20 miles home from dealer and dumping oil everywhere...

[Bambi]

I had my 991.1 GT3 built and shelved in Germany for a few months before they officially solved the problem. I was one of the few that had the motor replaced at the factory instead of at a dealer or other location. That was a great car and it was nice know I had the extended warranty... even though it was traded for an RS only a few month later.

While it was frustrating not having your car, it was comforting that you knew Porsche was going to make it right and was open about the process.

The GT3 is a spectacular car. Porsche nearly lost my business when the whole VIP program became a way for someone who bought a 918 first chance on every single special car leaving us peasants to eat dicks. I bought a GT4 to drive while I waited on the GT2RS. Dealership promised me repeatedly I would get an allocation as I put my interest down with them years before ever announced. Offered deposit, was given all the promises. That became “we’ll give you one if you pay 50 over” when it was ordering time.

i went nuclear on them. Sold the GT4 and bought a 720s. My friend was a salesguy. I would roll up and park the mclaren blocking their showroom window just to be a dick. Haven’t looked at porsche since.

i loved that gt4 though. Highly modified all over and basically straight piped. would tear up the 3RS’s which was an added bonus.

 

[Bambi]

 

[soulsea]

I think I finally tossed the apology letter from Porsche that included details about the extended warranty and complimentary 2 day driving school they gave to every effected owner. Was wishing I still had it to show an example to @RamCares.

Also, if I recall correctly, there was a few representative from the Porsche forum and/or Porsche Club of America, that were basically the non-official spoke person for the group and met with Porsche North America executives to help resolve the issues. I believe they were the ones that suggested the comped driving school. I don't remember all of the details, but it was kind of a big deal.

Here’s the story. https://rennlist.com/forums/991-gt3...pag-plus-porsche-s-official-announcement.html

Keep in mind this is after Porsche had already agreed to replace the engines. This is an additional step they took to help their customers and protect their reputation.

 

[Hellasaurus]

If they don’t address it these issues there won’t be any ‘22 or ‘23 trucks. I doubt the new administration will allow these types of vehicles to be produced without paying significant environmental penalties. Maybe I’m wrong but I’m definitely not optimistic...

That would be a shame if they don’t make a better version in 22 or 23. That would probably mean I would never be a first time Ram buyer. I took a leap of faith so to speak in ordering a Ram TRX as a first time Ram buyer and it looks like it’s turning out to be a real shit show. I am thinking it’s time to give my order to someone else and try to wait for 22 or 23 but given so many issues and the total disregard for consumers I just don’t think Ram and I would be a good fit. With so many issues mAybe they should stick to peddling minivans.

 

[AZ Car Guy]

The GT3 is a spectacular car. Porsche nearly lost my business when the whole VIP program became a way for someone who bought a 918 first chance on every single special car leaving us peasants to eat dicks. I bought a GT4 to drive while I waited on the GT2RS. Dealership promised me repeatedly I would get an allocation as I put my interest down with them years before ever announced. Offered deposit, was given all the promises. That became “we’ll give you one if you pay 50 over” when it was ordering time.

i went nuclear on them. Sold the GT4 and bought a 720s. My friend was a sales guy. I would roll up and park the McLaren blocking their showroom window just to be a dick. Haven’t looked at Porsche since.

i loved that gt4 though. Highly modified all over and basically straight piped. would tear up the 3RS’s which was an added bonus.

I am still upset I did not jump on the 918 VIP program. Early on, when the 918 was not selling as well as the P1 (I think that was it..) and could be had for less than MSRP, I was pushed to buy a 918. I thought it was the better of the other hyper cars it was competing with. At the time, it would have been a stretch for me and I decided to be responsible. I was NOT told about benefits of the VIP program. That likely would have changed my mind.

6-12 month later, I could had sold the 918 and made $1M profit and/or had the option to buy the next several GTs. Shoulda, coulda woulda... And of course my wife says... 'I told you you could....' Now any time I have permission, I pull the trigger and second guess it later...

After having the 991.1 I figured getting the 991.2 GT3RS would not be an issue... I was wrong. My prior purchases meant absolutely nothing to the Porsche dealers. I finally broke down and agreed to a $25k ADM though a broker, and the broker was unable to deliver and stole my deposit. That's a whole other story... So I waited and bought one used for $25K under MSRP. The used GT3RS only had 23 miles on it... yes only 23 miles. While I want a 992 GT3, I am not sure I am up for the games again.

