I just replaced the pump on my 88k mile '99 in August and its already leaking. Its under warranty, obviously, but I'm wondering if OEM is the only way to go??

 

Yes, there are alot of cheap China made copies out there. Be sure the replacement has a plastic impeller so if it fails it won't chew up the case & potentially ruin the case. Perhaps you should upgrade your mechanic shop to one with more 996 experience too.

 

I did that one on my own, lol.

 

I think Laslo is the company that makes the oem pump. So you don't need to buy the WP from a dealer, just get the oem pump somewhere else.

 

Mine failed on my 1999 C2 at 40K miles.

 

They are considered a "disposable" item by many people. They should be changed periodically even if they haven't failed.

 

OEM- got mine at Sunset Porsche. Good price

 

Mine just failed at 83k on my '99 C2, and it looked VERY original when I took it out.. I have read numerous people that have had problems with non OEM pumps, so I bought mine from Sunset as they were cheaper than anyone else, had the latest iteration of it, and shipped it quickly and cheaply. Was a bit of a PITA to put in, but it's in, and working just fine. I've seen replacement figures for them at 4 years 50k miles, so you don't run into any issues with it going out on its own.

 

its a very slow leak at the moment. I'll see if I can get my money back in lieu of another knock off...grr

 

That's what I would do, but not sure they will be willing to refund, but would definitely put an OEM one in...if you did yours, you know the pain in the *** that the job is...I got a lot of satisfaction knowing that I wasn't going to need to do that for another 4+ years once I got mine in and completed.

 

Your leaky replacement pump is obviously defective and needs to be replaced under warranty. It's not an indictment of the quality of OEM pumps. Did you purchase, and install, a Porsche approved OEM pump or an aftermarket pump?

 

I am guessing from his post that IN HINDSIGHT, he wished he went OEM.

 

If you have a water leak - of ANY kind - it's time for repair. You do not want your pump to fail , overheat your engine and end up with a pile of parts in the corner of your garage.

 

the original pump gave plenty of warning before it went, this one is just starting to drip. I'm fairly mechanical and didn't find the job overly difficult. I'll definitely go with OEM the next time, though. Thanks for the help.

 

Byprodriver, I noticed you said get a plastic impeller version... but I ordered from Suncoast earlier this year and it was still metal for the latest version from Porsche. Is there a part number for the Porsche version with plastic impeller you can reference?

David