linklaw

Loren,

I have a 2008 Cayman with PCM2.1. The car had the CD45 when I bought it and I bought a used PCM and factory navigation. I installed that along with the Dension 5000 and now want to install Sirius. I remember plugging in the dension unit to the CD power source in the front trunk. It takes the place of the CD Changer. So I have PCM2.1 with factory Navigation and the Dension. I saw when reading the tutorial that there are a couple harnesses, depending on whether the CD changer is installed. I figured I needed the harness for cars with a cd changer. I believe I can use an aftermarket antenna with adapter for the dual antenna input on the receiver. Is the MOST cable included with the wiring harness? I thought it would be a separate part. Thanks for any help.  John

Can anyone give me the part number for the MOST fiber optic cable needed for this installation? The tutorial gives the part number for the wiring harness. Thanks. John

I just installed the Parrot updater and the Tooki update and don't notice any difference with my Blackberry 9650.

I installed a Dension ipod adapter in my 2005 CarreraS. I leave my ipod plugged in, in the trunk all the time. It allows control of the ipod from the PCM. If you do a search, I am sure there are some posts on it. John

My 2005 S has about 22000 miles on it and I still get the "hot" smell. A year or so ago, I asked the dealer what it was and the service manager said it was just the cosmoline burning off the engine. He said don't worry about it. I figure that after enough miles, it will have all burned off and the smell will disappear. We'll see. John

I have the Navtec Tooki Bluetooth and Dension Gateway ipod adapter in my 2005 coupe and have been happy with both of them. If I remember, they were around $1000 for the both of them when purchased a year and a half ago. I installed them myself with the ipod adapter being located int he trunk and the bluetooth behind the glovebox. The installation was no problem.

Thanks all. I just replaced the battery and all is well again. I'll keep my eye on it to see if it drains quickly. John

This morning I went to start my 997, 2005 911S, and when I turned the key, I got repeated loud clicking like the starter was trying to engage, the lights flashed, the dash lights flashed and the sport chrono dial went backwards with each click, about 30 degrees. The lights flashed brightly and when I turned the key to the accessory position, everything worked that is supposed to work. Any ideas before I have it towed? Thanks John

I bought my 2005 C2S a year ago and was faced with the same situation you have. After researching, I chose the Dension unit over the CD changer and am very pleased with the choice. I installed it myself in about an hour or so in the front compartment where the CD changer would go. As far as the nav unit is concerned, I suggest you try the factory nav before you spend the cash on it. There is no touch screen with the factory unit and it has many fewer features than a much cheaper aftermarket unit. I opted for the Garmin 650 which I leave in the glovebox unless I need it. It has touch screen, bluetooth, MSN, more points of interest and speaks the street names. It cost about 1/10 as much as the factory unit and has served me well. John

I have had success keeping rodents away during the colder months here in western Pennsylvania by scattering moth balls on the garage floor, under and around the car. The drawback to this is that your car will smell like moth balls for a while when the warm weather arrives. The smell goes away after a few nice weather top down or window down drives. John

Great idea and I will become a contributing member. Isn't the TSB you mention specific to the Boxster? The Boxster and 997 roof transport systems attach to the car differently and have many different parts.

The TSB is not specific to the Boxster and contains exactly the information I was looking for. I found it in the 996 TSB section and the instructions and components are the same as for a 997. Thanks. John

Great idea and I will become a contributing member. Isn't the TSB you mention specific to the Boxster? The Boxster and 997 roof transport systems attach to the car differently and have many different parts.

