ericinboca

More visual aids. These are installed on a 986S, but the arms are the same. The arrow shows were the shims are installed. And I placed a bunch of shims in the shot so you can see you have a lot of choices in shim width.

Eric, did you replace the cable just based on the feedback from the shop or did you see something physically wrong with it?

What shop did you use?

Thanks

I first checked the cables using a light - did it transmit the light. The cables transmitted light. I checked all the connections, power supply, etc.

I pulled the head unit and sent it to beckerautosound.com

They did a bench test and called me back to give me the results. I talked to the tech about the problem and he said he really believed it was the cable. So I tried, and it worked. I figured if the cable transmitted light, it worked, but maybe not. Bench test was $70. I forgot the cost of the cable (listed above) but I do remember my reaction - "holy sh*t"

In retrospect, I should have sent the CD changer off for bench test too, just to absolutely ensure it was a cable. But I got lucky.

When I took the coolant cap off today it had a good seal on it but I can't find where the overflow hose is.

and this may seem stupid but what do you mean by breather valve?

Some things are going to look different as my 04 986S is a race car and it has some different parts and some stuff is missing, but the basics are the same.

First image is of the right rear with the tire off. You can see the rubber hose circled in red. This is the overflow hose. I had a coolant dump one time and it got everything wet as you described.

Second image is of the breather valve circled in red. With the little wire thing upright, as it is in the picture, the valve is open, allowing air to escape. With it down, it is closed. I drive around with it open all the time on the track as do the super cup cars. If it burps out some air, you may need to top off.

Can't remember right now but I did replace it with the newer one it's not the original. I can't find any sign of coolant from around the tank top, bottom, or cap. I pulled the carpet back and felt all around underneath the tank and it is very clean on bottom and top.

Right rear on the boxster is where you find the hose for coolant overflow. I agree with wvicary - coolant.

If the cap was off recently and not put back on squarely, it will vomit on you like that.

Air in the system usually results in overheating, but just to be sure, I think I would top off (just distilled water), be sure cap is on right, open the breather valve and drive around a few days keeping an eye on the level. Top off more if needed. If it all goes find, close breather valve and no worries.

Hello everyone, I've been doing a lot of reading and researching the low RPM problem I've been having. One thing that popped out at me was the fuel pump. I couldn't ever remember hearing it run so I check the fuse box first. I found that a fuse was missing from fuel pump # 2. After looking at the fuse chart, it said #2 was only used on Turbo's. But I thought what the hay and put a fuse in the spot anyway. The car now feels like it has more power and runs a little smoother at low RPM's. Can anyone tell me if the #2 pump is used in the GT3"s. Also I took the car to the dyno today. I was very happy with the power. The SAE corrected number was 384 HP. The fuel/air mixture was perfect all the way up from 3000 RPM's. With that said the car runs great at full throttle but still runs a bit rough at low RPM's cruising. I hope I can find the answer soon.

I had a fuel pump go bad in my 986S race car many years ago. When hot and I backed off the throttle, dropping RPMs to 3500 or less, car would not go at all. RPMs would just keep dropping - no power. Around the paddock, hot, it would sputter around. Cool, though, it ran fine, and as long as I was hauling the mail at high RPMs, no issues. Toward the end of sessions, it would start failing in certain corners where the RPMs were dropping down. Finally it would not even start hot.

It was weird and before I figured it out, I wondered if I had bad fuel. No engine codes, nothing.

Just sharing to help with diagnosis.

You might want to ask about returns and restocking fee up front in case the cable it doesn't do the trick. Like I say, it worked for me, but I imagine it could be the CD changer, the cable, the cable to the head unit or the head unit itself. Good luck!

Faulty memory - the cable does not have the part number on it. I've attached some images, though, that might help you locate the cables.

First image is of the Y cable I replaced. This solved the problem for me, although I suppose if this didn't work, I would have next suspected the CD changer and sent it for a bench test.