Porsche makes a great car... and that holds true across all of their models. But ultimately its about the entire experience. If its not enjoyable, I am not interested.

I would not have jumped on the TRX first MY if I did not have a contact that was able to get me an early build without the dealer drama. It is just not worth it to me. As of right now, I still plan to give RAM a shot with the TRX., which will be my first RAM in many years. My first VIN TRX was cancelled because it (likely) fell off the production line on 12/29. Now my second VIN obtained a build sheet on 1/26... and no window sticker 11 days later. Between the lack of information and the issues I keep reading about, my confidence is diminishing.

Communication would help immensely. How hard would it be to have @RamCare call and say, 'hey, we had an issue with the production line and we had to cancel your order. We want to assure you that we have placed a rush on the replacement and we are doing everything possible to get it to you.' Then they could call a second time and say, 'Hi Curtis, sorry for the additional delay. We are having problems with the two tone paint bleeding through and we are waiting on oil line connection fittings. We want to assure you we will not release you truck until it is perfect and believe that will be in X number of days. Again we apologize for the delay. We know you have purchased 10 FCA vehicles personally in the past 15 years, not including all of your friends and family that have purchased because of you and the several hundred trucks you have ordered through your various companies you control. We truly appreciate your business.'

I am not holding my breath...

 

[Bambi]

I am still upset I did not jump on the 918 VIP program. Early on, when the 918 was not selling as well as the P1 (I think that was it..) and could be had for less than MSRP, I was pushed to buy a 918. I thought it was the better of the other hyper cars it was competing with. At the time, it would have been a stretch for me and I decided to be responsible. I was NOT told about benefits of the VIP program. That likely would have changed my mind.

6-12 month later, I could had sold the 918 and made $1M profit and/or had the option to buy the next several GTs. Shoulda, coulda woulda... And of course my wife says... 'I told you you could....' Now any time I have permission, I pull the trigger and second guess it later...

After having the 991.1 I figured getting the 991.2 GT3RS would not be an issue... I was wrong. My prior purchases meant absolutely nothing to the Porsche dealers. I finally broke down and agreed to a $25k ADM though a broker, and the broker was unable to deliver and stole my deposit. That's a whole other story... So I waited and bought one used for $25K under MSRP. The used GT3RS only had 23 miles on it... yes only 23 miles. While I want a 992 GT3, I am not sure I am up for the games again.

Porsche makes a great car... and that holds true across all of their models. But ultimately its about the entire experience. If its not enjoyable, I am not interested.

I would not have jumped on the TRX first MY if I did not have a contact that was able to get me an early build without the dealer drama. It is just not worth it to me. As of right now, I still plan to give RAM a shot with the TRX., which will be my first RAM in many years. My first VIN TRX was cancelled because it (likely) fell off the production line on 12/29. Now my second VIN obtained a build sheet on 1/26... and no window sticker 11 days later. Between the lack of information and the issues I keep reading about, my confidence is diminishing.

Communication would help immensely. How hard would it be to have @RamCare call and say, 'hey, we had an issue with the production line and we had to cancel your order. We want to assure you that we have placed a rush on the replacement and we are doing everything possible to get it to you.' Then they could call a second time and say, 'Hi Curtis, sorry for the additional delay. We are having problems with the two tone paint bleeding through and we are waiting on oil line connection fittings. We want to assure you we will not release you truck until it is perfect and believe that will be in X number of days. Again we apologize for the delay. We know you have purchased 10 FCA vehicles personally in the past 15 years, not including all of your friends and family that have purchased because of you and the several hundred trucks you have ordered through your various companies you control. We truly appreciate your business.'

I am not holding my breath...

That history with FCA is just perfect. @RamCares I’d probably pay attention to this dude.

 

[rbrdky]

a powerless porschecares meat shield

This, sir, is a classic.

 

[AZ Car Guy]

Here’s the story. https://rennlist.com/forums/991-gt3...pag-plus-porsche-s-official-announcement.html

Keep in mind this is after Porsche had already agreed to replace the engines. This is an additional step they took to help their customers and protect their reputation.

Thanks for posting the link. While this is a similar situation and response from Porsche, I think there was another meeting back in 2015 time frame. This article talks about a meeting in 2017. My 991.1 GT3 was a MY 2014 that I took delivery of about the same time MY 2015 were arriving. I sold it in early 2016 (I think). The free or comped 2 day driving school I was invited to was in early 2016.

 

[AZ Car Guy]

That history with FCA is just perfect. @RamCares I’d probably pay attention to this dude.

