babeins

Hello all, I was reading about the OBC hack and the different clusters that were introduced in MY02 between OBC and non-OBC units. My question is, what are the advantages of upgrading the non OBC cluster to one with OBC? Will it work on my non-OBC car? (I'd like to do the OBC hack in the future) Is the cluster change worth while? Is anything special required meaning a trip to the dealer. Now I'm not asking about the hack itself, just the cluster. I have MY02 non-OBC, cluster is from a MY03 with OBC. Thanks

i've seen some on ebay, BUT make sure it includes the bar code tag or the dealer can not program it. I've seen many "new" keys there without the tag.

i just completed this install. I got an OEM kit from ebay for $145 with free shipping. The same seller now has a few kits for $105 with free shipping! Anyway, cutting out the old shelf compartments was really the hardest part. Everything else was pretty easy. Thanks to this post I used an electrician's metal phishing tool to get the wire to the front. The link to the pellican parts intall was helpful as well. Thanks RennTech!

seems like i recall reading in the 986 DIY section about replacing carpet with leather, or putting leather on that piece. it had specifics.

the phone plug has ground, switched, and unswitched, and a mute i think. you can access it by pulling off the carpeted triangle piece on the right side of the center console. Furthest forward on the left of the passenger seat in a LHD car. Try this link. it should be the connector right in the middle of the bottom of the stack... 4 pins in total

http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=4822

Verry little wiring is required. there is more involved with removig the steerign wheel etc. Try a search here for +computer +hack and see what comes up. you can also google porsche OBC hack to see what comes up. here's what I could pull up with a simple search. Not sure about heated seats.

http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=19446

how about the Vermont / NH region? Possible NW Mass? I'd also like to enable OBC. Durametric emailed back that they still do not have OBC enabling feature yet.

so it looks like from reading that 5000k is the most desirable color? 6000k starts getting the blue? 5000k is closest to most factory HID kits?

and no retainer ring needed for 986, right?

I personally like the 5000K as it was very close to factory bi-xenon as compare to my wife's Touareg. A little hint of blue around the edges, just like hers. Nice bright white light too. No retainer ring needed. I can PM you more specifics if needed.

I just completed this mod with help from this thread. The HID Litronic or xenon conversion was pretty simple. I bought my untis on ebay for about 80 bucks with shipping. I used the H7 bulb type with teh 5000K temperature color. My wife's VW Touareg came with bi-xenon and they are at 4300K. 4300K is apparently the peak light output. 5000K was the closest I could get. I had to drill a small hole for the wiring. This thread helped me determine brown was negative. I mounted the ballast to the outside edge of each light just inside the fenders. My kit came with a mounting bracket to hold each ballast. I used a self tapping sheet metal screw and the double sided tape to hold it in place. Sealed the holes in the back of the light houseing with some black silicone. They look great, no need for any adjustments and the light output is more than stock.

I have to admit, using the provided tool to "pop" out the head assemblies made me a little nervous since I was unsure what to expect. What a simple and easy way to remove them! I didn't post any pictures because there are more than enough here for people to see. Nice easy mod.

ABE

Go for it! I just had my 60K at the dealer in Burlington, VT. They charged me $800 bucks. Not too bad. Oil change, plugs, filter, air filter, cabin filter, polyrib belt, brake fluid change (based on years I believe), a run on the computer to check for codes. Plus, since I had just bought the car, they did an inspection similar to a pre-dealer purchase. I'm sure I could have done it myself for much cheaper, but since I just purchased the car, I wanted to have a knowledgable service technician give it a good once over.

I checked with a local place that specializes in VW, Audi, and has had some Porsche experience. He quoted me $625. I thought for the little difference, it made sense to visit the dealer and start to build a relationship.

I have an '02 with the 2.7 engine. Tiptronic. Hope this helps.

ABE

well done Toolpants. This thread was fun to read.

Has anybody ever sent a sample of their used oil out for analysis? Where I work, we send out samples to our oil supplier on a monthly basis for analysis. They have a running history of the "life" of the oil and make recomendations as to when we should then change it based on contaminents they detect. We've been able to extend our oil changes in some equipment by 3 or 4 times the mfg. recommended change by utilizing oil analysis.

what year boxster is it? based on the rims, i'm guessing 2001 or 2002? Here is a link to a site that has many exploded part drawings, with part numbers etc. but prices aren't so great.

http://dcauto.gotdns.com/

I've used sunset for some parts, they have pretty good prices

http://www.sunsetimports.com/

hope that helps.

