley but for a 997 it is simply not true imho.

I would guess a large % of 997s would have at least one Indy stamp in them and I would say that most of us on here would not be bothered at all by the presence of Indy stamps in a service book.

One popular method is to service at an OPC and repair at an Indy. That way you get the OPC stamps at a similar (surprisingly similar in many cases) price to an Indy but get the cheaper labour rates and arguably often better knowledge of your Indy mechanics who are familiar with working on older models (not that a 997 is a particularly old model at all but you get the point).

I have a 996 turbo and I wonder if I were to take it into an OPC for anything (service or repair), whether some of the guys in there will have really worked much on a 996 at all? :?:

Disco · 20 Jul 2017

On anything rare or exotic then a case can be made for letting a Porsche main dealer do the scheduled stamps (though you would still take it to specialists for anything else that it needed). Equally if it is something new being ran under a factory warranty. But for a 997 Carrera then frankly I don't see a need there - in many cases the independent specialists actually have a stronger reputation than the OPC network. There is of course a caveat though in that if a car never goes to an OPC then if there are any "silent recalls" then you won't get them (for example, I send the GT3 to my OPC every couple of years for a stamp and the last time there was a software update on the ECU).

With things like Ferraris it is an entirely different story. All of the highest value cars have pitiful mileage and main dealer histories whereas the cars that have been extensively driven and looked after by specialists take a serious hit on value (though you can argue that at main dealer rates a Ferrari owner could actually still be better off if they are keeping it for anything but the short term).

silvermilnec · 20 Jul 2017

I've just been to my indy to drop of some spare pork pies to keep them sweet, I know them all by name and they know me, i've been using them for over 15 years. I always ran 944 968 the cheaper end of the market. When I got my 911 996 i thought i'd hit the big time! it came with Porsche warranty and I had a problem with condensors so off to my OPC for the first time, I was so excited. What a disappointment, I won't go into detail but they never get my money and I don't bother with warranty.

Back to the question, if it's a well established indy it wouldn't put me off. Too many 997 on the road to make them that precious.

This site and my Indy are what keep me from moving to another marque oh and the fact they are awesome cars!!!!

TTW · 20 Jul 2017

I would say INDY all the way, given my recent nightmare experience with an OPC! - I certainly won't be visiting my local OPC ever again, as customer service was worse than you would expect from a dodgy back street garage, plus the £120+VAT per hour labour rate, for the pleasure!.

Martian · 20 Jul 2017

When I bought my car at two years old from an OPC, it came with an OPC warranty. I had starting issues pretty much from day one so consequently booked it into the OPC to sort. Three attempts by them to rectify it and still problems, I gave up and went to a respected independent who found the fault in fifteen minutes and repaired within an hour.

Because of this, I've used an independent for my eight years of ownership......

I'd rather see service stamps from a good independent over huge target driven OPCs anyday.

Diggermeister · 20 Jul 2017

TTW said:
I would say INDY all the way, given my recent nightmare experience with an OPC! - I certainly won't be visiting my local OPC ever again, as customer service was worse than you would expect from a dodgy back street garage, plus the £120+VAT per hour labour rate, for the pleasure!.

I must admit, I am glad I do not drive anything new/expensive/rare enough to make me feel compelled or obliged to have to go down the OPC route.

As others here mention too, once you drop beneath the 997 threshold, there's also the concern that, even with the best intentions, you are presenting the OPC technicians with machinery the likes of which they seldom put a spanner to.

