GOB

I had an issue with the window not properly going up and down and the result was the door lock mechanism. Lesson learned: make SURE to plug in ALL THE WAY the plugs to it, otherwise, you will still have the same behavior!

Loren: I did, but that is for a pre 2002 transmission and mine is a 2002 C4S, hence the temperature probe he used will not necessarily work, hence my concern about how to properly measure the ATF level at the right ATF temperature. I just got the written quote and the high cost is due to the ATF ($41/quart :eek: :eek: :cursing: ). Other local prices: filter $98, bolt $7, washer $5, seal $37. They wont sell me the hose as it is considered a tool and they don't sell tools :censored: . Their new quote is now $515 in parts alone (vs $250 in USA, including the hose).

I am going to talk to the indy and ask him to rent me a lift and tools so I can do this job myself with his supervision and then pay the dealer to have the fluid level checked to make sure it is at the right level at the right temperature. Over $1,100 for a ATF change is just vulgarly ridiculous :censored: :soapbox: :cursing: . I don't make $700 a day, so spending a day on this and doing it myself, ensuring that it is done properly is worth the at least $700 I will save from doing it myself.

For future reference: the local stealer wants $905 to change the ATF oil and filter! $350 in parts and $555 in labor! That is just plain NUTS! Could someone please confirm that in fact the ONLY way to do this procedure is at the dealership? Reading the posts found on this site, it seems that some do it at home/indy, but others say no due to the hose and temperature measurements.

Local indy tells me that he can check the level for me and connect his OBD reader to see if any fault codes show up, but that to replace the oil and filter, to do so at the dealer. I just find it completely ridiculous that they want to charge this much for an oil change.

Looks like for my odd tiptronic behavior posted elsewhere, my only option is to take it to the dealer since my car (2002 C4S) requires the the special hose to refill the transmission fluid and the PIWIS to properly read the oil temperature to make sure it is measured properly, correct? Local indy told me that he has neither of these specialized tools (fill hose or PIWIS). I don't want to risk anything... All this said and done, when I called the dealer, the head mechanic had no idea about any special filling hose! Better print this out and take it to them. Just wanted to confirm that post #20 by Loren (end of page 1) is the correct procedure/diagram for my car: Euro spec 2002 Carrera 4S.

Gracias Loren! May take the weekend to disconnect the battery, have a go at it, and if not, then give it to the indy! Many thanks!

Anyone has instructions on how to remove all the trim around the B pillar? I had a nasty scare yesterday and immediately thought about how my seatbelts are improperly installed due to the twist on them. That said, the twist cannot be resolved by undoing the bottom bolt, so I have to remove the entire B pillar trim to flip around the mechanism so the belts will work properly with no twists. Dealer confirmed that no work has been done on my car regarding belts, and they also confirmed that they want nearly $500 to place them properly. The same situation (flipped around) applies for both front belts. Cheap as far as "life insurance" goes, but seriously?

MM as in Motor Meister?! RUN!

Try LN instead...

This morning I took a turn a bit too fast and almost lost control of the vehicle. PSM worked overtime to save my butt by helping me correct the oversteer and slow the car down (Carrera 4S). I know I should be more careful, and this is definitely a learning lesson regarding the limits of adhesion on the car.

After I got the car pointed straight, I gently got back on the gas pedal, but the transmission behaved as if it was in neutral (gear selector and dash light indicated "D". Three more blips of the accelerator and still no go. I decided to coast to a stop (about 100 feet), put it in neutral (with foot on the brake), waited two seconds, put the car back in "D" and then it behaved normally (starting in 2nd gear, no flashing lights, no slipping). Drove the car for a while and everything was back to normal.

A few hours later, I was testing out the brakes and wouldn't you know it, after a hard stop, again the same problem.

Called the mechanic, he says it may be a valve of some sorts or low/old transmission fluid. He is booked solid until the end of next week, but I am curious as to this odd behavior. I have done many hard stops before and never had any tranny issue.

Glad I asked first :eek: :eek: :eek:

So, can I get confirmation on the proper "routing" of the belts? I'm assuming it is exactly as pictured above, correct? Buckle end points to the seat in its "rest" position and no twists in the belt at all. Correcct?

Every time I get into my car, I end up with a twist on the seatbelt. Could someone confirm that the correct way that the seatbelt should be routed is as pictured below (with a continuous flow from the trim to the bottom and the buckle pointing towards the seat, not the trim). If that is the case, then I will need to undo the bottom bolt, twist it around, re tighten. If I need to do this, any special precaution (battery disconnect?) that I need to take into account?

Thanks for your replies!

Have you tried turning the AC off? Perhaps it has to do with the serpentine belt and the load on it? RPMs change a bit when in gear or neutral, same applies in the case of the AC, so I guess it's worth a try...

Take your time in taking air out of the system if you are not using a vacuum pump. A trick is to park the car on an incline, front end towards the bottom, and open the expansion tank for a while so all air bubbles come out.

If it is a C4, due to the configuration of the gas tank, to reset the fuel gauge, make sure it is 100% full, unplug the battery for 5 minutes, re connect and your gauge should read full. To properly calibrate it, you would need to go to the dealer or someone with a PIWIS to set the gauge at the correct level using a specified amount of fuel in the tank.

