cbonilla

I'm planning for the last (I hope) project of the year on my Boxster: Replacing the rear brakes pads and discs. Did the front one's this summer (including discs) and the rears should be ready for replacement soon and I'm planning on replacing the discs the too. I know the Rear discs include the parking brake. This car has 100k on it. Should I plan on replacing the parking brake pads at this time? I know a visual inspection will be needed, but if they're likely to need replacement I'll just order the parts at the same time. I always set the parking brake and I will admit that a few times a year I've driven off with the brake still set. Would be irked if I had to stop part way through to get my hands on pads for the parking brake. It's a Tip if that matters thx, CB

Yes I did replace the switch and it did fix all the issues. The OEM part from pelican was made in Spain and cost $30. I know I could have bought one cheaper but I went for OEM. Who knows, the vendor may have made OEM floor mats here are my take away from doing the job Don’t even think of starting this without having a tiny screwdriver. I had difficulty finding one (even tried cutting one down) and got lucky in a hardware store where a customer heard my plight and offered to loan me one that he had magically in his glove box!In case you’re wondering, the screws holding the electronics of the switch come out in a downwards direction. Yes, the blob of sealant you see (barely) is the head of the screw.I did mine both from above and below the dash. Just couldn’t work it otherwiseIf you try to remove the vent on the dash the first snag you encounter is taking the knob off the light switch. There is a tiny almost invisible metal tab just below the lip of the knob. I finally figured it out when I saw this post and picture (about 3 pics down):DIY Head Light Switch Remove and Replace - 6SpeedOnline - Porsche Forum and Luxury Car ResourceThe torx screw that is only accessible when you have the knob off is the same size torx as the other twoWhen re-installing the switch, attach it to the harness first. The pressure from the harness will keep it from falling out as you try to tighten the set screwsIf you remove the snap in cover to the left of the ignition switch, note that it has a top and putting it in upside down will result in a poor fit and not follow the dash contoursIf you do go in from the dash, let me know if you were able to reinsert the Phillips screw that holds the “L” shaped duct in the dash. For all the vaunted German engineering, it would have been nice to have some guide posts to help line it up. I finally despaired of ever getting the screw in and just friction fit it to the lower duct and the dash ventStart to finish (with a hardware store trip in there) was 2.5 hours

Well Porsche of Rockville didn't carry the part, they only carried the entire assembly (which I assume is the improved part), but it was $270 so Pelican it is Thanks for your help. The wait for delivery gives me time to practice my yoga in anticipation of crawling under the dash CB

Thank you (again), I will do that CB

I appreciate the advice, but 13 years of service seems to me a good bet that the new switch will outlast the boxster. If not I will happily put in a second I've attached a screen capture from Pelican. This is the right part, no? Thanks for all your help. Glad that It was such a cheap fix, hope the new parts get here before the switch gets any worse

You were right. With the luxury of a dry day I checked again. When I start the car with the key in a normal run position I found that in addition to the AC not working the wipers were not working either When I nudged the key slightly counter-clockwise with the engine running I then had both wipers and AC working again i'll order thr electronic half of the ignition switch tomorrow. FYI! The key feels a little stir when I go turn the engine off - do you think I may need the mechanical half of the switch? thanks again carlos

I will try that tomorrow. When you say "odd" what did you have in mind? out of curiosity, would a durametric show an anomaly ? carlos

I checked the fuse you recommend as well as two others that the paper in the fuse panel referred to as connected to the heating or air conditioing system. All checked out with a continuity tester But as I was power cycling the car the fans came on momentarily. I then discovered that if I turned the key back a fraction from the run position the fans came on and I could hit the snowflake button and the compressor would kick in and start cooling the cabin. i feel points to my ignition switch as the culprit. Do you agree? I know these are a problem areas on these cars.