Second picture is of the front trunk of an 04 986S which has been stripped of all the carpet etc. (it is a race car) You can see circled the end of the fiber optic cable where it used to connect to the amplifier, and the arrow shows where that cable connects and goes into a protective plastic conduit before heading off into the cockpit. It is at this place where the CD changer and the amplifier came together in my 996.

Third picture is of the front trunk of my 996. The circle is the general area where I found the connection for the Y cable, and the arrow just happens to be showing where the amplifier cable is showing a little bit.

Hope the problem ends up being a cable for you too - while not cheap, it is less expensive than the head unit or the CD changer.

Thanks for the follow up post. I did go out to the car earlier and tried sticking in a CD and it did not fix the problem.

Is it the fiber optic cable from the CD changer to the amp? or CD changer to the headunit? and is this something I can replace myself?

Thanks in advanced for any information you can provide. cost would also be greatly appreciated.

Take care,

In my 03 996C4S, the CD changer was a dealer installed option, using Porsche stuff. The CD changer is in the front trunk, as is the amplifier. If I remember correctly, there was a cable that ran from the amp and a cable that ran from the CD changer and they both merged to make a Y shaped cable which then connected to a single cable running to the head unit. The connection to the cable that ran to the head unit was under the carpet somewhere around the brake fluid reservoir. I replaced the Y shaped cable. It was easy. I might even still have the bad cable with the part number. I'll take a look this afternoon.

i'm currently having this exact same problem on an 03 Boxster S with Bose. I haven't tried inserting a cd to see if it fixes it yet, but it's been 2 days and the only thing my screen displays is PORSCHE.

My problem ended up being a bad fiber optic cable from the CD changer. Replaced that cable and have had no trouble since.

First I sent the head unit off for a bench test and it pased. The shop that tested the head unit felt pretty strongly it was going to be the cable, and he was right.

At the top, where it passes through the wheel carrier and shock flange, it is 63 ft/lbs.

At the bottom, where it attaches to the sway bar, it is 37 ft/lbs.

Same for front and back.

Hi everyone! Im looking at the pssibility os swapping my OEM steering wheel on my 1999 996 to a Momo wheel. I have been told that there is a hub that allows for deactivation of the airbag light when you make this swap. Have not been able to find it after extensive websearching. Has anyone seen this? If not, is there a way to disable the airbag ligt after this swap? Will the side and passenge airbags be operational if this modification can be done? Thanks for any help I can get.

I learned a trick from 944 racers - they wired in a 2.9 Ohm 1/4 watt resistor - it tricked the system into thinking the airbag as still there. It worked on my 986S. I did it a long time ago, and don't remember the details, but with the help of my electrical engineer next door neighbor, we made a resistor of these specs, and used it to complete the circuit that would normally be completed by the airbag itself.

Good Q. Assume you are talking about the most recent version that includes that functionality.

I used it and thought it was not working as I did not hear anything nor did any fluid come out of the bleeder screws. I emailed with tech support asking if there were any reports of it not working, sharing my concerns and questions. I even sent a picture of the cable to be sure I had the right version - I did.

His answer -- you will not necessarily see fluid come out or hear anything, and that they have no reports of bugs. In other words, as far as they are concerned, it works.

Understand I am a Durametric fan, but I was not especially happy with the answer. I do not understand how you can activate the ABS pump without fluid escaping the bleeder screws.

I bleed my brakes frequently as my 986S is a race car, so I know/knew my fluid in the calipers was fine, yet still I was not happy with the pedal feel or how the brakes behaved when ABS was activated. As such, despite my doubt on Durametric, I went through the motions anyway - activating the pump with a bleeder screw open, one at a time, on each caliper. No noise, no fluid escape. I may be fooling myself, but it has felt better since then, so maybe it does work. I just don't know.

Would be interested if anyone else has had a different experience with the ABS activation function.

Thanks for the info. I just want to empty the system of the ATE blue and get some better brake fluid in, and be sure all of the blue is out. This raised another problem, namely the clutch slave cylinder. I can't even get to it to bleed it, not sure where it is. This is on a 2007 GT3 and I boiled the fluid on the last track day, hence need to get better stuff in there.

Thanks again.

Are you planning to go back with something non-compatible with ATE Super Blue? If so, then you have a lot of work to do. Frankly, if it were me, I would stay with ATE Blue, do a conventional change (pump the brakes or power bleeder approach described in Loren's how to) and unless your clutch pedal is not returning, you don't need to mess with the clutch, or the ABS.

I know a lot of guys think the Castrol or the Motul stuff is better, and it anecdotally lasts longer, but if your track events are not every weekend, doing a quick bleed before a track date and using blue will do it for you. It is all I use - just do a quick bleed all the way around before every event.

Good Q. Assume you are talking about the most recent version that includes that functionality.

I used it and thought it was not working as I did not hear anything nor did any fluid come out of the bleeder screws. I emailed with tech support asking if there were any reports of it not working, sharing my concerns and questions. I even sent a picture of the cable to be sure I had the right version - I did.

His answer -- you will not necessarily see fluid come out or hear anything, and that they have no reports of bugs. In other words, as far as they are concerned, it works.

Understand I am a Durametric fan, but I was not especially happy with the answer. I do not understand how you can activate the ABS pump without fluid escaping the bleeder screws.

I bleed my brakes frequently as my 986S is a race car, so I know/knew my fluid in the calipers was fine, yet still I was not happy with the pedal feel or how the brakes behaved when ABS was activated. As such, despite my doubt on Durametric, I went through the motions anyway - activating the pump with a bleeder screw open, one at a time, on each caliper. No noise, no fluid escape. I may be fooling myself, but it has felt better since then, so maybe it does work. I just don't know.

Would be interested if anyone else has had a different experience with the ABS activation function.

I have a set of GT3 RS brake ducts installed on the front of my 986S race car. The picture shows the driver side. You can see how much abuse they have taken - much of the bottom is simply ground away from curbing and the front being raked low. And in the second picture, you can see me holding a regular GT3 brake duct for size comparison. The picture does not show it well, but the RS duct is much bigger....but it is also stupid expensive.

And for giggles, I have attached some images of the rear cooling system we made. We fashioned an aluminum bracket that attaches to the wheel carrier using the holes that existed for the brake dust shield. The silicone aircraft hose attaches to the aluminum tube we made as part of the bracket. The other end is a lightweight, plastic and inexpensive air scoop commonly used with old air cooled 911s for brake cooling. It is screwed onto the aluminum "v" brace. I haven't taken any rotor temps with the new setup, but it is clearly moving a lot of air - the dust accumulation on the wheels is a fraction of what it used to be.

The Cayman is pretty good from the factory, but if you drive it hard you will find it understeers. On my 986S, used exclusively as a hardcore track rat, I have raked the car forward to put more weight on the nose, dialed in 3/16ths of toe out in the front, and -3.2 degrees camber. Rear is -2.5 degrees camber, with 1/8th toe in. I use PSS9 adjustable coilovers with three different sets of springs depending on the track. The coilovers have served me well for the last couple of years, but am finding now that I need still more adjustability with a remote reservoir. I also have GT3 sway bars. I had to add adjustable toe arms in the rear, and have GT3 control arms all around too, but I could have gotten away with only the front.

Hope that helps. Hard to answer the Q as it sounds like you are going to continue to use it on the street. What I outlined above is likely not a good street/track combo, but is what works well for me on the track in my 986.

1997 - 1999 (2.5L) was equipped with 2 catalytic converters and 4 O2 sensors.

2000 - 2004 (2.7L and 3.2L) were equipped with 2 warm up catalytic converters (precats as part of header assembly), 2 main catalytic converters (secondary cats) and 4 O2 sensors.

I was able to remove the secondary cats on my '04 without triggering an emissions error as the sensors are before and after the cats in the header. However, in that configuration, I do not know if it would pass emissions inspection. (I live in florida - no emissions; and the car is now a race car anyway.)

I eventually removed the other set of cats too, and had the DME reprogrammed with a PIWIS to change the emissions standard to euro 3 or less.