You know what else is sad... The only reason I know I have a replacement truck is because of this forum and my contact that originally got me my build slot (which I still greatly appreciate even though it was not gone as planned) sent me a text saying I had a new VIN and it was already in paint. I was able to confirm the VIN and delivery location (out of statement delivery from where the selling dealer is located) with FCA Chat.

I have not heard another peep from FCA or the dealer I have ordered through.... Dealer hasn't even confirmed that I have a new VIN... Err.

Any way, It sounds like we are dealing with quality control issues at the plant that should be able to be fixed relatively easily and it not an major engineering issue. Hopefully FCA will step up and fix any resulting problems caused by the faulty assembly, including replacing engines if necessary (I am not suggesting it is, but no oil on a dip stick is not good) and cleaning up one's driveway.

 

[Bambi]

I have not heard another peep from FCA or the dealer I have ordered through.... Dealer hasn't even confirmed that I have a new VIN... Err.

Any way, It sounds like we are dealing with quality control issues at the plant that should be able to be fixed relatively easily and it not an major engineering issue. Hopefully FCA will step up and fix any resulting problems caused by the faulty assembly, including replacing engines if necessary (I am not suggesting it is, but no oil on a dip stick is not good) and cleaning up one's driveway.

There’s a time to be reasonable. Then there’s a time to fly the Jolly Roger and start taking scalps. We are still in the reasonable period I think but the sun’s getting real low.

 

[KnightMare]

Early examples of newly launched vehicles have problems, we all understood that as early adopters. Some are engineering ones some are quality control ones. Take for example the 991.1 GT3 which was much more expensive than the TRX, those didn't have suspect ticking or oil in the driveway, they were setting themselves on fire. Yup, literally on fire. What did Porsche do? They didn't hide from it or behind a powerless porschecares meat shield, they we were proactive and replaced every single engine from that batch in all the first year GT3 cars, all of them, even those without an issue. And eventually gave all those owners an extended 100,000 mile warranty. By doing so they took what was a huge embarrassment for the brand and what could have had devastating long term consequences in terms of sales and pr, and flipped it on its head. In fact what was at the time a disaster turned out to be one of their biggest wins and not only preserved all their customers but got many new ones as a result. I know I felt more comfortable spending all that money on one knowing how much Porsche stands behind their cars.

The world is watching, there are many people who want this truck to fail, especially its competitors. Don't think for a second that Ford isn't watching this unfold right now and rubbing their hands waiting to unleash posters in every blog and every forum, including this one.

I don't want to make too much of it, like I said much of it is part and parcel of a new vehicle launch ... what does matter is what they're going to do about it now. If I were them I would have an empowered representative and an engineer here, on this forum, to help fix issues and to communicate with customers about their vehicle. They might get blasted at first but they would garner a great deal of respect and goodwill from their current and potential future customers ... all they want is someone to help them fix their issues and communicate honestly with them.

Dear Ram, having crappy quality control and then burying your head in the sand isn't going to work out well for you. Be better and we'll be patient, understanding, maybe even appreciative.

@KnightMare if I may be presumptuous, I'd ask you to pass this post along to someone who might actually care, that is you know of such a person at Ram.

I'm going straight to the top...

Early examples of newly launched vehicles have problems, we all understood that as early adopters. Some are engineering ones some are quality control ones. Take for example the 991.1 GT3 which was much more expensive than the TRX, those didn't have suspect ticking or oil in the driveway, they were setting themselves on fire. Yup, literally on fire. What did Porsche do? They didn't hide from it or behind a powerless porschecares meat shield, they we were proactive and replaced every single engine from that batch in all the first year GT3 cars, all of them, even those without an issue. And eventually gave all those owners an extended 100,000 mile warranty. By doing so they took what was a huge embarrassment for the brand and what could have had devastating long term consequences in terms of sales and pr, and flipped it on its head. In fact what was at the time a disaster turned out to be one of their biggest wins and not only preserved all their customers but got many new ones as a result. I know I felt more comfortable spending all that money on one knowing how much Porsche stands behind their cars.

The world is watching, there are many people who want this truck to fail, especially its competitors. Don't think for a second that Ford isn't watching this unfold right now and rubbing their hands waiting to unleash posters in every blog and every forum, including this one.

