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Porsche Inspections

worntoride

Member
Joined
12 Aug 2014
Messages
16
I'm sure this has been covered a thousand times and apologies if so, but looking to get my first 911 (996 C2/4) as soon as I can find the right one. I'm not going to purchase without getting an inspection done but heard and read mixed reviews about Peter Morgan.

Should I get one done with him or are there any other recommendations?

Cheers
 
Depending on where the intended purchase is, my recommendation would always be to use a local indy with ramp facilities and PIWIS to carry out the inspection. Alternative might be OPC 111-point inspection. Final option might be Peter Morgan. I say final mainly because the car is inspected by a mobile inspector who uses a trolley jack - not enough facility to do a proper and thorough inspection. Does not matter how well qualified the mobile inspector is, if he cannot jack the car up to the sky and stand under it, the inspection is very limited (personal opinion only before someone comes on and says he can inspect a Porsche through the letter-box of the garage).

Having said all this, a Peter Morgan inspection is FAR BETTER than having no inspection.

These 996 C2/C4 cars are at a silly low price that there are a lot of knackered dogs out there with high mileages hiding big bills that some unlucky punter will 'inherit' - usually because with the age of these cars they have fallen in some cases into hands that can afford to buy them but have limited funds (unable) to maintain them. Some are marketed as full engine rebuilds in a bid to reassure a purchaser that the engine woes are sorted - but this may not be the case. This is because there are rebuilds and there are rebuilds. There are rebuilders and there are rebuilders.

Tread carefully and pick a good example (of which there are numerous examples out there).

Find a car, tell us the locality and I'm sure there will be members here who can guide you on local indys and OPC to carry out an inspection for you.

Now you can go back to the ads in AutoTrader or PH's.
 
If you find a car in the NW/Yorks let me know I can put you on to somebody. He has recently saved someone on here from making a costly mistake :what:
 
Thanks for all the wise words. From reading through various posts, it seems that Peter Morgan and other mobile services get some pretty mixed reviews. I've found an OPC about 20 miles from where the one I'm going to look at is but just need to work out a way of getting the seller to take it there or let me take it there before handing over the cash. Definitely not buying without an inspection.

Does anyone know how much OPCs charge for their inspection?
 
Going off memory it is one fixed price of around £210 or £180 + VAT or thereabouts.

If buying from a dealer they should be fine to drop it off at an OPC or specialist within a 20 mile radius. Private sale may be different.

Good luck
 
I used Peter Morgan for two inspections on 964Ts a few years ago. He's not cheap - £375 I think. The biggest problem I have with him and his agents is that they didn't put anything into context, or cost. So they will happily tell you that a 964 has scuttle rust. But they wont tell you that all 964s get scuttle rust at some point in their life, and that it costs c.£1k to fix and the car is priced appropriately for the condition. ie, dont worry about it and dont let it put you off.

If you have ever bought a house and got a full survey done on it then you will recognise the similarity in a Peter Morgan report - they will highlight every single tiny problem with the car (because that is their job), but they won't provide any context or cost analysis.

If I was buying again my order of preference would be:
1) get the indy I plan to use once I own the car to inspect the car (obviously this is highly unrealistic unless the car is close by)
2) get a respected indy to inspect
3) Peter Morgan

Good luck, Josh
 
To put it into context, I'm going to look at a 996 C2 next week which is near Milton Keynes. I've tried getting hold of Silverstone Porsche about doing an inspection but nobody seems to want to return my call. Can anyone recommend a local indy in the area?
 
Peter Morgan does not cover the whole of the UK , so it may not be possible to get him to inspect you car even if you wanted him to
 
I'd persevere an call OPC Silverstone. Thsi is part of the Sytner Group:

http://www.sytner.co.uk/porsche/towcester/home.aspx

Try calling a Group HQ number and asking them to boot up the backside of the Silverstone outfit or emailing Towcester and the Group HQ copied into it. The reponse will be quick!

Picking up on the previous comment about putting things into context, please remember a 111-point inspection is aimed at assessing the vehicle for an OPC Warranty. As your car is way too old for that I assume, the OPC will pick up any deviation from standard - non Porsche battery, after-market valve dust caps on the wheels etc. So be prepared for that!

