da888

Found my battery dead today and the front trunk closed. I normally remove the battery for the winter and take it inside. I thought I had plenty of time since the battery is only 6 months old. ( the car has only been stored for about 3 weeks now.) The car was not locked. 2001 Boxster, NAPA replacement battery. I noticed my lawn tractor had a 12 volt battery so I used it, and some alligator clips wires I had on hand, to route to the red fuse that can be pulled out to expose the copper contacts.( in the fuse panel ) Hooked the negative to the striker plate on the door jam, just touched the red to the pull out fuse, nothing lit up, not even the diode lights in the door. But when I pushed the release button, it opened. All is well. I just have to determine if the battery is faulty or is something allowing current to drain the battery. On first test with a smart battery charger, it said possibly weak, or bad in other words. I'll have to return it to Napa and get it tested I suppose. Wicked easy.

A fabrication shop may be able to weld a piece to the original, and bolt on, or grind out a ball top. It looks like aluminum. There's alway a way in my opinion, having worked in a turbine fab. shop for 30 years.

My 01 did the same thing this spring and it suprised me because I bring the battery inside during the winter and keep it charged. It was 4 years old, but dead. The last battery I bought was not an OEM, but got it from the dealer. After talking to Sunset Porsche, he recommended the larger battery, because of it being a convertible. Low and behold NAPA had the size I'd used before (same brand), but recommended the larger, about an inch longer, which dublicated the OEM battery.(there are several bolt spacings for bat. holder clamp) Oh, and beware the red paint on the negative cable bolted to the frame, it's neg. not pos.)

How did you notice it was still on ? I'll check mine. Six years, on a battery isn't bad, maybe only how you've treated it would come into question. (I take mine inside and put on a charger periodically, no freezing temps what about water level.) But you've said you've tried a new battery. Mine is an 01, so tell me how you noticed it was on. Did you look through the windows ? Open the windows, sit in the car and observe, then check ? I have noticed that the interior lights didn't fade to off, once.(Came out a day or two later, and noticed the door interior lights were on and hot, indicating they've been on for a while.) Ever since I've looked to see if they fade off after removing keys and closing doors.

My start ups are very similar. 2001, 59k, did every maintenance pre-vent, cold starts, sometimes hot starts, is when it occurs, sits sometimes a long time between starts. I've just learned to egnore it. Especially noticable inside the garage on start up.I haven't read any red hot warnings on this subject, but give it time, someone will reply.I understand it applies to a dry oil sump.

Excellent reply JFP in PA. Preventive maintenance, to prevent larger problems. When 11 years go by, and even though your not putting miles on it, you still have drastic temperature changes, accruing possible wear. If you can afford it, it makes sense.

Thanks very much guys. I'm waiting on the parts from Sunset to get started. I thought maybe I should spring for a water pump, so I will. And yes I ordered the plugs and fuel filter already along with air filter and extra oil filters.

Does that old fluid always stay in there than or does it eventually cycle with the rest ? My Bentley manual say's to use a Porsche tester that turns the valves on and off when flushing, if you have the PSM type. I mean isn't the two year flush all about getting out all the fluid that might have moisture in it ? Especially the more expensive parts. No advice on the water pump change out ? Thanks

I'm getting ready to try everything for the 60k service myself and was wondering if anybody had any thought's about it ? When checking the serpentine belt and if it needs replaced is it common to replace the water pump also ? My car is a 2001 Boxster with 59k on it. I only put 2 to 3k a year on it, and garage it through winter. Also since my car doesn't have the traction control I should be able to use the Motive Power Bleeder and get a complete brake flush. I've looked through just about all the DIY's and discussions so I'm feeling pretty confident. Thanks

My 2001 was dripping oil, oh so lightly, but the Porsche garage told me the plastic will develope cracks from heat and cooling affects. Not the o-rings but the connectors. So I had mine changed and it did stop the problem. But who knows, maybe it was the o-rings. My car is an 01 and I live in a fairly cold area, Pa., so I could see this. I only had 52k on it then in 2011 when I had this work done.

It's very selective to the model type year. But you should find any questions answered quite well. You'll just have to pose it in the proper field for the year boxster your looking at when your ready.

Got some new wiper blades from the dealer and wasn't sure how they went on. The spoiler is down and the curve is up. Didn't find anything in the owners manuel. But serching the forums I found some pic's in the 911 section and it worked for me.( I transfered the pic's to here) The old ones weren't OEM and didn't have the curve on the passenger side or the spoiler on the drivers side.

There's many grades of SS. 308 is an all around rod to use but Inconel might be a better choice.(there are different grades and sizes of this to, so ask someone's who knows for sure, 1/16 " or smaller) It's more of a blend and is softer. Used to make transition welds and when the material is not known. After that you have to consider cracking. SS is picky at times, especially casted material. I would preheat the base metal and have it bolted in place or to a fixture to make sure it doesn't warp. SS can really, really warp. Make sure the bead is not concave, that's a crack starter for sure. I've been a turbine welder for a long time in powerplants so I know what I'm talking about. Good luck.

