Hi,

I was feeling and hearing some clunky noises from the front right wheel area and my dealer told me I have to replace the front sway bar bushings (both the right and left are changed at the same time) and they also found that the left upper control arm was loose and has to be replaced (even though I don’t feel anything out of the ordinary from the left side).

I have the Porsche 2 year CPO pre-owned warranty that came with the car when I purchased it from the dealer.

A few questions:

- I understand that bushings, which can wear, are not covered by this warranty but shouldn’t the upper control arm be covered?

- like bushings, is it necessary for both front control arms to be changed at the same time?

- the dealer wants to charge me about $1,500, including parts and labour, to change both front sway bar bushings and the left upper control arm, which I find very high, so can I have these parts changed at my trusted mechanic without voiding the warranty?

- I can purchase an additional two year CPO warranty when this one ends but I must do my maintenance at the dealer. Does this maintenance include bushings and control arms?

- any recommendations on which online store and which brand of aftermarket parts I should buy if I decide to have my mechanic do the work?


Thanks for any advice you can offer.

 

I don't know the details of the CPO warranty, hoping others will chime in. They be be considered consumable parts like brake pads/rotors which aren't covered.

I believe that Lemforder makes the control arms for these cars and you can often find the exact same part w/o the Porsche logo for half the price. If you have a good indy they should know how to source these. Best of luck!

 

@CobbleStone what year is your Panamera? I recently purchased a 2010 4S and I am noticing the same thing. If I drive over bumps / rough roadway I get that hard clank / thumping rattle. Oddly enough I the car inspected by my local euro shop, the tech there is a long time acquaintance who worked at a Porsche dealer as a certified tech for many years. He did not mention / note the issue even with road testing. Not knowing what I don't know I fear I need new bushings as well! Anyone taken a crack at this as a DIY?

Update / edit I just watched a video where a gent replaced the stabilizer links (Sway Bar Drop Link) on his Cayman, looks like a fairly simple driveway repair. He described the issues I'm experiencing. Hollow clanks when going over bumps. I'll see if I can visualize those stabilizer link bushings / rubbers as his were cracked.

 

Those clanks unfortunately happen due to a few possibilities one of them the one you mentioned. For us it was the upper control arms that two bushings fail. I do know one of our members has engineered polyurethane bushings for them but there is a ball joint on the end built into it, so I just replaced the whole thing not knowing how much life was left on it.

Lookup DIY Panamera upper control arms or Panamera front shocks and @ciaka has some good guides...

 

Always worth to spend few minutes for search:
https://www.6speedonline.com/forums/...ml#post4654258

https://www.6speedonline.com/forums/...eplaced-2.html