Cunno · 20 Jul 2017

911DG

If your car already has a full OPC service history I would agree with your mate that this is seem to be desirable by new punter. But to me it sounds like you have already been using your local Indy, if this is the case the horse has already bolted and no point in changing back to OPC servicing. Personally I'd prefer to see a top Indy garage stamp in the service book than an OPC, had bad experiences with my local OPC.

askgeez · 20 Jul 2017

With Indys I've used you can have a sensible conversation along the lines of ..
"whilst it's on the ramp... Can you take a quick look at..... "

Do that at the OPC, you can bet it will cost extra :dont know:

My old car went into Nine Excellence and he went right over it ... Major service, Gearbox oil, Diff oil, low temp thermostat ... You don't mind adding a few bits on :thumb: plus it's nice to support them

isysman · 20 Jul 2017

This subject comes up from time to time and there is always a few scare stories. The reality is whilst most of if not all of the people on this thread/forum know the value of a Tech9, 9E, Hartech stamp in the service book, many people who buy these cars are not 911UK members and won't know any of those companies. They will however know that Porsche stamp. There is a value in a car having a full dealer service history Vs a partial and third party stamped book.

And this idea that technicians in a dealership won't have 'turned a spanner' on a 993, 996 etc is just ludicrous.

Also it should be noted that whilst they all fall under the same banner of OPC, they are not all the same. I had bad experiences with Chester but excellent service and work done at Wilmslow.

Bottom line is the layman will look at a service book and if that person sees all Porsche stamps that will go further than a mixture of dealer/non dealer stamps. I'm not saying that Indies are any less qualified or experienced but the question is about the stamps.

OP if your car already has non Porsche stamps then I'd say it's not worth changing that if cost is your main reasoning. However you can still use the Dealer network if it suits you.

nigel99 · 20 Jul 2017

:agree:

Can't add much else to that.

cheshire911 · 20 Jul 2017

Issyman: Spot on!

kas750 · 20 Jul 2017

Agree 100% :thumb:

911DG · 20 Jul 2017

isysman said:
This subject comes up from time to time and there is always a few scare stories. The reality is whilst most of if not all of the people on this thread/forum know the value of a Tech9, 9E, Hartech stamp in the service book, many people who buy these cars are not 911UK members and won't know any of those companies. They will however know that Porsche stamp. There is a value in a car having a full dealer service history Vs a partial and third party stamped book.

And this idea that technicians in a dealership won't have 'turned a spanner' on a 993, 996 etc is just ludicrous.

Also it should be noted that whilst they all fall under the same banner of OPC, they are not all the same. I had bad experiences with Chester but excellent service and work done at Wilmslow.

Bottom line is the layman will look at a service book and if that person sees all Porsche stamps that will go further than a mixture of dealer/non dealer stamps. I'm not saying that Indies are any less qualified or experienced but the question is about the stamps.

OP if your car already has non Porsche stamps then I'd say it's not worth changing that if cost is your main reasoning. However you can still use the Dealer network if it suits you.

Awesome guys - brilliant advice as usual. I'm sure all OPCs see a million 964s, 993s, 996s so that would not be a concern, and I'm sure they all differ from one to the other to some degree. So, If it had full OPC history given my chat with my mate I think I'd try and keep it.

But - More I think about it - I bought it to drive and enjoy not sit in a garage ! It already has 1 or 2 Indy stamps so I guess that horse has bolted, and Indys have 'nearly' always been good to me!!

Next up is the Gundo Hack then !!! :bandit:

Dan

cheshire911 · 21 Jul 2017

Even if a car has a mix of Indy and OPC stamps if the current owner takes it back to OPC it has value. A purchaser is likely to look back at the last 5 years service in detail and prior to that in summary glance in all likelihood. If those last 5 years have been serviced at OPC there will be a perceived value in that by the seller.

Issyman is spot-on and I could not have expressed it better.

OPC service vs Indy??? There is a reason I ask....

911DG

Spa-Francorchamps

Gareth64

Silverstone

Disco

Portimao

silvermilnec

Albert Park

TTW

Trainee

Martian

Singapore

Diggermeister

Hockenheim

Cunno

Magny-Cours

askgeez

Albert Park

isysman

Daytona

nigel99

Mexico City

cheshire911

Portimao

kas750

Zandvoort

911DG

Spa-Francorchamps

cheshire911

Portimao

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