Porsche Recalls Over 30% of Beloved Model

Luxury carmaker issues a recall for its highly regarded Carrera GT supercar due to a problem with suspension components.

There weren't many Porsche Carrera GT's on the road and now there are even fewer of them after the German automaker issued a recall for the much-loved supercar.

Porsche, a Volkswagen  (VLKAF)  subsidiary, is recalling 489 of the vehicles, according to an April 5 filing with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, due to a problem with suspension components.

While this may not sound like a big number, it's a little more impressive when you realize that only about 1,300 Carrera GTs were ever produced.

The recall affects cars from the 2004 and 2005 model years.

Porsche, which described the Carrera GT as "a car that pushed technological boundaries beyond any supercar of that time," said it was recalling the vehicle "out of an abundance of caution."

The Carrera GT goes from 0-60 MPH in 3.9 seconds, which was breathtaking 20 years ago when it came on the market.

NHTSA said that the spherical joints that connect the wishbone suspension components on the front and rear axles can fail due to damage from mechanical stress and corrosion.

The agency warned that in the event "of a wishbone or spherical joint breakage the vehicle controllability could be affected, which could increase a risk of a crash."

Porsche said the problem first cropped up in August 2019, when an owner brought a Carrera GT in for an unrelated service. The owner did not experience anything unusual while driving the car.

Porsche inspected 20 other cars over the next year and did not find any issue, noting in the filing that "markets with high use of road salt showed signs of increased normal surface corrosion, but all other analyses showed unremarkable results."

Since parts are not available, the recall will be conducted in two phases. Porsche wants to inspect all the affected vehicles and if the problem is not found, then the car will be cleared for unrestricted use.

Consumers will be notified again when the remedy parts are available for retrofit. 

If the problem is discovered during the inspection, Porsche will advise customers not to use the vehicle until the retrofit is completed and will offer alternative transportation upon request.