2013 Porsche Cayenne

I am not an expert, but based on everything I've read, this sounds like the Transfer Case failure that the 2012-and newer Cayennes have been suffering. Was the mechanic you mentioned a Porsche dealer? (I am assuming it was not, based on your answer.) You may be in luck in that, as I understand it, Porsche has owned up to this problem and is fixing this even after the warranty expires, but the stories I've read varied on that part. You really need to have a Porsche dealer look at this and see what kind of relief you can get. I recently bought a 2016 Base V6, and as I was shopping I only looked at Cayennes where the Transfer Case had been replaced already. When I looked at the prior dealer service records my selling dealer provided me, I saw the prior owner reporting a very similar situation to yours and it was fixed at no cost. (Albeit it was also under warranty...) I hope this helps. Get this to a Porsche dealer shop and have them diagnose this before you drop that kind of money.

Also, if it will help, I found this forum to be invaluable as I was doing my purchase search: https://rennlist.com/forums/cayenne-958-2011-2018-242/

Soooo, transfer case turned out to be a good place to look. Waiting to see how this pans out but here is where we are at. The following events have taken place over the last few weeks. I went to a second mechanic for another opinion and so far, pretty happy about that. The second mechanic was very confident that the issue was not the transmission. This mechanic indicated that they called around to another colleague about Cayennes with manual transmissions since I was only the second customer to visit his garage with one and this is a shop that has MANY Porsches from many different decades pass through. The mechanic noted an issue and abnormal wear with the thrust bearing and Dual Mass Flywheel that they did not like. It was concluded that this could have attributed to the source of heat and the reason behind the black transmission fluid. So, after mulling it over I agreed to replacing those items along with the clutch since the clutch had 70K miles on it. It took a little time to get the DMF from Germany but it arrived actually ahead of schedule. After getting everything back together, the vehicle was still not right. It even felt worse than before. I took it for a drive around the hills and busy streets and the car did not even need to warm up for the hesitation and clunk. So at that point, kwadublin, I saw your response and started researching what you had posted about the transfer case issues and what that entailed. I copied down the information and forwarded it to the mechanic to read as well. We decided to go ahead and replace the transfer case fluid first to see if that would take care of the issues. I guess that this particular type of fluid is not on hand a lot so, the garage ordered it and I took the car back to have the fluid replaced. After the fluid change was completed the mechanic and I went for a test drive together, he drove. We both agreed that the ride was not smooth, we could feel the hesitation, and the clunk was intermittant. So, after more hemming and hawing and the mechanic keeping me calm I agreed to take some time again to drive and feel the car to determine if the transfer case would be next. Some time and miles is what the car needed. l am a bit reluctant to believe that the transfer case fluid was the cause of the hesitation and clunk. But the hesitation has decreased significantly over the last few days and the clunk, I am not hearing it. I am purposefully driving in a manner to make sure I have the car warmed up and following the RPMs as I accelerate between 2k and 3k in 2nd gear and it is smooth. I'm slowing down in the same manner as before intently, engaging the clutch and stopping to listen for the clunk and not hearing it. So the transfer case is definitely an item that needs checked with these vehicles. Thank you again kwadublin! WatchOutForThatTree

Thanks, WatchOutForThatTree, for your response! I am glad I could be of help. You should definitely spend some time on the Cayenne forum I mentioned above as it has a wealth of great info. I am glad things are working better for you! These are awesome vehicles and I am glad you are able to enjoy it more now. All the best, Keith

The car is running smooth. I've given it some more time and a few hundred miles and I'm not noticing any of the hesitation or clunking. I'm stunned that the fluid was the solution in this case. Fingers remained crossed and I'm hopeful. K, I have not contacted the dealer yet, but it is on my to do list. I'm really curious HOW the fluid makes the difference in this scenario. I feel the results but the logic behind it, I'd like to understand it better. Thanks again!

That's great to hear! Like you, I don't fully understand how changing the fluid makes such a big difference, but it seems to based on the messages I've read in the Rennlist forum I posted earlier. If you haven't, spend some time reading the threads. There's a ton of useful info. In the meantime, I am glad to hear you're getting the enjoyment you've wanted from your Cayenne!