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2011 Porsche Boxster (987) Problems

Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
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Latest Nov 19, 2018
Components namedHow many of our component categories appear on at least one report for this model year. One report can name several.
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Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
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What this page shows

Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2011 Porsche Boxster (987), grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Reports by component

Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category

  • Powertrain (other)1100.0%

Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.

Each component in detail

What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words

Powertrain (other)

Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials.

1
report

From owner reports, verbatim

CAR HAS A MANUAL TRANSMISSION. SHIFTING FROM 1ST TO 2ND GEAR, THE SHIFTER SUDDENLY WENT COMPLETELY LOOSE, LEAVING THE CAR STUCK IN 1ST GEAR. AFTER SUBSEQUENT ANALYSIS, THE ROOT CAUSE WAS DETERMINED TO BE A SNAPPED SHIFT CABLE BETWEEN THE SHIFTER "STICK" AND THE TRANSMISSION. FURTHER RESEARCH REVEALS THIS IS A VERY WIDESPREAD PROBLEM WITHIN THE PORSCHE COMMUNITY, CAUSED BY A BAD ENGINEERING DESIGN WHERE THE SHIFT CABLE IS MADE TO TAKE A SHARP BEND IN IT'S PATH TO THE TRANSMISSION, CAUSING THE SHIFT CABLE METAL TO FATIGUE THROUGH THE BEND AND EVENTUALLY SHEAR/SNAP WITHOUT WARNING. SIMPLY GOOGLE "PORSCHE SHIFT CABLE BREAK" FOR EXAMPLE TO FIND THE MANY MANY FOLKS SUFFERING THIS ISSUE. THIS IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS IF IT HAPPENS AT AN IN-OPPORTUNE TIME LIKE ON THE HIGHWAY OR IN TRAFFIC! I WAS VERY LUCKY THAT I WAS TRAVELING AT LOW SPEED IN AN AREA WHERE I COULD SAFELY PULL OVER. IMAGINE IF I WAS CRUISING ON THE HIGHWAY AT SPEED AND THEN DOWNSHIFTING FOR SAY AN EXIT, SUDDENLY FINDING THE SHIFTER GO COMPLETELY LOOSE, CAUSING ME TO BE STUCK IN SAY 6TH GEAR. THE INITIAL SHOCK AND NOT HAVING TIME TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IS GOING ON COULD HAVE CAUSED ME TO GET REAR ENDED AT SPEED. I CONTACTED MY LOCAL PORSCHE DEALER TO SEE IF ANY RECALLS OR NOTICES WERE OUT FOR THIS ISSUE AND THEY CONFIRMED NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE BY PORSCHE. ATTACHED ARE PICTURES OF THE TWO CABLES REMOVED FROM MY CAR. ONE IS STILL IN TACT WHILE THE OTHER BROKEN ONE CLEARLY SHOWS THE BROKEN/SHEARED OFF CABLE END THAT ATTACHES TO THE TRANSMISSION.

NHTSA ID 11152629 · filed Nov 19, 2018

Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

Elsewhere on this vehicle

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .