JFP in PA

Asking what a cat life span should be is like asking "how high is up".  Multiple factors come into play, type of fuel use, quality of fuel used, how the car is driven, oil consumption levels. etc., etc.  The factory cats were warrantied (thanks to the EPA) for eight years or eighty thousand miles. 

Only problems we have seen in aftermarket cats are performance consistency and build quality, so if you want a long-life unit, go factory.

1 hour ago, yojay3 said:

My 2001 Porsch Boxster s water temperature gauge is buried to the left side of the gauge around the 100. During this time my light is flashing. Temp gauge never comes up to the 180 and light doesn't stop. What part can make this happen on the gauge. I just replaced a broken heater valve so it not overheating. Any help on how to fix this problem, please let me know. Thank you Jay

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Welcome to RennTech 

 

Four functions of the coolant warning light:

1. Engine coolant level too low
— light flashes slowly (0.5 Hz)
2. Engine compartment temperature too high
— light flashes slowly (0.5 Hz) (engine compartment blower might be faulty)
3. Engine coolant temperature too high
— light is lit; pointer on the right
4. Temperature sensor at water outlet faulty
— light flashes rapidly (1 Hz); pointer on the right

Note
The temperature warning in point three is indicated if the conditions "engine coolant temperature too high" and "engine coolant level too low" are present simultaneously
(1Hz = 1 flash per second. 0.5Hz = 2 seconds per flash)

Let's start with the most obvious first: P0420 (or 0430 for the other bank) is a three-way main cat efficiency failure, if the two O2 sensors on bank 1 are reading correctly electrically, the OBD II manual recommends clearing the code, road testing the car, and checking to see if the code is back.  If it is, the cat is on the way out.

POIS: This is Porsche Side Impact Protecting system, or side airbags. One of your codes indicates a lack of communication in the system, which could just be a control module reset or replacement, which is going to require a PIWIS system. It could also be a simple wiring issue.

PAS: Porsche Active Safe, or PAS, is an advanced driver safety system designed to limit forward collisions by using a powerful front-facing radar scanner to detect other vehicles. You would need a wiring diagram to determine what terminal 50 is, but 8004 is a PCM/Radio code - that says the CAN bus is not connected.

1 minute ago, Gary Sanders said:

Great to know, but can you confirm the drive cycle is correct?

No.

Welcome to RennTech 

If you are referring to the I/M Readiness test showing the cats are not ready, you may have a bigger issue.  The cats show ready when they meet certain electrical signal parameters coming from the O2 sensors:

If the cats do not meet this threshold, and the O2 sensors check out OK, one or both of the cats could be on the way out.

That may be the alarm system wire that attached to a special connection on the radio surround cage.

3 hours ago, Joe Forti said:

Hello All,

I have a 2001 Base 986 that has a cylinder with low compression (bad intake valve). I really dont feel like going thru the hassle of having the engine rebuilt, and since I am fairly mechanically inclined I was considering just swapping in a new engine. There is a local salvage yard with a 2.7L with 50k miles on it that is in good shape, but I figured if I was going thru the trouble of doing a swap, why not put a 3.2L from the S model in. 

Heres my question: if I get a 3.2L from a 2000-2002 S, is it a direct swap into the base model outside of reflashing the DME? I have been searching the forums and Pelican Parts DIY articles and could not come to a conclusive answer. I was planning on doing the clutch/IMS while I was at it. 

Thanks!

"The Boxster 2001 cars are by far the most flexible in which engine you can install in them. The 2001 cars still have the 7.2 DME installed, but most of the other systems of the car were upgraded in anticipation of moving towards the 2002 CAN bus system that integrates various electronic systems on the car. With the exception of the anti-lock braking system, the proper CAN bus systems are integrated into the 2001 chassis and allow the easy installation of the later 7.8 DME. As a result, you can install any 1997-08 Boxster or 996 Carrera motor into these cars without too much difficulty. You can swap in any replacement engine of the same displacement from 2000-02 without having to remap the DME. (for example, a 2001 3.2L Boxster with a blown motor can accept a 2002 3.2L engine with no remapping needed).
 

These cars ran the Bosch Motronic 7.2 system, which uses an electronic throttle body, linked to an electronic gas pedal (also known as drive-by-wire). When installing an engine into one of these cars, you need to use an electronic throttle body and corresponding crossover tube that matches that engine. (I.E. use the electronic throttle body from a 2000 or later 996 Carrera when installing a 3.4 engine)."

I wouldn't discount fuel pressure/delivery rate until you have tested it.  You can also run the car with a laptop in it using the Durametric software and have it record engine parameters to see what suddenly changes, but that will not help you with the fuel system, for that you need a test gauge as the DME does not record fuel pressure or delivery rates.

Try 999-166-075-02 😉  It is called a "Hinge Plate Lock Nut - Porsche" in Porsche parts speak.............