I don't want to make too much of it, like I said much of it is part and parcel of a new vehicle launch ... what does matter is what they're going to do about it now. If I were them I would have an empowered representative and an engineer here, on this forum, to help fix issues and to communicate with customers about their vehicle. They might get blasted at first but they would garner a great deal of respect and goodwill from their current and potential future customers ... all they want is someone to help them fix their issues and communicate honestly with them.

Dear Ram, having crappy quality control and then burying your head in the sand isn't going to work out well for you. Be better and we'll be patient, understanding, maybe even appreciative.

@KnightMare if I may be presumptuous, I'd ask you to pass this post along to someone who might actually care, that is you know of such a person at Ram.

Working on my "love letter" to Ram Right now...

 

[Bambi]

I'm going straight to the top...

Working on my "love letter" to Ram Right now...
View attachment 4138

Can you include my meme in your letter as an example of the unrest this is causing with a super patient customer base? I really want that circulating inside official fca correspondence.

 

[soulsea]

I believe facts and objective well reasoned feedback and criticism are a more constructive way to get things done and move the ball forward at the moment, especially to help the people that are having issues right now. Antagonizing the only people that have the power to help you with insulting memes isn’t the best way to garner their engagement, at least in my opinion.

Not everyone here is buying this truck as a side toy or for yt clicks. I have read many cool stories of how people have saved up to buy it as a retirement gift to themselves, or how they are reaching slightly financially because of the awesomeness it promises. For those and many other people this isn’t about social media and influencing, it is a significant purchase that they’re willing to make to get joy, not headaches and stress.

Now if Ram fails to act in good faith and to support their product and their customers with urgency, then by all means, bomb away.

Btw, I’m not saying don’t meme the thing, I’m just saying @KnightMare might not want to open with that in his communications.

 

[Bambi]

I believe facts and objective well reasoned feedback and criticism are a more constructive way to get things done and move the ball forward at the moment, especially to help the people that are having issues right now. Antagonizing the only people that have the power to help you with insulting memes isn’t the best way to garner their engagement, at least in my opinion.

Not everyone here is buying this truck as a side toy or for yt clicks. I have read many cool stories of how people have saved up to buy it as a retirement gift to themselves, or how they are reaching slightly financially because of the awesomeness it promises. For those and many other people this isn’t about social media and influencing, it is a significant purchase that they’re willing to make to get joy, not headaches and stress.

Now if Ram fails to act in good faith and to support their product and their customers with urgency, then by all means, bomb away.

Btw, I’m not saying don’t meme the thing, I’m just saying @KnightMare might not want to open with that in his communications.

Your response is well reasoned and thoughtful. It was not my intent to denigrate anyones dream car.

That said I find it takes significant and pervasive complaints to make most large manufacturers take notice. They took a swing at the Raptor with absolutely no time pressure on release. They made the promises and now they need to put up or shut up.

So please do include facts, objective well reasoned feedback and criticism with the memes and low blows. I will take responsibility for the memes and low blows. They can cancel my truck if they like.

 

[KnightMare]

I believe facts and objective well reasoned feedback and criticism are a more constructive way to get things done and move the ball forward at the moment, especially to help the people that are having issues right now. Antagonizing the only people that have the power to help you with insulting memes isn’t the best way to garner their engagement, at least in my opinion.

Not everyone here is buying this truck as a side toy or for yt clicks. I have read many cool stories of how people have saved up to buy it as a retirement gift to themselves, or how they are reaching slightly financially because of the awesomeness it promises. For those and many other people this isn’t about social media and influencing, it is a significant purchase that they’re willing to make to get joy, not headaches and stress.

Now if Ram fails to act in good faith and to support their product and their customers with urgency, then by all means, bomb away.

Btw, I’m not saying don’t meme the thing, I’m just saying @KnightMare might not want to open with that in his communications.

I'll be respectful.... but only because of you..

 

[G Man]

Early examples of newly launched vehicles have problems, we all understood that as early adopters. Some are engineering ones some are quality control ones. Take for example the 991.1 GT3 which was much more expensive than the TRX, those didn't have suspect ticking or oil in the driveway, they were setting themselves on fire. Yup, literally on fire. What did Porsche do? They didn't hide from it or behind a powerless porschecares meat shield, they we were proactive and replaced every single engine from that batch in all the first year GT3 cars, all of them, even those without an issue. And eventually gave all those owners an extended 100,000 mile warranty. By doing so they took what was a huge embarrassment for the brand and what could have had devastating long term consequences in terms of sales and pr, and flipped it on its head. In fact what was at the time a disaster turned out to be one of their biggest wins and not only preserved all their customers but got many new ones as a result. I know I felt more comfortable spending all that money on one knowing how much Porsche stands behind their cars.

