I was driving the other day in my 12' TTS with 1500 miles. As I accelerated from a stop my transmission disengaged in 3rd gear and the engine spun free and then reengaged with a thud. Right as this happened a red error message came up(Transmission emergency run). I pulled over and placed car in park. It idled fine. I put car back into drive and this time it would not shift from first, and did the disengage/reengage deal. It could not be shifted manually up or down. I pulled over and called my sales guy. He said to turn off car remove key and then restart car and see what happens. I did this and the car would not come out of first, and did the disengage/ reengage deal. It was not driveable. This time the check engine light and red exclamation point came on. I pulled over and called roadside for a flatbed.
Any ideas what is going on? Very disheartening with a 170k brand new car.

 

My did same at 2500 miles got new Pdk now at 6000 all is well. Don't sweat it will be a week fix and you will be good as new.

 

Wow, makes me question a pdk out of warranty........

 

+ 1 on that... Always preferred traditional manauals...

I have heard /seen people have serious problems with the BMW SMG Trannys mainly the 1st gen they were out

 

Porsche folks gotta love these PDKs out of warranty. Big bucks to get them fixed. And their Achilles heel with slave and accumulator now computer operated must be aggravated as well over the weaken state that already exists with manual boxes.

 

The PDK on my GTS is leaking fluid, not bad but it is a leak. The tech at my dealership noticed it at 2000 miles during an oil change. He cleaned the under side and put some test miles on over a few days. It didn't show up again until about 4500 miles. A new unit is in transit. When I asked about 'new' I was told it would be a new not rebuilt unit.

 

Years back I had 06 BMW M5 with SMG, after three transmission failures within two months ,give car back to dealer.The worst part was the fact that each time this happened I couldn't even move the car. because transmission did not go in to neutral so I was stock in the middle line on the street waiting for the flatbed towing. .

 

My dealer told me they wernt allowed to work on Pdk other the computer reflash. I asked him what about in five years. He stated most likely a new unit then. The ticket I signed said 14k for repair. He said mine was the first Pdk that they had that had to be replaced. He stated he had to replace maybe two Triptronics but the 6 speed that everyone so loves was a every week deal. Sure they are easier to fix but I am hoping odds in my favor for now anyways. Three more years of warranty then extended warranty or roll dice. Who knows.

 

I've never heard of that kind of frequent failures of g50 based manual transmissions. Your tech must be referring to clutch jobs.
Re the pdk, no thank you post warranty. I would get rid of it when the warranty is done, don't bank on a aftermarket warranty covering a $$pdk. Sad, porsches have become disposable.

 

Still waiting for the ultimate outcome. They are on day 5. They tried a new ecu. No dice. Tomorrow, they will replace the valve unit. They are certain it will not work. Then they will order a new PDK. I was told that for turbo s the job will be in the 25k range. All I know is the car costs me around $110 per day in payment. They at least gave me a new Panamera 4 to use. It doesn't even seem like a Porsche. Pathetic acceleration. Rides nice. Will update as information becomes available.
I would never consider owning a car like this without a warranty. Too many failure prone parts that are really expensive. I learned this with my last airplane. First one I owned without a warranty. Spent 150k in maintenance in 18 months.

 

Looking at what a replacement might cost on the used market I found turbo PDK trams for a little less than $6000. That same money would probably get a 6 speed refreshed to like new.

 

I have been scheming to add a PDK Boxster or Cayman, but the more I read about PDK problem, the more "alarmed" :-) I've become.

Since I would like to buy and keep my Porsche for more than 4 years, owning any PDK Porsche is sadly out of the picture for now.

The interesting thing is that if you like an automatic type transmission, and particularly if you are going to mod the ECU, the automatic 997.1 Turbo might just be the most desireable for long term ownership.

 

My 2011 Panamera has PDK, and has been flawless through 24k miles. I like the feel and reaction of it better than any other "automatic" that I have owned.

 

Sorry to hear about your PDK problem . I hope your car will be fixed soon. However,I used to have 2007 BMW M5 with SMG trans. I hated the trans and thus the reason for selling her. I special ordered that car with every bell and whistle that was offered .My SMG failed at 30k and the dealer replaced it under warranty , but I could never trust that car anymore . When you see the red COG and you are stuck in park(lock)position ,you better call flatbed. For me 6speed all the wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.

 

I would tend to agree with you. Funny, I had no problem buying a couple of old turbos (930,993).