tweety

Go online and locate a Targa. There are a few older ones like in the 2002-2003 range that are out there. Not a coupe, not a convertible either. Best of both worlds. There is actually one I saw that had an extended warranty on it.

Thanks for the tips. bob.

So a few months ago I installed an aftermarket stereo and amp. Recently I decided to put the stock parts back in and move the new goods to another car. The problem is that I didn't think that I would need the stock parts like the amp and tossed it out. So now I am short the amp. Anyone have one that I can have? Or buy? The car came with the Bose High End system with sub, if that makes a difference. Never before have I regretted tossing out what I first thought was useless parts. ****. b.

Cool that it's all fixed. Before I got down to reading the solution, I was thinking that it was the steering. The second post of yours sounded exactly like when I had a steering box go out on a jeep I owned. My question to you now is, how did it get so bad so fast without you knowing it or seeing wear on the tires?

I did a search and read just about every thread that I could find on the subject. I even read through a few garage door mods to see if the illumination wire can be used for what I need but it can't. I don't think so anyway. Correct me if I am wrong and explain it to me. I have installed my AVIC-Z2 unit and have only one wire left now to install, the illumination wire. But where to tie it in to?! It's only one wire so how can it function within our cars? There have been threads talking about aftermarket units and this wire but nothing final is ever disclosed. I have read over the posts online that show the schematics but I don't see anything that is clearly an illumination described wire. My car is a 2003 model targa.

From what I have read on the boards, a battery in these cars won't give you much more than 3 years of service before going dead.

Okay so now what did I do wrong? These last 2 weekends I have been busying working on my stereo replacment in my 03 targa. I pulled the OEM stereo including stock amp. I placed the new head unit today and have all but a grounding wire for the parking brake hooked up. Nothing was cut or removed other than the head unit and amp. Why are my interior lights staying on??? I turned the car over to run the motor since I wasn't ready to drive off yet and while sitting there I noticed that the interior lights still won't go off even with the car running. What gives?!!!

In the event that you didn't get my PM reply, thanks for the push. Now what about this mystical ILL wire? I have found something in the 986 forum that talks about an installation and the orange wire but I don't know if their harnesses are similar or the same as in the 996s. I also read something about this piece, Scosche VW10B but it doesn't show up on their site. There has to be an easier way to hook this thing up!

I've been reading more about the mic in this location not working well enough. My intent was for a clean look but maybe I can still place the mic somewhere like you mention here and have it look good somehow. It is very small so maybe it won't stick out that much.

I have pulled down and attempted to print out the 2 stereo layouts that have been put up by either Loren or Toolpants but neither seem to print out well enough for me to read the wire colors. I have finished routing all the required wires for this stereo install and have now come to the reality that I can't make out the IDs in the schematics. If I tell you what wires I have to work with in my OEM harness, can someone please tell me what their task is? I am going to match up and populate the mating adapter that I have to these wires and it's kind of important that they are correct. I have two plugs that went to my 2003 stereo. One head is black. The other is much smaller and is yellow. The previous owner had opted for the high end version of the Bose package if that matters. In the black head, I have the following: pink/blue blue/black yellow/black red/black white blank blank brown In the yellow head, I have the following: black blank blank green yellow red/white A local shop printed out the line codes for me but when I got home and looked at it closer, it was for alarm installation and not stereo usage. No use to me at all. Like I mentioned, I can't make out the line IDs when for the schematics posted on this site.

Problem solved. It turns out then when I released the one cam on the connector, I snapped off part of it. Then when I went to close it, there was nothing there to 'lock it' from flipping up. It didn't move much but obviously enough to darken the panel. Lucky for me I noticed that there are two mini holes on what look to be ears that I can run safety wire through and fix them tight. WHEW!

So as I was sitting here at work I was thinking more about what I had done and not done to the car to get me where the dash doesn't work. In the dash hood assembly there are only a few things to unplug. 1. audiopilot mic 2. main leads 3. hazard light Of these, the audiopilot is not connected and I think that I didn't place the hazard button back in yet. I did that to remind me that the pod isn't attached yet and that I need to put the screws in. Another question came to mind. Is the stereo system in the 2003 MY tied to the dash lights in any way at all? By this I mean, if the stereo is unplugged from the car, would the dash lights cease to function?

The cables on the back of the cluster as cam locked and they snapped into place. I'll go check the fuse that you mentioned. The one I looked at specifically was in the E column. I checked the fuses in the box that are specific to the cluster and they are bot good. Is there any logic that states that the cluster needs to be screwed down to complete a ground? Currently it's just sitting in position and isn't fastened down with the 2 screws.

So I went out and plugged the OEM stereo back in and still had nothing on the dash instruments. Curious question....does the instrument cluster HAVE TO BE screwed down to work? Right now it's only placed into position and the 2 screws are NOT in it. Could this be a grounding issue or are the gauges grounded independently?