Welcome to RennTech 

You are witnessing the limitations of using a global OBD II tool instead of a Porsche specific tool. I suspect that there are either pending or active codes you are not seeing.  The P1130 code is good example; that is the code for an overly lean condition on bank two, possible due to an air leak in the intake system, low fuel pressure or delivery rates, or a fouled injector; any of which would prevent the car from reaching IM Readiness. 

Your coolant system should always be able to hold 24-26 inches of vacuum for 15 min. after the evacuation system is shut down; the leak you saw the last time could have been this part.

The system will not function unless the handbrake light is on, you need to find out why that is not happening.

Engine off: 3.8 +/- 0.2 bar (55 PSIG) 

Engine idle: 3.3 +/- 0.2 bar (48 PSIG)

Fuel delivery rate: 850 ml in 30 seconds

Having a bit of a hard time trying to decern which component is in your photo, and you supply more useful photos or description?

This is a poster child for how not to store one of these vehicles.

Gas that old is more varnish that fuel, and I would suspect is part of your problems, along with the fuel pump.  You need to test the system's fuel pressure and delivery rates for a start.

1 hour ago, jim_hoyland said:

Thank you, good diagram. Just watch several videos on pad and rotor replacement.

Are the caliper bolts 55mm torx ? 

 Maybe..................the factory bolts were 10MM hex drive, but the factory replacement bolts are T55 torx; torque spec for both is 85 Nm/ 63 ft-lb.  You should not reuse the bolts in any case.

It still looks like it is struggling with an overly rich mixture.

8 minutes ago, jim_hoyland said:

Great feedback. Interesting point about your own testing of new brake fluid.

I’ll stop by Autozone and see what the say.

When you buy brake fluid, you typically have no idea how old it is, or how it has been stored.  A properly sealed container should be a zero for fairly extended period, but because Dot 4 is so hydroscopic, and some containers, particularly plastic ones, are moisture permeable and can suck up moisture sitting on the shelf.  That is exactly why we test them.

If you look at your picture carefully, you will notice that the "crust" deposits look like they start higher up and run down to the bottom, which is normally the way leaks work, so your leak may be further up and running down to that point, where it dries out and crusts.  I would clean off the area and regularly check to see if you can spot the leak source.  I would also consider adding a bit of Uview's coolant dye, which allows you to use a "black light" source to pinpoint the exact source of the leak, as even if it dries out, it leaves a trail back to the source:

1 hour ago, Silver_TT said:

I have no experience with the electronic brake fluid tester in your picture, only the OTC pen tester, so I cannot opine except the following.  The fact that it's saying 1.5% moisture content for brand new fluid -- it either isn't very accurate (most likely) or the new fluid you bought is contaminated with moisture.  I see they have different colors in your measuring strips but I don't know what % that translates to.  New fluid should not have high moisture content, this is the whole point of replacing the fluid to get the moisture content down.

Silver_TT has a valid point, a fresh container of Dot 4 fluid should read zero moisture, not 1.5%.  We tried the test strips once, found them to be very misleading and very often inaccurate.  One of the main advantages of the digital tester, besides dead on accuracy, is that you can test the fluid while it is still in your car.  While that sounds more convenient than useful, using the digital tester on customer cars, we have found that for some owners, we don't need to change the fluid as often, sometimes 4-5 years between flushes, and without any concern.  That alone can be a substantial cost savings to the owner.  And we also test every container of Dot 4 fluid when we open them, if any are above zero, they get sent back and replaced with fresh containers that test properly.

So if you haven't done so, do not use your new fluid, that moisture level is already nearly out of spec; and if you have used it, get some fresh Dot 4, test it, and then reflush the vehicle.

1 hour ago, jim_hoyland said:

Today I had the brake fluid flushed and new DOT4 added.

I had the shop save me a 1/2 pint sample of both the old fluid and the new fluid.

I am in the process of testing both samples; will post pics and data…

For future reference, OTC makes a digital electronic brake fluid moisture test tool that costs about $20 and is as accurate as a $800 lab testing tool, and can actually test the fluid while it is still in the system master cylinder 😉

Welcome to RennTech 

There are 2 relays for each fan, high and low speed. All 4 of them are identical so you can start swapping to see if that is the problem.  There is also a ballast resistor for each fan. If that goes bad, then the one fan on that resistor will not work.

27 minutes ago, jcphx1 said:

Thanks for the replies.  Put the charger on yesterday around 1pm.  While desulphating it got to 155 deg f and basically took all day to get to 80%.  Seemed to get slightly less warm as the day went on.  This morning fully charged green light was on and the temperature was normal.  All lights were normal during the entire process but makes me nervous to leave the car plugged in when no one is home.

Fear not, I have multiple Ctek units that have been plugged in for years..................

Most quality maintainers run warm to sometimes hot, particularly when they are running a lot of current in the "bulk mode" to bring the battery up to snuff.  What do the indicator lights show?