I'm not sure removing the cats made a big difference in HP. I don't have dyno numbers before/after. Maybe a little increase, but I did it for weight and to not have to go to the expense of replacing cats.

Take a look at Maxspeed Motorsports. (No affiliation) He has some interesting stuff for exhausts including a "CEL Fix." No idea if it works, but I have his headers and bypass pipes and am happy with them.

Heat shield on secondary cats?

I like the idea of cleaning the throttle body as suggested. I'll throw out another possible cause - dying fuel pump. When they are giving up, they tend to work intermittently.

Just something to consider.

Three items come to mind....

The eccentric adjusting bolt where the arm attaches to the subframe might be bent. You have to take it out to see.

Note that negative camber and toe are related. The more negative camber, the longer the toe adjusting arm needs to be be to keep the wheel from being toed-in too much. And the opposite is also true - positive camber effectively lenghtens the arm, giving you more toe out.

The subframe on some cars seems to be out of center too.

This is the factory bulb from an '04 986S - front trunk.

Point-to-point it is 42mm.

Sorry for quality of picture.

The reservoir has an O ring on its neck, and it can leak past the O ring if it is damaged. Also the neck of the reservoir is just a plastic piece, so be sure the flanges are still there. More likely, it is just not on right.

The way the reservoir goes on and locks is not intuitive, and not attaching the reservoir correctly was a source of leaks for me. If I remember correctly, you had to push it down and then turn it something like a 1/4 turn. It has been a while. Don't remember precisely.

If you have the reservoir removed, study the connection and you will see how it goes on. It was not easy to get on right. But once you get it right, you get a vague feeling that it is locked into place.

Further, I found power steering fluid was pushing out the top of the cap through the little overflow hose under lots of revs on the track. I mistook that for a leak. I added a length of hose to the overflow hose and ran it to a plastic water bottle I wire tied to the inside of the engine bay.

I've not experienced that on either my 996 or my 986. I wonder if something was thrown up in the wheel and snagged the wire.

There is a connector mounted on the side of the wheel carrier. In this not-so-great-picture, you can sort of see what I am talking about. The speed sensor and wear sensor plug into this. (In this picture, the wear sensor wire is coiled and wire-tied off - this is a dedicated track car, and I don't use the sensor.)

Is the wire split above this connector, or below? If below, you can buy a replacement and just plug it in.

We recentered the subframe, and still struggled to get camber and toe the way we wanted it on both sides.

On driver rear, we could get decent negative camber, but the toe adjusting arm was not long enough, so we had too much toe in. On the driver side, we could not get equal negative camber no matter what we did. Nothing on the control arm or the bolt was bent. I did have an issue with the adjusting bolt on the toe arm on that side.

Two different race shops have told me the cars are very inconsistent in what you can dial in using the stock stuff. Some cars, you can get there OK with stock stuff - others no.

I eventually bit the bullet and installed adjustable toe arms and GT3 control arms on all four wheels. My 986, though, is a full on race car, and I change camber, toe and spring rates (on PSS9s) depending on the track.

So, yes, look at the adjustment bolt, look to see if the subframe is centered, inspect the toe and control arms for bends. Also note the relationship between camber and toe - if you can get the camber you want but you are toed-in a ton, you know the problem is the toe arm (you probably already know this, but just in case). But in my experience, dpending on how much negative camber you want, you may not get there with stock stuff.

I had two problems with rear toe on my 986.

* the adjustment bolt was binding up, bent and not allowing proper travel in and out

* recentering the subframe

My problems were also on the right rear - passenger side.

Is your camber in the rear correct? I had to switch to adjustable length toe arms in the rear to be able to accommodate the amount of negative camber I wanted on the track. More camber pushed the rear out; the toe adjusting arm was not long enough, creating more toe in.

The hats at the top of the strut don't have any adjutment - it is just the bearing for the top of the strut.

Look closely at the external heat shield and if you get lucky, it can be spot welded to stop the rattling.