Ask them to itemise and price up remedial work required now and what in their estimation is likely to be required in the coming 6/12 months.
Tell them you want a print out of the ECU data and their interpretation of it in terms of validating the cars age, mileage and condition.

Ask also to be able to speak to the guy who did the inspection prior to the report and afterwards if you have any queries on reading the report.

Ask also not to have the Yeti inspect the vehicle - the 20-something acne-ridden Youth Training Scheme Apprentice. Discuss who will inspect the vehicle and the experience with the marque.

I'm sure someone will come along who knows the area to nominate an indy also.
 
RPM Technik at Long Marston nr Aylesbury is a well-respected indy near Milton Keynes for a PPI.
 
How did you get on with that 996 C2?
 
Just made a deal on it and hopefully collecting Saturday, all being well with the inspection. Talking of which, getting one done by Brookspeed in Southampton if anyone's got any experience of them?
 
I think buying any used car, is not easy always buyer beware as in life.
I looked at 12 so called, good 911's some I could have bought on face value.
As they looked very good, however I did my research and knew what to look for.

Things like invoices, money spent on the cars upkeep all come into play to paint a picture of the car in question. It shows the owner, has looked after the car. This is always a good start.

The seller know what he would like money wise.
Plus what you think the car is worth, and what you get may not be the same.

I know what my 911 is worth in my eyes, someone else may not feel the same about my cars value?
Plus the current market can go up and down.

Any car can be improved, with time and money mine has?
Either way buy the best car you can for the money you have.
Then enjoy it!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
I just picked up on this discussion. I am Peter Morgan and I want to correct some inaccuracies in this text concerning my inspection service that are misleading.

We do not get mixed reviews from the vast majority of our customers, because the vast majority of our customers (including our Porsche trade customers) are very happy with the results we provide.
We are always looking at ways to improve and it is true that in order to maintain our quality standards, we only cover central southern England. Both I and my colleague Bob Spratley have long experience in Porsches (mine goes back 30 years!). We do inspections at OPCs, independent dealers, pre-auction and at private sellers. We are not infallible but we've been doing mobile inspections for over 15 years and we aim to provide a class leading service. I am confident we inspect as many Porsches in a year as the busiest Porsche service shop. We are Porsche people and we only inspect Porsches.

We always give estimates as to repair cost when asked. We can't out guess what questions customers may have, but we're only too happy to answer them if asked. In the example quoted regarding 964 Turbos I would most certainly have provided valuations, because that is part of our service. We would also have provided guidance on whether the condition/asking price made purchase worthwhile.
The reason our inspection is more expensive than an inspection at a fixed based operator is that we go to wherever the car is, plus we try to give you a more comprehensive result than a 'ticked box' deliverable often given by many others. The extra cost covers our travelling time, overheads and Insurance costs of being mobile. As with most things in life, you only get what you pay for.
Very few sellers will agree to having their cars taken to a third party, especially as there is a potential uncovered loss liability if the car is damaged in any way.

It is quite wrong to say you need a ramp to inspect the underbody. This is the argument that fixed base operators always trot out when trying to criticize our service. You do need to be able to get right under a car safely and check the car with the wheels off the ground in a variety of locations. A ramp is nice, but if you are not actually working on the car, it isn't essential. We have been doing this a long time, so we know what is required. Other inspectors may use less practiced methods.

The 111pt OPC review is focused on wear and tear (as it is the entry requirement for the warranty), not general condition or whether the car has been involved in any adventures. It won't look at spec variances or even its ID validity. A fixed base inspection isn't always independent for the buyer as more often than not the workshop will be looking to get work out of the inspection. From the other viewpoint, a selling dealer may also say an inspection isn't necessary on their retail stock, but that's because it can cost them money rectifying issues. Our experience is that when buying used from some OPCs, there will be cars that would benefit from more investment before delivery. The cars are frequently trade-ins and the main emphasis is on cosmetic preparation. Warranty claims would come out of a different cost centre so the dealer isn't always bothered about issues being found after delivery. This doesn't apply to all OPCs, but some are under a lot of pressure to sell quickly.
Our USP is that we don't have vested interest - we work only for the buyer.
 

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