Regarding the non start, I will leave that to the experts here...

Really curious on this one as even the ex head mechanic of the local dealer refuses to crack open these motors. Apparently parts and tools are hard to come by.

Just for future reference sake, the dealer confirmed that in fact it is the latch micro switch that is giving problems, but that micro switch cannot be replaced by itself. The micro switch is part of the entire latch mechanism. Current price for the latch is $180-$185. Labor quoted is $200.

Thanks fellas. Well, based on the airbag comment and the confirmation that the latch itself is in fact a problematic area, I am going to let someone else take care of this (dealer or indie who used to be the head tech at the dealer). Although I understand mechanics and like to learn about them, for some reason or another, I am quite "clumsy" when it comes to repairs (big hands, brute force) and usually end up breaking more things than those that needed to be fixed :eek:

Thanks Kim. I didn't have the time to reset the window limits as suggested above, but from your post, it seems as if the door latch relay is the one that is acting up, thus my dealer telling me I did have to in fact buy the entire latch mechanism.

When I pull on the inside or outside handle, the window does in fact drop the 10mm it is supposed to do, but the door latch doesn't release. As soon as I let go of either handle, the window raises as it normally does. Seem as if my problem is focused on the door latch relay/mechanism. The oddball thing of it is that as soon as I press the door slightly into the chassis (as if I wanted to make really sure that the door is shut) the door latch works as designed (window lowers and door latch releases the striker).

Will now search on how to replace the door latch :huh:

Hello all! Happy to report that I just turned the car on (twice) after a ±5 hour rest and neither time did any smoke come out! I believe that the little smoke I saw earlier today was due to the "Italian Tune Up" I had done and nothing more. I also took a couple of pics of the reservoir tank and it looks identical to the way it left the dealership three days ago. See for yourself:

Well, my joy didn't last too long... Today I took the car for a very spirited drive (80-120mph, maybe 10 times revving all the way until it automatically shifted, ±30 minutes) and then I drove for about 10 minutes at a very conservative 40-50mph to "cool things off". Parked it for about 6 hours. Just went to run an errand and when I started the car up, smoke out of the right muffler. Because my car is parked in a dark spot I could not tell if the color was white or blueish. It was not much, but there was definitely smoke upon startup.Going to wait for the car to cool off completely so I can open up the expansion tank. IF I have intermix, would the color of the coolant change immediately or does it take days for it to turn from pink to brown? Perhaps this is the normal smoke after spirited drive? What concerns me is that it only comes from one side (right).

Thanks JFP, will give it a try, but the problem is not related to the windows going up or down, it has to do with the locking mechanism not releasing the door striker. In any case, will do this later tonight and see if it solves the problem.

I did read the tutorial on this, but I am a bit confused as to which microswitch applies to my case:

c] One switch senses if the door is open or closed."

By the way, this only started happening as soon as I got my car back from the dealer when they did a coolant flush. I know they disconnected the battery as the odometer was reset. I stopped by there today and all they could say is "see you in 2 weeks for your appointment and more than likely it is the entire door mechanism that we need to replace"

I had a similar issue with my Cayenne Turbo and the magnets. Dealer had no idea about it and it was not until I found this advice on this forum that they were able to fix it. Magnets got dislodged.

Just an update: picked the car up and the expansion tank is now full of pink Porsche coolant/water (50/50 mix). They kept the car for a few days and confirmed that it does not smoke upon startup and readily admit it is most likely due to their mistake in overfilling. They claim to have taken all of the air out of the system and confirmed that in fact it will hold a vacuum and no leak. Their only observation is that they found it odd that it seemed as if no coolant was in the old water as it just seemed like plain water with no coolant mixed in. Only time will tell if there is intermix or not. I am not complaining of the fact that it looks fine now and that the car no longer smokes upon startup.

Thank you all for your advice and here is to keeping fingers crossed!

LN Engineering oil drain plug installed (shop manager though it was very cool).

Saw a video (10 seconds) when the mechanic drained he coolant from the car. It was like a huge waterfall! Here I was thinking it was going to be drained out via some sort of vacuum system... According to them, it was mostly water and no oil residue anywhere.

Went by the dealer this afternoon and I saw the huge jug of pink coolant sitting next to the car. They were pumping air into the system to test for pressure. I got a call later and was told that there were no leaks in the system (hence no intermix?). They were about to fill the car with fresh coolant. Couple of hours later, I am told the car will not be ready as apparently the cooling system is full of air and tons of air bubbles on the expansion tank. Supposedly these cars are notorious for this? (air in the lines after a flush?). I'm not 100% sure as to what is going on, as I thought this was all done via a closed pressurized system...

Oh well, I leave on vacation tomorrow morning and will have final report on Monday when I come back, but as it stands now, it appears that all I had was dirty water in my expansion tank and no proof of intermix. That is a VERY good thing as far as I am concerned!

Dropped the car off at 730am today, but at 2pm the service manager said he had not taken a look at it and will do so tomorrow. Fast forward to 4pm and the car is on a lift and the coolant has been drained from the engine and now waiting to get drained from the front (this is what the mechanic told me, I thought it was all just one system...). Handed them my LN Engineering oil drain plug to replace the OEM one when they go and adjust (for the second time!) the oil level. More updates as they become available to me.