Hank

I've been considering Mijostyn's option for a few months but have had this concern: is there any chance of ending up with a whole set of electical glitches in other electronically controlled functions? These cars are electronically pretty complex and I worry that making a big, non-Porsche, change in electronic components is going to lead to a thousand niggling errors and malfunctions, any one of which will cause the dealer to kick me to the curb for modifying the car.

IMHO, it is really worth it. I have heard that installation and set-up are everything with this and mine was perfectly installed by the dealer. It made a huge improvement in the feel of the car. The shifting now seems in complete harmony with the rest of the driving experience whereas it seemed "slower" and sloppier than the rest of the car with the standard shifter.

Who did you use as an installer? We live in the same vicinity.

My wife has grown sufficiently cranky with the (admittedly) clunky AV/Nav system in my 2007 Carrera S that she has suggested getting me a Garmin plug-in GPS for Christmas. Which strikes me as another clunky solution. There seem to be a number of really good state-of-the-art aftermarket systems out there that do all that we would want a modern AV system to do (sat radio, traffic, etc . . ) without add-ons and such (I added the Cayenne sat radio some years ago and it is okay, but marignal compared to real sat systems) and that can be integrated into the car pretty cleanly. Aside from the obvious of keeping a Porsche all Porsche, has anyone done this? How has it worked out? Are there any special issues with the Bose system?

Thanks.

I put the Cayenne sat unit in my car, which is similarly equipped. I loved it at first, but my wife just bought a car which has a designed-for-it sat radio and I have to say that the Cayenne set up is pretty marginal -- and expensive. Between that and the clunky nav system and the lack of a good iPod option, I keep thinking that those brave souls who dumped the whole thing and went to an after-market system were right -- if awfully courageous -- given how much can go expensively wrong with the electronic guts of these otherwise wonderful machines.

I had the sport shifter installed (by the dealer -- wanted it done right) a couple of months after I bought my 2007 "S". It seems that it does make the shift feel a little "notchier," especially when cold, and the dealer warned that it is possible to shift so quickly that you can "beat" the syncros if you're not careful. But it is so much better overall and more fun that I could never go back.

You mentioned that you haven't had a stick shift car in a while; memory may be part of the problem. I don't think that anyone will ever get a modern car with a remote transmission and cables to shift like a 60's muscle car with an aftermarket Hurst shifter attached to the transmission case. But the rest of the car is sooooo much better that you really can't complain. These cars are great and we are all very lucky. Enjoy.

What's up with the kiddie porn? This is unacceptable. :angry:

Where do people in the LA area (especially close to Pasadena) buy tires? I'm getting to the point of needing them and recognize that it is not a matter of just going down to Pep Boys. Having said that, I would really like to avoid getting them from the dealer; I see enough pirates in everyday life. Arrg.

Thanks.

Thanks, Loren. I was afraid of that.

Hank

Not really.

Reprogramming a key requires:

All keys (so you don't program over an active one)

Your car because the code(s) get put in the immobilizer control module

Your car's specific IPAS security codes from Porsche AG.

and, if you get a new key the, the new key and 24 digit code exclusive to that key.

I think Porsche wants to help you keep your car from being stolen.

I have never heard of a key being affected by another device but I am sure it is possible of the RF or magnetic field is strong enough.

Unfortunately sometimes keys go bad or need to be re-programmed for unknown reasons.

I just learned from my service representative that I have to leave my car (C2S - 2007) for two hours to have the keys reprogrammed. Why? Because I left one in the same suitcoat pocket as the security pass for the building in which I work. He also told me that Porsche is aware of the problem and has fixed it for newer cars. Is this legit? Is there any way to do it myself?

Thanks. Hank

Peter,

I think you have your answer from 2008 Carrera; the 997 is tighter than the Vettes. It definitely is a personal preference; I've not known many people to go from a Vette to Pcar then back to a Vette :drive:

Now the GT3 is the purest track car IMO, much of the power is at the top end.

I would test drive both the new Vette & the 997s.

As a race car, the Z06 is undoubtedly faster than a Carrera S. As a street car, the Carrera S is undoubtedly a better ride. It is tighter, lighter and just more fun. The Porsche shifts better and is more accurate going into corners. The brakes feel better. A Camaro with a big block and nitrous will crush a Z06 off the line; does that make it more fun to drive on vacation. This fun debate has been going on for forty years. The cars are much much faster, but the answer is still the same: I drove a Corvette until I could afford a Porsche! I wouldn't give up my Carrera S for a 1000 horsepower Corvette.

Peter,

I think you have your answer from 2008 Carrera; the 997 is tighter than the Vettes. It definitely is a personal preference; I've not known many people to go from a Vette to Pcar then back to a Vette :drive:

Now the GT3 is the purest track car IMO, much of the power is at the top end.

I would test drive both the new Vette & the 997s.

Has anyone been able to get one of these? Both dealers I called said that they were "terminally back ordered" and that they hadn't been able to get one in months. One said that they had NEVER gotten one.

In essence, it's an FM modulator w/ antenna pass through. Once you have the storage compartment adaptor all wired up and fixed down to the console, the main harness routes along the underside of the console to the PCM where it would connect to the contol unit that's in the kit, itself afixed in any space below the PCM. Now, wire in the control unit in-between the main antenna and the PCM. You get an extra antenna/coaxial cable to hook the control unit up to the PCM antenna socket.

Then, just supply power via the harness and you should be up and running.

Pop

Does this hook-up really work? I had never seen it before and it seems like a viable, if less high-tech, option to Nav-Tv and Dension which would not require tearing the electronics apart.