I did a search and found many things about blown bulbs, trim rings, and swapping out the cluster but nothing towards what I am looking for. Over the weekend I pulled the stock stereo out to put in an aftermarket unit. I pulled all the parts out to move the a/c unit and to install the new toy. I also pulled the instrument cluster so that I can route the microphone in the location where the audiopilot was. Tonight I connected the cluster minus the audiopilot and placed it back on the dash. I didn't screw it down yet in the event that I didn't like where the mic was for reception. I haven't hooked up the new stereo yet as I am still routing wires and the stock stereo was on the work bench. I connected the battery back up so that I can move the seats and turn the motor over for a few minutes. When I turned the car over, I noticed that the dash lights were NOT working. Why? I hooked the stock stero back in line and there was still no action in the dash. What has changed? I didn't cut any wires as of yet and the only things at this time not connected are as follows: Driver seat motor wiper control on dash central locking button on dash defroster button on dash PSM button on dash audiopilot mic in cluster trunk light The A/C unit turns on and works and it is now in the lower position. My car is a 03 Targa. I have read numberous posts that talk about needing to keep the stock head unit inline and moving it to the trunk but these threads have always referred to the 997s and not the 996s. The other thing that happened this weekend was that I had closed the trunk with the battery undone. I had to connect a spare battery to the fuse box per the manual instructions in order to pop the trunk. Could this be something to be concerned with?

Got all that part done. Thanks. Now I have see about finding a dead mic face or attempt to cut off the one that I have just to dress up the hole correctly. ....now about getting the sub woofer cover off...! I have a post on this but no bites as of yet. The sub is on the floor facing the passenger but I can't get the cover off. Is it screwed in somewhere that I don't know about???

I did a search on this subject and cannot locate anything specific to my MY car. I have a 2003 Targa with the High End Bose system placing the sub at the feet of the passenger. What I am trying to locate is the information that will tell me how to remove the carpeted cover on the passenger side. It seems to be on there very well and won't budge with 2 hands pulling on it. This gets me thinking that it is on there in some way other than clips like the driver's side was. Enlighten me forum gurus! What am I missing here? I don't find any fasteners that need to be removed and I don't see anything looking at the inside that would suggest how it is connected. There is another carpeted 'wing' like on the driver's side that will need to be removed but this enclosure cover needs to come off first. But how??? The threads on subs that I found thus far talk about subs located in the cabs and making enclosures for aftermarkets but not one thread I found yet explains how to get the cover off for the High End version. There are also thread on console deletes but they don't discuss what I am looking for.

So then I can remove it now, right? With the new aftermarket unit, this won't have a job to do anymore. Thanks for the help.

...so tonight I started to take the car apart for the installation of the AVIC-Z2. In doing so I pulled the instrument cluster so that I could mount the microphone that comes with the kit. So any guesses as to what I found? Why would my car come with a microphone if the car was not ordered with the PCM and only came with the High End Bose system? The mic and wiring is already there so does this mean that if I locate the other end that there would be a chance that I can use it? What I expected to find was just the screen on the dash and nothing behind it. I also found another mystery termination that wasn't connected to anything in the center console laying on the airbag sensor. I don't have a picture of it yet since the camera batteries weren't charged. It's a flat 4 place end connector that isn't tied to anything but apparently someone has cut 2 of the 4 wires and spliced into them. I will do a follow up on that tomorrow when I can upload pics. The the mic thing....! Do all 996's come with mics even if the car isn't fully loaded? My car is a 2003 if that matters.

Putting the words 911 and drag strip in the same sentence just doesn't make sense to me. Sure the car in stock form is fast enough to hang with or beat most people but on a drag strip it won't do well enough to risk beating the car up over.

So it sounds like simple solution. Drive, wait and see.

...also, until this past week, the weather hasn't been really warm. Normally I would start the car and it would idle up for almost 2 minutes and then drop down to under a grand. It was almost like I wasn't to go anywhere until it was ready. Now since this has been going on, the car won't idle up but starts and stays under a grand. I have only had the car for 5 months now. Is it possible that they are a bit weather specific on start up? There is nothing else wrong in the motor by way of skipping or stuttering. It's just the sluggish start up.

So yesterday I get my 03 Targa back from a week of being offline. I had her sent away to a spa to have the curb rash on the rear wheels fixed, 4 new tires mounted, and the front nose taken off and repainted due to excessive stone chips and pitting. I get the car back and the rims look nice, the nose looks perfect showing me that the balance of the car needs a whooping at a detailer, and the interior got a bit dirty from the techs. This place is a mom/pop store that handles the overflow from the dealers and there are always brand new toys here being fixed that got damaged during shipping. The work was fine enough that I can see but I haven't had the time to go over it really slow. Last night and this morning I noticed that the car was acting a bit hard to start. The battery is less than 2 months old so I wonder if there is another issue somewhere. Would the air temp sensor in the front be tied to the computer and motor or is that specifically to tell the user what the outside temp is? I am wondering if this is the problem that perhaps they forgot to plug it together again!

Is there any specific reason given by WD as to why they wouldn't touch the S?

Personally I am branching out to connect into the local mom/pop market. These are people that play with the warranty and will let you ask questions. The dealer can take your question but rarely let you talk to the techs. Go here and pick your region and sign in to the club if you haven't already. You will get a local newsletter that will have local vendors that will be better than the dealer (in most cases). http://www.pca.org/regions/ My toy will be offline this week for nose work, wheel repair, and alignment all not done by the dealer. Will report back next week on my findings. Porsche West is really no different than the one on 59 but maybe a year newer. Same owners obviously.