Do yourself a favor and get the Mich PS2's, N3, you'll love em.(if they have them in 19" that is)

Finally the dealer got my new tires in and I love them. Alot more quiet than my last Mich. Sport Rib N1's. And just like Michelin and Tire Rack said, it would be mid June before another production run would be completed, there they were. I had to wait, no one, I mean no one had them in 265/35 18's. I can't remember if the fronts were available back then or not. They're 40 series. But it's been 3 longs months of waiting and I'm glad I did.

I bought the Billy Boat Cat Back muffler and am satisfied. I mean it sure beats the quite stock one. It's a sports car after all. If it drones and gets annoying I just upshift for awhile.

Michelin emailed me this morning saying they expect to run the 265/35/18's mid June. Where Porsche dealerships with them on back order will recieve them first.

Thanks I'll check that site out. Been serching online for a couple hours now and not coming up with anything in stock. To answer your question, I think so. If you se on TireRack you'll see the PS 2's 265/35/18's N3( which I believe means third generation of that type tire) they're just not in stock. Seems to me you can only save 300 clams by going with something comparable. So for that reason I was trying to hold out. The service manager and his assistent says they really are the best. Found this tonight while looking, it's about N ratings being worth it or not. Scroll down to Porsche on page. http://www.carbibles.com/tyre_bible.html

Is anyone else waiting for Mich. PS 2's to come in at their dealer or TireRack ? I've been waiting a month now for 265/35/18's to come in. TireRack told me it might be another couple months yet. If thats the case I'm going to have to go with something else. I have the Sport Ribbed N spec tires now where only the rears need replaced but can't find any. So the dealer says I need to replace all four and that the Mich PS 2's are the best. Maybe the Conti's as a second. Any suggestions would be appreaciated.

Yeah I think you screwed up and will need to buy the matching fronts. I've been waiting months for Michelin PS2's to come in. Tire Rack has them back ordered for 265/35/18. I have a set of Mich. Sport Ribbed on now but the rears are wore out. The dealer recommened not mismatching because the Ribbed are no longer available. He said I'd feel it. So I ordered all four PS 2's through the dealer. Probably gonna have to bite the bullet like me and scrap the fronts. I had to do this once before with those **** Pirrelli Zero things. Oh and I found this later, some even recommend mismatched tire wear causing problems with the feel. http://www.carbibles.com/tyre_bible.html

Has anyone else replaced a plastic seal around the sparkplugs ? I noticed some oil under the car, not dripping, last fall before putting car away. When I took the car to the dealer for and oil change he mentioned I had a leaking seal around plug. Having seen it also I agreed to getting it replaced this spring. Now I'm thinking I should get all six replaced to avoid the problem in the future since the car is 9 years old with 53k on it. 2001 Boxster

I to noticed some oil on the drivers side. Shortly there after doing an oil change at the dealer,( this pass fall) Sewickley Car Store, Pittsburgh Pa. they told me I had an oil seal around the sparkplug leaking. Having seen the leaked oil I'm going to have them replace all the seals when I do my 60k service next week.(something they recommended with my years and milage) I couldn't tell from crawling under the car (slightly rasied with jack and jack stand) where it was coming from. But since it just started I assume they spotted the same thing I did.. Any suggestions would be appreciated for sure. In fact I thing I'll start a new link on this because I haven't seen anything on sparkplug seals.

Well I for one am gonna pay the cheese and take it to the dealer. Sewickley Car Store in Pittsburgh Pa. I like the service manager and trust their opinions. I'm going to do my 60k service sooner than recommended just to avoid troubles. Mainly because I only put a few thousand miles a year on it. So its 9 years old with only 53k. But I'm concerned about the poly rib belt plus I have a sparkplug seal starting to leak. Had a bad experiance servicing my Acura RL with a local guy. Did the timing belt along with all the hoses and fluids early for the same reasons. Got it back and the whole engine was vibrating a little more than it should. Turned out the harmonic bal. was mispositioned. Got it back after that and several hose were not conected. I don't believe a dealer mech. would have made these simple mistakes because they work on that same type of car day in day out. By the way just to have peace of mind I ended up going to the dealer to have all that work rechecked. Could have spent less just going to the dealer. Not to mention trying after market brake parts that did not hold up and had to redue early. Could have saved just using OEM parts. So I'm going to apply this to my 2001 Boxster. Dealers only, OEM parts only, and Porsche mech. only..... Plus I've read that if you do have issues after warrenty is expired there is a better chance Porsche will help if all service was done at a dealer. So I consider it an insurance policy. Now saying this isn't easy not being rich and perfectly capable of doing most any car repairs myself, it's just that it's a Porsche and I want it to be perfect. But than again I like my dealership.