Should do, it's a Porsche approved solution afterall and available as part of the Tequipement range.

Less high-tech is exactly what it is. The sound quality will not be up there with the Dension/Mobridge/NavTV solutions because of the limitations of FM. It will also neccessitate music control via the MP3 player itself.

If you approach the official unit as a compromise, its a good piece of kit. As an audiophile-level component, it's below par. However, the trick is to get it at a reasonable price as spending only a few more of your hard-earned and the alternative solutions would come across better.

Pop

In essence, it's an FM modulator w/ antenna pass through. Once you have the storage compartment adaptor all wired up and fixed down to the console, the main harness routes along the underside of the console to the PCM where it would connect to the contol unit that's in the kit, itself afixed in any space below the PCM. Now, wire in the control unit in-between the main antenna and the PCM. You get an extra antenna/coaxial cable to hook the control unit up to the PCM antenna socket.

Then, just supply power via the harness and you should be up and running.

Pop

Does this hook-up really work? I had never seen it before and it seems like a viable, if less high-tech, option to Nav-Tv and Dension which would not require tearing the electronics apart.

I agree with the "demo" comment. The first dealer I visited gave me a demo in a C2S with 34 miles on the odometer. The car was cold when we went out and the sales guy was reving the thing to 7000+ rpm in the first half block. This experience was not unique and when I finally ordered mine I insisted on a clause in the sales contract that the car NOT be be used for test drives and not even be displayed prior to delivery. I carefully checked the as-delivered mileage against the mileage when the car was dropped off at the dealer before giving them the final check.

I heard a lot of conflicting stuff about this when I got my new C2S -- stories like the break-in period is more for the driver than the car because of the traditionally "unique" handling characteristics of Porsches (and the company's concern about lawsuits) and that mechanically you can drive them like you stole them from the minute you take delivery. Then I remembered an article in Road and Track where they attributed an incredibly strong performing S to a "proper break-in." There are also a couple of threads here where owners described reduced oil consumption and better performance after a thorough break-in. So, I decided to suck it up, live with the "wimp" taunts, and follow the recommendation of 4000 RPM for the first 2000 miles. I don't know whether it had any effect, but my car uses virtually no oil and is really really strong; it is much faster than my Corvette was and my friend doesn't think that his Weber-carbed 289 Cobra can stay with it, although we haven't (and won't) put that to the test. Anecdotes are not evidence of anything, but doing it by the book can't hurt.

Enjoy.

I have to say that I was VERY leery about taking my car to Al N Eds. I think that the "jewel" comment pretty well says it all. My first choice would have been a dealer and my second would have been a high-end installer. Having said that, the service manager at my dealer was actually pretty cool about researching this (he was adament that they wouldn't do it), talked to the manager of the store at the LA car show and carefully limited his recommendation to this particular franschise (Wilshire Blvd; it has an LA address but they call it "Santa Monica," to distinguish it from the other LA stores, I guess) because they had done it before successfully. I talked to them and thoroughly understood what the install was going to entail. I was thrilled when they recommended the installation of a second antenna because I was nervous about the idea of messing around with the navigation system.

The whole install was done under the cowl, is neat and rattle-free and was integrated into the stock audio system perfectly. As I said in my last post, the sound quality is great and the reception is as good as or better than any other sat sytem I've had and parts of LA are lousy for sat radio. I ended up dealing with Robert. They got the parts (from Rusnak Thousand Oaks) and did the install in a couple of hours.

After messing around with this for what seemed like months, the service manager at the dealership I bought from (Rusnak Pasadena) told me that he had talked to the manager of the Al n' Eds in Santa Monica and that they had done the install a number of times (as well as other Porsche audio upgrades) and had been successful. He was careful to limit his recommendation to this particular shop. I checked them out and had them do the install. It took them a few days to get the Cayenne parts (which were a little more expensive than had been discussed in this forum) but they did a very clean install which works great. They said that they had had better luck with the stock XM antenna and, with my permission, used that instead of the Cayenne antenna. They also did a very conservative install and did not mess with the antenna for the nav system (there are now two living under the cowl), which relieved me greatly. They charged $200 plus the cost of the parts, but I think that they are concluding that they undercharged.

I have had XM radio in a couple of cars and this install works the best of any of them. The reception is clear and of high quality. The area of LA in which I usually travel can be pretty bad for satellite's line-of-sight requirements, but this particular install really minimizes this. In many ways, it has better reception than the FM radio.

There may be reasons for using a dealer, but my install was great.

Well, I pick up my car on Monday. I referred the service manager of my dealership to this and a companion thread, but I sense that I am not making much progress. The Cayenne install seems much cleaner than any other way, particularly since Porsche has apparently entered into a deal with XM to expand the "factory" availability of satellite radio. First, does anyone know of an LA dealer who is doing this install? Second, this is my first Porche and have little idea of the comapny's history with upgrades; might there be any advantage to using a "band-aid" solution for now and waiting for the "official" kit. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance. Hank

The sales guy who has been helping me with my C2S just called with good and bad news. The good news is that my car will be here in three weeks. The bad is that they absolutely will not do the XM/Cayenne/satellite install. Does anyone know of a dealer in LA (the closer to the valley the better!) who will?

Thanks

After 40 years of lust, I have finally ordered a C2S six speed. The dealer called me today and said that the sport shifter is no longer available. Has this become a dealer installed part? It made such a difference in the cars I test drove that it seems inconceivable that they would just discontinue it.

Thanks