ABE

OK, so I somehow fixed the problem today. Since I'm new to this car I was reading up about changing out the cluster lights. I happened to notice that my washer fluid light was not working. I decided to peek in there and pull off the instrument cluster.

Thanks to the postings here it was very easy. What I discovered is that in my MY02, I have soldered in LED lights, no bulbs. I had to split the cluster apart to get them. Guess what was there? Some black electrical tape. Must be a previous "fix" to the low washer fluid sensor. Anyway, I removed the tape and re-installed the cluster. At engine startup all lights are now on for the lamp check.

Went for a ride this afternoon and after passing a car on the interstate noticed the spoiler light did not come on. I looked back (un-safe move) and could see the spoiler was up. So after a few cycles of slowing down, checking spoiler, speeding up, checking, the spoiler light does not come on. It's function properly. I'm clueless as to why, but hey it works.

As a side note, no problems with the washer fluid indicator yet either.

ABE

Ok haters, the manual for the 04 says it has a 17 gallon tank so redo your math. I have a de snorkeled and KandN airfilter as well as NO cats. 5 speed,Top up,windows up with an occasional A/C here and there but not more than 15-20 minutes worth of use. No passengers, gas needle was slightly above the orange/red empty line. no luggage I even took a dump prior to that!

Using the calculator method, actual mileage divided by the number of gallons put in the tank, I've had 30.2 MPG on a trip to the southern part of the State. Drove about 185 miles with a wonderful speed limit of 50 here in Vermont. I must admit I did not drive aggressively at all, just a nice easy drive. Daily driving to work and back about 20 miles each way, I'm averaging 25 MPG.

With that said, I'm wondering why did you remove the cats? I realize you get a little more power but what about our environment? Does TX not have emission testing? Now I'm not a tree hugger by any means. Heck between all our toys my wife and I have 11 motorized vehicles needing registration. That's 4 cars, 2 motorcycles, 3 snowmobiles, 1 ATV and 1 boat. But I'd never purposely [and illegally] remove a critical emission controlling component.

Take a look at http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=18491

Thanks, it looks like that guy had the same problem as I do. I didn't see a solution listed for him either. I was able to get a copy of the repair manual schematics from www.cannell.co.uk they actually had a lot of porsche service manuals there for a free download.

Meanwhile, I'll keep working on a fix.

OK, so I got impatient and decided to tackle this on my own. Here's what I found:

I raised the spoiler with the switch and then removed the spoiler "cap" by removing 3 rivet type fasteners. This was covered in a recent post on the 987 forum

Then I removed the 2 allen held screws holding the spoiler to the lifting cyclinders.

I then lowered the lift cylinders with the switch

Then I removed 4 allen head screws, 2 on each side of the lifting cylinders that hold the cylinders to the back end

Next I removed the trunk carpet, styrofoam under carpet support

I removed 3 10mm nuts and 1 10mm bolt that mount the spoiler motor frame to the back of the car

Unplug the drain tubes from the bottom of the lift cylinders

The motorized mechanism can now be pulled out and worked on easier.

So now I could access the electrical contacts on the micro switches that are mounted in the plastic of the spoiler frame

First, i used a meter to determine if the contacts of the switch were opened or closed.

I then raised the spoiler and re-checked the switches. They each were in opposite states, the one that was making continuity was now open, and the one that was open is now continuous.

I'll try to get some pictures posted.

That's where I am stuck. Can anybody tell me if that is the proper way the switches should function? If so, what is the next step for me to take? Is there a schematic out there? Thanks

ABE

Hello, I am new to this site and have really enjoyed all of the great info about porsche here. I posted a question a few weeks back in the DIY section with no responses. I'm hoping somebody can help.

I have a US 2002 Boxster with the 2.7 tiptronic. The spoiler light comes on, but my spoiler is actually up, it works with the manual switch in the footwell and when on the road I imagine there is a limit switch that needs to be cleaned or replaced. Does anybody have any directions as to how I can remove the spoiler to check the limit switch? OR, is there a connection I could verify first that has maybe become disconnected? I really appreciate any help. Thanks :rolleyes:

ABE

Hello, I'm new to this site. I purchased an 02 boxster about a week ago and have a warning light that the spoiler does not deploy at the proper speed. When I check with the switch, it does go up, but the light is still on. can anybody please send me directions to remove the spoiler and check the switches? I've searched the threads and it seems to be a common issue, but I could not locate any specific details for removal. I appreciate your help. (c:

ABE