Will do (as soon as the T storms pass). And thank you, I will report back

Car had never given me any AC issues until just now. Got back in the car after a day of errands and nothing. More specifically, none of the fans come on in the cabin, I don't hear the AC compressor cut in (but I could be wrong), I can work the AC controls and all the right things happen -- display changes temp with a push of buttons, fan shows more/fewer bars, snowflake button switched display from/to auto. Anyone want to suggest a diagnostic procedure, or offer advice from their own history? AC had been working fine until just now FYI the car has 102k miles and is stock. Not sure if I imagined it, but the key seemed stiff when I was turning off the car Thanks, Carlos

Agreed. but mine was an intermittent problem that seemed to fix itself (for a while) by removing and resintalling the headlight assembly. I fear that the problem may recur the next time I have to remove the headlight, but for now all is well CB

I had a similar problem with one front turn signal. After swapping the bulb and having the problem persist I sprayed the contacts on the headlamp assembly and where it mates with electric contact cleaner. Had to do it a couple of times but now the problem seems to be fixed.

Thank you, I will try that this weekend. I fear that, as with most intermittent failures, tracking it down will be difficult as the mere removal of the headlight seems to be enough to make it work. Needless to say, I've gotten very good at installing the light. So good, in fact, that the Porsche tool messed up the head on the rod you rotate to release the right headlight. I now have a 5mm socket firmly fixed to the head of that rod

Thx JFP. I did check for corrosion and didn't find any. Do you have an over/under on whether the problem is more likely to be found in gpthe headlight end of this connector or the Boxster end? Carlos

Sorry, it's an 03 Boxster S

My left turn signal started the rapid blink typical of a burned out bulb. No problem, I thought, change a bulb. Swapped the left front bulb out and it worked for a while. Then the same problem recurred. Took the housing out again, and fiddled with the bulb. It worked again for a little while When it recurred once more I pulled the housing again, sprayed contact cleaner on both ends of the connector for the headlight assembly and reinstalled it. Any thoughts on next diagnostic steps, or a Piinout of the electric connector? Carlos

This problem has been going on since last summer. In August '15 (just after the problem started) it was at an indie shop that I trust (Auto Sports System Group in Fairfax VA) that uses a Durametric. They scanned and found no faults. The Durametric, as I understand it, can spot alarm faults but not the open/closed status of the individual alarm zones For whatever it's worth, this problem came out of the blue months after any work had been done to the car CB

I've been dealing with an alarm system that consistently beeps once when arming. I have never heard a double beep. Today I tried an experiment. With the top down I armed the system ad got one beep as usual. Then I opened the glove compartment without tripping the alarm. I then opened the storage compartment between the seats. Still didn't trip. The alarm did trip when I opened the door I find it hard to think that both of these could have failed at the same time. Unit had been working fine before it started acting up. Do these two compartments share an alarm circuit? Thx, Carlos

Thanks again for the education Carlos

Thanks Loren. I'll see if I can figure out that wiring diagram and decide whether to proceed. I don't want to just randomly change parts In your experience are any of the switches more likely to fail than others? Carlos

Thanks, I understand your reluctance to publish a wiring diagram for the alarm system. Without violating that, can you educate me on how the (for example) the front hood lock works. I assume there is a (pair ?) of wire sending the lock/unlock function (presumably from the central locking system/alarm. Is there a second set of wires telling the alarm module that the trunk is open(ed)? In other words is it a simple circuit for lock and status? Or a complex circuit like a LAN? CB

I agree, the fault is likely in the switch or sensor (I assume that when you say "sensor" you're referring to the motion sensor at the top of the windshield?). When I have a moment I'll start checking the different possibilities. Are these typically separate switches/sensors or are they incorporated into a larger mechanism. Can you point me to a wiring diagram for the different switches? CB

Follow up question. Is it possible, in the absence of the official Porsche tool, to diagnose which circuit is not showing as closed using a multimeter? Time consuming, I know, but if its not too time consuming its probably less time than a dealer visit just for this. Are there any circuits which have shown themselves as more likely to be problematic Thanks again

Loren - thank you. My reading of the durametric site you pointed me to seems to indicate that the durametric can't discern an open circuit in the alarm. Next time I go to a dealer I'll have them tell me where the open circuit is. Unless I can find an indie shop with an official Porsche tool Thanks again. Carlos

2003 986S. My central locking system is beeping once when I use the remote to lock the car. One beep, as I understand it, means that the system thinks something is not closed completely. Can the durametric discover which zone is not showing as closed even if a fault code has not been tripped in the alarm (which as I understand it is two beeps)? If not do I need to find a shop with a PST2 or other Porsche diagnostic machine ? Any leads on indie shops that have such a tool in my area (Washington DC area )? Thanks