I just received a roof transport system for my 997 coupe. I bought the rts off of ebay and it came without instructions. Does anyone have a copy of the instructions they could share with me? I also think I may be missing a couple of parts, namely some bolts and the rubber pads the posts sit on. I imagine the instructions will identify the parts that I should have. I searched for a copy of the instructions on line but couldn't find anything posted. Thanks. John

My problem was a broken ground wire for the horn. When the car was off, the horn found a ground, but when the car was on, the ground went away. There is a discussion of what caused the problem in one of the posts linked to above. The ground wire was broken inside the insulation where the wire makes a 90 degree bend off of the connection in the steering wheel. John

Problem solved. It turns out the ground wire for the horn was broken inside the insulation about 1/2 inch from where the wire plugs onto the horn ring. My mechanic said that the wire comes off of the connector and then makes a 90 degree bend as it goes through the steering wheel. The wire was broken at this bend. A little soldering and the problem is fixed. Thank goodness because I have encountered a large number of horrendous drivers lately and was in desparate need of the horn.

I dropped the car off at my mechanic's this morning and the preliminary finding is that the ground to the horn is lost when the ignition is turned on. The guy that suggested a "floating ground" was probably on point. Apparently the horn seeks and finds a ground with the ignition off and that ground is unavailable (maybe powered) when the ignition is on. I will update when he (or I) find the fault with the ground circuit.

I tried it and no matter what position the steering wheel is in, no horn with the ignition on.

No, it's all factory. I did not get a chance to take the steering wheel apart yet to check the ground. When I get back to it, a friend of mine suggested trying the horn with the steering wheel turned in different positions with the car running. He thinks it might be a fault with the horn contact ring.

I must be missing something. My ignition switch plugs into the wiring harness and then is secured to the backside of the dashboard where it mates up with the key/lock mechanism. I assumed there was no wiring to the key/lock mechanism as I did not see any when I was removing and replacing the ignition switch. I see from the wiring diagram that the key closes a contact when inserted. There is a small button in the slot in the ignition switch that is depressed when the key is inserted and I assumed this is the button that would close the contact. Is there wiring to the key/lock mechanism or only to the ignition switch? Thanks

I imagine the wiring to the switch is correct as no work has been done on the harness and the horn previously worked. Also, it works when the ignition switch is turned with a screwdriver to the "on" position before the switch is put into the dash. I will keep working on it and will post the result.

Thanks for the idea Maurice, but I don't think the switch is grounded, as it is a plastic bodied device with no exposed metal once it is plugged into the harness. I think I will check the airbag ground as suggested in another post.

This morning I removed the ignition switch from under the dashboard and while the switch was still connected to the harness, I turned it to the "on" position with a screwdriver and the horn worked. I reinstalled the switch in the dash and when I turned t to the "on" position with the key, the horn did not work. I have a known good switch, so I replaced the ignition switch with the known good unit and again, before the switch was put up under the dash, the horn worked when I turned the switch to "on" with a screwdriver. When I mounted the switch under the dash and turned the key to the "on" position, again no horn. Does the key do something to the switch other than turn it to the "on" position? I made sure the switch was mounted tight against the tumbler mechanism and that the connections were all tight. I also tried a different relay in the No. 10 position with no luck. Any ideas on what to try next?

I replaced the switch because of the usual problems, key sticking, accessories not shutting off. The horn worked properly with the old switch and I think it worked with the new switch after it was replaced. I replaced the switch a couple months ago and just noticed the horn malfunction today. I do recall another time I blew the horn with the car running and nothing happened, about a week ago. After I shut the car off, I checked the horn and of course it worked. I didn't think about it again until it happened again today. I checked the switch and it appears to be tight and connected properly. The new switch is an audi switch. I was going to uninstall and reinstall the switch and also look for loose or disconnected wires under the dash. I was also going to try a different relay for the horn and see if there is any difference. I read all the posts on this subject and it has me baffled too. It doesn't make any sense that the ground for the horn would be disturbed by the ignition being on. I searched for more info on the "floating ground" problem mentioned in one of the posts, but couldn't find anything more about it. If I figure it out, I will post the fix, for sure.

Did anyone find out what caused the horn to only work when the car is off? This recently happened to my 2001 Boxster and I am searching for a fix. I recently replaced the ignition switch and I don't know if this caused it or not. Thanks for any help.