The world is watching, there are many people who want this truck to fail, especially its competitors. Don't think for a second that Ford isn't watching this unfold right now and rubbing their hands waiting to unleash posters in every blog and every forum, including this one.

I don't want to make too much of it, like I said much of it is part and parcel of a new vehicle launch ... what does matter is what they're going to do about it now. If I were them I would have an empowered representative and an engineer here, on this forum, to help fix issues and to communicate with customers about their vehicle. They might get blasted at first but they would garner a great deal of respect and goodwill from their current and potential future customers ... all they want is someone to help them fix their issues and communicate honestly with them.

Dear Ram, having crappy quality control and then burying your head in the sand isn't going to work out well for you. Be better and we'll be patient, understanding, maybe even appreciative.

@KnightMare if I may be presumptuous, I'd ask you to pass this post along to someone who might actually care, that is you know of such a person at Ram.

Well said brother!!!

 

[AZ Car Guy]

Your response is well reasoned and thoughtful. It was not my intent to denigrate anyones dream car.

That said I find it takes significant and pervasive complaints to make most large manufacturers take notice. They took a swing at the Raptor with absolutely no time pressure on release. They made the promises and now they need to put up or shut up.

So please do include facts, objective well reasoned feedback and criticism with the memes and low blows. I will take responsibility for the memes and low blows. They can cancel my truck if they like.

I still like your approach , but thinking of the end game and desired outcomes, it‘s probably best to get you tied down.

I am thinking back to infamous TRX jump. He got everyone’s attention with the ridiculous jump and then lost most of what he gained when he started beating his truck with a hammer and lighting it on fire. No reason for me to ever look at his channel again. We want to get RAMs attention but not alienate them.

 

[Jester]

15 an hour.... that's all they have to pay a forum/social media agent to watch for things like this. Such a small investment on what has been years of build up, design, engineering, retooling, and launch.
I would fire someone for the lack of communication, period. All the stories on this forum, and the energy spent tracking progress and sharing scaps of info.
SIMPLE communication. Then, when there are issues have an engineering hotline (at least for dealers) that can get issues resolved, or in front of the right people ASAP.

Ram deserves to get grilled and hasn't earned the right for us to be patient given how they have handled. Like I said prior, have had Rams since 2013 and have been a promoter of their brand, but this is just complete bullshit. This is exactly why I won't buy Chevy again.

They need to fix this and why I am pressing to speak with someone in the actual TRX leadership/product/marketing group so I can explain how to manage this properly, what our expectations are, and see if they give a shit.

I guess we could smack them with a class action for crap delivery and possibly other legal fun just to get their attention. That is the bed red button in my opinion and I think we are close.

 

[Futant]

It seems odd to me that these issues are showing up when the engine isn’t new to them. This is the Hellcat engine and it’s in how many other vehicles with FCA? Maybe it’s the figment in the 1500 chassis and the modifications necessary to do this but I would hope the engine is still sound. That much oil coming out mmakes me thing it is something simple, like a new fitting or just something came lose. The missing bolt probably wasn’t tightened adequately and it fell out, but the squealing is more worrisome. It sounds like a pulley or bad belt.

Nonetheless, all seem easy and I would think FCA would want to communicate this and stay on top of things so as to squash any bad moutbing that could drive away customers and get the competition ammo.

After having completed a multimilllion dollar negotiation last year I have learned a few things. When dealing with these large companies the only thing that gets their attention is the finances. They scrutinize their bottom line heavily. You can be super nice and professional with them or you can jump up and down and call them names. Neither really matters to them. I still prefer to remain professional. It lets me sleep better at night.

I really hope this oil leak is simple and the truck is a back on the road soon. Hey look at the bright side, if the oil got everywhere then maybe it lubed the squeaky pulley and belt and you have fixed two issues at once.

 

[Jester]

I didn't have any squeaking (hope not), that was someone else. The bright side it has been undercoated.

I'm fairly mechanical, and assuming a hose/fitting, but whatever it is, they need to focus on quality.

Question- Is factory break-in oil still used? I am going to verify and document everything that happens and will check with RAM, but don't want break-in fluids omitted because of this.

Like I've said - I like Ram, but I want them to make this right fast and for everyone, not just me. I want my truck back (and my driveway cleaned). It felt and looked great, and I want to get through break-in and have some fun with it.