This is the conversation between me and the dealer. Is this correct?

Me: If it is normal, you guys should have told me up front so I did not waste my time and money. I consider this is dishonest. The noise gets much worse than before. There were clunk noise twice before. Now it is nonstop. I’d like you forward this issue to your manager. Thanks

Dealer: Like I said when you dropped it off it was dry and this was not happening but the noise from the control arms was very present. I can show you on your old parts how worn they are it was not a waste of money it was a safety concern. Now that it is very wet and cold outside with all wheel drive and the wheel cranked backing out of a parking spot the tires naturally hop and scrape. This happens on almost all Porsches and Audis especially worse when you have summer tires. My service manager is the one who confirmed with the technician this evening that the new noise appearing worse than before is because of the tires hoping. There is no longer any play or movement coming from the new control arms when before there was a lot of play which is very unsafe. I would not recommend something that is not necessary we recommend the control arms because they were so worn. If the extended warranty thought this was not an accurate repair they would of declined it for that reason but instead because they were so worn they declined it as pre-existing concern. What that means is the suspension was so worn that it appeared it had been worn for an excessive amount of time prior to you owning it.

 

is what part correct?

Yes, the wide tires on a heavy car like a Panamera do have some amount of "scrub" in low speed high turning angle situations like parking lots. That is normal.

And yes the control arm bushings on these cars wear out rather quickly. Don't know the age or mileage of your car, but on my 2013 they were rather worn with 30K miles when the car was 5 or 6 years old and replaced under Porsche CPO. Aftermarket warranty is always a crap-shoot what they will cover - they try to get out of anything, just like any insurance company does. Porsche factory CPO is basically the same approach used while the car was in the actual original warranty period.

 

Thanks.

Is the noise under the car when the road is wet normal?
They replaced all the front (lower and upper) control arms and the noise got worse.

 

Can't really say - hasn't rained much where I live until recently and I honestly haven't driven the Panamera much since then. So haven't really noticed one way or the other if it happens more or less in the wet. Also my car is RWD which is probably less susceptible to this issue than a AWD version.

 

When it rains, these cars make all kinds of noise when turning out of parking spaces etc...The tires have alot to do with it, if they're worn much they slide more on the road surface under sharp turns when the surface is slick and if they are near the point of needing to be replaced they even slide when dry. It just about drove me crazy the last time it happened and then I replaced the tires and suddenly....no more noise (except in the rain).

 

it is a shame for a car cost 100k

 

Not sure I follow this, but the controls arms don’t make more noise when wet, only going over bumps in the cold

 

No, it’s not a control arm issue, it’s the geometry of the front end suspension. The way it’s designed, the outside tire on a sharp turn at slow speed ( like turning out of a parking space) gets dragged sideways and the suspension creaks as it drags the tire. The outside tire isn’t at the same degree of inclination as the inside tire. It’s weird but it only becomes apparent when it’s wet or when the tires are nearing the minimum tread depth.

 

This is one of the prices you pay for the performance level you get with a car like a Panamera. Plenty of cars out there in the $120K range that don't do this, and also that are nowhere near the Panamera in handling, road feel, driver feedback. You can choose what's most important to you - quiet, or performance.

 

It doesn't bother me now that I know why it's making the noise but it did before I knew. It sounds like the front suspension of the car is going to rip right out from under the car. It was very unnerving to say the least.

 

I was worried about safety when I drove on the free way. Was afraid that something would break and cause accident. Now I feel better. Thanks everyone.

 

Are you getting this noise on the freeway as well? I have only noticed this noise in parking lots at very low speeds with the wheel turned at high angles.

 

Not on the freeway. Before all the front control arms were replaced, there were 2 clunking sound when I turn left in a round abound. Now it has more than 2 and when I started driving straight, there is noise when I drive slow.

 

Does it cause any kind of damages to the parts of the car?

 

no - it's just the tires making the noise.